First Timothy chapter three, we're going to be looking at verses one through seven tonight and perhaps over the next two weeks. It's important as we come to chapter three that we recognize what Paul writes here in verse 14. He says there to Timothy, I write these things so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and the support of the truth. So what is at stake in the way things are conducted in the church is nothing less than fidelity to the word of God. When we open the door to falsehood or to the inventions of men, even a crack, eventually the dam will break. In the United States, the dam is breaking. because of a failure to adhere faithfully to the Scripture. And it is the duty of faithful Bible-believing Christians to do all that we can do to stem that tide. Because if we do not hold with all that's in us to the Word of God, what are we left with? We're left with a religion of men that may draw in some ways on Scripture, but that is not ordered by Scripture and is not faithful to Scripture. It's by His Word that men are saved. It's by His Word that men are transformed. And there is no salvation, there's no heart transformation apart from belief in and fidelity to His Word. And again, those who depart from His Word are left with only the wisdom of men, and the wisdom of men cannot save anyone. So Paul writes, chapter 3, verse 1, it is a trustworthy statement, if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a noble work that he desires to do. An overseer then must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity. But if a man does not know how to manage his own household, How will he take care of the church of God? And not a new convert so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Well, Father, we thank you that you've given us your word as we come to it tonight. Lord, we pray that you will teach us by the power of your spirit that this word will have a transforming effect on us. Lord, you will work in our hearts and in our minds, Lord, that you'll make us useful servants of your gospel and of your kingdom. And we ask it in Christ's name. It is a trustworthy statement. If any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a noble work he desires to do." Now, this statement, it is a trustworthy saying. There have been some over the course of church history, and there may still be some who read these words. It is a trustworthy statement as relating to the preceding doctrine regarding the role of women in the church. But Paul commonly uses this kind of form of expression as a prelude to what he is about to introduce, what he's about to write. And he writes here, if any man aspires to the office of overseer. So now, having forbidden women to teach or to exercise authority over a man, Paul now writes concerning the qualifications of the office of elder in Christ Church. And he writes in chapter 5 verse 17 of the same letter, the elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. But conversely, James chapter 3 verse 1, let not many of you become teachers, my brethren. knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment. So what is an elder? Well, those men who are called to oversee the affairs of the local church and to teach the Word of God, they're called elders. They're called here in 1 Timothy 1, overseers. Two terms are synonymous. Some churches make a distinction between ruling elders those who oversee the affairs of the local body, and teaching elders, who are the teachers. And while the New Testament includes both duties as among the duties of elders, the New Testament does not teach of two separate offices of elders. The New Testament writers also employ two Greek words when speaking of elders. The word we have here is episkopos, the word that Paul uses when he writes to Titus, treating the same subject matter, is presbyteros. The word presbyteros was often used in the Gospels when speaking of the Jewish elders, of the chief priest and the elders. Paul now uses that same word in Titus, and he'll use it in chapter 5, verse 17 here, of the elders in the church. But both words, episkopos and The presbyteros are translated the same way, elders and overseer, and elder and overseer are speaking of the same office, as is the word pastor. So James 5.14 and 1 Peter 1 also use the term presbyteros when speaking of an elder, as does Paul here, as we just mentioned. John also speaks of himself as an elder. So does Peter in chapter 5 of his first epistle. And then throughout Revelation, John also speaks of elders. Presbyteros is the word that John prefers. But again, these two words, if you're ever doing a word study, mean the same thing. Now, it's in Acts 14, verse 23, where we begin to see Paul appointing elders in every church. In Acts 14, 23, we read, and we will begin in verse 21, I believe, they went to Derbe. And after they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lustra and to Conium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith and saying, through many tribulations, we must enter the kingdom of God. And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. Now in Acts 20, Paul is returning to Jerusalem where he knows he's going to be taken into custody and he's going to face persecution and trial there. And on his way, he arrives in Miletus and he