Honour & Discipline for Leaders

Alright, well, as we come to God's Word, we're continuing on with our series in 1 Timothy.

And we're picking things up in chapter 5.

So if you have your Bible with you, you can open it up to 1 Timothy chapter 5.

1 Timothy 5 · chapter mention

And we'll be at verse 17 today.

Last Sunday, we did the first half of this chapter.

And we heard Paul give instructions about how we should relate to one another in the household of God.

And the general principle is that we should relate to one another as to family.

We heard Paul talk about how the neediest members of the family should be provided for.

Widows.

And now Paul goes on to discuss another group in the church who should be honored or provided for.

Which is the elders.

And Paul will have more instructions in this passage that we're looking at today.

Concerning elders in the church.

Let's start by reading the passage.

Paul writes,

The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor.

Especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.

For scripture says,

Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.

And the worker deserves his wages.

Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses.

But those elders who are sinning.

You are to reprove before everyone.

So that the others may take warning.

I charge you in the sight of God and Christ Jesus.

And the elect angels to keep these instructions without partiality.

And to do nothing out of favoritism.

Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands.

And do not share in the sins of others.

Keep yourself pure.

Stop drinking only water and use a little wine because of your stomach.

And your frequent illnesses.

The sins of some are obvious.

Reaching the place of judgment ahead of them.

The sins of others trail behind them.

In the same way, good deeds are obvious.

And even those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden forever.

So the majority of these instructions that Paul gives to Timothy here

have to do with how elders should be treated in the church.

And we see and hear Paul say several things.

First, that elders should be honored.

That's verse 17 and 18.

Then that elders should be trusted.

Verse 19.

That elders who sin should be rebuked publicly.

That's 20 and 21.

That favoritism should not be shown to elders.

That's verse 21.

And that elders should not be appointed hastily.

That's verse 22.

Then in verse 23, we get Paul giving a little advice for Timothy

regarding his health.

And then he ends in this passage, this section,

with a word of wisdom for evaluating people's character

in verse 24 and 25.

So let's just work our way through these instructions,

starting at the top.

How should elders be treated in the church?

Verse 17.

The elders who direct the affairs of the church well

are worthy of double honor,

especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.

For scripture says,

do not muzzle an ox

while it is treading out the grain,

and the worker deserves his wages.

So this idea of honoring elders

is really connecting

back to what came before.

Paul urged that widows be honored.

Same word, back up in verse 3.

And what he meant by that, we saw last week,

was not just that people say some nice things about them,

but that they be looked after

and provided for by the church

in cases where they're really in need.

The Greek word for honor that's used here

has several meanings.

It can mean price or value.

It can mean to show reverence or respect.

And it can also refer specifically

to compensation that's paid to someone.

And in this case, it would have a meaning

similar to our English word today, honorarium.

An honorarium is a voluntary payment

for professional services rendered

without the normal fee.

That's from the Canadian Oxford Dictionary.

Nowadays, honorariums are typically given to

teachers, coaches, guest speakers,

people who officiate ceremonies,

musicians, performers.

And in these cases,

it's often a one-time thing

between the giver and the recipient.

But what seems to be described here by Paul

for the elders in the church

is a regular thing.

As elders continue to do the work

of leading and preaching and teaching,

they are to be regularly compensated

and provided for.

Not unlike how the widows,

who are really in need,

were to be honored or provided for.

Now, as you can imagine,

these verses are the subject of much debate.

Some will say that giving the elders honor

does not mean giving them money.

Others say,

or ask,

rather,

what does double honor mean?

Is this talking about wages

and salaries,

like for an employee?

Or is this talking about

more of a regular honorarium

or stipend?

The questions

that we have for Paul here

are many.

And the best that we can do

to answer these questions

is simply to look carefully

at what he has said right here

in the passage.

Paul gives two supporting quotations

from other places in Scripture

to undergird this instruction

and to explain a little bit more

of what he means and why.

Verse 18, he says,

Scripture says,

do not muzzle an ox

while it is treading out the grain.

Now this is a quotation

from Deuteronomy 25,

Deuteronomy 25:4

verse 4,

a passage in the Old Testament law.

And we're not going to go back

and look at that,

but it's worth noting

that Paul uses these same words

in another of his letters,

his letter to the Corinthians.

Let's look at that.

