The Overseer as Christ's Undershepherd | Sermon 03/03/2024

Apologia Utah

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which I can become an overseer but us as people as well to have someone a leader over us sinful people that we are means of graces it's something that we do not deserve but God and rich in mercy has given us this hold on to that because the scripture we are going to go over today is a profound grace we find in Paul's pastoral epistles which are 1st

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Timothy 2nd Timothy and Titus qualifications for those who seek the noble aspiration of overseer we must understand that each qualification is that of a grace a gift given from God to allow the

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Church of God to succeed within a world where the devil seeks to destroy the church but it is the devil who in effect will be plundered by the success of the

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Son of the Living God that's why it's a means of grace through adherence to his word namely how the church ought to function

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Matthew 16 18 states this here's the Word of God on this rock

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I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it the rock as in Christ right hence

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Paul tells Timothy you may wage the good warfare holding fast or holding faith and a good conscience it's in first Timothy chapter 1 for destruction of the church most often often happens from within and the warnings we see in Scripture point out the fact that we must not only be aware of false teachers in ravenous wolves who seek to undermine the work of Christ but we should expect to see them try to creep in to the church these are as Jude states hidden reefs at your love feasts as they feast with you without fear shepherds feeding themselves waterless clouds swept along by winds fruitless trees in late autumn twice dead uprooted wild waves of sea casting up the foam of their own shame wandering stars for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever

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Jude doesn't hold back on false teachers he says these are grumblers malcontents following their own sinful desires they are loudmouthed boasters showing favoritism to gain advantage so these false teachers are unqualified men they look to devour the sheep to turn them away from the truth in order to seek out falsehood they are the shepherds who like it says in Jude feed themselves and as Paul puts it super Apostles those who seek to destroy

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God's Church by ultimately leading the sheep after a different Jesus a different gospel in a different spirit than what we have been shown in God's Word Paul shows us that in 2nd

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Corinthians 11 therefore the aging Paul we are told in first Timothy 1 3 wrote this letter to Timothy that's why the name of the epistle is

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Timothy he was a protege of Paul's who was most likely converted during Paul's first missionary journey in Lystra you can read

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Acts 14 if you want to know more about that who then joined Paul which were told in Acts 16 on his second third and fourth missionary journey all around the

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Mediterranean after that Paul charged Timothy to stay at the church in Ephesus and I quote it states this in first Timothy 1 3 through 7 so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart in a good conscience and a sincere faith certain persons by swerving from these have wandered away into vain discussion desiring to be teachers of the law without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions we can find that those who seek to be teachers yet do not fit within the qualifications listed in first Timothy 3 will in fact do the following we're told here in Timothy it says they will teach different doctrines rather than the faith that was once for all delivered to the

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Saints they'll promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith and they will speak about things without understanding understanding wandering away from truth in vain discussions so the charge of the overseer is to as first Timothy 1 5 states the aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart in a good conscience in a sincere faith and this task when overseeing the house of God is not something that should be taken lightly for the heart of any overseer should be the heart of Christ which

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Paul beautifully explains in Colossians 1 24 through 29 Paul states this this is his heart as a minister now

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I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh I'm filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body that is the church of which

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I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you to make the

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Word of God fully known the mystery hidden for ages in all generations but now revealed to his

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Saints to them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery which is

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Christ in you the hope of glory him we proclaim warning everyone in teaching everyone with all wisdom that we may present everyone mature in Christ for this

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I toil struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me that is the duty and job of a minister of Christ that is the heart of the minister of Christ so let the listener understand when we speak of the qualifications of overseer we are speaking of the qualifications for a leader who ought through suffering be able to wage the good war against the works of the devil in good conscience by making the

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Word of God known to the people of God to present the people to God mature in the faith the life of the under shepherd the overseer is to point to Jesus Christ the good and perfect Shepherd not to point to themselves never should never be the overseer is no better than anyone in this room his calling is just different than your calling his calling is to a life of service and suffering with a good conscience that stems from love to present

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God's people mature in the faith again to wage the good war and that is why James states this in James 3 one

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James states not many of you should become teachers my brothers for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness and this is echoed in Hebrews 13 17 obey your leaders and submit to them for they are keeping watch over your souls as those will have to give an account the overseer has to give an account to God for your soul and all of you know that in a little more than a month the pastors from Arizona in our own beloved

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Wade Orsini will be by God's grace laying hands on me for the pastorate so far be it for me to be a waterless cloud or a shepherd who feasts off the flock for the gloomy darkness of hell will be reserved for me forever fittingly that's true this is the calling to which

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I have aspired and the judgment of which I have aspired and as God's people we have been given the grace to have qualifications that protect the sheep from unqualified men from obtaining the title of overseer to this end

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I submit myself to my pastors and to the people of God to a life of service and suffering to the glory of God's people in love with a good conscience to devout myself to waging the good war to present you mature in Christ by making the good shepherd known it's my duty so let's dig into now the beautiful grace of God which are the qualifications over the of the overseer laid out in 1st

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Timothy 3 1 through 7 go ahead and open your Bibles and go to 1st Timothy 3 1 through 7 here are the words of the living and true

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God the saying is trustworthy if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task therefore an overseer must be above reproach the husband of one wife sober minded self -controlled respectable hospitable able to teach not a drunkard not violent but gentle not quarrelsome not a lover of money he must manage his own household well with all dignity keeping his children submissive for if someone does not know how to manage his own household how will he care for God's Church he must not be a recent convert or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil moreover he must be well thought of by outsiders so that he may not fall into disgrace into a snare of the devil let's pray

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Lord thank you for your Word thank you for giving us protections as a church body

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I pray Lord that our hearts are prepared for the reality in fact that you love us so much father not only did you give your son to die for us to justify us declare us righteous before you but you gave us your spirit in which we can hear and understand your word but you also gave us your word

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Lord the sole infallible rule of faith in practice that will train us up rebuke us but equip us for every single good work and this here

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Lord is a gift to the church so that we can operate and run in such a way that you want it to run

