Sunday, July 31, 2022 AM

At your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. We're gonna prepare our hearts for worship and communion now and then. At the conclusion of that, Brian will come up and open us in prayer.

Father in heaven, what a joy and a privilege to be here today, to share in this family of brothers and sisters who know you, who are part of the family. We have been blessed this summer by these young men teaching and bringing the truth of the word, digging deep into it, challenging us in the way we think about you and trust you and love you and obey you.

May your word be preeminent in our hearts and our minds and our souls. And ask for blessing upon this time this morning that you would bless the opening and dividing of the word, that you would bless our lifting our voices to you in praise, that our hearts would be melded together with yours, that the burdens and the worries of the day would be set aside at the foot of the cross and our eyes would be towards heaven, not on circumstance or ourselves or others, but on you.

May we think of you much and think of you often. Bless your son, whose sacrifice bridged the gap between us and a holy God, who brought our sinful natures into eternity. Blessed be your name, amen.

Would you stand with me for our call to worship together? Continuing in Psalms chapter 78, we'll be reading verses 65 to 68. Jacob had 12 sons, one of them was Joseph. Joseph had two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim.

So, this we're mentioning Ephraim here in our passage.

Read together.

Then the Lord awoke us from sleep and made the tent of Joseph. He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim, but he chose the tribe of Judah, Mount Zion, which he loves. So, if you would, turn to your Psalms for worship hymnal, page 78J, and.

When he's blue, shame shall not depart Then our next song is in our hymns, modern ancient hymnal, page 27. Come people of the risen king.

Our scripture reading this morning is from Isaiah chapter 30, verses one through 14. Ah, stubborn children, declares the Lord, who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin, who set out to go down to Egypt without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh, and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt.

Therefore shall the protection of Pharaoh turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your humiliation. For though his officials are at Zoan and his envoys reach Hannes, everyone comes to shame, through a people that cannot profit them, that brings neither help nor profit, but shame and disgrace.

An oracle on the beasts of the Negev, through a land of trouble and anguish, from where come the lioness and the lion, the adder and the flying fiery serpent. They carry their riches on the backs of donkeys and their treasures on the humps of camels, to a people that cannot profit them.

Egypt's help is worthless and empty. Therefore I have called her Rahab, who sits still. And now go write it before them on a tablet and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever.

For they are a rebellious people, lying children, children unwilling to hear the instruction of the Lord, who say to seers, do not see, and to the prophets, do not prophesy to us, what is right, speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions, leave the way, turn aside from the path.

Let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel. Therefore, thus says the Holy One of Israel, because you despise this word and trust in oppression and perverseness and rely on them, therefore this iniquity shall be to you like a breach in a high wall, bulging out and about to collapse, whose breaking comes suddenly in an instant.

And it's breaking is like that of a potter's vessel that is smashed so ruthlessly that among its fragments, not a shard is found with which to take fire from the hearth or to dip up water out of the cistern.

For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, in returning and rest, you shall be saved, in quietness and in trust shall be your strength. An extra verse you will hear again later. Let us pray. Father, I thank you for your word, how faithful you are to minister to us through your word.

May we treasure your word. May we know that it is your word, not just written words on a page in a book, but a message from you. May we treasure it and memorize it and meditate upon it that we might come to know you in a deeper way and that we might learn to look to you first, to seek your will and your ways and to come to an understanding of your wisdom and that we might learn to walk in your will and your ways.

And I thank you and I praise you for your grace so richly poured out upon us through your Son, the Lord Jesus. In his name I pray, amen.

The Majesty of God in Worship

Awesome seems to be used loosely these days. Truly, though, the word awesome should be reserved for God Almighty. He is the creator, he is sovereign, and he is ruling and reigning on his throne. John in the book of Revelation gives this word picture of the scene in heaven.

I was in the spirit and behold, a throne was in heaven and one sitting on the throne. And those there do not cease to say day and night, holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.

Worthy art thou, O Lord, and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for thou didst create all things, and because of thy will they existed and were created. The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever.

