The Measure of Success
What makes a good leader? There is a famous scene in chapter 10 of Mark’s gospel. Jesus is walking along the road with his disciples. James and John come up to Jesus and start jockeying for special treatment. They want to sit at his right hand in glory. This request garners jealousy and indignation from the rest of the disciples. James and John want a special place next to the powerful and charismatic leader. Jesus uses this as an opportunity to teach them about power and leadership. He says, essentially, this request for power is something the pagans want. Jesus tells them to pursue a different path …
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Mark 10:43-45, NIV)
Not so with you. Don’t seek power … become a slave … become a servant. After all, this is the model Jesus himself gave us. And yet, that often doesn’t sit well with us. In our 21st Century American world, it’s all well and good to serve people … but the metrics better match up. The sales need to increase, the organization needs to grow, your platform needs to garner followers and views. And it that is not happening … well … you are probably not a good leader. You may have high sales … but you have little influence.
Additionally, due to the internet and social media, we live in an era of Celebrity Pastors. Over the past decade, how many of these gifted leaders have fallen due to character issues? And yet, we are often drawn to their ministries over the faithful, ordinary shepherds who engage the day in, day out work of pastoral ministry.
What Jesus is saying, and what Paul will say is this: Character comes before competence. In the church, and I would argue, in the world, if you don’t have character … whatever natural competency you have will be seriously diminished.
The Character of The Elder
In a natural progression, Paul now speaks about the specific leadership positions, or offices, within the church. He begins in 3:1,
The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. (1 Timothy 3:1, ESV)
Here, in v. 1, we meet the first office in the church: The Overseer. That is a rather intimidating title—the overseer. What are they doing? Looking over your shoulder? Standing in the balcony peering down on the congregation from their God-Given perch? Not exactly. It’s worth setting the stage by getting some clarity on the word that is translated, “overseer.”
In 1 Timothy 3:1, the word for overseer is “episkopos,” which is sometimes translated, “bishop.” You’ve probably guessed, this is where the Episcopal Church gets its name. You might ask, “Well if that means overseer and bishop, where do the elders come in?” Great question. In other Scriptures, this word is synonymous with the Greek word, presbyteros, which is often translated as “elder.” That, of course, is where the Presbyterian church gets is name. In the cultural context of 1 Timothy, the term presbyteros had a Jewish origin, while the word episkopos had a Greek origin. As such, it makes sense that these words were both used to describe the same role.
Where are the Baptists, you might ask? To make things more confusing, there is a third word, poimen, which is translated as “pastor” or “shepherd.” The point is this: those three words are use interchangeable in the Scriptures and convey a similar meaning. The best example of this interchangeable use is found in 1 Peter 5:1-2, where Peter discusses the role of elders:
So I exhort the elders (presbyteros) among you, as a fellow elder (presbyteros) and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd (poimen) the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight (episkopos), not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you […] (1 Peter 5:1-2, ESV)
As you can see, all three words are being used to describe the office and work of the elders. For example, “elder” refers to the life stage or commensurate experience of the person. “Oversight” is the function of watching over the church and its doctrine. “Pastor/Shepherd” refers to the personal care given to the members of the church.
Later on in 1 Timothy 5:17, Paul will use the word, presbyteros, to describe the work of the elders as well. Before we dive into the character of these elders, let me sketch out the Biblical picture of the office of elder:
- First, we see a plurality of elders in the NT. In 1 Tim 4:14, Paul speaks of a “council of elders” who lay hands on Timothy. The 1 Peter passage, along with Phil 1:1, Titus 1:5, and Acts 20:17, all describe more than one, or a plurality of elders.
- Secondly, the office of elder is restricted to qualified men. Both 1 Timothy 3:2 and Titus 1:6 describe the elder as being the husband of one wife.
- Finally, all the elders rule, or oversee the church, but some are given greater responsibility in teaching. 1 Timothy 5:17 describes this dichotomy.
The elders of the church give spiritual oversight and protection to the flock whom God has entrusted to them. Paul takes this role very seriously, as do we here at MBC. It is a “noble task” as Paul describes in v. 1, to be “aspired to.”
Character comes before competence. I will also say, that some of us in the room may have experienced hurt because our leaders did not display these qualities. That is why Paul makes a big deal about this list—our leaders need the character of the office. This is leadership as it should be. Paul writes:
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. (1 Timothy 3:2-3, ESV)
These two verses describe the Elder’s morals and ministry. This is a sobering list. I want you to think back to our opening case study with Hitler and Desmond Doss. Often we pick people for leadership who are charismatic and naturally gifted. They are very competent … but their character may be lacking. This list is a guard against that in the church. As a leader, these morals and ministry action should be your first priority.
The Heart of The Deacon
The Elders are the leaders tasked with shepherding the church and offering spiritual oversight. However, there are many practical and physical tasks that need to get done to care for the body of Christ. This is where the office of Deacon comes in. The word, “Deacon,” comes from the Greek word, diakonos, which is roughly translated as “servant or minister.” The first deacons appear in Acts chapter 6. The Apostles were confronted with an increasing need the care for the physical needs of the widows of the church body. What was the solution? We read this in v. 2:
And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. (Acts 6:2-3, ESV)
So, leaders of the church recognized that caring for those in need was a necessary task, but it would take them away from spiritual oversight of the church. So … they chose the first deacons and appointed them to this role. They were servants who assisted the elders in this important task. Although the word deacon is not present in this text, this is thought of as the beginning of the role. Interesting, this is the same word that Paul uses in Romans 13 about the government officials, often called ministers in today’s world. They are civil … servants.
