Titus: Leadership Matters
Titus 1:5-9
Pastor Jefferson M. Williams
Chenoa Baptist Church
02-07–2021
Leadership Training
I became a Christian on the last day of 1990. Early in 1991, the college ministry I attended had leadership training classes and I showed up eager to learn.
What I didn’t know was that I wasn’t supposed to be there. It was for mature Christians who were going to be serving in leadership position in the ministry.
I learned much later that there was a huge debate about what to do with me. They finally decided that no one had the heart to tell me I couldn’t come so I got to go through the training.
Ironically, I’m one of the few out of that ministry that ended up in full time church leadership!
What I learned in that class formed the foundation for everything that I learned after that - everything rises and falls on leadership and a church will only go as far as their leadership can take them.
Marks of a Healthy Church
Last week, we began our sermon series through Titus by studying the first four verses and learning five marks of a healthy church:
1. A healthy church is full of individuals who are passionate about people coming to faith in Christ and are willing to do anything short of sin to share the Gospel with them.
2. A healthy church is full of people who are on a faith journey. For the ones that claim Christ as Savior, they are always growing always changing. They are different than they were 5 days ago, 5 months ago, 5 years ago.
3. A healthy church is full of people who want to make a difference in this life but also realize this life is just the prologue to eternity. Their hope is in heaven and nowhere else.
4. A healthy church is full of people that understand that the preaching of the Gospel is the most important thing we do as a church. They wake up on a Sunday morning with a holy anticipation that God is going to do miracles through His Word.
5. A healthy church is full of people who are disciples of Jesus who make other disciples of Jesus. It’s not an option. It’s a command.
Turn with me to the book of Titus.
Prayer
[Slide] The Mission
[Slide] “The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.” (Titus 1:5)
We learn from Acts 2, that there were individuals from Crete in Jerusalem at Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out and the apostles were able to share the Gospel in all the different languages represented.
These Cretans went back to their island and formed a loose knit collection of churches.
Paul visited Crete briefly on his way to Rome and he delegates his apostolic authority to Titus in the introduction of this letter.
{Slide} Crete is in the Mediterranean Sea and is the largest of the Greek Isles. At one point, it was the center of the ancient Minoan civilization.
Paul left Titus in Crete to supervise the churches and later wrote this letter (sometime in the mid 60s) to encourage and strengthen him for the task ahead.
While it seems that Timothy was lacking self-confidence, Titus was Paul’s troubleshooter. If there was a hard assignment, Paul knew he could trust Titus to pull it off.
In Paul’s day, it was inundated with cults and temples and the inhabitants claimed that Zeus was born on Crete.
The island was mountainous and there were no road systems. But more importantly, the people of Crete were known as “liars, evil brutes, and gluttons.” (Titus 1:12)
It was a place filled with idol worship and immorality and out of these Cretans, Titus was to train and ordain leaders for the church.
[Slide]The Mandates
Titus had two mandates from Paul:
“The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.” (Titus 1:5)
Titus was to “put in order what was left unfinished.” “Put in order” is a Greek word that means to set a broken bone or to straighten crooked teeth.
The Cretan churches were a mess and Titus was charged with straighten them out.
What did Paul consider unfinished? We learn that from the second directive he gives Titus. He is concerned with the lack of leadership in the local churches on Crete.
Paul writes to Titus that his main goal to create healthy churches is to “appoint elders in every town.” There were up to 100 towns on Crete so this would be a daunting task.
Everything rises and falls on leadership and Paul wants to make sure that the Cretan churches have a firm foundation of leadership as they grow and multiply.
This was Paul’s normal church planting practice. The apostles were dying off and they needed to train and pass the leadership off:
Acts 11:29-30: The disciples, as each one was able, decided to provide help for the brothers and sisters living in Judea. This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.
Acts 14:23: Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.
Acts 15:22: Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas.
What is an elder?
Pastor Steve Cole gives this definition:
“An elder is a spiritually mature man, knowledgeable in the Scriptures, officially recognized by the local church to work with other elders in exercising oversight and shepherding God’s flock.”
In the New Testament, there are two church offices that are tasked with leading the church - elders and deacons. We will look at deacons next week but this morning we will explore the character and responsibilities of elders.
[Slide] There are four words in the New Testament that give us a beginning picture of what an elder is.
Elder - presbuteros, where we get the word “Presbyterian” and is used as one who is an example of a mature faith. (Acts 20:17; I Timothy 5:17; I Peter 5:1 and here in Titus 1)
“To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed…” (I Peter 5:1)
Overseer - episkopos, where we get our word Episcopal which means to provide care for. (I Timothy 3:1; Philippians 1:1; I Peter 5:2; and here in Titus 1:7)
“To all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons…” (Phil 1:1)
Pastor - poimen,, where we get the word shepherd, which means “to care for the needs of others (Ephesians 4:13)
“Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
Ruler - Hegeomai, which means ones who rules or governs. (Hebrews 13:17)
These four words are used interchangeably in the New Testament. But there are subtle differences.