1 Corinthians 9,

1 Corinthians 9:9

verse 9 and 10.

Paul says there,

for it is written

in the law of Moses,

do not muzzle an ox

while it is treading out the grain.

Is it about oxen

that God is concerned?

Surely he says this for us,

doesn't he?

Yes,

this was written for us

because whoever plows

and threshes

should be able to do so

in the hope of

sharing in the harvest.

So here in 1 Corinthians 9,

Paul is defending his rights

as an apostle.

And one of those rights,

according to Paul,

is to have his needs met,

his expenses paid for

by the people he is serving

as an apostle.

In other words,

Paul was saying

that it was good,

it was right

for the apostles

to receive material

and financial compensation

for what they were doing.

And Paul defended that right,

even though he himself

chose to pay for all his own expenses

and needs

out of his earnings

as a tent maker.

And so,

as he is defending

that right

to be provided for

out of the work

that he does

as an apostle,

he quotes this instruction

in the Old Testament law

about oxen.

Do not muzzle an ox

while it is treading

out the grain.

And his point here

to the Corinthians

is that this thing

God said about oxen

is something of a proverb

that applies

all the more

to people.

So,

we just have a look

at the picture here

on the screen.

Here you have

a picture

of what this

setup might have

looked like.

You've got the ox

kind of tied together,

yoked together,

tied to this post

and they're kind of

walking around

and around this thing

and then they would

throw the grain

into the spot

where they're walking on

so that they would

trample it

and it would separate

the wheat from the chaff.

And

all of this is

the idea here

making the work

easier for the man

but often times

they would muzzle

these oxen.

And the point

of this instruction

is simply this.

Let the ox

have something

to eat from the grain

as he does his work.

You ought to be kind

and caring

toward the animal

who's providing

this great service

and not

stingy

and cheap

so much

that you put a muzzle

on him

and then expect him

to work for you

for who knows

how many hours

of the day

and then go find

his own food

later on

after hours.

And so here

in 1 Timothy

Paul applies this

to elders

in the church.

Let them

get something

for their living

from the work

that they're doing

for you

for the service

that they're offering

you in the church.

And Paul's second quote

to reinforce this

is likely a quote

from the gospel

of Luke.

Luke chapter 10

Luke 10:7

verse 7

Jesus is talking

to his apostles

here

his disciples

and he says

he gives them instructions

he says

stay there

eating and drinking

whatever they give you

for the worker

deserves his wages.

And

if you know

the story

from Luke there

Jesus

is about

to send

his disciples

out to towns

all over Israel.

How will they

be provided for

in the midst

of this?

Jesus tells them

to eat and drink

whatever the people

give you

at the first house

that you come to

and welcomes you

in the town

he says

for the worker

deserves his wages.

And so here

Paul seems to

quote Jesus

himself

and use those

very words

to describe

how the elders

should be honored.

Now some people

argue

after all that

that this doesn't

refer to money

because in the

context of both

of these quotes

it has to do

specifically

with food.

Some suggest

that maybe

the elders

had been given

a larger portion

at regular

church meals

rather than

money.

Or that if

there was a

distribution

happening

regularly for

widows

that the elders

were also

included in

that distribution

and maybe

they got

double the

portion.

But on the

other side

of the discussion

I mean

wages

is a money

word.

It has to do

with earning

money.

money.

And in our

day and culture

money is

needed to

cover the

costs of

living.

It wasn't

just food

that the

widows would

have needed

in Ephesus.

In some

cases

housing

clothes

medicine

doctor's

fees.

Furthermore

when we look

at Peter's

instruction

to the elders

notice what

he said

1 Peter

1 Peter 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5

he commands

the elders

to be

shepherds

of God's

flock

and to

look after

them to

take care

of the

people that

have been

entrusted to

their care.

But then

he says

something about

how they're

to do

that.

He says

not pursuing

dishonest

gain but

eager to

serve.

And the

word for

gain here

has to do

with greed.

Not

greedily

eager

to make

money

to get

money.

And it

seems implied

from Peter's

comments that

elders were

compensated

financially.

And so

there was a

right motivation

and a

wrong motivation

to serve as

an elder.

If you're just

doing it for

the money out

of a greedy

heart well

that's the

wrong

motivation.

Do it

in order

to serve

eager to

serve

just like

you should

not

do it

to be

in control

to lord

it over

those

entrusted

to you.

