WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:03.839 Together we're actually going to do a topical message which we don't do very often. 00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:13.759 We're going to take a one-week break from the Gospel of John and we're going to be in 1 Timothy chapter 3 reading verses 1 through 7. 00:00:14.480 --> 00:00:30.320 And this is really, we're doing this because we want to make sure that if you attend this church that you know exactly how it's run and what we do behind the scenes, you know, that you don't technically get to see on a Sunday morning. 00:00:30.480 --> 00:00:36.159 So if you're new here and you're like, oh great, I picked this Sunday to be here, you're going to find out a lot about our church. 00:00:36.240 --> 00:00:42.399 It's actually a really good Sunday if you're visiting and wanting to know more about how things go here. 00:00:42.560 --> 00:00:47.359 So if you are able, would you please stand for the reading of God's Word? 00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:54.799 We're going to be reading 1 Timothy chapter 3, verses 1 through 7. 00:00:56.719 --> 00:01:01.520 Still here pages turning, so I'm going to wait just a little bit longer. 00:01:01.759 --> 00:01:05.840 Because I want you to be able to follow along and see these verses for yourself. 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:10.079 Okay, starting in verse 1, it says, This saying is trustworthy. 00:01:10.239 --> 00:01:15.040 If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble work. 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:33.040 An overseer therefore must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not an excessive drinker, not a bully, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not greedy. 00:01:33.359 --> 00:01:39.840 He must manage his own household competently and have his children under control with all dignity. 00:01:40.079 --> 00:01:46.560 If anyone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of God's church? 00:01:46.879 --> 00:01:53.599 He must not be a new convert, or he might become conceited and incur the same condemnation as the devil. 00:01:53.760 --> 00:02:02.400 Furthermore, he must have a good reputation among outsiders, so that he does not fall into disgrace and the devil's trap. 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:03.040 Let's pray. 00:02:03.200 --> 00:02:05.120 We're also going to pray for Jackson Compion. 00:02:05.280 --> 00:02:06.560 He's our missionary of the week. 00:02:06.799 --> 00:02:09.120 Lord, we thank you so much for this morning. 00:02:09.280 --> 00:02:18.159 Lord, we thank you for this special Sunday where we get to talk just a little bit about our church and what happens outside of Sundays and on Sundays as well. 00:02:18.479 --> 00:02:29.840 Lord, I pray that you would just open our eyes and our hearts, that you would soften us to your word, that you would do your perfect word, work through your word in each one of us. 00:02:30.080 --> 00:02:38.159 Lord, I pray that you would be glorified above all, and that you would be the one that's speaking up here today, and I'd be able to step aside. 00:02:38.319 --> 00:02:39.599 We pray in Jesus' name. 00:02:39.919 --> 00:02:40.400 Amen. 00:02:40.639 --> 00:02:41.680 You may be seated. 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:50.400 So, why are we doing a whole sermon here on a Sunday in 1 Timothy 3 and taking a break from the Gospel of John? 00:02:50.560 --> 00:03:01.120 Well, it's for a couple of reasons, and one of those reasons is that we are officially bringing Ben Eisenman on part-time staff of our church here at Abide. 00:03:01.439 --> 00:03:04.719 And you may be thinking, yeah, we could celebrate that, absolutely. 00:03:06.159 --> 00:03:09.360 But some of you are probably like, wait, he's not already? 00:03:09.599 --> 00:03:12.879 You know, and the answer to that is kind of. 00:03:13.759 --> 00:03:17.840 It's been a strange uh year and a half for us as a church, which I'll explain. 00:03:18.000 --> 00:03:32.240 You know, when I was recovering from my brain surgery at the beginning of last year, Ben started putting in a lot of extra hours as he stepped into that interim pastor lead pastor role, taking uh my position for that time. 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:44.560 And I think it's safe to say that he absorbed more responsibility than anyone else in our church with the added admin that he was doing and the added teaching, all the added teaching that he was doing as well. 00:03:44.879 --> 00:03:52.319 And as a thank you to him, as uh Amy just mentioned, we as a church were giving him an honorarium every month. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:04:01.039 But you can really only do that for so long before you need to make it official and make somebody an employee, and we felt like we came to that point. 00:04:01.120 --> 00:04:06.479 Like we can't just keep giving an honorarium, we need to make it official and bring him uh on staff. 00:04:06.639 --> 00:04:19.279 So Ben is an official employee of Bay Calvary now, and he's gonna be putting in, and he has been putting in already, about 30 hours or so uh a month with all the responsibilities that he had. 00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:27.759 So we as elders, that's me, that's Ben, that's Pete, who's in the back, that's Brian, who's right over there, who most of you know. 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:37.920 We thought it would be a good thing for our church, um, especially if you're new here, to understand how we as elders function within our church government. 00:04:38.079 --> 00:04:50.480 You know, and when we talk about church government, don't let your eyes like roll back in your head and you're just like, ah, we're talking about finances, and now we're talking about church government, like, what a Sunday to come to church. 