And the 24 elders who sat on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God. Let's worship the Lord together as we sing our next song, Behold Our God. Behold our God

Father, we thank you for the day you have given to us. We thank you for sending rain upon our parched earth, and we thank you for your provision in our lives, in the everyday things and in the great things.

And Lord, we come before you, we do give you glory, we do give you honor, we do praise your name, and we do all of this by your grace that you have bestowed upon us through your Son, and you have given your salvation to us by your Holy Spirit, and so we give you praise.

We ask this morning that as we look at your word and submit to your truth, as we ordain a new elder here in our church body, as we celebrate and commune with Christ in honor of his sacrifice for us, that in every facet of what we do here today, that we would fear you, that you would humble us, and we would honor you.

We pray these things in Jesus' name, amen. I'll invite you to open your Bibles to the letter we call 1 Timothy, and we're gonna be reading verses one through seven of chapter three. So 1 Timothy three, verses one through seven, taking a brief break from the book of Acts as we are going to focus, especially today, on the way that the Lord provides for his church, how the Lord gives to the church by his Holy Spirit all that we need to follow his Son and advance his kingdom.

There's a faithful saying in 1 Timothy three that we need to take a look at, to pay attention to, especially today as we gather to rejoice in God's gift to the church and ordain Ryan Mounts as an elder.

Let me read for us, and I invite you to stand with me as we read God's holy word, 1 Timothy three, verses one through seven. These are the words of Christ through his servant Paul. This is a faithful saying.

If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous, one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence.

For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? Not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride, he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. Moreover, he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God. You may be seated. Ephesians four tells us that when Christ ascended.

To the right hand of God,.

He resides and reigns from a position through which he provides all that his church needs. And he has given to the church all that we need to follow him, all that we need to proclaim his truth, all that we need to advance his kingdom.

And among the things that he has given to the church, among the servants that he has given to the church, for the edifying of the body of Christ, for the doing of the work of the ministry, for the unifying of the body in the love of the Lord, to the maturation, to the measure of Christ, among the list of the servants that Christ has given to the church by his Holy Spirit are elders.

The term elder is synonymous, the same. Goes hand in hand with the term bishop or overseer, sometimes that is translated. The same idea behind the term pastor. And whether we're talking about an overseer, or an elder, or a shepherd, these titles of leadership in the church emphasize various aspects of what the elders are to do, how they are to serve, how they are to, by the grace of Christ, feed the sheep and bless the body of Christ.

And so here this morning, that's what we need to think about in this faithful saying from 1 Timothy 3, that the one who desires, that he who desires oversight in Christ's church desires a good work, desires a good thing, because the church is a good thing that has come forth by the blood of Christ, established by God as a wondrous blessing upon the earth.

The church is a good thing. And to desire service and leadership in that church, that is a good thing as well. And then we will read again in our text and look carefully about what kind of leadership does Christ desire in his church?

Now, this is a message that is, of course, for Ryan. It's a message that is, of course, for the elders who are already serving here, but it's also a message for the entire church. Look at the blessing of Christ.

Look at what he desires for his body and consider that the elders, the leaders in the church are simply following Christ's example and helping others to do the same. So this is really a message for all of us here this morning that we would value what Christ values, that we would appreciate what Christ has given to us.

Our sovereign, our head, the head of the body, he provides a good, good thing. Now, there are two themes in 1 Timothy 3, verses one through seven, that attends this faithful saying. He desires a oversight in Christ's church, desires a good work.

And this good work is characterized by two things. There is the character of Christ and the care for the church. That a leader in Christ's church, a bishop, an overseer, an elder, a pastor, a shepherd, that two things ought to characterize that leader's life.

And it is the character of Christ and care for the church. So we're going to pay attention to that this morning, be reminded of God's good gift to us and what is entailed in being an elder. So first of all, the character of Christ.

We read that a bishop or an overseer, the Greek word is episkopos. We hear the word episcopalian in there. But the whole idea is somebody who has oversight in the church. That this person, this leader must be blameless, we read.