meets with the elders who had come from Ephesus. He called the elders from Ephesus to come to him. So let's read Acts 20, 17. From Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church. And when they had come to him, he said to them, you yourselves know, and he begins to speak to them. But what this shows us is that at least three, four years before Paul wrote this letter to Timothy, he had established and appointed elders in the church of Ephesus where Timothy was now serving. Later, and very soon thereafter, we begin to see the phrase, the apostles and the elders. Again, remember, Paul knows he's going to die soon. So in this letter, he is giving Timothy instruction as to how the church is to be organized according to the will of God. Who are the men who are going to succeed the apostles? And this letter is the letter that is left for us, along with the letter to Titus and 1 Peter, to deal with this subject of how the church is to conduct its affairs. We've already looked at these two words, but understand overseer, elder, pastor are all titles for the same office and the same office holder. The idea of presbyteros or presbyteroi is a term that emphasizes the spiritual maturity of a man who's called to this office. Episcopos is used in reference to overseers and it speaks of the duty of oversight in the church. It's a term that's brought over from the civil culture. So here, Paul uses this term, episkopos, in reference to the men who are given oversight and teaching responsibility in the church. Men of spiritual maturity are given oversight and teaching responsibility in the local church, in every local church. And both terms imply a fixed office with these definite functions. And in each case, throughout the New Testament, Paul is speaking of a plurality of elders in every local church. That is the desired leadership. At the same time, there's nothing here in the apostolic writings or in the New Testament that indicates there is to be a hierarchy within the ministry. All are of the same level, so to speak. The idea of hierarchy develops when, later on, bishops begin to rise up. And these men would be men who would be regarded as authorities over several local churches or parishes. And in time, we had bishops in Jerusalem and Antioch and Constantinople and Alexandria and Rome. Ultimately, the Bishop of Rome claimed authority over all of those other bishops who had authority or claimed authority over all of the local churches. These words though, this office is a call to shepherd the flock of Christ. It's not a call to some board to be a ruler over people or to be an authoritarian. It's a call to be a shepherd. It's not intended to be a position of some particular prestige or honor. It's not given to men simply because they were of high rank in business or in some profession. It's given to men who have demonstrated a love for Christ and for the Word of God, who have a good reputation both within and outside the church, and who are able to teach others the Word of God. And this is reflected in Paul's words to those Ephesian elders we just talked about in Acts chapter 20 where he says to them in verse 28, be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. So this is a calling from God to shepherd the church of God which he purchased with his own blood. Christ purchased the church with his own blood and now he calls men to be shepherds of his flock. So here's 1 Peter 5, verse 1. He writes, I exhort the elders among you as your fellow elder. Now notice, Peter, as well as John, refer to themselves as fellow elders, not as rulers over the other elders in the church, not as bishops, but as fellow elders, and as a witness of the sufferings of Christ. and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed. And here's what I exhort you to do. Shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God, and not for sordid gain. When we see these TV preachers having six Rolls Royces in their driveway and living in multi-million dollar mansions, we have to question what their motivation for their ministry is. So not for sordid gain, but with eagerness, and nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. Now, to prove to be an example is to be one who manifests the fruits of the Spirit, of which Paul writes in Galatians chapter 5. And then Peter concludes this section, and when the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. So, we should not see elders primarily as men in authority, although they have some authority. But we shouldn't see them primarily as rulers, high and exalted but as shepherds. And Paul reminds Timothy and all who would succeed him in Ephesus and throughout the world and throughout the history of the church that it is essential that we be conscientious and watchful and exercise great care in the calling of men to be overseers in the local churches. These two great functions now, Oversight and teaching are what distinguish elders and overseers, or overseers, from deacons. Deacons are characterized not by oversight or by teaching, but by service. Elders and deacons are two quite different offices. Deacons are not called presbuteroi in the New Testament. Deacon is an office of service, But understand, there is no hierarchical arrangement. It is not the case that God deems the elders to be of