00:04:50.720 --> 00:04:51.040 No. 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:54.639 It may sound boring, but I promise it's not. 00:04:54.800 --> 00:05:09.279 I don't want you to check out because really you should know and be aware of how your church is organized, how pastors and elders are ordained, and what the qualifications for church leadership is. 00:05:09.439 --> 00:05:22.319 And I really want you to see that these qualifications for elders aren't some crazy, you know, some qualifications for these crazy radical Christians that can somehow pull all of this off. 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:29.360 As we go through these qualifications, I think you'll see that we should all be living these things out. 00:05:30.000 --> 00:05:33.279 Every follower of Christ should be living these things out. 00:05:33.439 --> 00:05:46.000 You know, there are some things that we're gonna see are gender specific, some things that are gift specific, but we should all be living out the character qualifications that we're gonna be going through here this morning. 00:05:46.240 --> 00:05:53.199 Because they all point to a person who is living a life that is surrendered to Jesus Christ. 00:05:53.600 --> 00:05:57.279 A life that is abiding in Jesus Christ. 00:05:57.519 --> 00:06:02.160 So, to all of you that are listening here today, this passage is for you. 00:06:02.319 --> 00:06:05.120 It's not just for the elders of the church. 00:06:05.360 --> 00:06:08.800 And I want you to ask this question as we're going through these things. 00:06:08.959 --> 00:06:11.120 This great time for self-examination. 00:06:11.279 --> 00:06:13.360 Every character quality that we go through. 00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:15.040 Am I succeeding? 00:06:15.439 --> 00:06:16.720 Am I struggling? 00:06:16.959 --> 00:06:18.319 Or am I failing? 00:06:18.639 --> 00:06:20.959 Great time for self-examination. 00:06:21.199 --> 00:06:24.720 God, as we as we move on, that's what we're going to be doing this morning. 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:26.800 So it really is for everybody. 00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:34.000 Now, for context here in 1 Timothy, Paul just finished telling them at the end of chapter 2. 00:06:34.079 --> 00:06:44.000 So these verses right before this, that women are not to hold a position of authority over a man when it comes to leading and teaching in a church context. 00:06:44.079 --> 00:06:46.399 And we're going to get a lot more into that. 00:06:46.639 --> 00:06:59.680 But now he's moving on in chapter 3 to tell Timothy who is eligible to have those positions of authority, of authority and of teaching within the church body. 00:06:59.839 --> 00:07:07.120 And he starts to explain some issues of church government here in chapter 3 and issues of office within church government. 00:07:07.279 --> 00:07:24.560 And as we go through this, I think it's important to note that there is freedom and flexibility of how a church is organized, but there is not freedom and flexibility in the requirements for elders within a church. 00:07:24.879 --> 00:07:33.279 So we can be flexible with how it's organized, but the requirements for the position or the office or office are requirements. 00:07:33.439 --> 00:07:35.360 They're not something we can pick and choose from. 00:07:35.519 --> 00:07:41.680 So we're going to just start in verse 1 and we're going to head down each section of this passage. 00:07:41.839 --> 00:07:45.120 So verse 1 says, This saying is trustworthy. 00:07:45.279 --> 00:07:50.160 If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble work. 00:07:50.319 --> 00:07:52.079 Now let's just look at the word overseer. 00:07:52.240 --> 00:07:58.399 You know, some of your translations will say bishop instead of overseer right here in this passage. 00:07:58.560 --> 00:08:03.120 And we don't use that word here at abide, but we're going to start. 00:08:03.600 --> 00:08:05.360 No, I'm just kidding. 00:08:06.160 --> 00:08:08.160 Please don't call me bishop. 00:08:08.720 --> 00:08:14.240 That word has grown to mean different things, you know, over the centuries. 00:08:14.480 --> 00:08:17.839 Throughout different denominations, that word means different things. 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:22.879 So overseer is probably a better word for us to be using within our church context. 00:08:23.120 --> 00:08:32.879 But when it comes to leadership in the church, we see three different words that are used in Scripture that we should define, I think, before we go any further. 00:08:32.960 --> 00:08:37.360 And that's overseer, elder, and pastor slash shepherd. 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:39.679 So let's look at each one of these. 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:47.519 So overseer, which that's the word we're seeing in our text today, and it comes from the root word that means to inspect. 00:08:48.000 --> 00:09:00.960 And the Greek definition is oversight, overseership, office, charge, the office of an elder, the overseer or presiding officers of a Christian church. 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:10.320 The next term we see is elder, and that's from the root meaning elderly, literally not young in the context that we see it used in. 00:09:10.559 --> 00:09:18.240 And the Greek definition for that word is among the Christians, those who presided over the assemblies or churches. 00:09:18.480 --> 00:09:24.879 The New Testament uses the term bishop, elders, and presbyters interchangeably. 00:09:25.039 --> 00:09:25.360 Okay? 00:09:25.519 --> 00:09:27.120 That's our second definition. 