Elder stresses the high qualifications for the office and comes out of the Old Testament.
Overseer is a Greek idea of the responsibilities of the office of elder.
Notice that the word elders is always plural. The New Testament teaches that healthy churches have a plurality of elders.
What are the responsibility of elders within the context of church leadership?
My friend Brian Bill lists six:
[Slide] Elders set the example for Christian maturity. (I Peter 5:3)
I have had the honor of serving with elders that were truly some of the most godly men I’ve ever known.
[Slide] Shepherding the flock under their care. (I Peter 5:2)
At my old church, the senior pastor often started elder meetings by reading Ezekiel 38:4:
“You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost.”
We then used this verse as an outline for intercessory prayer as we prayed that God would:
· Strengthen the weak
· Heal the sick
· Bind up the injured
· Bring back the strays
· Search for the lost
[Slide] Feed the flock through preaching and teaching. (I Timothy 5:17)
This responsibility of preaching is limited to males so you will see that the Scriptures will always say an elder is male.
If you are interested in reading a paper I wrote for my ordination concerning why females can’t be elders, I would be happy to give it to you.
This doesn’t mean women can’t be leaders but there are roles and responsibilities that are assigned to men only in the church.
I remember talking about this when I first got here with a group of women and one of them spoke up and said, “That’s good to hear. It’s about time that the men around here lead the church!” The rest of the group gave a hearty “Amen.”
[Side] Protect the sound doctrine of the church and drive alway false teachers. (Titus 1:9)
[Slide] Lead the church forward. (I Tim 3:5)
[Slides] Pray for the sick (James 5:14)
“Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord.” (James 5:14)
Mark Dever was preaching and leading his church Capital Hills Baptist Church, to see that they needed a plurality of elders and was approached by an older lady who said very bluntly, “What you just preached wasn’t Baptist! Baptist don’t have elders!”
Mark smiled at her and tried to remind her that her simply preached what was in the text, that having a plurality of elders was Biblical. She said, “I don’t care if it’s Biblical, it’s not Baptist!”
I think we’ve answered the question that it is indeed Biblical.
Next let me answer the question, “Why don’t Baptist churches have elders?”
Well, in one sense, they do. I’m the elder. I’m the lone elder.
But what I found out this week was that for most of Baptist history, many churches did have elders.
In fact, in the 17, 18, 19th centuries many of the Baptist creeds and confessions listed two offices for the church - elders and deacons.
?
It wasn’t until the middle of the 20th century, (within the last 50 years) that Baptist churches started moving away from a Biblical model of church leadership.
But within the past 15 years, many Baptist churches have realized that the leadership structure is not Biblical or healthy and have transitioned back to a plurality of elders and deacons.
Scripture doesn’t say how many elders to have just that it should be more than one. Scripture doesn’t say how old they should be but it’s obvious that they have to be spiritually mature.
?How about the question, is it best for the church?
In the leadership structure we have at Chenoa Baptist Church, I’m the lone elder. This isn’t healthy for the church or me as a pastor.
A plurality of elders helps take some of the burdens of caring for the flock off my shoulders.
A plurality of elders provides me with accountability that I don’t currently have right now.
A plurality of elders is Biblically wise because it helps me make better decisions.
“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” (Prov 15:22)
I can point you to many resources that I’ve studied over the last week to help me come to that conclusion.
How do elders relate to a congregation in a Baptist Church?
Obviously, elders are the lead shepherds of the flock. They help lead the congregation in decisions that they have to make like the budget, discipline, handling conflict, and choosing of deacons.
We are not moving to a plurality of elders tomorrow but I will show my hand. My desire is when it comes my time to hand this church off to the next pastor, I can say to him that Chenoa Baptist Church has a healthy, biblical leadership structure.
So, Titus is left on Crete to straighten the churches out and to appoint elders.
So out of these churches full of baby Christians that are living in a sea of sinfulness, Titus is to chose and train up leaders.
He’s got his work cut out for him!
[Slide] Qualifications
Paul then lists out of the qualification for this office of elder. These qualifications are not exhaustive and there are other lists that overlap this one like in I Timothy and I Peter.
The list prioritizes character over competence, personality, business success, or charisma.
The health of the church demands that there are qualified leaders to fill this office.
This isn’t a popularity contest and this isn’t something done for selfish reasons.
Truthfully, a your elder, this was a very convicting and challenging study to go through.
Although these qualifications are for the elder office in the church, they are a good list to walk through as a Christian to see where we stand as far as spiritual maturity.
* [Slide] Blameless - Paul begins with the word “blameless” or in your translation it might be “above reproach.” We see this is verse 6 and then repeated again in verse 7.