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Christ so help me Lord to speak clearly help your people to be edified please get me out of the way today

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Lord so that your word reigns supreme in Jesus name amen so we find in this section of Scripture a whole list of positive qualities for the overseer right we read some of them husband of one wife sober -minded self -controlled respectable hospitable but I want you to understand that these qualifications they're not a checklist right they're not just a checklist you don't just do these things and you meet the qualifications all men ought to seek to emulate these qualifications for they're linked to our union with Christ and sanctification every

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Christian ought to want to emulate these for the overseer there must be more than just meeting these qualifications we'll get into that but I like to break up these qualities of character into three distinct categories just to help my mind wrap around the list so first every single one of these qualifications falls under being above reproach all right you must be above reproach in each one of these qualifications but I like to break it up with the positive qualifications husband of one wife hospitable right and then the protective qualifications like not a drunkard protective for the church for the individual and then the exponential qualifications which are the qualifications that go out to the innumerable blessings to the church when these things are followed but again every single qualification is under the heading of above reproach in the first group of positive qualifications we have the husband of one wife sober -minded self -controlled respectable and hospitable in the second group we have able to teach not a drunkard not violent but gentle not quarrelsome not a lover of money and then in the third group for the exponential qualifications we have he must manage his own household well with all dignity keeping his children submissive must not be a recent convert he must be thought of well by outsiders in each qualification here guys they're not suspended into thin air by themselves they all have purpose and they're linked to the exponential growth of God's people through the sufferings of a man in character and that character is exposed by God I just want you to have a way to categorize these qualifications just hold on to that as we go through the text so going into the first verse we have it here it says the saying is trustworthy if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task it's the first verse we find in the

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Greek that Paul is shaping that what he is about to say is reliable trustworthy reliable the phrase here is pistos halagos in translated we say the saying the words are trustworthy pistos you might hear that as familiar as faith with faith you can have faith in these words faith in the saying that is he's about to give us so it's not just reliable like that one even just give it the depth of character that we have but in terms of the heaviness of these qualifications one can have faith in what is going to be said here trust in what is about to be said

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Timothy that's what Paul is saying and this is for the success of the church in all reality and just a quick side note there's five different times when

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Paul uses the phrase pistos halagos each one is in the pastoral epistles this is as trustworthy saying is used three times in 1st

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Timothy it's in 1st Timothy 1 12 through 17 in 1st Timothy 3 1 1st

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Timothy 4 8 through 10 one time in 2nd Timothy in chapter 2 11 through 13 and one time in Titus 3 1 through 8 so five times total in the pastoral epistles and I believe just being very candid that every time

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Paul uses this phrase it creates humility in the one who is reading the letter it ought to create humility a reminder of what their duty is to the people of God like remember this

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Timothy remember this Titus whoever's reading the epistle remember this and here is the saying right if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task that's continuing on in verse 1 the word aspiring here in the

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Greek is a regatta in its literal use it means the stretching of oneself but in this text it's referring to aspiring toward a specific goal and the goal in question is that of the overseer and in the

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Greek that would be the word of pisgah pause but I want to sit on that word for a minute there's another word used in the

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Bible that describes the type of leader in the church and what word is that well we in English can hear the word elder right or bishop and the word in the

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Greek would be presbyteros we find that in Titus 1 5 but I want to talk about that just for a second because the the qualifications for presbyteros elder are the exact same qualifications for that as an overseer so the words are synonymous right they're synonyms they mean the same thing so an elder is an overseer an overseer is an elder right they don't have two different functions their functions are one in the same in the

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Bible they're interchangeable titles and that's extremely important because there's a point in the early church where people actually got confused about that and they would have different roles but according to the

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Bible they have the same function so we find that there's a specific office within the church that is being described and that there's an aspiration that must occur within an individual within the modern terms you'd hear it as the internal calling someone would come up to say

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Pastor Wade or myself maybe like I have an internal calling I believe to be a pastor we would say that that is an aspiration right and Paul states that that aspiration is a noble task right verse 1 if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task understand that in the

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Greek the word we translate to task is ergo which is the root form or which the root form of that word is air gone meaning work so it's a noble work so the aspiration the desire to be an overseer is a work it consists of work but not only that it consists of noble work and the word noble comes from the

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Greek word Kaloo which connotates a good or morally excellent thing in terms of an ethical sense so this aspiration for the office of overseer is good but it's also a tremendous undertaking

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I know when I was first reading this section of scripture I'm like yeah that's a that's a noble task that's a great thing to want to aspire to be an overseer well what

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Paul is really saying is that the it's a extremely difficult task to do right very hard because the office of the overseer elder slash pastor is one who wages the good war right a leader in battle who is called to suffer in love for the people of God to bring them to Christ mature in the faith who will have to give an account for how he shepherds

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God's people and he ought to do it with moral excellence that's why it is a noble task and the work of the overseer ought to be exemplified by humility making

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Jesus Christ the focal point the rock on whom the success of the church thrives to be the point in which the faith of the flock he shepherds for Christ is pointed to Christ so understand these qualifications that we're looking at our qualifications of the character of Jesus right this is something that the the typical person the sinful person the carnal person cannot do cannot do this is a grace from God the internal calling that one has this aspiration is beautiful in the eyes of the

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Lord it's noble but it's a great in morally excellent work therefore an excellent work requires extraordinary sacrifice that's the reality that's what

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Paul is setting us up for it's a tremendous task so paraphrasing the verse here let's think of it like this the saying is trustworthy the internal calling to the office of overseer is a tremendous task in the eyes of the

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Lord a good task but one of selflessness a life of hard work that's the reality right because there's no greater love than the one who lays his life down for his friends and that must be the heart of a pastor which can only occur when the overseer meets the qualifications humbly submissive to Christ purely a work of the

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Spirit of God so what is that work what's the air gone right the air go the task of a pastor here's some examples that the overseers to do for the

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Church of God this is taken from Alexander Strauch's book biblical eldership I recommend that book to anyone who's wondering about it and it's by no means this is by no means an exhaustive example of what a pastor does but one they protect the flock by being spiritually alert and courageous in Acts 20