some greater value to the church. Both the deacons and the elders have great value to the church. Now, Paul writes, if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it's a noble work he desires to do. And by the way, when we look at the requirement that the Holy Spirit sets forth for deacons, we're going to find that they are very similar to those requirements He sets forth here for elders, overseers. So, verse 1, if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a noble work he desires to do. We must understand when Paul speaks of aspiring to the office of elder, he's not speaking of some fleshly ambition to attain to a position of authority or great influence. The Greek word here, oregomai, repudiates that whole idea of ambitious self-seeking. It means to stretch out, to reach after, to yearn for. If selfish ambition is condemned in other matters, How much more severely ought it to be condemned in regard to the office of elder? So we look back to chapter 1, verse 7, and we see men who desired to be teachers of the law. They were men marked by this kind of selfish ambition. In Philippians chapter 1, verse 17, again, men, selfish ambition, marked by selfish ambition, out preaching the gospel. Paul is not talking about that kind of aspiration. He's speaking of a godly desire by which men wish to employ that knowledge of the doctrine of Scripture, which they have learned and now possess for the edification of the local church. So Paul certainly commends the aspiration to the office of elder, and so he encourages it here. And Paul says, Again, this is not to be a place of honor and prestige, but a place of work. This is a work. This office is an excellent work, a noble work, and it must be born in mind. Brethren, especially in the early history of the church, willingness to serve in this office meant not riches or public acclaim. It meant great sacrifice and great risk, great danger because of the persecution and opposition to the gospel that was everywhere. But this is also true today. This is not an office by which we are to seek great riches or great notoriety. If you want to see an illustration of the characteristics that Jesus does not want to see in his elders in his church, look at Matthew chapter 23. in verse five. Here, writing of the Pharisees, he writes, but they do all their deeds to be noticed by men, for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They who love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues and the respectful greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by men. The fact that a man is seeking personal acclaim immediately disqualifies him from ministry. This is not about wearing some gaudy outfit, some gaudy vestments, some two foot high hat. This is about humbly and understanding the great commission that God has given us. teaching the Word of God to people, calling them to repent. And, you know, just the fact that a man desires to teach or believes he is gifted as a teacher does not of itself make him qualified to serve as an elder in Christ's Church. Paul states, a man who yearns to teach and shepherd the flock of Christ sets his heart on a good work. That's a great way to hear and understand these words of the Holy Spirit here in verse one. And a number of the early church fathers stress the fact that this is a work and not some exalted prestigious position. It's a work. And no one, Calvin writes, no one understood better than Paul that the faithful preaching of the word of God is a laborious and difficult charge. And so a man should carefully consider whether or not he is able to bear so heavy a burden. It's a tremendous responsibility to be entrusted to communicate the word of God and explain the word of God to the people of God. Calvin goes on, ignorance is always rash and a mature knowledge makes a man modest. How is it that they who have neither ability nor wisdom often aspire so confidently to hold the reins of government, but because they rush forward with their eyes shut?" So, for the purpose then of restraining that kind of ambition or rashness in seeking an office as an overseer, elder, Paul tells us this is not some honorary position. This is a work, an excellent work, a noble work, yes, but a work nonetheless, meaning something that's going to require a great deal of toil and labor. An elder in Christ's church is not one who merely attends a board meeting once a month. This is a work, and it's a daily work. It's an ongoing work. Here's Calvin's description of the office of elder. It is no light matter to be a representative of the Son of God in discharging an office of such magnitude, the object of which is to erect and extend the kingdom of God, to procure the salvation of souls, which the Lord himself has purchased with his own blood, and to govern the church, which is God's inheritance. Calvin then says, but it's not my intention at present to make a sermon. Calvin could say much in just a few words. And certainly in the days in which Paul wrote, service in Christ's church as an elder overseer was not a position without opposition, hostility, and physical danger. It was not only persecution from both the Jews and the Romans, but there were many false teachers, including in Ephesus. We read about them back in chapter one. Paul addressed Timothy