00:09:27.360 --> 00:09:36.080 Now, the last one is pastorslash shepherd, because pastor comes from the Latin word that means shepherd. 00:09:36.240 --> 00:09:43.440 So it's the same word and it's poiman, and it means a herdsman, especially a shepherd. 00:09:43.600 --> 00:09:50.639 In the parable, he to whose care and control others have committed themselves and whose precepts they follow. 00:09:50.879 --> 00:09:51.759 Metaphor. 00:09:53.759 --> 00:10:04.000 The presiding officer, manager, director of any assembly, so of Christ, the head of the church, of the overseers of the Christian assemblies. 00:10:04.240 --> 00:10:05.279 Okay, that's our definitions. 00:10:05.519 --> 00:10:06.720 You made it through that. 00:10:07.039 --> 00:10:23.759 And I wanted to define these really to help us see that they are all different ways to describe an experience level, a role, a responsibility of what an elder, pastor, overseer should be doing. 00:10:23.919 --> 00:10:27.519 And it all falls under the category of shepherding. 00:10:28.159 --> 00:10:32.159 A good shepherd does all of these things. 00:10:44.240 --> 00:10:48.879 Now, 1 Peter chapter 5, verses 1 through 2 puts this all together really nicely. 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:49.919 So I want to read it to you. 00:10:50.080 --> 00:11:00.559 It says, I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder, and witness to the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory about to be revealed. 00:11:00.879 --> 00:11:08.080 Shepherd God's flock among you, not overseeing out of compulsion, but willingly. 00:11:08.399 --> 00:11:10.799 See how he brought it all together right there? 00:11:11.039 --> 00:11:17.279 He exhorts the elders to shepherd willingly as overseers. 00:11:17.840 --> 00:11:22.559 And the qualifications are the same for those three titles. 00:11:22.960 --> 00:11:28.799 So when you see overseer here in 1 Timothy today, you should be thinking of all of those terms. 00:11:29.039 --> 00:11:37.039 You know, for ease, I'm going to be using the term pastor elder here today from here on out because I think it fits our church best. 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:40.720 It's easier for us to understand in our context. 00:11:40.960 --> 00:11:50.720 Now, getting back to our text, it says if anyone aspires to be an overseer, pastor, or elder, he desires a noble work. 00:11:51.440 --> 00:12:00.720 Now, the desire to be a pastor or elder is fine, but it's the work that is noble and good and honorable. 00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:05.919 Not the aspiration necessarily, but the work of a pastor elder. 00:12:06.159 --> 00:12:09.120 That is what is noble in the eyes of God. 00:12:09.440 --> 00:12:17.039 Which means the role or office cannot be filled by just anybody that wants to fill that role. 00:12:17.200 --> 00:12:21.519 There are God-given requirements for that role and office. 00:12:21.679 --> 00:12:32.159 And before we get into that list, I think we need to address that Paul is clear here that overseer, pastor, elder is a he. 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:46.879 And I almost hate to teach this passage without teaching the end of the previous chapter, the end of chapter two, where I would love to explain how men and women are equal in every way, but God has given us different roles as men and women. 00:12:47.039 --> 00:12:50.159 You know, one not better than the other, just different. 00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:56.799 You know, and as the creator of men and women, the creator of everything, he has the right to do that. 00:12:56.960 --> 00:13:04.399 You know, the best way that I've heard it put is it's a matter of role or function, not one of value or importance. 00:13:05.279 --> 00:13:20.960 And if this whole concept still weirds you out without being able to go through the end of chapter two and you're not sure about this, before you write us off as a church, I spoke extensively on this when we went through 1 Corinthians chapter 14. 00:13:21.120 --> 00:13:35.279 And if you want to dig into this deeper or you have questions, or you uh you really want to know where our church stands with this, and you want to make sure I'm not a chauvinistic jerk, go listen to that podcast. 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:38.559 It's gonna explain where our church's position is on that. 00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:40.080 We just don't have time for that today. 00:13:40.240 --> 00:13:41.200 I even looked it up. 00:13:41.279 --> 00:13:46.000 It was recorded on May 30th of last year, season three, episode 29. 00:13:46.159 --> 00:13:49.519 You can go to the website, you can look it up and listen to that. 00:13:49.679 --> 00:14:01.840 You know, and I treat this topic so sensitively because when we use words like authority and words like submission, our American brain almost automatically goes to hierarchy, doesn't it? 00:14:02.240 --> 00:14:04.399 You know, one being better than the other. 00:14:04.559 --> 00:14:10.399 You know, and that's really a lie from the enemy that our culture has gobbled up and asked for seconds. 00:14:10.639 --> 00:14:15.519 The truth is, God created men for the role of authority in the church and the home. 00:14:15.759 --> 00:14:21.600 But we live in a fallen world where both of those roles have been abused in horrible ways. 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:27.360 But that doesn't negate the truth of God's intended design that we see in Scripture. 00:14:27.519 --> 00:14:32.240 So please check out that podcast for further explanation if you need to. 00:14:32.399 --> 00:14:33.840 So Paul goes on in verse 2. 00:14:33.919 --> 00:14:53.360 He says, An overseer, therefore, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, self-controlled, sensible, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not an excessive drinker, not a bully, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not greedy. 