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Paul states that wolves will come in among you telling the leaders in Ephesus to be alert and on guard and to quell false teaching and to run the wolves out of the congregation the overseer must be able as Titus states to be able to refute those who contradict sound doctrine courage must be exemplified in the work of the overseer for it takes courage to stand up to predators of the flock but also to correct the sheep and to fix fighting between the sheep furthermore for the overseer to be courageous he must be spiritually alert in prayer and on the lookout for these things they must be watchful and the prayerful for the flock of God and in that they also must feed the flock here we find one of the most important tasks for the overseer to teach the blood -bought people of Christ this is the third listed gift to the church in Corinth after Apostle and prophet this task is monumental and exists throughout the duration of the ministry of the overseer remember

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Paul's heart from Colossians 1 what was it to make the Word of God fully known to reveal the mystery hidden throughout the generations but now revealed to his saints teaching everyone with all wisdom that he will present them mature in Christ the

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Word of God is a fountain of living water and the people of God need the water of life contained in God's Word this task to rightly divide the word of truth and teach

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God's people is a work of the utmost importance and that of a gift that God gives it's a grace to the church that's exemplified in the work of the overseer to feed the flock is to give them the

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Word of God the first sign of a bad pastor is one that does not feed his flock that's from Ezekiel 34 2 you can look that up later that's

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God's condemnation of bad shepherds we found that in Jude 12 right they feed themselves not the flock the pastor also leads the flock with management skill and hard work first Peter 5 states that elder shepherds elders shepherd the flock of God but what does that mean well he leads governs manages and cares for the flock this requires hard work and management skill constantly solving problems and providing oversight to the household of God the man of God must commit himself to hard work to killing the sin of idleness by pursuing in love the kingdom of God the life of a pastor is a life devoted to work noble air gone right callous air gone morally excellent work there can be so much more that could be said here with regards to management skill but for time's sake let's resume one of the last things we'll look at for an example is care for the practical needs of the flock with a love for God's people right the overseer is called to care for the flock they visit the sick and they pray over them they counsel people couples they strengthen the weak care for the widow and the poor pray for people these are day -to -day spiritual needs of the church body but all this is done with a self -sacrificial love for the church body right a love for people to exemplify the traits of Jesus Christ union with the church where he gave himself up for her to present her holy and blameless like really think about that that's not an easy task that's why the judgment is so strong that's why

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James warns those who want to be teachers again this is not an exhaustive list of the noble work of the pastor but really it's the groundwork to really help us understand the qualifications that we're about to go over why they are necessary and trustworthy for the moral qualities of the overseer this is not a checklist again but a spirit wrought aspiration that is externally observable qualities right so we're about to get into the meat of the potatoes of the lesson but let it be known that every single qualification here is hinged on the perfect obedience and nature of Christ this means that Jesus Christ is our example of the perfect Good Shepherd these qualifications can find their utmost perfection in the life of Jesus Christ and his ministry on earth without Christ these qualifications would be meaningless it's true now looking at verse 2 we see the famous words therefore the conjunction that helps us understand the following right so verse 1 the saying is trustworthy if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task therefore since it's a morally excellent work therefore an overseer must be above reproach the husband of one wife sober -minded self -controlled respectable hospitable able to teach remember on this rock

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Christ has established his church would it not make sense that the qualifications of the overseer must mimic the morally excellent qualifications of Jesus Christ they must this is not to say that the overseer perfectly upholds each requirement right no one is sinless no man is perfect but God however close evaluation of the one aspiring should show a track record of consistently meeting these requirements they should be taken seriously and met consistently herein lies the whole list okay above reproach blameless that's the overarching qualification it encompasses the meaning that the overseer is the one without spiritual blight of character one who is without reproach does not take the name of the

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Lord in vain when they stand in the pulpit and preach to God's people and counsel to God's people think of it kind of like this blameless does not equate to sinless but what it does mean is the overseer is the example to the body of Christ of how to walk in the newness of life in that profession of faith he must be blameless so think about it like this

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Colossians 122 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him that's all of our calling right and Jesus Christ does that in that sense we are blameless however when we're walking in the newness of life none of us do that perfectly but when you're above reproach as an example to the rest of the congregation the pastor ought to be that person who's above reproach so people can look to him for help on how to walk in the newness of life so the overseer he leads by example in his example of the

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Christian faith he must be above reproach for Christ calls all believers to be above reproach therefore the leader in the church ought to live a life worthy of the example of Christ understand that the world is watching there are crit they are critical and always waiting for the failure of the pastor right the world always is the pastor must lead an irreproachable life by exhibiting the following Christly qualifications so let's get into the first one they must be above reproach the husband of one wife now there's been wide debate about what exactly the husband of one wife means so I've taken this to mean that the elder must be married like has to actually be married some take it that the elder must not be in a polygamous marriage some believe that elders may only marry once and then some take it as elders must be merrily and sexually above reproach so I'm going to dive into each view quickly

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I don't want to get hung up here but I just want to give us an understanding so to state that elders must be married is to neglect the fact that Paul in 1st

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Corinthians 7 states that a single man would be undivided in his efforts for the kingdom of God also the phrase used in first 1st

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Timothy is one woman man mice one gynecos wife woman Andra husband man that's what it states it doesn't say an elder must be a man who has a wife quite simply so if they are married they must be a one woman man the man here's the second thought the man must not be in a polygamous marriage this is true however this is not exactly what

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Paul is speaking about and also during this time in history polygamy was not something that was popular even with the

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Greeks believe it or not polygamy would have been something that is taboo now a one -wife husband would definitely not have multiple wives which would disqualify him from the pastorate but that's not the interpretation that that Paul is trying to get out here there's a heart of what

