When the New York Giants won the Super Bowl last Sunday, Eli Manning was chosen the Most Valuable Player in his role as the quarterback for his team. But he was certainly not the only reason, or even the main reason, his team won the game. They won because every one of the 45 players on the roster, the coaches, the trainers and even the players on the practice squad all fulfilled the roles for which they were best designed.
The same is true for a local church. Every church operates best when every person in that body fulfills the role which has been entrusted to them by God based on how He has equipped them. Over the past four weeks, we have observed that principle when it comes to the elders who oversee the local church. In each local church, God establishes a group of Godly men who oversee the spiritual development and shepherd the members of the body. And in turn the members of the body submit to that leadership. And when that occurs, both the body as a whole and the individual members of the body benefit and can become what God desires for them to be.
Because the role of the elders is so important to the body, God has established the qualifications for those men who would hold those positions in the body of Christ. There are two primary passages where those qualifications are set forth and even though we read them both last week, let’s refresh our memory by looking at them once again.
The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.
1 Timothy 3:1-7 (ESV)
This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you - if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
Titus 1:5-9 (ESV)
As I pointed out last week, the overall qualification is that elders are to be above reproach, which means that they live in such a manner that they are not open to accusation. It certainly doesn’t mean that they are perfect or never sin. If that were the case, no human could ever fulfill these requirements. But it does mean that they consistently demonstrate these character traits as they live their day-to-day lives.
So, rather than look at each requirement in detail, I’ve categorized these requirements into…
SEVEN MARKS OF A BIBLICAL ELDER
We discussed in quite some detail the first of the seven last Sunday. An elder must be:
1. Male
Before we go any further, I need to correct something that I said last week. After Mary pointed this out to me and I went back and listened to the recording of the sermon, I realized that I made a horrible error in my theology. What I meant to say was that prior to the fall Adam and Eve had a perfect marriage. Adam didn’t have to listen to Eve talking about all the other men she could have dated. But it didn’t quite come out right when the words left my mouth. If you weren’t here last week and don’t know what I’m talking about or if you were sleeping during that part of the message, all the better. But for those of you who were here and paying attention, I wanted to clear that up.
In God’s divine plan, men are to fulfill the role of elder in the church. That in no way diminishes the value of women or the importance of their role in the body. In fact, God protects both the body as a whole and the women by not permitting them to be placed into roles for which He has not equipped them.
We needed to devote our entire time to that first mark last week, but we can move through the remaining six much more quickly this morning.
Before I do that, let me encourage you to pay close attention to these character traits. I know for some of you there is going to be the temptation to just tune a lot of this out. You’ll just figure that you’re not an elder or maybe that you’ll never be an elder so there is really no reason for you to pay a lot of attention to any of this. But I’m going to share with you at the end of the message just why this does apply to you as well. So please don’t take a quick nap.
2. Motivated
Paul prefaces the list of qualifications in 1 Timothy 3 with these words:
The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.
Paul uses two different words to describe an elder’s attitude toward becoming an elder. He says that first an elder should aspire to the office. That word means “to reach out” or “to stretch out”. And he says that a man who does that “desires” a noble task. That word means “a compassionate compulsion.” Taken together we get a picture of a man who pursues a leadership position in the church because of an inward compulsion.
I’ll have to admit that at first glance that idea doesn’t sit quite right with me. Having been in several situations where I’ve seen men who were actively pursuing a leadership position in a church for some pretty questionable reasons, I’m a bit leery of someone who seems to be overly motivated to be a church leader.
But the words of Peter that we’ve already looked at several times in this series help us to find a proper balance here.
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.
1 Peter 5:1-3 (ESV)
First the elders are exhorted to shepherd the flock of God. The idea of shepherding immediately precludes those who would seek a leadership position in order to merely be in a position of authority over others. A shepherd cares for his sheep by doing what is best for the sheep. So that is why a Biblical elder is to lead not by domineering, but by being an example to the body. But at the same time Peter also confirms that an elder is to serve willingly and not under compulsion.
When we put all this together, I think it is fair to conclude that:
• The motivation that is required in order to be an elder is a desire to serve, not an ambition for office.
I can tell you from personal experience that all of the men who are elders here at TFC were initially at least somewhat reluctant to take on that role because none of them were seeking a position of authority. But I can also tell you without reservation that each of them is motivated by their desire to serve this body.