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:55.679 Now we're gonna stop right there. 00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:00.320 This is not an exhaustive list of elder requirements. 00:15:00.399 --> 00:15:08.240 Um, if you look at the requirements in Titus 1, they're not exact, but they almost are, and you can look at that on your own time. 00:15:08.480 --> 00:15:15.120 And that list that's in Titus is addressed to the elders, unlike today that we see overseers. 00:15:15.279 --> 00:15:22.960 So we see Paul using those terms, uh, overseer and elder interchangeably, even in his writings to different churches. 00:15:23.600 --> 00:15:26.879 And the requirement in both lists are a must. 00:15:26.960 --> 00:15:28.080 They are not a suggestion. 00:15:28.159 --> 00:15:30.799 These are things that an elder must hold. 00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:38.720 And I want to point out, before we go through this list of 15 different requirements, depending on how you split it up. 00:15:38.799 --> 00:15:45.759 I split it up into 15, that 13 and a half of these requirements are character issues. 00:15:46.080 --> 00:15:51.039 I say half because hospitality, I think, can land on both sides. 00:15:51.360 --> 00:15:55.759 And giftings, there's 1.5 that are giftings. 00:15:55.919 --> 00:16:00.159 The one is the teaching in the hospitable is like the 0.5 again. 00:16:00.240 --> 00:16:06.559 But notice that the majority, the vast majority of this list are character issues. 00:16:06.879 --> 00:16:10.799 So let's take a look at each one of these things and we'll talk about them a little bit. 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:13.759 But again, I want you to ask yourself: am I struggling? 00:16:14.080 --> 00:16:19.039 Am I failing, or am I succeeding in each one of these things? 00:16:19.279 --> 00:16:22.480 The first one is above reproach. 00:16:23.679 --> 00:16:29.279 It means you cannot be laid hold of without a handle. 00:16:29.519 --> 00:16:36.639 So nothing in your life that an enemy can even hold on to if they're looking for something to bring you down. 00:16:36.799 --> 00:16:39.840 There's just nothing there that they can hold on to. 00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:45.279 You know, I always think about a watermelon covered in Vaseline. 00:16:46.799 --> 00:16:48.480 You ever try to pick one of those up? 00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:51.840 So I used to swim competitively as a kid. 00:16:51.919 --> 00:16:59.600 And at the end of the year swimming party, they would put Vaseline all over a watermelon, they would throw it off the diving board in the middle of the deep end. 00:16:59.759 --> 00:17:01.200 We're split into two teams. 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:06.319 The first one to get the watermelon to the other side of the pool would win the competition. 00:17:06.559 --> 00:17:18.400 And you would go and you're like, finally, I got it, and it was like, and it would just pop out, and you ended up with Vaseline all over yourself, and it was a lot of fun until one year the watermelon broke in the pool. 00:17:18.480 --> 00:17:22.079 And I heard they were cleaning seeds out for like months of that thing. 00:17:22.240 --> 00:17:24.400 But anyway, I always think of that without a handle. 00:17:24.480 --> 00:17:28.559 It's like even if you want to grab onto that thing, you can't grab onto it. 00:17:28.799 --> 00:17:30.400 Above reproach. 00:17:30.640 --> 00:17:33.759 Look at the second one husband of one wife. 00:17:34.000 --> 00:17:35.680 He's a one-woman man. 00:17:35.920 --> 00:17:44.400 You know, this doesn't mean he has to be married, but if he is, he has to be faithful to his wife singular, is what that means. 00:17:44.720 --> 00:17:47.759 Number three, self-controlled. 00:17:48.079 --> 00:17:51.599 You don't give in to wrong desires and impulses. 00:17:51.759 --> 00:17:57.200 You know, it obviously doesn't mean that you're sinless, otherwise, we wouldn't have anybody in these offices. 00:17:57.440 --> 00:18:00.319 But your norm is self-control. 00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:02.960 Number four is sensible. 00:18:03.279 --> 00:18:04.880 You're sober-minded. 00:18:05.039 --> 00:18:09.839 You can still have a sense of humor, but you know when to be serious. 00:18:10.160 --> 00:18:16.720 Number five is respectable, good behavior, and that you are modest. 00:18:17.039 --> 00:18:22.640 You know, this is the same word used in 1 Timothy 2.9, telling women to be modest. 00:18:22.799 --> 00:18:26.960 The same is required of men as well here to be an elder. 00:18:27.279 --> 00:18:28.000 Verse 6. 00:18:28.160 --> 00:18:30.400 I'm not sorry, not number six, not verse six. 00:18:30.640 --> 00:18:32.400 Number six, hospitable. 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:39.839 So that is somebody that's generous to guests, whether at home or in the context of a church body. 00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:43.440 They're welcoming and they're helping people feel comfortable. 00:18:43.599 --> 00:18:52.160 You know, this is both, I think, as I was saying, a gift of the Spirit and something that somebody can exercise willfully when they want to. 00:18:53.599 --> 00:18:57.359 Shepherds can't isolate themselves from the flock. 00:18:58.400 --> 00:19:01.440 They must be engaged with the sheep. 00:19:01.599 --> 00:19:04.319 They need to be hospitable in that way. 00:19:04.559 --> 00:19:07.279 Number seven, able to teach. 00:19:07.440 --> 00:19:10.880 You know, this truly is a gifting requirement. 00:19:11.039 --> 00:19:13.599 You know, these are people that are able to teach. 