We also read later on that he must have a good testimony, to have a good witness. Blameless among those inside the church and having a good witness with those outside the church. And to understand what that looks like, all we must consider then is the character of Christ.

The character of Christ in this text is defined by self-control and it is demonstrated by loving others. When we look at the character of Christ in this passage, we see that it is defined by being self-controlled and it is demonstrated by loving others.

In verse two, we read that a bishop must then be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded. Let's think about these first three terms. The blameless husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded of good behavior.

Let's look at the words temperate, sober-minded and of good behavior. We'll come back to the other matters in a moment. Temperate, sober-minded of good behavior. In other words, an overseer in Christ's church must be a watchman, a captain and a steward.

A watchman over the walls of his own life, that which enters into his life through his five senses. Temperance is a matter of guarding that which comes in from the outside. A temperate being moderate in all things.

But not only careful about what comes in from the outside, but also a captain of what goes on in the inside. For being sober-minded has the idea of governing over all the storms that may afflict the soul.

That that which roils up within the soul requires a steady hand at the wheel. So not only guarding that which comes in, but governing over that which would come out. And then additionally, we have the idea of good behavior, which in a sense is talking about being a steward and ordering one's life in an effective way.

And so when we think about an overseer in Christ's church, we think of somebody who is a watchman over that which enters into his life. We think of one who is a captain over the storms within his own soul.

And we think of somebody who is a steward and looks out at what has been entrusted to him and knows how to set things in a more orderly fashion. How to improve that which has been entrusted to him. That's a very broad categories, but they help set up what comes next.

In verse three, we read of five specifics that are related to these three general categories. We read that an overseer must be not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous.

So not given to wine, not violent, not greedy, not quarrelsome, not covetous. And those five negatives, when we think about those, they all have something in common. What is being said here is that an overseer in Christ's church, an elder, a pastor, should not be consumed by passions, controlled by desires, enthralled with addictions.

And this should not be what is characteristic of a bishop, an overseer, a leader in Christ's church. And this, of course, accords with the character of Christ. When we think about the temptation of those who are in leadership to turn everything that is in their stewardship into some kind of self-pleasing mechanism, that is the temptation.

However, remember the character of Christ. He said, the Son of Man, again, the highest title of all humanity is the Son of Man. There was no title in all of human history that has a higher excellence or a more weighty gravitas than that name, the Son of Man.

There was no other rank in all of the history of humanity, and there never will be a rank higher for any human being other than the Son of Man. And this is what Jesus said. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.

And he made that pattern mandatory for his apostles, for all those who would follow him. It was Christ who said to the Father, not my will, but yours. It was Christ who said to his followers, take up your cross daily, die to self, follow after me.

So when it comes to leadership in Christ's church, we must consider the character of Christ. There is an importance throughout the scripture about character, about good character in all forms of leadership.

It doesn't matter if it's leadership in the church, leadership in the state, leadership in the home, good character is of the utmost importance. And when we think about leadership in the church, we must think of the character of Christ.

Christ is the image of the invisible God. He is the head of the body, and we must consider his character. And it is defined by self-control. We are under shepherds, and this is what we read about in 1 Peter 5, verses one through four, that elders in the church do not stand on the basis of their own authority.

We don't stand on the basis of our own identity. We don't lead and make decisions and advocate for direction just because we have a title or in and of our own character or based upon our own experiences.

We are merely the under shepherds under the chief shepherd, the great shepherd. Turn your attention, if you will, to 1 Peter 5, and I want us to look at this passage more than once this morning, but first of all, I want us to read this passage and consider how vital it is that our attention is upon the Savior.

In 1 Peter 5, beginning in verse one, the elders who are among you, and remember elders, bishops, pastors, it's the same idea. The elders who are among you, I exhort. I, who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed.

So here's instructions to the elders. Shepherd the flock of God, which is among you, serving as overseers. So already in verses one and two, we've heard elder, shepherd, which means pastor, and overseers, that's the word also translated bishop.

