A Few Godly Men

You know, we don't entrust our kids to just anybody.

The volunteers serving a king's kids, we know them.

We trust them.

We've done background checks on them.

Do you know why?

The welfare of our kids depends on it.

Maybe you have some older parents that you've been caring for

and the time has come for you to entrust them to others to care for them.

You weren't able to help them.

And you needed a level of care for your elderly parents that you couldn't give.

And so you send them to some kind of assisted care facility

and you're going to want to know who these people are you're sending your parents to.

You need to know them and trust them.

Why?

Because the well-being of your parents depends on it.

This morning we're going to see that God our Father entrusts the welfare of His children,

the blood bought of Jesus,

to a few godly men in a local church called elders.

This morning we're going to be talking about leadership in the local church.

God doesn't entrust His blood bought to just anybody.

He entrusts those He's purchased with the blood of Jesus

to qualified men that He will hold accountable on the last day.

And do you know why?

The spiritual well-being of the church depends on it.

The spiritual well-being of our church depends in large part

on the spiritual well-being of the elders that lead this church.

Therefore, we must trust God and His Word

in determining which men are to be appointed as elders in this church.

In short, leadership matters to a church.

So if you'd open up your Bibles to the book of Titus.

We started a study of Titus last week.

And this morning we're going to look at a passage on the qualifications of elders.

And I'd like to read it for you.

Titus chapter 1, verses 5 through 16.

Titus 1:5–16

Hear the word of the Lord.

This is why I left you in Crete,

so that you might put what remained into order

and appoint elders in every town as I directed you.

If anyone is above reproach,

the husband of one wife and his children are believers

and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination.

For an overseer, as God's steward,

must be above reproach.

He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered

or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain,

but hospitable, a lover of good,

self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined.

He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught

so that he may be able to give sound doctrine,

instruction in sound doctrine,

and also rebuke those who contradict it.

For there are many who are insubordinate,

empty talkers and deceivers,

especially those of the circumcision party.

They must be silenced,

since they are upsetting whole families

by teaching for shameful game

what they ought not to teach.

One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said,

Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.

This testimony is true.

Therefore, rebuke them sharply,

that they may be sound in the faith,

not devoting themselves to Jewish myths

and the commands of men

who turn away from the truth.

To the pure, all things are pure,

but to the defiled and unbelieving,

nothing is pure,

but both their minds and their consciences are defiled.

They profess to know God,

but they deny Him by their works.

They are detestable, disobedient,

unfit for any good work.

The spiritual well-being of our church,

of Christ the King Church,

our spiritual health depends in large part

on the spiritual health of the men

who give leadership to this church.

And so we've got to be very careful

to obey what God says in His Word

about appointing men to the office of elders.

So this morning,

I want you to see three things from this passage.

An elder's responsibility,

an elder's qualifications,

and an elder's unique call

to confront falsehood.

We're going to spend the bulk of our time

on that middle point,

the qualifications of elders,

but let's look at the responsibility of an elder.

God is calling not just a few good men,

He's calling a few godly men.

In chapter 1, verse 5,

we see the reason, the purpose,

Paul left Titus in Crete.

This is why I, Paul, left you, Titus, in Crete,

so that you might put what remained into order

and appoint elders in every town

as I directed you.

So just a little background.

Paul and Titus,

an apostolic gospel band,

had shared the gospel

through town after town in Crete,

first century,

and evidently there was a response

response of repentance and faith

to the gospel preached,

and there now were Christians

in every town,

many towns throughout Crete.

And so Paul, for a reason,

we are not given,

he's got to split,

and so he writes this letter to Titus

and says,

Titus, I've left you for this reason

that you put in order what remained.

And so what needed to be put in order?

Remember,

these churches were young churches in Crete.

At this point,

they didn't have elders of their own.

And so what needed to be put in order

among many things

was a foundation

in each of the churches

throughout Crete.

And we're not talking a foundation

of concrete.

We're not talking about a building campaign.

We're talking about a believing campaign.

That the doctrine

that is the foundation

of these churches in Crete,

what Paul calls sound doctrine,

the foundation of Jesus Christ,

who He is,

what He's done,

and it's all revealed

throughout the pages of this book

called the Bible.

At this time,

in first century Crete,

there was a clear and present danger.

There were false teachers

seeking to exert influence

on these new Christians

and these churches.

And so what Paul is realizing

to Titus is,

Titus, I've got to go,

but you need to stay put

and you need to get these churches

established on the sound doctrine

of Jesus Christ.

Paul's very concerned

about the spiritual health

of these churches.

And he knows that the spiritual health

of these churches

depends upon the soundness

of the doctrine

that they are being taught.