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Paul is trying to truly show let's go into the third interpretation it states that the elder can only be married once however using this logic would disqualify an elder who is remarried after being a widower right after his own wife dies and if he gets remarried not only that it raises a bunch of issues when thinking about the biblical teaching of divorce and remarriage not to mention whether or not these divorces occurred prior to the conversion in the man's life every situation must be looked at and scrutinized through prayer but this black -and -white interpretation also misses the heart of the text which is the overlying emphasis to be above reproach in character walking in the newness of life so this leads us to the most consistent biblical interpretation of the passage which is the elder must be in a committed monogamous relationship with his wife and through his marriage be an example to the

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Christian body of a marriage that is above reproach and we'll get into what that even looks like so in terms of the mystery of Christ as the bridegroom to his bride which is the body of Christ let us look to Jesus as the perfect example of a faithful monogamous relationship if you want you can go here to Ephesians 5 if you want to turn there in your

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Bibles to verses 25 through 33 this is what it looks like to be above reproach as a husband husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her that he might sanctify her having cleansed her by the washing of the water with the word so that he might present the church to himself in splendor without spot or wrinkle or any such thing that she might be holy and without blemish in the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies he who loves his wife loves himself for no one ever hated his own flesh but nourishes and cherishes it just as Christ does the church because we are members of his body therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife and the two shall become one flesh this mystery is profound and I'm saying that it refers to Christ and the church however let each one of you love his wife as himself and let the wife see that she respects her husband right a faithful monogamous relationship with her wife with your wife to wash her with the word to love your wife as Christ loves the church he gave himself up right he sacrificed himself for his people to live a life above reproach to your wife is to mimic

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Christ in his relationship to the church wash her in the word present her holy and blameless before God to devote your life to such a thing what it means not right there that's the perfect example of a one wife -husband relationship and an elder must be living a life in which this qualification is being exhibited let's continue on to the next qualification sober -minded and self -controlled and we're going to kind of look at those two requirements together because they play off one another but let's first look at sober -minded for this leads into self -controlled the

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Greek word used here for sober -minded is Nephalios which can be referenced to a person who is clear -headed with balanced judgment they're free from rash behavior they're self -restrained right so a sober -minded individual is someone who is a self -governing individual number one in order to be a truly self -governing individual you must be spiritually regenerated not enslaved to sin you must be set free by the blood of Jesus Christ in order to even think straight but to continue to think straight you must be in the

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Word of God to renew your mind daily remember under the heading of above reproach in the life of a believer they're walking in the newness of life a person who is sober -minded is a person who despite all of life's curveballs stresses ups and downs is a heavenly minded individual whose eternal focus is that on God having the grace of Christ ultimately on our minds and Paul David Tripp he's a pastor he states this a sober mind is someone who lives with eternity in view someone who lives with eternity in view and what it means to be sober -minded is this it's to have a mind that is renewed by the

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Word of God in which we are told by God that all things happen for a purpose right

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God then states in that purpose it's for our good and for his glory so we have a hope that is unseen here's some promises of God we have a hope that's unseen and inheritance undefiled a sober -minded individual will stay focused clear -headed and above reproach when living a life with a sober mind so no matter what is happening or going their way whatever life's curveballs are they say it's happening for my my good to the glory of God I'm gonna look at this objectively through God's Word having a renewed mind and using that as my basis of judgment that's how you live a sober mind in a world full of confusion okay it's to not be run amok with your own feelings but to be in submission to God and his

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Word hold on to that to be in submission to God and his Word so when looking at Christ Christ was the perfectly sober -minded man he had eternity in focus with everything that he did

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I'll give you an example when the devil tempted Christ in the wilderness Christ in his humanity without food or drink right what would seem to be a situation in which the flesh was without every form of security to withstand the schemes of the devil he was able to be sober -minded with eternity in focus in submission in trust to the will of the

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Father in that he rebuked the crafty serpent who offered him one the serpent offered him the world a world in which he didn't have to do what suffer and die for God's people but what did he do again he rebuked the devil with the

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Word of God keeping a sober mind because he was in submission to the will of the Father likewise the overseer must do the same let's think about Adam and Eve in the garden now

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Jesus many many days without food and water miracle right any mere man would been dead again he had no protections from the flesh no protections

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Adam and Eve in the garden not a desert beautiful garden had everything they need they had full bellies

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Adam was to lead and to guide but when the temptation came even with a full belly even with full security to try to make the right decision in the flesh he failed to the schemes of the devil why because he was not in submission to the will of God which brings us now to being self -controlled the word used in the

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Greek is so fron which is similar to sober minded but it relates more to decision -making so can you understand how someone who is sober minded with eternity and focus in submission to God's Word would be more able to exert self -control a man who lives within God's reality is able to exhibit more self -control in common sense within any situation because God's Word and trust in Christ gives the overseer or any individual for that matter an objective look to look at any situation free from emotional prejudice right again let us look to Christ as the perfect example of being sober minded exhibiting self -control so here we have

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Matthew 26 53 when Jesus is about to be well he's being arrested here what does he say he says do you think that I cannot appeal to my father and he will at once send me more than 12 legions of angels and then in 1st

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Peter 2 23 we're told this about Jesus when he was reviled he did not revile in return when he suffered he did not threaten but continued entrusting himself to him who judges rightly so thinking about Jesus being sober minded exhibiting self control upon the arrest of Jesus he was truly above reproach he did nothing wrong he didn't deserve to be arrested he was impeccable right he was blameless in one minute if he wanted to he could have called down legions of angels to rescue him but instead he exhibited self -control he didn't have to he'd be the one in which he did he would be just to do whatever he wanted to do in that situation being

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God but instead he submits himself to the will of the father keeps a sober mind exhibit self -control and also corrects them and says no

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I still have authority over you to the crucifixion of Christ where he as Peter shows was above reproach and exhibited self -control because he had a sober mind when he was reviled he did not revile in return when he suffered he did not threaten the sinful people that were killing him on the cross but he continued entrusting himself to he who judges rightly so an overseer must exhibit the same level of continuity in his mental and spiritual life with God he must no matter what comes his way be in submission to the one who always judges justly in order to exhibit a sober and self -controlled mind that is being above reproach are you able to see it right like the overseer is the example to the congregation of how to walk in the newness of life to be above reproach as a blood -bought believer leading the flock