00:19:13.680 --> 00:19:19.119 They're the people that they have this gift where they can just explain something and the light bulb goes on. 00:19:19.279 --> 00:19:21.119 You know, and they you can just get it. 00:19:21.200 --> 00:19:23.599 They have a way of presenting things in that way. 00:19:23.759 --> 00:19:27.759 And it doesn't mean that you have to be able to come up here and teach on a Sunday. 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:34.400 Um that could just be one-on-one times as well, of that gift of being able to teach. 00:19:34.720 --> 00:19:35.359 Why? 00:19:36.000 --> 00:19:39.599 Because this is a key part of making disciples, isn't it? 00:19:39.839 --> 00:19:51.119 Teaching somebody that's younger in the faith or less experienced in the faith the things that they need to know in a way that they can understand, take those things and then apply them to their life. 00:19:52.000 --> 00:20:00.400 And James 3:1 tells us that not many should teach because they receive a stricter judgment. 00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:09.920 You know, that's why I think this gifting needs to be surrounded by all of these other character requirements before that person is given a platform. 00:20:10.079 --> 00:20:17.359 You know, somebody gifted in teaching without the character and maturity in the faith can be a really scary thing. 00:20:17.680 --> 00:20:22.640 So he surrounds that gift by all of these character qualifications. 00:20:22.880 --> 00:20:24.720 Look at number eight. 00:20:25.359 --> 00:20:27.920 Not an excessive drinker. 00:20:28.160 --> 00:20:34.960 They either don't drink, or when they do, they don't get buzzed or drunk, which scripture just flat out calls sin. 00:20:35.119 --> 00:20:40.559 And really, this kind of relates back to being sensible and self-controlled, I think. 00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:45.119 Number nine, not a bully, but gentle. 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:57.839 So the word bully here has some physical connotations, you know, meaning um he's not violent, he's not a striker or a bruiser, but gentle and patient. 00:20:58.480 --> 00:21:05.279 So he's not eagerly looking for the next physical confrontation, but in contrast, is gentle. 00:21:05.839 --> 00:21:10.319 Because sheep shouldn't be afraid of their shepherd, should they? 00:21:10.799 --> 00:21:13.920 Number 10, not quarrelsome. 00:21:14.079 --> 00:21:17.119 So not prone to fighting or bickering. 00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:22.079 They don't, they're not the ones stirring up the stroke the drama and the strife within the church. 00:21:22.160 --> 00:21:26.720 They should be the ones that are helping to settle all of those things down instead. 00:21:26.960 --> 00:21:30.160 Uh, number 11, not greedy. 00:21:30.319 --> 00:21:32.319 I love what the King James Version says here. 00:21:32.400 --> 00:21:35.359 It says, not greedy for filthy lucre. 00:21:36.480 --> 00:21:38.880 I don't even know what lucre is, but it's fun to say. 00:21:38.960 --> 00:21:48.720 So but not loving money, not coveting, but somebody that's content, really, is what this is. 00:21:49.039 --> 00:21:59.759 Because tithes and offerings come into a church that come into this church, and it's the elders' job to make sure that those finances are used for God's kingdom and not for. 00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:02.480 For greedy purposes or for our own kingdom. 00:22:02.640 --> 00:22:04.079 That's why we did what we just did. 00:22:04.160 --> 00:22:05.680 So you can see what's happening. 00:22:05.759 --> 00:22:10.400 It's a form of accountability of what all of these funds are going toward. 00:22:10.640 --> 00:22:12.480 Now look at verse 4 with me. 00:22:12.799 --> 00:22:17.839 He must, number 12, manage his own household competently. 00:22:18.000 --> 00:22:23.119 And then number 13, have his children under control with all dignity. 00:22:23.279 --> 00:22:30.079 Now, if anyone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of God's church? 00:22:30.240 --> 00:22:30.799 It says. 00:22:30.960 --> 00:22:39.599 You know, the short of this is if his kids are out of control and his wife thinks he's a moron, something's wrong, right? 00:22:40.160 --> 00:22:43.039 It shows a deeper issue of what's happening. 00:22:43.200 --> 00:22:48.799 You know, if his kids don't honor and respect him, there's a deeper issue that's going on. 00:22:49.039 --> 00:22:59.519 If you can't lead your home and your biological family well, you shouldn't try or even be allowed to lead your spiritual family, is really the heart behind this. 00:22:59.759 --> 00:23:01.599 Look at verse 6 with me. 00:23:01.839 --> 00:23:06.319 He must, this is number 14, not be a new convert. 00:23:06.480 --> 00:23:11.680 Or he might become conceited and incur the same condemnation as the devil. 00:23:12.079 --> 00:23:17.519 Notice Paul doesn't write that he must not be a new convert because he doesn't know enough. 00:23:18.160 --> 00:23:21.599 It's because he might become conceited. 00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:27.680 You know, the longer we walk with the Lord, the more humble we should become. 00:23:28.000 --> 00:23:33.440 As we recognize our dependence on Christ, the more humble we should become. 00:23:33.680 --> 00:23:39.440 The more trials that we face, the more humble we should become. 00:23:50.640 --> 00:23:54.400 So that they do not incur the same condemnation as the devil. 00:23:54.720 --> 00:23:59.759 Which is, they get tired to bring glory to God, so they start bringing glory to themselves. 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:05.359 Or they get tired of building God's kingdom, so they want to start building their own kingdom. 00:24:05.599 --> 00:24:11.039 And that is what will bring them to the same condemnation as the devil. 