So elder, pastor, bishop, all together in two verses. We're talking about the same office. Not by compulsion, so serve and shepherd, pastor, not by compulsion, but willingly. Not for dishonest gain, but eagerly.

Nor as being lords 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 does not fade away. You see, he who desires oversight in Christ's church desires a good work, desires a good thing.

There is a reward in it, brother Ryan, there is a reward in this. There is great joy in this work. And so we see that the character of Christ is central. See, consider the chief shepherd, consider who he is, consider how he lived, and this gives us the style of leadership that should be present in the church.

And I think it's clear upon reflection of the scriptures and the requirements of elders, and I think it's clear that I and the other elders here would agree with this sentiment as well. Ryan, we do not think that you're the perfect man for this job.

Yeah, you're not the perfect man. I'm not the perfect man for this job. None of the other elders here are the perfect men for this job. We have a perfect man, his name is Jesus Christ, and he is the head of the church.

He is the chief shepherd. And what we're trying to do is to serve Christ in leadership and lead you to the perfect man. Let us all turn to Christ and follow him. He's our perfect example. So the character of Christ is defined by self-control, and it is also demonstrated, shall we say, even tested and proved by loving others.

And we have these themes in our text as well. There are three types of love, or three directions of love in this text that are called for in overseers. The first is to love your wife. The second is to love your children, and the third is to love others.

Let's consider those terms. First of all, a bishop must then be blameless, the husband of one wife, quite literally in the original, a one-woman man. Also, we read in verse four, one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence.

And we'll come back to that in a moment. Also, we read that in verse two, a bishop must be hospitable, which is in the original, a lover of strangers, a lover of strangers. Let's think about that for a moment.

First of all, you must love your wife. Ryan, me, my fellow elders, we are called to love our wives, to be a one-woman man. Each one of us must take that to the fullest, most fruitful expression, a one-woman man, to love our wives.

Why? Think of Christ. Think of what he has given to the church. Think about how he loves his bride, what he went through for her good and her benefit. As Adam went down and bled for his wife, so much the more Christ died and bled for his bride.

And so we see the example of what it is to love our wives when we look at Christ. And of course, the under-shepherd should follow and imitate the chief shepherd. We are to rejoice in the wife of our youth, and we are to embrace her and rejoice with her.

Now, secondly, love your children. In this text, it says that we are to rule our own house well. And that expression, it means a present presiding. Not just a presiding over us from afar by extension, but a present presiding, on-site, right there, involved.

A present presiding is the idea behind this expression of ruling. And what's the aim? To teach them unto reverence, all reverence. As it is said in Ephesians, fathers are to raise up their children in the fear of the Lord.

Teach your children the fear of God. And this would be the most loving thing that we can possibly do for our children. And we know that Christ is present and presiding amongst all those over whom he is the elder brother.

And that we are adopted by Christ, through Christ, unto the Lord. And he teaches us the fear of the Lord. Also, we are to love others. Being hospitable, of course, we think of hospitality in our context of bringing people into our homes and blessing them.

And of course, that would be understood in this age as well, where Paul is writing. But the idea of loving strangers is very important for an elder. Loving strangers is important because within the body of Christ, some people are strange.

Actually, the idea is that people that are outside of your family, people that are not native to your home, native to your table. As we think about what Christ has to say about the body of Christ, he begins to define brother, sister, mother in terms of those who are born again, those who are part of the family of God by the grace of God, by the work of the Holy Spirit.

And I would say that most of us here, if not all of us here, have family members we wish were here. That we wish would at least be in some church. That we wish would be part of the family of God. But in this love of strangers, we come together and we are to love one another.

I am to love you as my brothers and my sisters in Christ as I love my own family. Because we are one in Christ. I am to have a special love for my wife and my children, special responsibilities. But truly, truly, even though you are strangers to my blood family, we are family.

And we are to love one another in that way. And so there's a love for your wife and a love for your children and a love for others. Remembering that Christ is the one who took us who were strangers and estranged from God and brought us near to the Father by his work.