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Christ has entrusted him through the good war of life this is how

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God is successfully bringing the kingdom of heaven upon earth the church is a means of grace in our daily lives and know how beautiful it is to be part of the local body of Christ how can us you know if we're not in submission to a local church body walk successfully in the newness of life when we do not have a shepherd have a sheep that's just wandering around you don't have the example what does it say in Proverbs 16 32 better a patient person than a warrior one with self -control than one who takes the city it's a beautiful proverb leading on now we're gonna look at the next qualification here which is respectable so we already had here let's see must be above reproach the husband of one wife sober minded self -controlled now respectable let's let's continue to plod through this amazing section of scripture the

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Greek word for respectable here is cosmos and it's associated with the word used for self -control but the meaning is more it more or less conveys outward virtue that causes a person to be respected by others so how can an overseer be a leader of others if he's not respected right respect here is gained by virtue through traits being exhibited rather than manipulation in domination it's the beautiful thing understand that respect is born from being above reproach is a fruit obtained spiritually it is not done by domination manipulation or fear over the flock the pastor ought not

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Lord over his sheep there's that warning in first Peter 5 3 it says not domineering over those in your charge but being examples to the flock so when we think about being respectable that's something that naturally happens when somebody is sober minded and exhibiting self -control within the congregation you're gonna respect somebody like that who's not you know hot -tempered or you know getting flustered with every little thing that comes their way

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I mean naturally that's the way it works we respect by virtue furthermore let's continue on the qualifications is that they should be hospitable we find

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Paul saying that the overseer must be hospitable this is often one of the most overlooked qualifications however the overseer as an example to his flock must exemplify one of the most important aspects of Christian ministry which is hospitality we're told in Romans 12 13 first Peter 4 9 and Hebrews 13 to that we are to be hospitable without complaints and not to neglect to show hospitality to strangers understand that when we think of Jesus he was hospitable to the utmost extent and you may say maybe thinking well

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Jesus didn't even have a home right he tells us that foxes even has holes but I don't even have a place to lay my head how could

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Jesus have been hospitable well let's let me tell you this Jesus owns the universe Christ is hospitable for the fact that he gives sinners life when they don't deserve it

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Christ is hospitable because Jesus allows our entrance into heaven by the sacrifice of his blood Jesus is hospitable because we are now co -heirs with Christ united to the

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Sonship by adoption into his family ought we not to extend hospitality to those around us in reality to the ministry of Jesus his ministry was a ministry of hospitality and it continues to be forevermore he welcomes me into his father's house because he died for me to be able to go there that's the definition of hospitable he's like not only do

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I give you the shirt off my back but I give you the blood to cover your sins the

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Christian ought to be hospitable to the pagan and to the brother in Christ alike for we have been extended a hospitality greater than one we could ever imagine therefore the overseer ought to emulate this in his character towards his neighbor and flock

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Alexander Straunch from this book again he states this those who love hospitality love people and are concerned about them if the local churches leaders are inhospitable the local church will also be inhospitable and indifferent towards the needs of others now let us summarize before we continue to the next set of qualifications which are inherently linked to the positive character qualifications we just went over which are now to protect the elder in the congregation from which we'll just speak in a minute let me read the and then let's go ahead and let's summarize that here the two verses the saying is trustworthy right have faith in these words if anyone aspires to the office of overseer he desires a noble task therefore an overseer must be above reproach the husband of one wife sober -minded self -controlled respectable hospitable so an overseer must be above reproach walking in the newness of life as a blood -bought believer an exemplary example of a follower united and in submission to Christ he must love his wife as Christ loves the church he must be eternally minded in submission to God's Word and trust in the sovereignty of God allowing him to be sober -minded and self -controlled in all situations leading to risk leading respect from others from the virtue of Christian character he must be hospitable towards those in the local body and those outside the body mimicking the ministry of hospitable being hospitable that Christ has extended in his mercy to all people mimicking that from Christ again that's just a summary of what we just went through but we're going to continue because Paul now lays out a qualification that is truly unique and different than every other qualification that's listed here in first Timothy 3 1 through 7 that's the ability to teach all right able to teach so this is a qualification that not everyone is able to receive not everyone's able to receive this for the ability to effectively communicate the meaning of Scripture is a spiritual gift from the

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Holy Spirit all men ought to desire the spiritual gift of teaching 1st Corinthians 14 tells us that but it does not mean that all men receive it in fact this qualification is actually one qualification that differentiates the office of the overseer from that of a you can read that further on on your own in 1st

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Timothy 3 right after the set of qualifications for the overseer goes with the qualifications for a deacon understand that Christianity right it's a religion that is bound by the

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Scriptures it's we go through God's Word we follow God's Word God has given us wisdom knowledge literally everything we need in his word to train us and equip us for every good work and it's the work of an overseer to be able to feed the congregation with the

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Word of God don't get me wrong Christians can read and understand the Scriptures through the

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Holy Spirit and they ought to read and be transformed by the power of God in the Scriptures but the gift of teaching allows the person to effectively communicate the content of the written word to others so that the flock can be fed by the

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Word of God in as much which we went through earlier in the job of a pastor the ability to teach comes also with the ability to discern error to correct and rebuke false teaching through the teaching of the written word

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Titus 1 9 he must hold firm to the trustworthy word is taught so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it

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Paul as stated earlier in Colossians what he do he sought to make the mystery of Christ fully known through the

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Word of God to all so that they may stand mature in Christ and that is the gift from the