This is an umbrella term under which all the rest of the qualities fall under.
To be blameless or above reproach which literally means “nothing to take hold of.” This is a man that is not liable to accusation in his personal character and integrity.
Listen carefully, this does not mean this man is sinless or prefect because if it did I would resign and go back on tour with my band!
It implies wholeness and balance rather than perfection.
This is a man with a spiritual maturity worth imitating. This would be invaluable for the leadership on Crete.
Where does this quality play out the most? In the home.
“faithful to his wife”
Your translation may have “a husband of one wife.” Literally the Greek reads “a one woman man.”
On Crete, it was normal for a man to be a “three woman man.” He would have a mistress, a concubine or favorite prostitute, and the his wife for bearing children.
A elder is a man with a reputation for sexual fidelity in their marriage. No flirting with other women. No delving into porn.
They are faithful to their wife. They love and cherish her and his marriage can be held up as an example to others, especially younger couple.
We need not make this qualities wooden or rigid. Can a single man be an elder? Of course, Jesus was single and so was Paul!
Can a man that has been divorced be an elder? That question has been debated for a long time. Here’s where I land.
The qualification seems to be in the present tense and focuses on their present relationship.
What if a man has been divorced before he was a Christian? What was done before Christ is gone and the new has come.
If I man has been divorced, then it’s important to listen to the story and see if it was a Biblical reason for the divorce.
If the divorce was recent, it is prudent for a man to not be considered for eldership and they focus on healing.
“a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient.”
In Paul’s letter to Titus he says it this way,
“He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?)” (I Timothy 3:4-5)
He is to the leader in his home. He is to see his home as his first church and be active in discipling and training up his children in the faith.
We can not save our children and just because they are raised in a Christian home doesn’t guarantee that they will believe.
I’ve heard pastor misquote and misuse Proverbs 22:6:
“Train up a child in the way that he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.”
This is a proverb, a truism, a precept, not a promise.
I’ve known amazing couple that did everything right and their children don’t believe and I’ve known couples that did nothing at all, like my parents, and both my brother and I are not only Christians but pastors.
No child is perfect and we need to give kids space for God to work in their lives. But they are to have some sense of control of the children so that they are going wild on the sin Island of Crete.
But this qualification expects the children to be obedient and for the man to serve and lead his household well. This seems to be focused on children living in the house)
Now Paul lists eleven qualities ( five negative and six positive) that should round out the picture of what an elder is.
not overbearing
This term means self-willed and focused on self. This man is bossy and has to be right. He is arrogant and never admits he’s wrong. It’s his way or the highway.
This is the opposite of gentleness. This is a person who doesn’t play well with others and when they get mad they take their ball and go home.
This is a killer in the context of church leadership.
not quick tempered
This is a man who is easily provoked, they have a short fuse. They seem to be a smoldering volcano just waiting to erupt.
William Barclay wrote:
“A blaze of anger is an unhappy thing; but this long-lived, purposely maintained anger is still worse. The man who nourishes his anger against any man is not fit to be an office-bearer of the Church.”
These are bitter people and they make for terrible leaders.
Paul wrote to the Ephesian church:
“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” (Ephesians 4:26-27)
[Slide] not given to drunkenness
This word means to linger long at the wine. The Bible never teaches total abstinence from alcohol but there is a responsibility for moderation.
On Crete they worshipped Dionysus and that worship involved drunkenness and immorality.
They were to be separate from that world.
An elder is responsible to be mentally sharp and use sound judgement.
“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit…” (Ephesians 5:18)
not violent
This word literally means a striker. This is a bully, one who is pugnacious.
When I was a teenager, I used to be invited to play basketball at my brother’s church. One time, a leader in his church got really mad at my brother and I watched him slam my brother against the wall and yell in his face. This was a grown man and a 16 year old. This was completely inappropriate and showed that he was not the kind of man that should have ever been in leadership in the first place.
not pursuing dishonest gain.
We live in a world of excess and an unhealthy obsession with money and wealth. Rapper Lil’ Uzi Vert got a 24 million dollar pink diamond embedded in his forehead this week.
This is a man who is honest in his dealings with people and doesn’t take unfair financial advantage of others. They aren’t greedy and they don’t serve for the pay or the honor.
The Roman historian Polybius had this to say: “They are so given to making gain in disgraceful and acquisitive ways that among the Cretans alone of all men no gain is counted disgraceful.”
Peter wrote concerning elders:
“To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” (I Peter 5:1-4)
Then Paul transition with “rather” to the six positive qualifications.
[Slide] Hospitable
This word is a combination of two words that means “lover of strangers.” In Titus’ day roadside inns were few and far between and they were usually dirty, scarcely furnished, and dangerous.
Hospitality is a practical expression of love. This man welcomes people into his house and cares deeply about his neighbors.