3. Mature
Paul expresses this qualification a couple of different ways. In 1 Timothy he writes that the elder must not be a recent convert. And in Titus, he emphasizes the need for an elder to be well grounded in the Word of God. So there is both a quantitative and qualitative aspect of maturity that each elder needs to possess.
Regardless of how intelligent any many might be or how quickly he is able to learn Biblical truths, the elder is not to be a recent convert. One reason that Paul gives for that requirement is that if someone is placed into a position of leadership too quickly that person is likely to become prideful and therefore be more likely to fall away from the truth and become a pawn of Satan. I think the other reason for this requirement is that it takes some time for a man to demonstrate that he meets the Biblical requirements for elders on a consistent basis.
That is one reason that it has been our practice here at TFC to have prospective elders sit in on our elders meetings and participate in ministry under the oversight of the elders for at least a year before they are recommended to the church body.
On the other hand, just being a Christ follower for a long period of time does not automatically qualify a man to be an elder. A prospective elder must be able to demonstrate a good grasp on God’s Word and his life must evidence that he is putting the Biblical principles he is learning into practice in his day-to-day life. There are some men who have been believers for a long period of time who frankly have just never matured to that point in their lives. And because of that they are not qualified to be elders.
4. Members
Once again the words of Peter in 1 Peter 1 are instructive here:
So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you;
1 Peter 5:1-2 (ESV)
Elders are to come from among the flock. Unlike the New York Giants, we don’t build our leadership team by drafting men because they excelled in seminary and we don’t sign free agents from other local churches.
My plan is to continue to serve right here at TFC until either God calls me home to be with Him or until I am no longer able to be effective because of mental or physical limitations. But whenever that occurs, it is the deep desire of my heart that God will raise up someone from right here within this body to take on the role of the teaching elder. And one of the most important things I can do in whatever time God gives me here is to invest my life in training up some younger men who are capable of taking on that role.
My own personal experience really confirms the wisdom of this requirement. The typical approach of waiting until a pastor retires and then putting together a search committee to find a new pastor – almost always someone from outside that local church – rarely results in the new pastor being a good fit for the church, no matter how qualified he is otherwise.
I was completely ineffective in the first church that I pastored. Even after all the asking and answering of questions so that I thought I had a pretty good idea of what I was getting into and the church thought they had a pretty good idea of what they were getting with me, it didn’t take too long to find out I wasn’t a good match for that body.
On the other hand, being able to come here to TFC and work under Pastor Denny for a period of time and to be able to get to know people and for all of you to get to know me and observe my life, has made my ministry here far more effective. Certainly it hasn’t been perfect or free from problems, and there are a lot of things that I could have done better over the years, but I’m convinced that God’s best for the local body is to have elders who are already involved in ministry there.
5. Moderate
It seems like a majority of the qualifications fit into this category. Paul describes those qualifications both positively and negatively:
Positive:
• Sober minded
• Self-controlled
• Respectable
• Hospitable
• Gentle
• A lover of good
• Upright
• Holy
• Disciplined
Negative – not:
• A drunkard
• Violent
• Quarrelsome
• A lover of money/greedy
• Arrogant
• Quick-tempered
The overall picture that is painted by these adjectives is that an elder practices moderation in all areas of his life. He does not live at the extremes – except when it comes to holding fast to the Word of God.
These are qualities that promote unity and harmony within the body of Christ. They are especially essential when the elders exercise their responsibility to admonish the members of the body when they stray from the Word of God. As we saw a few weeks ago, Biblical admonishment requires dealing with people with great gentleness and empathy and that just can’t occur if the elder is violent, quarrelsome, arrogant or quick-tempered.
Ultimately this mark of moderation is rooted in humility. As we’ve discussed this topic of Biblical leadership in our Monday morning Bible studies, that is the one thing that we seem to keep returning to over and over again – and for good reason.
I’m really thankful to be part of a group of men here at TFC who consistently demonstrate this mark of moderation. I see it in the way that we work together as a group of elders. Even though we have sometimes started far apart on some issues, we have always been able to work together to reach a consensus on those issues because no one demands their own way and because we treat each other with the great respect that we have for each other.