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Holy Spirit he makes the mysteries of Christ known through the written word to others so that they can stand mature in Christ for no one can search the depths of God except God himself and now we continue to the rest of the protective set of qualifications remember being above reproaches walking in the newness of life to the extent that the overseer can be an example to others sober -minded self -controlled respectable hospitable husband of one wife these qualifications and moral characters lead to the following they lead to the following verse 3 not a drunkard not violent but gentle not quarrelsome not a lover of money so we've got understand that an overseer is going to be placed within many different situations as an individual who of course is trying to help others overcome various things right various forms of idolatry from let's say alcohol addiction drug addiction anger outbursts other types of issues right when they're counseling the sin of the flock therefore he must not he must be sober minded when he's actually doing that counseling right exhibiting self -control by not being a drunkard by not being violent but instead gentle by not being quarrelsome and by not being a lover of money so what a person who is a drunkard be a sober minded individual who exhibits self -control no no if you're not sober minded and have self -control you will be you you can be a drunkard you can be prone to it this qualification does not mean an overseer cannot drink wine or alcohol by any means but it means that they must be above reproach when consuming alcohol because drunkenness is a sin of the most severe magnitude because it destroys lives marriages families and the like they can you can be sober minded and above reproach and have some alcohol furthermore an overseer must be by must not be violent but instead gentle the

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Greek word for violent here is pleso and its root form means to strike in this sense it is a person who is a a bully when he was irritable and out of control we can see that these negative qualities are a further dive into what would be shown if a person is not sober minded and self -controlled upon examining of the one who aspires to be an overseer if they are drunkards and if they are quick to anger irritable and violent they are not sober minded or self -controlled that's the point that Paul is making and this we find another positive quality listed in stark contrast to being violent and that is gentle right instead of being violent they ought to be gentle and right here this trait is one of the most profound fruits of a sober minded and self -controlled individual it's one of the most important traits for an overseer as well because it's a trait that's so closely related to Jesus in his earthly ministry and how

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God deals with his people when I think of this trait doing the research on this I was thinking of Psalm 103 this is in terms of thinking of gentleness how

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God deals with us gently Psalm 103 verses 10 through 14 state this he does not deal with us according to our sins nor repay us according to our iniquities for as high as the heavens are above the earth so great is his steadfast love towards those who fear him as far as the

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East is from the West so far does he remove our transgressions from us as a father shows compassion to his children so the

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Lord shows compassion to those who fear him for he knows our frame he remembers that we are dust the gentle overseer shows forbearance patience meekness understanding and graciousness because he understands the human condition right and he seeks to help people become mature in Christ understanding that he himself will have to give an account of their souls to the

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Good Shepherd 2nd Corinthians 10 1 states I Paul myself and treat you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ Christ is the perfect example of meekness and gentleness so God he will protect his sheep and the under shepherd is called to be gentle and meek

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God will not be mocked in any pastor who is violent and quarrelsome to the sheep will answer to Jesus that's a reality the

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Church of God exists inside the parameters of forgiveness and forbearance without forgiveness and forbearance you guys we would not be here we wouldn't be here therefore the overseer must be gentle and show forbearance as well to the flock of God now continuing on standing in stark contrast to gentleness is also quarrelsome must not be quarrelsome like violence being quarrelsome is the opposite of being peaceful Jesus States blessed are the peacemakers and when we think about the beginning when

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Cain killed Abel what has plagued mankind ever since right a quarreling and violent heart selfishness jealousy rage bitterness malice envy strife this stems not from a sober mind in a self -controlled spirit but instead a haughty and selfish spirit a quarrelsome person according to Proverbs 6 is one who stirs up strife between brothers in the

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Bible states that God hates it in Proverbs 6 therefore a gentle sober -minded and self -controlled overseer is a protection for the church through the local overseer

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Christ allows the flock to see how conflict ought to be handled in a peaceful God glorifying gentle way through their above reproach leadership right a gentle overseer someone who can help people overcome their sins through the

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Word of God instead of an unqualified leader who only magnifies the sins of his flock and brings reproach against God they got to be gentle but gentle don't be confused don't confuse that with weak because remember the pastor has to protect the flock gentleness is not weakness

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Titus 3 2 states to speak evil of no one to avoid quarreling to be gentle and to show perfect courtesy toward all people in that section of Titus and 3 2 are part of the qualifications for a presbyteros right the other word used synonymously to show overseer elder so can you see now how these qualifications are a means of grace for God's people so if more churches implemented examination of men through seeing the fruit throughout their lives for years by measuring them up against these qualifications would we not see that the modern church would have less few way less issues than it has today

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I mean you can go online and you can look for just do any search if you want like job positions for the pastorate you're just filling out job applications is this a job application what it says in God's Word no these are qualifications that should take years by not observing

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God's grace in these qualifications we as the modern church at large have widely profaned the name of God to the world we really have we must submit to God's Word and learn from our mistakes remember that the gates of hell will not prevail against the church because its success is predicated on the success of Christ and Christ is already successful it's his grace in which we have the means as the church to storm the gates of hell and one way to do that is to have qualified leadership within the church and that's why it's not surprising that the next qualification is listed here they must not be a lover of money who is a lover of money in Scripture that you can think of I bet you the first thing that comes to your head was

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Judas right Judas was a lover of money and betrayed the Lord of glory for 30 pieces of silver the

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Pharisees it said devoured the widows houses the religious leaders of Jesus's day turn the temple grounds into a place where money was to be turned for a profit the love of money is one chief identifier of a false teacher for they are only in the ministry for personal gain right the shepherd who feeds themselves denies the

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Word of God teaches false doctrine then takes their money and gives it to himself in examples here we have

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Judas one of the disciples the Pharisees leader of the church in that time right these are all religious leaders that were lovers of money what does it say in Matthew 6 verse 24 no one can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other you cannot serve

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God and money just can't furthermore and furthermore in 1st

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Timothy 6 10 it states this for the love of money is root to all kinds of evils it is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs it's not money that's the root of all evil what is it the love of money is the root of all evil you cannot serve two masters and the fruit will be made known in the end so an overseer must have respect for the funds that come into the church with a fear of God in order to successfully care for the church and love the people of the church an overseer must be content in life also with what

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God has given them right Hebrews Hebrews 13 5 shows us that we as Christians ought to be content with what we have for in Christ we have all that we need and he will never forsake us honestly guys

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I do recommend it if you look at that QR code on the back of the sheet that you have for our bulletins go through the studies that we did from Jeremiah Burroughs the rare jewel of Christian contentment