Healthy doctrine leads

to healthy living.

And so what Paul is referring to primarily

when he talks about

putting what remained in order,

he's talking about

getting doctrine in order.

Getting what they believe

to be true, right.

And so then he goes into talking

about appointing elders

in every city.

The spiritual health

of a local congregation

is dependent upon,

in large part,

the spiritual health

of the men appointed

to lead it.

To appoint

is this official act

of designating someone

into an office.

And at this point

in history,

here we have

an apostolic delegate,

Titus,

appointing men

into positions

of office,

these elders.

We don't have

any apostolic delegates

anymore.

And so this process

of appointing elders

is something we do

as a church.

And so we have

a year-long process.

It's called

the elder training course.

And we have men

come through

this elder training course

for a year.

And what we focus on

is their character,

their creed,

what they believe,

sound doctrine,

their competence

in being able

to communicate God's Word,

their ability

to interact

with other people,

camaraderie.

And after that process,

we have this thing

called the nomination process

in which we actually

put men forward

for the church

to affirm

with a vote.

And that's what

we're going to do

on June 10th.

This is our process

for appointing elders

from within us.

What I want you

to notice

about these elders

that Titus

is to appoint

is that

there's a little

letter on the end

of that word elders.

It's the letter S.

Elders.

Not elder.

The normal practice

of leadership

in the early church

was for a church

to be led

by a team

of godly men

giving overall leadership

to that church.

It's called

a plurality

of elders.

A team of elders

working together

to love a church

unto Jesus.

It's the normal

New Testament model

for leadership

in the local church.

It's for the spiritual

health of a church.

And it's interesting

that in this passage

not only do we see

these men

who are going to be

leading the church

called elders

but they're described

by another name.

Look in verse 7.

They are overseers.

They're synonymous.

They're talking about

the same group of men.

Elders,

talking about

the nature

of these guys.

They're proven.

Overseers describe

kind of what they do.

They oversee

the overall health

of a church.

And then when you

read a passage

like Ephesians 4.11

or 1 Peter 5.1-4

there's another word

that gets used

for these men.

Pastors.

Shepherds of the flock.

And so

these guys

who give overall

leadership

to a church

this team of men

they're a team

of elders

of overseers

of pastors

of shepherds.

It's a plurality

of leadership.

And it's to bless

the church.

God does it

this way

because he loves

his people.

He has good

for them.

So Christ the King Church

our church

is a local church

led by a team

of elders

a plurality

of elders.

Do you know why?

Our Bible

say so.

And so we have

a team of elders

because we're seeking

to obey

and live

according to

the scriptures.

Which gets me

to the point

of responsibility.

Serving a church

as one of its elders

is a very

serious

responsibility.

Do you know

who God

will hold

uniquely

accountable

if there is

some kind

of false

teaching

that begins

to permeate

our church?

Do you know

who he'll hold

accountable?

The elders

of this church.

We will have

to give an account.

Would you

flip in your Bibles

start flipping

to the right

to the book

of Hebrews

and turn

to Hebrews

Hebrews 13:7

chapter 13

verse 7.

We read

this.

It should

sober

everybody up

in the room.

Remember

your leaders.

Those

who spoke

to you

the word

of God

consider

the outcome

of their way

of life

and imitate

their faith.

And then look

at verse 17.

Obey

your leaders

and submit

to them

for they

are keeping

watch over

your souls.

Oversight

as those

who will have

to give

an account.

We will

have to give

an account.

It is a

very serious

responsibility

to undertake

the role

of elder.

It's of

utmost

importance.

And the

reason why

is the

spiritual

health of

this church

depends

largely

upon it.

God loves

his church.

God wants

good for

his people.

He wants

his people

to be

experiencing

the spiritual

health that

results from

believing sound

doctrine and

that spiritual

health shows

up in lives

of godliness

and good

works.

And so he

raises up

qualified men

to exercise

a godly

influence in

and through

a church

for that

church is

good.

The sobering

thing about

this is

that elders

have a

responsibility

for the

blood bought

of Jesus.

God himself

is entrusting

to their

limited care

the people

he's purchased

with the

blood of

Jesus.

It's a very

serious

responsibility.

responsibility.

That's why

a pastor

from a

bygone

era

Robert

Murray

McShane

said

the greatest

need of

my people

is my

personal

holiness.

holiness.

This is a

very grave

and serious

undertaking

but it's

God's

design.

And it's

from here

when we're

recalling

the nature

of this

responsibility

it helps

us to

understand

why

the

qualifications

for an

elder

are so

significant.

God's

not can

trust

his care

the care

for his

church

just

anybody.