But this isn’t just about welcoming strangers into his house. It’s loving those different from him.
My friend Milt, one was an elder for many years, is one of the best examples of this I’ve ever seen.
We were at a music festival and some of the students noticed a girl whose face was covered in piercings.
I looked around and saw the girl they were talking about. She was sitting having a cup of coffee with Milt. He talked to her for over an hour, invited her to our campsite for dinner, and gave our students an incredible example of hospitality.
[Slide] One who loves what is good
He has a passion for what is good. He loves what God loves and hates what God hates.
[Slide] Self Controlled
This is a man who is sober minded and has mental and physically control over himself.
Remember that this is one of the fruit of the Spirit that we learned about last year.
After my father was saved, he told me that he didn’t think he had any kind of self -control until he was in his mid forties.
[Slide] upright, holy, disciplined.
The last three are a triad and related to one another.
To be upright is deal fairly with people and to pursue justice for those who can not fight for themselves. These men know the right thing to do.
This is focused on his relationship with others.
To be be holy simply means to be set apart. To be pure and undefiled.
This focuses on his relationship with God.
And disciplined is about his relationship with himself. Is he in control in the area of eating, drinking, spiritual disciplines, in being on time?
This focused on his relationship with himself.
As I said before, this is not an exhaustive list and the list in Timothy has a few to add to this.
temperate
This is a man who is free from every excess or from making rash decisions.
He must not be a recent convert
A new Christian should be submitting to being discipled and growing in his Christian walk.
Paul tells Timothy, “do not be hasty in the laying on of hands.” (I Timothy 5:22)
To place a new Christian into a leadership position is very dangerous to the church and to that man.
Paul continues and shows us the possible result:
“…or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgement as the devil.” (I Tim 3:6)
He must also have a good reputation with outsiders
I read of a church that in the appointment of elders would place an ad in the newspaper with his picture and with an article explaining that he was being considered for the office of elder. If they knew anything that would keep him from fulfilling this responsibility, the reader was to contact the church.
As we go back to Titus, we see the last two qualifications of elders and these may be the most important of them all.
[Slide] Men of the Word
[Slide] “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” (Titus 1:9)
Next week, we will discover this is what separates elders from deacons.
Elders must be convinced that the Scriptures are the priority of our preaching, the ultimate authority for the church, and that orthodoxy (right teaching) will lead to orthopraxy (right living)
These are men of the Word. One of the elders at the church I used to serve at would buy a Bible and go through it in a year making notes on nearly every page and then he would give that to one of grandchildren. He’s done that again and again as his family grew.
Pastor Todd Wagner writes:
“You ought to be able to airdrop an elder into any place in the world and come back six months later and find a thriving, healthy, growing Biblical community.”
How do you find elders? You simply look for a man who is already “eldering” in the church already.
These men are able to teach and encourage the church with sound doctrine, and refute those who oppose it.
I love the word refute in the Greek. It means to oppose a person in such a way that they are compelled to admit the error of his ways.
My friend Rich Maier was an elder at my last church and is a great example of this. He is a man of the word and shares the Gospel everywhere he goes.
With so much immorality and a herd of false teachers infiltrating the church, finding and training these type of men would be absolutely crucial to Titus’ mission.
While all elders can teach the word there are some that are called out to faithfully preach the Word on a regular basis.
Paul told Timothy:
“The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.” (I Timothy 5:17).
Next Steps
As we take steps on our road to revitalization at CBC, there are several things you can do.
1. let’s make sure that we are growing in all these areas personally.
Richard Baxter, the old Puritan preacher, wrote:
“ Take heed to yourselves, lest your example contradict your doctrine…lest you unsay with your lives, what you say with your tongues; and be the greatest hindrances of the success of your own labors.”
I would like you to look at the screen right now and spend some time in prayer asking God to help you grow in these areas.
2. There are some men in this church that need to actively pursue growing into the office of elder.
Paul told Timothy:
“Here is a trustworthy saying: Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task.” (I Tim 3:1)
The word aspires is a strong word that means to actively pursue.
Over the next few years, we will identifying and training elder candidates and will be moving to a Biblical, healthy leadership structure and when the time comes to appoint elders I want to be able to say. “This is God’s man for the job!”
3. Make your elders responsibilities a joy not a burden.
The writer of Hebrews directs:
“Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.” (Hebrews 13:17)
As your pastor/elder, I will stand before God and give an account of my leadership and shepherding here. This is an overwhelming and daunting task.
I need your support and your prayers.
Let me end by asking this question
Who is the head of the church?
It’s not the pastor or the deacons or the congregation. The head of Chenoa Baptist Church is Jesus Christ, the alpha and Omega, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and the bridegroom of the church.
He is the head of the body of people that make up our church. He is worthy of following and worthy of our worship.
Ending song: King of Kings