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I mean it'll be a long long set of videos for you to watch but man what a blessing it is contentment is truly an amazing thing but the overseer in point ought to be content with God has given him not a lover of money who takes from the people of God to feed himself and reject them so being above reproach with money means that God is the chief love on the heart of the elder and not financial gain not financial gain but this does not mean that the pastor cannot made make good use of the money that comes in to the church he ought to not put the church in any position that reprimands the name of God or brings dishonor instead money that is used and distributed with oversight with oversight is of great benefit to the

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Church of God right to help the widow the destitute those who are in need in ways that the church government ought to operate and not the state in terms of handouts so what

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I mean in that is that when we have unqualified leaders in churches and we have churches that do not operate how they ought to according to Scripture people will be overlooked the local needs of the body will be overlooked and in history in the

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United States of America we have seen that when the church is not operating how it should the state will eventually take place of how the church should function right so the family in the church should be the ones they have the authority given to them by God to help the homeless and those in need the widow the destitute the single mother you name it but when the family in the church fails the state will look to any opportunity to go over their sphere of sovereignty and take what rightfully belongs to God through unjust taxes and other means this the state should never be the one who's paying for the homeless paying for the widow paying for the single mother that just brings in a vicious cycle which we can see today we're we're in a big issue but part of that issue again right here stems from the church right the church is the local report card of the the culture is the report card of the church that's that famous saying

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I believe it's from R .C. Sproul Jr. it could have been from someone else but he said it all the time he said that that the culture is the report card of the church take a look at it how are we doing right in reality so the love of money in the church in many ways has led to governmental overreach with policies to help those in need that they should not have that which the local church family should have been helping people locally so above reproach with money and qualified leadership can help put an end to that which is plaguing our nation but let's summarize verses 2 through 3 a man who is above reproach who is sober minded and self -controlled trusting in God's Word will be one who loves

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God above all else he will not be violent or a drunkard or quick to anger they will not be looking for a fight but they will be peacemakers treating the flock with gentleness but a man who is not sober minded who does not exhibit self -control does not trust in God's Word is quick to anger prone to being a drunkard he is quarrelsome and does not handle money well like the psalm states you become the

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God that you worship and the qualities of the overseer should mimic the virtues of Christ in a nutshell now let's look at verses 4 through 5 he must manage his own household well with all dignity keeping his children submissive first five for if someone does not know how to manage his own household how will he care for God's Church this qualification here is that of the utmost importance for how the individual acts when the public eye is not around is usually displayed in the way he treats his family we also understand that there is no better mirror to ourselves than our own children the overseer must be above reproaching his family and be an example to the rest of the congregation in his own family dealings again this doesn't mean that the man must have children in order to be an elder remember that one thought that he must be a one man or a one woman husband

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I don't know why I just butchered that in my head anyways people will take even this section of Scripture where it says they must have children that are being submissive to them and they say well you can't be an elder overseer if you don't have children it's not what it's stating but if you have children they must be submissive to his leadership the

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Greek word for manage here is proestimy which means to lead or rule over understand that the overseer he's a leader in the church the way he leads the church will be a reflection of how he leads at home it's the reality right a violent authoritarian father authoritarian father will likely be a violent author authoritarian pastor in which he would be ultimately unqualified for the position for he must lead his verse four states with all dignity and the meaning of dignity here is the quality of being worthy of esteem or respect especially on account of one's behavior so it shows that his children respect him like the church by virtue would respect a sober -minded self -controlled man meaning the qualification of sober -minded and self -controlled is seen in the way the man treats his own family a man must lead his home in such a way where his children are not provoked to anger as Paul states in Ephesians 6 5 but that they're brought up in the discipline and instruction of the

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Lord a good father knows his children he does not set them up to make them stumble but instead with gentleness understanding who they are in forbearance he knows their weaknesses and helps them honor

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God by raising them up and not tearing them down a good pastor should do the same remember we are waging the good war the father he must take time to sharpen his arrows to pierce the strongholds of the enemy understand that the archer he must know the ins and outs of the wood and the stone that he is using to craft the arrow this takes gentleness time and consideration for materials at hand any violence or pugnacious attitude when we damage the arrow doling it breaking it making it useless for the kingdom or the archer may even damage himself with the arrow thus the man of God should treat his children in like manner and in turn the household of God this is how the overseer is to manage the household of God spiritually but there's also the fact that the father right ought to provide shelter housing and fiscally so the man manages his household this is why

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Paul is so pointed when he states for if someone does not know how to manage his own household how will he care for God's Church I mean you can't argue with that like and let's think about Jesus how does

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Jesus manage his own household Ephesians 1 2nd Peter 1 2nd

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Peter 2 right we have been given every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places through Christ we have access in one spirit to the father through the self -sacrificial love of God his divine power is granted to us all things that pertain to life in godliness through the knowledge of him who has called us to his own glory and excellence by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promise so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desires we were dead dirty sinners who have now been clothed in honor and glory co -heirs with Christ we were once dead now living stones being built into a holy temple for the

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Lord the household of Christ inherited the righteousness of Christ apart from any of their works that's how

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Christ manages his household the household of God is never left or forsaken therefore the overseer of God ought to never leave or forsake the flock of God or his family instead he should seek to make

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God known an example and through God's Word to his family and to the congregation now let's look at our final verses here he must not be a recent convert or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil moreover he must be well thought of by outsiders so that he may not fall into disgrace into the snare of the devil we find two warnings here from Paul on how the devil seeks to bring disgrace to God's church one through a new convert to through a man who is double -minded double -minded there's nothing wrong with a new convert we were all new converts once many of you are new converts right now again there is nothing wrong with being a new convert we actually praise

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God for the fact that you are not born again by the grace of God but in reality a new convert can be someone who is full of zeal passion and it can be infectious it really is but we must not mistake zeal for virtue for Peter tells us that we must supplement our faith with virtue and virtue with knowledge and knowledge with self -control a new convert simply put has had not enough time to grow in the knowledge and grace of Jesus Christ in Galatians we're told that Paul took three years in the