That's

the wrong

motivation.

So it

seems that

what Paul

means here

in 1 Timothy

is that

elders are

worthy

of being

compensated

financially

for the

work that

they do

in the

service

of the

church.

For

directing

the

affairs

of the

church

well

and

especially

for those

whose

work is

preaching

and

teaching.

But what's

not entirely

clear here

is how

much.

What does

double

honor

mean?

Does it

mean double

the average

salary of a

worker in a

similar kind

of role

outside the

church?

like a

teacher?

Well some

people see

it as

that way.

Or does

it mean

the amount

that the

widows on

the list

up in

verse 3

and 9

would get

but double?

Are we

talking a

sort of

living

expenses

stipend?

Or is

this just

a salary?

something that

would help

provide for

their needs

and perhaps

more?

And that

discussion is

still going

on.

I don't

know that

we can

really find

too much

more clarity

than that

here.

And perhaps

the Lord

has left it

this way

for a

reason.

Perhaps

it's the

principle

that's

most

important.

Are we

giving

adequate

care

and

compensation

to the

elders

of the

church?

like with

the

widows

who are

in

need

are we

ensuring

that our

elders

many of

whom will

be older

men

are well

honored

adequately

compensated

for the

work

they are

doing

in service

of the

church?

Now at

this point

I want

to say

thank you

to all

of you

for how

you have

been so

generous

to God

and

together

have been

generous

to me

and my

family

providing

for our

needs

both

monetarily

through the

wages that

I'm paid

by the

church

and in

other ways

through the

gifts that

you have

given us.

Thank you.

I feel as

though I

have been

doubly

honored

and maybe

more

in my

time here

in service

of the

church.

The only

question I

have on

this matter

is whether

we should

be doing

something to

honor our

other elders

for what

they have

been doing.

So this

is Paul's

first instruction

about how

elders should

be treated

in the

church.

Elders

should be

honored

for the

work they

do in

service of

the church.

Next

Paul says

that elders

should be

trusted.

Verse

19

Do not

entertain an

accusation

against an

elder unless

it is brought

by two or

three witnesses.

So if we

have listened

to Christ's

instructions about

the kind of

men who

should be

serving as

elders back

in chapter

three,

these are

already men

who have an

excellent

reputation

and a

proven track

record of

goodness and

faithfulness in

their conduct

and their

words.

And so

naturally

then if a

lone individual

rises up with

accusations or

allegations against

an elder,

we ought to

give the elder

the benefit of

the doubt.

Being in

leadership in

the church

makes one a

greater target

of the devil.

Jesus said,

strike the

shepherd and

the sheep of

the flock will

be scattered.

And there's

nothing more the

devil wants than

to make that a

reality among

Christ's people.

And so we can

expect that from

time to time the

devil will work

against the elders

by sowing

division and

deceit.

trying to get

the people in

the church to

take aim at

the elders,

to slander

them.

And people will

arise at times to

falsely accuse and

bring down the

good reputation of

leaders with

malicious intent.

And so this is

to be a

safeguard against

that in the

church.

Paul says,

don't even listen

to someone

speaking ill of

one of the

elders unless the

thing has been

witnessed by two

or more people.

By default,

the elders should

be trusted.

But the elders

are not perfect.

They too can

still stumble and

fall, give into

temptation and

sin.

And when that

happens, they

should be quick

to repent.

And just like

every other member

of the church,

they should be

reminded again

of the good

news, the

gospel of

Jesus, and

shown grace and

mercy.

But, in the

case where an

elder is sinning

repeatedly, or

continually, or

in an especially

grievous manner,

Paul gives

instructions that

an elder should be

rebuked publicly.

verse 20, but

those elders who

are sinning, you

are to reprove

before everyone,

so that the

others may take

warning.

So yes, the

elders are held

to a higher

standard.

They're not

permitted by their

position to sin as

much as they want

and get away with

it.

Jesus has put a

clear instruction

in here, by

which the rest of

the church, all

together, can

hold an

unrepentant

elder to

account.

And Paul is

absolutely serious

about this.

In the next

breath, he

says, I

charge you in

the sight of

God and

Christ Jesus

and the

elect angels

to keep these

instructions without

partiality, and

to do nothing

out of

favoritism.