So now

let's turn

to an

elder's

qualifications

and this

is from

verses

6

through

8

actually

6

through

9

and what

we're

going to

see

is

Paul's

going to

emphasize

character

and

competence

a

character

that has

been

shaped

by

God's

grace

and a

competence

in

handling

God's

word.

His

character

must be

shaped

by

God's

grace.

In

verses

6

and

7

you

see

a

little

phrase

repeated

and this

is

we're

back

in

Titus

Titus 1 · chapter mention

chapter

1

it's

little

phrase

above

reproach

verse

6

if anyone

is above

reproach

the husband

of one

wife

and his

children

are

believers

and not

open

to the

charge

of

debauchery

and

subordination

for an

overseer

as

God's

steward

must

be

above

reproach

that

phrase

above

reproach

is

the

way

that

Paul

summarizes

where a

man who's

going to be

an elder

where he

must be

in his

character

he must

be above

reproach

so what

does that

mean

well it

literally means

to be

blameless

do you

know what

Teflon

is

Teflon

is that

coating

on some

kind

of a

cooking

surface

that

keeps

something

from

sticking

here's

what

God's

grace

is

to

an

elder

God's

grace

is

Teflon

to a

man

God's

grace

operating

in a

man's

life

to such

a

degree

that

any

accusation

that

comes

to

him

any

accusation

of

some

kind

of

hypocrisy

it

doesn't

stick

because

this

man

has been

so

shaped

by

God's

grace

that

he's

above

reproach

you

look at

a man's

life

who's

got

this

kind

of

character

shaped

by

God's

grace

and

you're

able

to

conclude

from

looking

at

him

that

not

only

is

there

a

God

but

the

God

that

this

man

is

living

for

I

got

to

pay

attention

because

this

guy's

living

a

consistent

and

compelling

life

to

be

above

reproach

it

doesn't

mean

sinless

it

doesn't

mean

this

guy's

not

going

to

make

a

mistake

from

time

to

time

but

what

it

does

mean

is

this

this

man's

character

has

been

proven

to

such

agree

that

it

will

assure

the

church

that

when

he

does

sin

that

when

he

does

make

a

mistake

it

is

out

of

character

and

he

owns

it

affirm

that

this

man

is

a

man

of

God's

grace

so

this

isn't

a

call

this

above

approach

isn't

a

call

to

be

sinlessly

perfect

but

a

call

for

men

who

are

proven

in

their

characters

being

consistent

and

compelling

in the

way

that

they

live

out

their

knowledge

of

the

truth

their

lives

authenticate

the

message

they

proclaim

it

it's

not

theory

it's

real

God's

grace

having

had

effect

you

know

by

the

end

of

the

summer

all

of

us

are

going

to

have

really

nice

tans

and

the

reason

is

we're

going

to

be

exposed

to

the

summer

sun

over

a

duration

of

time

what

we're

describing

here

is

that

this

above

reproach

is

a

man

who's

been

exposed

to

God's

grace

over

a

period

of

time

and

he

shows

it

and

it

has

an

effect

and

so

what

we

see

happen

in

verses

6

7

and

8

is

that

Paul

kind

of

helps

us

understand

what

this

above

reproach

means

he

points

to

godliness

in

the

home

and

then

he

points

to

godliness

in

conduct

and

so

if

you

would

look

at

verse

6

if

anyone

is

above

reproach

the

husband

of

one

wife

literally

a

one

woman

man

the

emphasis

here

is on

a

pattern

of

faithfulness

to

one

woman

fidelity

fidelity

to your

bride

it

has

bearing

on

man

man

readiness

to

serve

the

church

now

this

does

raise

the

question

to

many

people

can

a

man

who's

been

divorced

serve

as

an

elder

does

that

automatically

disqualify

him

well

if

you

look

at

this

passage

and

then

a

passage

in

1

Timothy

3

there's

no

formulas

that

Paul

gives

he

doesn't

say

hey

if

a

man

has

been

divorced

he's

disqualified

from

ever

his

wife

for

a

season

an

extended

season

that

doesn't

mean

he's

disqualified

if

he has

a

divorce

in

his

background

is

he

a

man

shaped

by

God's

grace

does

he

understand

what

he

contributed

to

that

divorce

is

he

willing

to

talk

about

it

openly

the

emphasis

here

is

on

faithfulness

to

a

one

woman

now

we

all

know

that

a

guy

can

be

sexually

faithful

to

his

wife

but

be

a

real

jerk

so

what

we

need

to

understand

here

is

it's

a

certain

kind

of

faithfulness

to

his

wife

a

Christ

like

faithfulness

to

his

wife

in

Ephesians

5

25

kind

of

faithfulness

to

his

wife

where

a

husband

gladly

lays