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Arabian Desert to learn and be with God prior to starting his apostolic ministry three years this was the

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Apostle Paul a new convert can become puffed up with conceit not learning how to be sober -minded and exhibiting self -control if they're placed in this position of power before they ought to be they need time in the

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Christian walk to create humility long suffering and patience whereas immediate authority and honor to the new convert can create prideful a prideful and haughty heart and that's why

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Paul prohibits new converts from becoming overseers and then we also find in first Timothy 310 the following it says and let them also be tested first then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless right there is in the section for deacons but them also also refers to the overseer how can we give new converts time to be tested if we're just making them overseers quickly because of their zeal knowledge or their zeal and passion doesn't happen it takes testing it takes time personally

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I've been with apologia for seven years not stating that there's an exact number for how long it takes to be qualified for the pastorate that's up to God and your elders but the individual who aspires ought to exhibit patience when aspiring for the pastorate because one way to destroy the church is to give the title of overseer to a new convert therefore

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Paul prohibits Timothy from doing just that in Ephesus and it makes sense in Ephesus a lot of people who were coming to Christ were pagan they were pagan go read the book of Acts when

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Ephesus is being converted go read the book of Ephesians these were people who were actually says they burned all of their occult books when they first came to Christ like there's a lot of stuff going on there many of them were pagans so he's got to tell them hey these people might be coming to Christ give it time give it time secondly a man who does not have a good reputation with outsiders or unbelievers is not qualified for the title of overseer what does this mean a good reputation with outsiders

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I believe verse 8 helps us understand that when we think of deacons it says deacons likewise must be dignified not double -tongued that'll give us a good idea of what

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Paul is actually getting at not double -tongued right this is referring to a man who portrays himself as one way externally but lives another way whether at home or with unbelievers right externally he portrays himself as a righteous man but home he's beating his wife and he's hurting his children right how much would this profane the name of God unbelievers cursing

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God at the expense of a double -tongued man this is the definition of a man who is living a double life one who says one thing but doesn't do it not to mention the

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Bible portrays Satan as the one who seeks to take advantage of someone within their weakness if the man who is aspiring to be an elder is aspiring to be an elder but instead lives a sinful life with unbelievers the devil will use this to trap the man in sins that are detrimental to the individual and bring a bad name to God's Church what's interesting with the double -minded individual is that the new convert and the man with a bad reputation with outsiders are assumed here to be

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Christians in the text but false teachers as well we can understand and assume that many double -minded people as well are not both of these types of people the man with a bad reputation with outsiders and the new convert can be discipled right but they should never be the ones doing the discipleship it should never be doing the one the ones doing the discipleship meaning that if we love our neighbor as people who are leaders we would not allow them to be in a part of leadership because they will hurt themselves and others in a process in the process it's a grace from God that when these qualifications are followed we are not ignorant to the devices of the devil and can wage the good war in love for the congregation herein lies the qualifications for an overseer if anyone aspires for such office it is a noble task and as Paul states these qualifications are trustworthy then are necessary for the growth of the church but after all that you may be thinking what does this have to do with me right

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I don't want to be a pastor I have no aspiration no internal calling to the pastorate but I will respond do you not aspire to be like Christ do you not aspire to be like Christ Paul states it be imitators of me as I am of Christ first Corinthians 11 1 the qualifications of the overseer are that of virtues that imitate

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Christ though you may not seek the pastorate these qualifications have everything to do with you one the pastor ought to seek to emulate these qualifications because it's less of himself and more of Christ then then you may not want to seek the pastorate you are the individual who ought to seek these virtues because it's less of yourself and more of Christ remember your pastor is to be the example for you in terms of walking in the newness of life you must walk in that newness to you ought to if your pastor is a qualified leader submit to your leadership as they seek to help you walk in that newness of life by being open to correction in training in righteousness

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Jesus says we have to be born again we're learning to walk in the newness of life and your pastor is one who will help you the

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Church of God does not exist inside a vacuum the Church of God does not exist behind a computer screen and internet services the

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Church of God exists with people who attend a local church who are under the oversight of a qualified elder in which we wage the good war locally and faithfully until we are with our

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Savior that's reality the application of these qualities is to understand that Christ set up his church to function in such a way where the

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Spirit of God works through individuals by the means of grace that he has provided if you do not aspire the pastorate that's fine aspire to be like Christ if you aspire to be like Christ be committed to a local body of believers to grow in the knowledge of your

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Lord and Savior these qualifications they should humble us right pastor or not with open arms we ought to read this section of Scripture and see the beauty of Christ he is not only above reproach but praise

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God he is impeccable right he's the highest standard right he is faultless blameless the spotless lamb who gave his life for us he is the

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King of Kings the Lord of Lords the one whom Job states that the stars cry out in worship in reverence the

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Almighty Prince of Peace the mighty God who spoke the universe into existence he called it forth from nothing and made it so remember it is this

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God who took on the form of a servant it was him who was perfectly obedient to the law not you not me not any other man has was ever existed could could do that it was

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Jesus Christ alone whose blood was shed for the forgiveness of sins it was through his leadership being the

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Good Shepherd that not one of his sheep will be lost it's a promise he will present his bride spotless before the

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Father on the day of judgment his sacrifice his faithfulness in which we with a heavenly mind in which he with a heavenly mind was tempted in every way as we but he was without sin without sin and that justifies us before God he has dealt well with the sons of men he's been hospitable gentle patient and kind so much so that he allows for a time even those who curse his name to drink the water from the earth to take joy in the pleasures of the summer

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Sun he disciplines his people like a loving father it is him in which we ought to seek to emulate our lives it is in this that the pastor should stay humble it is in this where we ought to all be humble let's pray

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Lord thank you so much for your word for the means of grace that you have given us a way to function in this world not to just resist the schemes of the devil

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Lord but to actually storm the gates of hell and you state that they will not stand against the truth we love you

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Lord we thank you I pray that our hearts will stew on this that will think about these qualifications as something we should all aspire to emulate we should all want to be more like you