00:24:11.359 --> 00:24:12.960 Look at verse 7 with me. 00:24:13.200 --> 00:24:24.559 Furthermore, he must have a, this is number 15, good reputation among outsiders, so that he does not fall into disgrace and the devil's trap. 00:24:24.720 --> 00:24:28.240 You know, a good reputation among outsiders. 00:24:28.400 --> 00:24:34.079 That's an interesting thing, I think, that we see here. 00:24:34.400 --> 00:24:41.519 He needs to be a guy that has the same reputation on Sundays that he does Monday through Saturday. 00:24:41.759 --> 00:24:48.640 You know, the people that he works with shouldn't be surprised at all if he tells them I'm an elder at my church. 00:24:48.960 --> 00:24:52.480 This is really talking about somebody being a hypocrite. 00:24:52.559 --> 00:24:57.359 You know, somebody that looks one way among the church and looks different outside of the church. 00:24:57.680 --> 00:25:12.880 So you take all of those 15 things together here, and what Paul is saying is that if you have all these qualifications, and if you meet these requirements, now you can be a chief servant. 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:25.119 Jesus said in Matthew 20, 28, he said, For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. 00:25:25.359 --> 00:25:27.119 Jesus is the chief shepherd. 00:25:27.440 --> 00:25:28.799 Jesus is the good shepherd. 00:25:28.880 --> 00:25:31.759 We're going to be talking about that next week in John chapter 10. 00:25:32.400 --> 00:25:36.960 And pastors and elders are Jesus' under-shepherds. 00:25:37.599 --> 00:25:38.880 We work for him. 00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:47.119 You know, he's the rabbi and he's the shepherd that we are supposed to imitate and become like. 00:25:48.480 --> 00:25:53.759 And if he came to serve and not be served, then that should be our purpose as well. 00:25:54.079 --> 00:25:55.519 Chief servants. 00:25:55.759 --> 00:26:04.640 And really, what we all are called to as believers, all of us are called to as believers, is to serve one another. 00:26:04.880 --> 00:26:08.319 And it's no different for the position of elder. 00:26:08.720 --> 00:26:12.880 Now, we've looked at all of the requirements now in 1 Timothy. 00:26:13.119 --> 00:26:23.200 So I think the question is, how do we in our church, how does this apply to our church, and how do we identify and ordain an elder within a bide? 00:26:23.680 --> 00:26:26.640 Because it looks different from church to church to church. 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:32.880 You know, we planted this church, um, we started probably closer to four years ago. 00:26:32.960 --> 00:26:35.279 We've been meeting on Sundays for three and a half years. 00:26:35.519 --> 00:26:47.039 But when we planted this church, I wanted to wait to recognize other elders because I strongly believe and have the conviction that you don't just place an elder in office. 00:26:47.599 --> 00:26:51.359 Instead, you recognize what they're already doing. 00:26:51.680 --> 00:26:58.400 So you don't appoint someone and then give them a job description and just hope that they shepherd well. 00:26:59.039 --> 00:27:02.079 You just don't do that and hope that they're of good character. 00:27:02.240 --> 00:27:11.759 Instead, you look for who is already shepherding naturally, not out of coercion, but naturally, they just can't help themselves. 00:27:11.839 --> 00:27:14.799 Like you just look around and they're just doing that already. 00:27:15.039 --> 00:27:20.480 And then you look at our text that we went through today and in Titus and see if they meet those requirements. 00:27:20.640 --> 00:27:27.200 And if they do, then you recognize them and invite them into the office of being an elder. 00:27:27.359 --> 00:27:29.839 That's what I did about four years ago. 00:27:30.079 --> 00:27:38.960 I saw Ben and Pete naturally jumping in as we were planning this church, as we were starting our home groups in different houses. 00:27:39.119 --> 00:27:43.039 I saw them naturally jump in to help shepherd people. 00:27:43.440 --> 00:27:51.440 Because we hadn't even had a Sunday morning yet, and you can see their heart and you can see what they were doing. 00:27:52.000 --> 00:27:55.759 I saw that they met these qualifications, and then so we recognized them. 00:27:56.160 --> 00:28:05.759 It was back when we were just praying over at the park once a month and having our home groups and just praying about what this might be, what God might have for us as a church plant. 00:28:06.000 --> 00:28:14.960 And so that is when we anointed them and we recognized them in front of everybody that was there, that they were also going to be the elders of this church. 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:21.440 And then Brian came on as an interim elder when I went into surgery last year for the same reason. 00:28:21.680 --> 00:28:26.400 We saw him shepherding and we saw him meeting all of these qualifications. 00:28:26.799 --> 00:28:33.119 And we're currently talking about as a church who else is naturally already shepherding. 00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:35.680 You know, we're asking that question among ourselves. 00:28:35.839 --> 00:28:39.039 Who is shepherding and who also meets these requirements? 00:28:39.200 --> 00:28:42.880 Who might be next to come on to our elder team as a church? 00:28:43.119 --> 00:28:48.720 But whoever is next, shepherding has to be a part of who he is. 00:28:49.359 --> 00:28:55.680 The desire to care for all of God's sheep in this church here. 00:28:56.240 --> 00:29:01.039 Again, going back to 1 Peter chapter 5, we're going to look at verses 2 and 3 this time, though. 00:29:01.359 --> 00:29:03.279 And this is Peter exhorting the elders. 