And over the past few weeks, I’ve been privileged to see this kind of moderation and humility in action as a couple of our elders have dealt with someone here in this body that was really struggling with a doctrinal issue that has been raised during this sermon series. I don’t want to reveal any more details than that because there is no need to identify any of the people involved. But let me just say that both the church member and the elders approached this issue with great humility. No one said to the other, “Well I’m right and you’re wrong.” No one claimed to be the authority and have all the answers. And in the dialogue that occurred, both the church member and the elders involved came to a much better understanding of the Biblical principle that was involved. That’s what can happen when there is humility and moderation in the body.
6. Managers
In Titus, Paul describes an elder as a “God’s steward”. As we’ve talked about before that word “steward” is used to describe someone who manages or takes care of that which belongs to someone else. In this case, the church belongs to Jesus and the elders are charged in managing each local body on His behalf.
And Paul says that the best way to determine whether a man is qualified to do that is to look at how he manages his own household.
The phrase “husband of one wife” literally means “a one-woman man”. The idea here is that the husband is faithful to his wife and that he exercises loving leadership in that marriage relationship. A man who does not do that in his home is not going to be able to be an effective leader in the body of Christ.
An elder must also demonstrate his ability to manage his children. Once again, if his children are unruly and rebellious and live in debauchery, then that man is not qualified to manage the church family.
A couple of words of caution are in order here. There is nothing in this passage that requires that a man be married or that he have children in order to be an elder. We must keep in mind that Paul is concerned much more here with the overall character of a man than being able to go through and just check off a bunch of boxes on a checklist. The broad principle here is that the elder must demonstrate that he is above reproach in his dealing with women and with his family.
The second caution is that we can’t expect our elders to have perfect kids. No father, no matter how good of a job he does managing his children, can guarantee that those children will become Christ-followers or that at some point in their life that they won’t rebel. The Bible is clear that each person is responsible for his or her behavior.
So we need to evaluate this requirement by taking a broad look at how a man manages his family and whether he is fulfilling the role that God has entrusted to him in his relationship with his wife and children.
7. Mentors
In 1 Timothy we find that an elder must be able to teach. Paul further expands on that requirement in Titus when he writes that an elder must “be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.”
We’ve already commented on the need for the elders to be well-rooted in the Bible. But that spiritual maturity is not just for their own personal benefit. The elders must be able to pass that Biblical knowledge on to others in the body and then help people to apply what they are learning in their everyday lives.
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul expanded on this responsibility:
You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.
2 Timothy 2:1-2 (ESV)
Cleary what is involved here is more than merely teaching a bunch of facts. The idea here is that the elders must be able to effectively mentor the members of the body so that they can mature in their walk with Jesus. Or as we’ve described it in our church’s mission statement:
To develop mature disciples who follow, serve and proclaim Jesus as Messiah.
This teaching and mentoring role of the elders can be carried out in a variety of ways. Although we certainly have some elders who are capable of getting up and teaching in front of the body like I do each week, it is certainly not the only way that our elders engage in mentoring our body. Sometimes that occurs as they lead a small group discussion or Bible study – either here on Sunday mornings during “Connections” or during the week. But much of the time it occurs as they spend time with the individual members of the body, helping them to understand and apply God’s Word in their lives.
That’s one of the reasons we’ve established our Elder Family Ministry. That allows each of our elders to work with a small group of families so that they can get to know you and your needs and then help you address those needs and grow in your relationship with Jesus.
Remember at the beginning of the message I encouraged you to pay close attention even if you’re not an elder or don’t think you’ll ever become one. That is because even though these seven marks apply specifically to the elders, with the exception of being male, which doesn’t apply to at least half of you here this morning, these are the kind of character traits that all of us should aspire to in our walk with Jesus:
• We should all be motivated by a desire to serve others in the name of Jesus
• We should all desire to become mature Christ followers who know the Bible and apply the principles that we find there in our daily lives.
• We should all strive to be functioning members of this body and to be ministers for Jesus wherever He has placed us
• We should all work toward a life of moderation and humility rather than living at the extremes.
• We are all to be good managers of that which God has entrusted to us – especially with our families
• And every one of us have been called to be mentors. The final command that Jesus gave to His followers was not just for the apostles or the elders. It is a command that has been given to each one of us who have made Jesus our Savior and Lord:
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:18-20 (ESV)