down

his

wife

like

Jesus

laid

down

his

wife

for

his

bride

the

church

so

you

know

what

we're

looking

for

as a

church

we're

looking

for

men

who

love

their

wives

in

such

a

way

that

they

regularly

lay

their

lives

down

for

them

if

a

guy

is

willing

to

do

that

for

his

bride

he's

going

to

do

that

for

the

church

as

well

Christ

bride

the

husband

of

one

wife

his

children

are

believers

his

children

are

believers

now

there's

debate

over

what

that

word

believer

means

it

could

mean

his

children

are

born

again

followers

of

Jesus

or

it

could

mean

that

his

children

are

obedient

that

they're

submissive

to

their

dad

and

I

think

the

latter

translation

is

better

because

of

where

Paul

goes

in

the

text

notice

what

he

says

verse

six

his

children

are

believers

and

not

open

to

the

charge

of

debauchery

or

insubordination

he

focuses

on

their

behavior

debauchery

by the

way

is

wild

living

wild

out

living

and

insubordination

is

rebellion

if you

flip to

first

Timothy

chapter

three

and

the

parallel

passage

of

this

in

verse

five

we

read

this

for

if

someone

excuse

me

verse

four

an

elder

must

manage

his

own

household

well

with

all

dignity

keeping

his

children

submissive

and

so

the

idea

here

is

not

an

elder's

children

being

born

again

like

any

of

us

can

ensure

that

happening

but

rather

that

the

elder

is

set

the

thermostat

on

his

home

on

grace

and

so

his

children

are

raised

in

an

atmosphere

of

grace

and

so

whether

or not

they have

put

the stake

in the

ground

for

Jesus

his

children

have

grown

up

in a

context

where

they

honor

their

mother

and

their

father

they're

submissive

proof

is in

the

pudding

so

we

go

on

Paul

says

an

overseer

as

God's

steward

must

be

above

reproach

you

see that

in

verse

seven

a

steward

in

the

first

century

was

a

man

entrusted

with

the

responsibility

of

overseeing

and

managing

the

household

of the

head

of the

home

oftentimes

a

steward

was

given

responsibility

for

the

day

to

day

financial

operations

as well

as the

different

members

of the

home

for their

education

and care

what

Paul

is

saying

there

is

if

a

man

is

unable

to

manage

his

own

household

well

he

has

no

business

seeking

to be

an

overseer

or

a

steward

of

God's

family

that's

what

he's

saying

what

we're

seeing

here

is

godliness

in

the

home

the

exposure

of

grace

in

a

man

that

affects

the

way

that

he

loves

his

wife

and

affects

the

way

that

he

raises

his

children

the

home

is

the

proving

ground

of

Christian

leadership

it's

in

the

details

you

cannot

fake

who

you

are

in

your

home

it's

clear

for those

who are

living

with

you

we

go

from

godliness

in

the

home

to

godliness

in

conduct

and

Paul

lays

out

five

must

not

be

he

must

not

be

arrogant

he

must

not

be

quick

tempered

he

must

not

be

a

drunkard

he

must

not

be

violent

he

must

not

be

greedy

for

gain

he

must

not

be

these

things

and

what

he's

describing

is

a

man's

character

how

he

lives

normal

patterns

of

life

arrogant

is

this

idea

of

being

self

governing

self

willed

self

centered

quick

tempered

you're

ruled

by

your

anger

a

drunkard

you're

ruled

by

alcohol

violent

you're

ruled

by

lashing

out

on

people

greedy

for

gain

you're

ruled

by

the

desire

for

money

or

possessions

and

God

says

none

of

that

can

be

in

the

leadership

of

a

church

men

cannot

be

ruled

by

themselves

or

their

passions

what

these

all

have

in

common

is

a

self

centeredness

that

gives

way

to

a

self

serving

of

one's

passions

so

let's

say

we

see

a

brother

in

the

church

who's

got

an

anger

problem

or

someone

who's

greedy

for

gain

maybe

lashes

out

on

people

do

you

know

what

that

means

well

maybe

they're

not

ready

to

be

an

elder

yet

they

just

need

more

time

in

the

oven

of

God's

grace

in

the

oven

of

God's

grace

God

heats

up

a

Christian's

character

in

order

to

mold

that

character

to be

like

Jesus

and

so

if

there's

a

brother

or

sister

for

that

matter

a

Christian

where

we're

seeing

these

qualities

in

they

need

more

time

in

God's

oven

of

grace

but

they

cannot

be

true

of

a

man

serving

as

an

elder

of

a

church

we

go

from

must

not

be

to

the

must

be

again

think

of

these