00:29:03.359 --> 00:29:09.839 He said, Shepherd God's flock among you, not somewhere else, among you. 00:29:10.000 --> 00:29:23.279 Not overseeing, out of compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you, not out of greed for money, but eagerly, not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 00:29:23.519 --> 00:29:36.160 And I mention this because if you end up with a qualified elder team, according to 1 Timothy 3, that is not shepherding the flock that is among them. 00:29:36.640 --> 00:29:43.039 They can end up being decision makers that don't know the sheep that their decisions are affecting. 00:29:43.759 --> 00:29:48.400 You know, a shepherd that doesn't know the sheep really isn't a shepherd. 00:29:48.559 --> 00:29:50.319 That's a livestock owner. 00:29:50.480 --> 00:29:55.119 You know, that only makes decisions that benefits himself. 00:29:55.279 --> 00:30:01.920 Or it's a hired hand that just wants a daily wage, like we're going to see in John 10 next week. 00:30:02.160 --> 00:30:06.559 So that's how we go about identifying elders at our church. 00:30:06.720 --> 00:30:16.240 We look for people that are shepherding first, and then that meet all of those qualifications, and then that's when we will recognize them as an elder here at our church. 00:30:16.480 --> 00:30:24.079 So I think the next question for us is how do elders function within our church government here at Abide? 00:30:24.400 --> 00:30:30.799 You know, there are typically three church government models with a ton of variation in between. 00:30:31.119 --> 00:30:32.960 A ton of variation in between. 00:30:33.039 --> 00:30:44.319 And I admittedly, I'm going to oversimplify and just glaze over this and only talk about these three forms of government in terms that we might recognize or are familiar with ourselves. 00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:46.799 So the first is episcopal. 00:30:46.960 --> 00:30:52.640 You may have heard, I think the the closest thing that we might be familiar with is the Moses model. 00:30:52.799 --> 00:30:59.119 There's one clear leader that disseminates responsibility downward from that clear leader. 00:30:59.279 --> 00:31:00.960 The second is Presbyterian. 00:31:01.279 --> 00:31:08.160 And this is an elder-led plurality of elders, a team of elders leading equally. 00:31:08.319 --> 00:31:10.319 And then the third is congregational. 00:31:10.640 --> 00:31:12.880 It's led by congregational voting. 00:31:13.039 --> 00:31:21.680 So on big things like hiring and firing, all the way down to what color the carpet's going to be in the sanctuary, that's like, you know, they vote pretty much on everything. 00:31:21.839 --> 00:31:24.559 The congregation makes those decisions. 00:31:24.960 --> 00:31:27.119 Again, I just glazed over that. 00:31:27.200 --> 00:31:33.920 Okay, there's so many nuances and differences in denominations and even within denominations. 00:31:34.160 --> 00:31:40.880 Um, and so that's an oversimplified, quick way to look at it, but I think it accomplishes what we need for today. 00:31:41.119 --> 00:31:51.519 So when we set out to plant this church, it was my desire from the beginning to have a hybrid between that Moses model and that plurality of elders. 00:31:51.680 --> 00:32:01.200 You know, where we elders serve out of plurality, so the lead pastor's voice doesn't count for any more than anybody else's within the elder team. 00:32:01.359 --> 00:32:05.440 But the lead pastor is called the first among equals. 00:32:05.920 --> 00:32:13.200 So the lead pastor holds the chair position of the 501c3 as the chairman and the president. 00:32:13.359 --> 00:32:20.160 And regarding elder team meetings, uh, it means he sets the agenda and he's the one that leads those meetings. 00:32:20.319 --> 00:32:30.079 You know, this also means that the lead pastor does the majority of the teaching on Sundays and is responsible for setting the vision for the church moving forward. 00:32:30.319 --> 00:32:38.880 Though any of the elders can contribute in any of those things, it's really his responsibility to move those things forward and keep those things at the forefront. 00:32:39.039 --> 00:32:48.160 And it's also up to the lead pastor to nominate new elders and ask current elders to re-up their term once a year. 00:32:48.480 --> 00:32:53.039 But his vote doesn't count more than any other elder. 00:32:53.200 --> 00:32:59.680 You know, I like to think of the first among equals role as an initiator role. 00:32:59.839 --> 00:33:08.079 You know, it's my job to initiate a lot of these things and to lead a lot of these things, but in plurality with the other elders. 00:33:08.319 --> 00:33:21.599 And the reason that I wanted it this way is that in the most extreme forms of a Moses model, the senior pastor can just kick elders off of the team or the board for any reason that he desires. 00:33:21.920 --> 00:33:26.640 So it can turn an elder team into a bunch of yes men that just don't want to get kicked off. 00:33:26.720 --> 00:33:31.519 They don't want to make the pastor mad, so they just turn into yes men for the senior pastor. 00:33:31.759 --> 00:33:40.319 Now, the extreme version of an elder-led church, a majority vote from the elder team can fire the teaching pastor. 00:33:40.880 --> 00:33:46.559 Which can lead to the teaching pastor becoming a yes man to the elder board just not wanting to be fired. 00:33:46.799 --> 00:33:56.559 So we set it up in our bylaws to where neither one of those things can happen without a lot of care and a lot of procedure and a lot of unanimity. 00:33:56.799 --> 00:34:01.039 So we can't just kick each other off the board if we get angry with one another. 00:34:01.279 --> 00:34:06.960 Um, and the hope is that we don't just become yes men or feel like we're disposable. 00:34:07.039 --> 00:34:09.360 But there's a balance in there. 