And this love that is demonstrated, we're going to demonstrate here today as we have communion. Our love is symbolized here. We gather here as we gather around the reality of Christ having shed his blood, his body having been broken for us as he sacrificed himself to bring us who were in the highways and the byways who were out among the hedges.

Those who had not originally received the invitation but Christ by his own person and work brings us together that we may love one another in Christ. Well, the character of Christ is essential for an overseer.

You know, he who desires oversight in Christ's church desires a good thing. What desires a good work, what makes it good is Christ. What makes it worthwhile is Christ. And so the character of Christ is essential.

Secondly, the care for the church. Remember that when Jesus restored Peter as they were walking beside the sea, that Jesus asked Peter three times, do you love me? Do you love me? Do you love me? And he had an admonition for Peter which was feed my sheep.

He wanted Peter to care for his flock. And this is the same admonition that we receive as elders. And then the care for the church, there are four themes I think we need to think of briefly. The first is simply the care of the church is to be a persevering care, a perseverant care for the church.

There was a concern in this text in verses six and seven, a concern about falling. Let's look at verses six and seven again. Not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride, he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.

Moreover, he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. There is a concern here about falling. There is a concern about the condemnation of the devil, the snare of the devil.

There is a concern here about pride. There is a concern here about man pleasing or man shaming that will be a snare to the leaders of the church. And truly we're being called to persevere. A little bit later on, Paul expands upon this as he talks to Timothy.

And he says in verse 14 of chapter four, do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. And we're gonna do that in a moment.

Meditate on these things, give yourself entirely to them that your progress may be evident to all. Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine, continue in them for in doing this, you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

The word save there is not in terms of redemption. We know who redeems us, but in terms of continuing on, of keeping yourself from danger. And this happens by keeping on, by meditating, by giving yourself entirely to them, not being distant from the things of the Lord, not being distant from the things of the church, but giving yourself entirely to the task that God has given to you.

So persevering, it's a persevering care, not a failing care, a care that ceases. Now, there is importance here in remembering Christ again. There are temptations. There are temptations to give up. There are temptations to be frustrated.

Even in the text, we are reminded to be gentle. In other texts, we are called to do all of what we do as shepherds with long suffering and impatience, because there is the need to persevere. And we are to run with endurance the race that is set before us.

We are to look unto Jesus, who is the author and the finisher of our faith, remembering that it was for the joy that was set before him that he endured the cross and he despised the shame. And even now he reigns at the right hand of God.

And so remembering what our Lord has done, the captain of our salvation, who has blazed the trail from suffering to glory, we follow right in his footsteps and we endure, knowing the joy that he has promised.

This is to be a perseverant care, a perseverant care, and a paternal care, a paternal care. I want to spend a little bit of time here because there's a lot of confusion about this. Notice I did not say maternal care.

Let's consider what goes on in this text, shall we? The overseer in the church must be the husband of one wife. The husband of one wife. The overseer, the elder, the pastor, the shepherd in the church is to rule his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence.

Why is this so important? Well, notice what it said. For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? So there is something that is essentially paternal about being an elder, about being an overseer, about being a pastor.

There is something paternal about it. So much so, so much so, that in Matthew chapter 23, verses 8 through 12, Jesus takes the time to talk to his apostles, these men who are going to be leading in the church.

Peter himself says, even though he's an apostle, he's serving as an elder, okay? Jesus says to his followers, his men who are going to be leading in the church, he explicitly forbids them from being called a father.

Don't let anybody call you Pope. Don't let anybody call you Father. Don't let anybody accord to you these fancy honorable names. Why would that even be a temptation? I mean, if they were going to act maternally, there wouldn't be an issue.

But they're acting paternally. They're acting like this. Don't let anybody call you Father. Job, and we're looking at Christ. Our Father's in heaven. We have a heavenly Father. I'm not Father to this church.

God the Father is the Father of this church. And so it's essential that we recognize that the role of an elder, the role of a bishop is paternal, which is why Jesus says, don't let anyone call you Father, because that will be the temptation.