regarding those false teachers at the very outset of this letter, and he commanded him, you must confront these men and call them to cease what they're doing. So oversight in Christ's church, in addition to the other responsibilities, means confronting error. And since men by nature don't really like the Word of God and the ways of God, and even many in the churches now disregard so much of what is written in the Word of God. As we saw in chapter 2, there will always be the necessity of confronting and rebuking error, and that will always be a very difficult challenge. But it is necessary. Not only that, false teaching. always presents an obstacle to those who are seeking to impart and learn the divine truth. False teaching always undermines the work of establishing the gospel. False teaching always undermines the discipling of believers. So this office of elder will always be an office of work. But the Holy Spirit, through the Apostle, assures us this is a noble work. And it's true There will always be varying degrees of giftedness among those called to serve, but any man who desires to serve as an overseer and is called by God to do so, and he must be both eager and willing to give of his time and his energies, regardless of the cost to himself, for the noble work of feeding the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood, as Peter wrote. William Hendrickson, commentator, wrote, the incentive for those who are considering seeking this work must be the glorious character of the work itself. And it is a work which will be bathed in both blessing and trials. And so writing under the authority of Christ, under the inspiration of his spirit, Paul sets down now the essential qualifications which a man aspiring to this office of elder must meet. As we work through this list of qualifications, we quickly see that this is an extremely high bar that Paul sets. Does any man perfectly meet all these qualifications? I would suggest he does not. And yet this is the standard that we are taught to seek This is the standard we must seek. So verse 2, Paul lists several of these qualifications. We're only going to get to one tonight. An overseer then, he says, must be above reproach, husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach. But the first thing he says is, He must be above reproach. So clearly, in excluding all women from these offices of teaching and oversight, Paul and the Holy Spirit were not saying that all men are therefore qualified. Certainly, many men are not qualified. And so the Holy Spirit is now going to list these qualifications for those men who will serve as elders, overseers, what we generally call pastors now. Word pastors, by the way, we just only find it in Ephesians chapter 4 verse 11. But again, the duty is the same. It is the idea of being a shepherd in the church. Now, some see the term above reproach as kind of a heading for all of the traits and qualifications that follow. That may well be, but to be above reproach has its own distinction. And if we look to Titus, chapter 1 verses 5 through 9, we see that there Paul gives to Titus this instruction to appoint elders in every city in Crete, and there he's going to list essentially the same qualifications for elders as here in Timothy. Absent from the list in Titus are requirements that an elder not be a new convert, but clearly that would be necessary, and that he have a good reputation from those outside the church. Although, I believe that that latter requirement of having a good reputation outside the church is implied in the term above reproach. So what does this word mean? What is it to be above reproach? Well, it certainly means not to be caught in any wrongdoing, not to be able to be honestly held for any criminal activity, for any openly sinful activity. The man who's above reproach can't be somebody who we read about in the police blotter as if he were a criminal. He must be a man who is certainly innocent within the society, but also one who has a favorable testimony from people in the church. Being above reproach by itself speaks of one who is not subject to any honest moral condemnation from inside the church or from outside the church. Now, this can't mean that he's never sinned. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. So we can't find any sinless men to serve. but to be above reproach is to be living a life and have lived a life that's not marred by some obvious sinful defect in character, especially since the time of conversion. A sinful defect in character which would preclude him from setting the highest standard for godly conduct. Now, we've seen this in the last 40, 50 years of church history. Of course, Jimmy Swaggart and Jim Baker come quickly to mind as men who came to moral failure and then sought to return to ministry. Now, they returned to ministry at a time when they were no longer beyond reproach. And so, once one comes to Christ and once one comes into service as an elder, If he falls, if he comes into moral failure, and we see this in several of the megachurches in New York, in Australia, in Texas, in Colorado, in big, big churches in those places we've seen moral failure, and men in some of those cases seeking to work their way back into a position of prominence in the church. Well, once you've