00:34:09.679 --> 00:34:17.039 But when somebody really should be removed from the board for biblical reasons, we do have those processes there as well. 00:34:17.119 --> 00:34:24.480 But it's not as simple as majority vote, you're out of here, we're upset with you at the moment, and it's gonna be cleared up in five days, type of thing. 00:34:24.559 --> 00:34:30.400 So we tried to make it difficult to kick people off uh unless it's for biblical reasons. 00:34:30.639 --> 00:34:32.239 So you made it through that. 00:34:32.400 --> 00:34:32.880 Good job. 00:34:33.039 --> 00:34:34.320 That's a lot of procedure. 00:34:34.559 --> 00:34:36.239 Why are we talking about this? 00:34:36.400 --> 00:34:39.039 And we're gonna end with this, so you're almost done. 00:34:39.280 --> 00:34:52.960 Well, bringing Ben on staff felt like a good opportunity to bring all of this up, and bringing him on on staff means that he now has a job description and therefore a title, which is associate pastor. 00:34:53.199 --> 00:34:57.280 And depending on your church background, that might sound like a promotion. 00:34:57.440 --> 00:35:07.760 You know, he went from an elder now to being a pastor, but we really wanted to help everyone understand that the way that our church government is set up, it's not a promotion. 00:35:08.000 --> 00:35:14.320 Which may sound terrible, like I'm downplaying Ben's role in some way, but he's the one that wanted me to bring it up, right, Ben? 00:35:16.719 --> 00:35:24.000 Because he's gonna continue to do the exact same thing that he has been doing as an elder. 00:35:24.239 --> 00:35:26.719 He just officially is on staff now. 00:35:26.960 --> 00:35:33.760 He now has a job description, and he now has the title with that job description of associate pastor. 00:35:34.000 --> 00:35:39.039 So you can call him pastor all you want, but he would much prefer bishop. 00:35:39.519 --> 00:35:44.960 So please, no, I'm just kidding. 00:35:45.679 --> 00:35:55.039 Calling somebody pastor or elder or overseer or bishop for that matter before their first name is not something that we see in scripture. 00:35:55.280 --> 00:35:59.519 There's nothing wrong with calling him pastor Ben or me Pastor Chris or whatever. 00:35:59.760 --> 00:36:05.519 But they are more offices that the Lord has placed us in than titles to be called. 00:36:05.760 --> 00:36:08.719 So you don't have to call me pastor, but you can. 00:36:08.880 --> 00:36:10.960 You don't have to call him pastor, but you can. 00:36:11.119 --> 00:36:12.960 You don't have to call Brian pastor, but you can. 00:36:13.199 --> 00:36:16.719 You don't have to call Pete pastor, but you can. 00:36:18.320 --> 00:36:22.559 Just like you don't have to, um, actually, never mind. 00:36:22.719 --> 00:36:29.920 All of those titles, but all of those titles that we've been talking about, they come down to one action. 00:36:30.159 --> 00:36:32.400 And the action is shepherding. 00:36:32.719 --> 00:36:38.719 We're all called as elders to pastor, shepherd, and oversee. 00:36:39.840 --> 00:36:51.280 And we all have different roles, and we all have different giftings as elders that complement each other, but it's all coming down to shepherding. 00:36:52.880 --> 00:36:58.639 It doesn't make some of us pastors and some of us elders because we fill different roles. 00:36:58.960 --> 00:37:03.760 It all comes down to shepherding, and you can call us really whatever you want. 00:37:04.880 --> 00:37:08.400 And again, I promise this is not me downplaying Ben's role. 00:37:08.559 --> 00:37:10.960 This is just how we function as a church. 00:37:11.119 --> 00:37:18.079 You know, in some churches, somebody coming on staff in a pastoral position would be followed by an ordination. 00:37:18.320 --> 00:37:21.679 But we already did that with Ben over at the park. 00:37:21.920 --> 00:37:26.960 And we um did that with Ben and Pete actually years ago. 00:37:27.280 --> 00:37:35.679 But I think instead of doing that, what we should be doing today is just celebrating that Ben has a job now at the church. 00:37:35.920 --> 00:37:43.199 Um and this is a major milestone for our church because he's the first employee for our church that's not me. 00:37:43.440 --> 00:37:44.800 Praise the Lord. 00:37:45.360 --> 00:37:50.000 The Lord has been so faithful to us over the last three plus years. 00:37:50.239 --> 00:38:05.679 He's walked us through some gnarly things in that time, like COVID, like a brain tumor, like exploring the possibility of a church merger, like three different locations that we've moved through. 00:38:06.159 --> 00:38:09.599 He has been so faithful in every one of those seasons. 00:38:10.079 --> 00:38:13.519 His faithfulness really has been on full display. 00:38:13.840 --> 00:38:18.320 And I think this is one more way of having a new staff member. 00:38:18.559 --> 00:38:23.039 So be sure to congratulate Ben on his promotion today. 00:38:24.159 --> 00:38:25.440 Okay, you were listening. 00:38:25.599 --> 00:38:26.559 I was just checking. 00:38:26.719 --> 00:38:27.760 I was just checking. 00:38:27.920 --> 00:38:33.360 Make sure to congratulate him on coming on staff here at the church. 00:38:33.599 --> 00:38:37.199 So thank you for sitting through our family meeting. 00:38:37.360 --> 00:38:39.039 Would you please pray with me? 00:38:40.400 --> 00:38:47.599 Lord, I thank you so much for Ben, Lord, and just what a blessing he has been to this church. 00:38:47.760 --> 00:38:55.840 And I thank you for all of our elders, Lord, and just the care and the shepherding that has been so evident from day one. 00:38:56.079 --> 00:39:08.079 Lord, I pray that you would strengthen us and that you would provide all that we need, that you would fill us with wisdom for where this church is heading and the things that you have for us in the future. 00:39:08.320 --> 00:39:14.400 Lord, I thank you for your faithfulness to us and how evident that has been over the last four years or so. 00:39:14.719 --> 00:39:36.639