Qualified Men, Not Just Men (1 Timothy 3)

By Ron Thomas     In 1 Timothy 3, Paul told Timothy to be mindful of the Holy Spirit’s criteria for men serving the church in the capacity of an elder or deacon. There are many churches that have men in these respective positions, but the key is not to have men in these positions, but qualified men.     To begin, a man who serves as an elder must have a desire to do the work, and he must maintain that desire. He will serve the congregation well if he has a clear understanding of what the Holy Spirit requires of an elder, and he can only gain that by a devoted study of God’s word (let him not learn what he knows from the preacher). If he is not well versed in the Scriptures, then he can be manipulated by others who are. Let me explain.     It is frequently the case that preachers of the Gospel are biblically better informed than all other members of the congregation. If a Gospel preacher is not properly anchored in the Lord’s way with the Lord’s motivation being his own ... and if members of the congregation are not well-versed in the Scriptures because of their own studied devotion with the Lord, then a manipulating preacher will serve his own purposes and not those of the Lord. Disastrous for the Lord’s church anywhere!      A preacher of the Gospel must train men in such a way that puts them in the best position to learn the Lord’s way. He can do this when the church meets, and he expounds on the Scripture with a heavy dose of “thus saith the Lord.” He might be able to do other things, but at the very least he must do this thing. After that, it is incumbent of each individual man to take it upon himself to learn from the Lord.     Men who serve as elders, like a preacher, potentially live a life on call 24/7. These men are servants and leaders in the congregation. They are expected to put the Lord first and lead their respective families in the straight and narrow way. Additionally, the men who serve as elders need to train men to follow them in their work; if they do not then a generation that comes behind them will not know the Lord). They do this best by being students of the Lord’s will and being an example to all. Younger men will notice and look up to them.     What about men who serve as deacons? They, too, must have a desire for the work, similar to that which is required of men who serve as elders. “The Scripture does not say that, Ron.” Let me reply by asking you, do you want men serving as deacons who have no desire for the Lord’s work?     These men who are asked to serve the Lord’s body must be men who are workers in the Lord’s kingdom – they cannot be deacons in name only. Imagine the Lord asking those who operate this way on Judgment Day, “Why were you a deacon in name only?” “Lord, I never received direction from the elders.” Perhaps the Lord might reply: “Did you have no initiative?”     The Lord put forth a skeletal framework for the church. When that framework has muscle and wisdom properly applied to it, the brethren are strengthened with much edification and evangelism results. Who would not want to be a part of that?

- Ron Thomas preaches for the Church of Christ at Rio Grande in Bidwell, OH. He may be contacted at etsop95@gmail.com. Visit the congregation’s website at: https://www.churchofchristatriogrande.com **