The Deacons display the heart of service in their leadership calling. Paul highlights this office in 1 Timothy 3:8,
Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. (1 Timothy 3:8, ESV)
Notice that connector, “likewise.” This points back to the role of the elder, but Paul is introducing this new role. The Deacon is not responsible for oversight of the church, but they are very important. As such, they are subject to many of the same character qualities as the elder. The elder should be above reproach … the Deacon should be “dignified,” a word that can be translated “worthy of respect.” How do they garner that respect? They are not hypocrites (double tongued), drunkards or greedy. Again, similar characteristics to elders. It is notable that the requirement of “teaching” is absent from the qualifications for Deacons, indicating the final authority on doctrine rests with the elders. V. 8 focuses on the Deacon’s ability to master his character. But Paul continues:
They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. (1 Timothy 3:9, ESV)
While they are not required to teach, the Deacon should still have clear convictions about the Gospel, the Word of God, and doctrine. There were likely many who aspired to leadership in the church but did not hold to orthodox teaching—the Deacon stands in contrast to those false teachers. That word, “mystery” can also be translated as “deep truths,” which refers to the sum-total of all the truths of the faith. The deacon must have clear convictions. Additionally,
And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. (I Timothy 3:10, ESV)
There is a period of testing in the deacon’s life. In other words, if you want to serve as a deacon, your life will come under scrutiny. Here at MBC, we don’t have an official “office” of deacon, but we do have several teams that function in this capacity and must meet the qualifications of deacons. Our Care Leadership Team handles the practical needs of our church body. For example, they do visitation of the sick in hospitals or at home, they take meals from our shepherd’s freezer for people who are in need, they offer rides to doctor’s appointments. Our Finance Team oversees the finances of the church. This includes, insurance, facilities, risk management, and many other items. Our Missions Team oversees our missionaries around the world ensuring that the Gospel goes forth into the world. If you want to serve on any of those teams … you must be a member and agree to our beliefs, as well as being tested and approved by our Elders. And if there is a concern about someone’s life, they may not be able to serve. The Deacon must be tested to prove themselves “blameless.”
The Mystery of Godliness
Now we come to the final segment that began all the way back in 2:1. It began with prayer. We learned about the differences between mean and women. We learned about applied leadership … but why does it all matter? Paul concludes:
I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth. (1 Timothy 3:14-15, ESV)
Paul is not sure when he is going to come to Ephesus … so he writes this section for two reasons: (1) ORDER. He wants Timothy and the church to know how to conduct themselves in the household of God. The church is not supposed to be a place of chaos … but order. You need leaders to maintain that order. You need to know the ground rules of behavior. This is partly why we have people go through membership class when you join MBC … so you know our expectations and beliefs. (2) TRUTH. Truth is at stake. Notice that he repeats the phrase he used back in chapter 1. This is God’s church … we are a Pillar and Buttress of the truth. You may remember that Pastor Dave explained the Pillar and the Buttress were the part of the structure that holds the building up. If you don’t have pillars or buttresses … the roof will collapse in on itself. The truth will be lost.
And this is why God gives Elders to the church: to make sure the church is holding fast to correct doctrine—we will not compromise on the Gospel or Biblical truth. Likewise … Deacons, through their acts of service, must also hold fast to the confession of the faith. If we lose the truth we believe … nothing matters. Those acts of service are of less effect if lives are lost and shipwrecked. The Devil wants to ensnare people and pull them away from the truth and we need leaders who will fight for the Gospel and the hearts of God’s people. We need to proclaim the truth of the Gospel. And that is where Paul finishes chapter three. With a hymn … with a creed of the earlier church …
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: (1 Timothy 3:16a, ESV)
Through history, the church has developed confessions to hold on to the truth. This is a confession used in Ephesus to reveal the “mystery of godliness.” Again that word, “mystery” referred not to something unsolved … but to something long hidden now revealed. What was revealed? Listen …
He was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated by the Spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory.
(1 Timothy 3:16b, ESV)
The truth about Jesus Christ himself! This is why the church needs godly leaders … to hold fast to this truth! This is why all of us should aspire to live lives worthy of respect … so people will see something different about us and about this truth. Our lives literally can be used by God to save souls and point people to Jesus! What do we learn in these verses?
- INCARNATION: We learn about the incarnation … Jesus came to earth as a human being. He dwelt among us. He lived a perfect, sinless life. He died the death we should have died so that his blood could cover our sins. He made atonement for us and justified us before the Father.
- VINDICATION: But Jesus did not stay dead … he rose from the grave! By the Spirit he was vindicated! He defeated sin, hell, death and Satan by rising from the grave in victory!
- PROCLAMATION: This good news, the good news of the resurrected Jesus was proclaimed to the nations because in his name way are saved! That is what the early church did, they went around and proclaimed the truth about Jesus and salvation no matter the cost.
- BELIEF: And because they boldly risked their lives and held on to the truth … people believed … they believed in Jesus Christ for salvation!
- GLORY: Jesus Christ was taken up to heaven in glory and the future hope for all believers is that one day, one day, one day he will return in the same way he left to make all things right in this world! Church … that is our hope! It is the hope of the world and we cannot lose that truth!
That is why the church is essential! That is why leaders are essential! That is why we gather every Sunday to hold fast to the truth of the Gospel and the word of God!
What makes a good leader? First and foremost they place their trust in Jesus Christ and they live out the implications every day! They live for Jesus not themselves. Character comes before competence.