fallen, you're no longer beyond or above reproach. An elder as difficult as it might be, must be a model for the congregation to follow. I mean, that's exactly what Peter teaches us. It's exactly what the writer of Hebrews teaches us. Chapter 13, verse 7. because that would lessen his authority within the church. There's going to be no one who's free from every vice and every sin, but sins that hurt the reputation of the church, sins which bring disgrace and disrepute upon the church, must never be tolerated among the leaders in the church. So to be above reproach means win enemies, and every elder will find opposition. There will be people who are opposed, every man who comes into these positions, because that's what Satan is about. That is his work, and he'll work through others. And when enemies, even within the church, begin to bring accusations, it's imperative that these charges be proved to be empty when they're fairly judged. Now, John MacArthur cites several reasons why pastors must take great care to remain above reproach. And I'm just going to mention four of them here because I think they're very important. One, elders, overseers in Christ's church are special targets of Satan. Now we're all targets of Satan. He will attack all of us and seek to assault all of us. But MacArthur points out his attacks are going to be more severe and they're going to bring about greater temptation to those who are in leadership in the church, because Satan wishes to destroy Christ's church. Those, MacArthur says, on the front lines of the spiritual battle will bear the brunt of satanic opposition. We're all going to bear it, but an elder has a special target on his back. Second, the fall of a pastor, as we just discussed, or an elder, has greater potential harm to the church. Satan knows that when a shepherd falls, the effect on the sheep is devastating. Some will lose faith when they see the one they've looked up to as fallen. The cause of the gospel is damaged. Outsiders will view the moral failure of a pastor as confirmation of the untruthfulness of the gospel, the untruthfulness of the Christian faith. I was in that place at one time, 40 years ago, when I saw these pastors falling. committing sexual immorality. Third, MacArthur says, a leader's greater knowledge of the truth and his greater responsibility to live according to the truth of Scripture brings a greater chastening when they sin. Fourth, elders' sins are more hypocritical than others because they're sinning against the very word they preach. They're preaching one thing and doing another. Richard Baxter was a Puritan pastor in 17th century England, and he wrote several books. The Saints' Everlasting Rest was one. And another book he wrote for pastors was called The Reformed Pastor. And he said, he wrote this. He said, take heed to yourselves lest your example contradict your doctrine. And lest you lay such stumbling blocks before the blind, as may be the occasion of their ruin, lest you unsay with your life what you say with your tongues, and be the greatest hinders of the success of your own labors, one proud, surly, lordly word, one needless contention, one covetous action may cut the throat of many a sermon, and blast the fruit of all that you've been doing, take heed to yourselves, lest you live in those sins which you preach against in others, lest you be guilty of that which you condemn." Richard Baxter, the Reformed pastor, and he added, many a preacher is now in hell that has a hundred times called on his hearers to use the utmost care and diligence to escape it. The church Every local body is responsible to measure men by this standard of being above reproach. Now, the all too common practice today is to forgive a leader who sins and restore him right back into ministry. Now, we should forgive any sinner who repents of his sin. God is a forgiving God. We must never hesitate to forgive those who truly repent, but to immediately or quickly, or even ever restore such men to ministry, lowers the standards that God expects his leaders to follow. So, in spelling out what it means to be above reproach, and in a sense expanding on these words, Paul lists qualities now. of the overseer's character, the qualities we must find before we call a man to be in a position of oversight and teaching in the Church. And next week, Lord willing, we're going to look at some of the specific criteria that the Holy Spirit sets forth for the men who serve in leadership in Christ's Church. And we will pick up there, Lord willing, next week. Let's take a moment and meditate on the things the Holy Spirit has taught us, and then we will close in prayer. Heavenly Father, we are truly grateful that you have spoken to us in your word that we don't have to go through week after week, month after month, and year after year unclear about your desire for the conduct of your people in your church. We thank you, Lord, that you have opened our eyes to know you, and we thank you, Lord, that you've sent these apostles that you sent Paul and Peter and James and John and the others to instruct us by the power of your spirit as to your will for the governance of your church until the day of Christ's return. And so Lord, we thank you for these things and we give all glory and honor to you in Christ's name. Amen.