That would be the direction that would occur. He is extremely wise, is he not? Further, I would have you notice that unlike many people today, unlike many church groups today, unlike many Southern Baptists today, Paul knows what a woman is.

If you'll back up to verses eight through 15, you'll see that Paul's not confused in chapter three, verses one through seven, thinking, I'm gonna write this in a way that we can have women in the pulpit, okay?

All right, that is being claimed today by the Southern Baptist Convention. If you go back up, verses eight through 15, you'll see that he has his definitions down and he knows what a man is, and he knows what a woman is.

And this is a passage that gives everybody a whole lot of indigestion, and we're gonna have to wonder why. Verse eight, I desire, therefore, that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting, and like manner also that the women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, but which is proper for a woman professing godliness with good works.

Let a woman learn in silence with all submission, and I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man, but to be in silence. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived fell into transgression.

Nevertheless, she will be saved in childbearing. Again, that word saved is not redeemed and saved from your sins, but preserved in childbearing if they continue in faith, love, and holiness with self-control.

Now, we don't have time to exegete that entire text, but I will tell you that nobody wants to take the time to exegete that entire text. This does not fit well in a culture that has been drinking the water of feminism for 100 years.

This doesn't work. This doesn't work with our culture, and therefore, it doesn't get any time. If it does get time, it is only to be criticized. So we know that we can tell that Paul understands what a man is and what a woman is, and he appeals to Genesis for that.

Surprise. So when we come down to chapter three, and he begins talking about who an overseer is, who a bishop is, who an elder is, he says it must be a man, and he must love his wife, and he must govern his household well, because this is going to be analogous to the way in which he cares for the church.

Do you see?

It says if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God? Do you see how he sets them side by side? And so in other words, just as a man is to be a present, presiding, loving, guiding force in his own home, so also the elder must have be a present, presiding, ruling, caring for the flock of Jesus Christ.

And so it is a paternal kind of care. Additionally, it is a providing type of care. Remember that Jesus says to Peter, feed my sheep. Able to teach, able to give counsel, able to care for the needs of the flock, to see to the direction and the spiritual good of the lives of the saints.

And we passed over a passage I want to return to, Hebrews chapter 13. Let's consider what kind of care, what kind of provision that the elders are to give to the flock. Hebrews 13, seven. Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you.

Jesus says, feed my sheep. Who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow considering the outcome of their conduct. So follow their faith, not blindly consider the outcome of their conduct, right?

Because Jesus Christ is the standard, and even the congregation is holding the elders accountable to the standard who is Christ. Verse 17, similarly, obey those who rule over you and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls.

This is the kind of care that the bishops, the overseers, the elders, the pastors, the shepherds of the church, they watch out for your souls as those who must give an account. When Peter and the apostles speak to the church and say, it is not fitting that we should depart from our labor to wait on tables, which is important.

They said, we must continue in the word of God and prayer.

Why?

Because they're watching over the souls of the people in their congregation. They are responsible before God as shepherds. And all we must do is listen a little bit to Jeremiah and Isaiah and Jesus about what God has to say about shepherds who abandon their task, who are lazy in their task.

And we are reminded from the apostle John, he says, I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth. And that is the passion that a paternal providing overseer in the church has. Also a protecting kind of care for the church, not only keeping with it, not only acting in a paternal fashion, not only providing care for the church, but also being protective, being protective.

One of the requirements for an elder is in Titus 1 .9. It says, holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict, to be able to show people who the truth of God is.

And also in Acts 20, Paul, with great tenderness, with great tears, addresses the elders of the church in Ephesus, warning them that savage wolves will sneak in amongst the flock of the church, that even some among them may even rise up and savage the flock, but they must watch and persevere and they're watching and be careful to protect the flock.

And these are the types of care that a overseer, that a shepherd is to give in leadership in Christ's church. The character of Christ and the care for the church. This is a passage I know that Ryan has read and meditated on and thought very carefully through.