So do you

hear the

seriousness of

these instructions?

This charge to

Timothy is so

serious that

Paul calls

God and

Christ Jesus

both as

his witnesses

while he writes

these words to

Timothy.

It's as though

he's saying,

God and

the Lord

Jesus have

seen me

pen this

charge to

you,

Timothy, and

they will

hold you

accountable to

carrying it

out there

in Ephesus.

And at this

point we need

to notice that

this charge,

these instructions

concerning elders

are given

specifically to

Timothy.

I charge

you, that's a

you singular,

not a you

plural as in

the church,

but you

Timothy.

Let's

remember that

Timothy was

an apostolic

delegate

assigned to

Ephesus by

Paul for

the time

being.

And so

as we apply

these things

to our own

church today,

who is it

that should be

doing these

sorts of

things?

We're talking

about rebuking

an elder who

is sinning

before everyone.

we don't

have apostolic

delegates still

around today,

and so

naturally it

would fall to

one of the

other elders

who are in

authority in

the church to

do this in

the case of

an elder who

has been

sinning.

And this is

where this

charge given

to Timothy

matters so

much.

For

Timothy,

these men

who are

elders,

are like

brothers.

They're like

comrades in

the trenches,

co-workers in

the field,

friends and

brothers at

the deepest

levels.

And so

that's, I

think, why

Paul charges

Timothy like

this.

It may be

exceedingly

difficult if it

should ever

happen that an

elder in the

church falls

into a

continuing sin

or a pattern

of unrepentant

sin.

It may be

exceedingly

difficult to

do what

needs to be

done and

drag that

brother before

the whole

church and

rebuke him

publicly.

The fear

may be high,

but Paul

reminds Timothy

that there's

someone far

greater that we

need to fear

in these cases.

We need to

fear God.

We need to

fear the

Lord Jesus

to whom we

must give

account.

don't.

We cannot

let sinning

leaders go

on sinning

and get

away with

it.

It doesn't

matter how

good of

friends we

become.

Paul charges

Timothy to

keep these

instructions about

rebuking a

sinning elder

publicly without

partiality or

favoritism.

It doesn't

matter if in

your heart you

want that

brother to be

innocent or

you want that

brother to be

spared humiliation

or disgrace.

You're not to

allow your

personal feelings

to interfere

with your

duty as a

leader in

the church.

God is

watching to

see that you

carry this out

and fulfill

these instructions

in your church

Timothy.

I hope that

you who are

elders are

trembling right

now.

I know I

am.

But notice

here that it

does not say

that in all

such cases

elders who

have been

caught sinning

like this

should be

excommunicated

from the

church.

It says

rebuke them,

correct them,

expose what

they are doing,

bring it to

light,

reprimand

them in

front of

everyone.

sin.

But then it

seems to

leave it

open to

one of

two

possibilities.

Either

they receive

that rebuke

well and

repent and

acknowledge their

sin and

confess it and

earnestly seek

God's forgiveness

and the forgiveness

of anyone in the

church that they

have wronged.

will be

or the

alternative would

be that they

do not receive

that rebuke

well.

They refuse to

repent.

Perhaps they

continue to

deny or

minimize.

They fail to

accept responsibility

for their

actions.

Or maybe they

do apologize

but they prove

in the days

that follow

that that

wasn't sincere.

It was only

made to save

face but that

there was no

real change

of heart and

that the

behavior continued.

Well in the

first case of

genuine repentance

do we believe

that Christ's

death has

made atonement

for that

elder's sin?

Will we

forgive that

brother of the

wrong that he

has done just

as Christ has

forgiven us

of our sins?

Now if it's

something that

many of us are

quite prone to

struggling with

say he gets

into a pattern

of losing his

temper.

The church may

even agree to

have him continue

on as an elder

with the other

elders holding him

accountable and

perhaps some sort

of plan to help

this brother address

this issue in his

life right away.

but in most cases

if he has been

committing ongoing

sins such that he

needs to be rebuked

publicly he should

be removed from

his position

and time should

be given as

much as it

takes for him

to restore his

reputation and

prove his

repentance

genuine.

in such cases

he has

disqualified

himself from

being an elder

but not from

being a brother

in Christ

for we are all

sinners.

In such cases

he may in the

future become

qualified again

by the grace of

God even

reputations can

be restored

over time.

Let's not forget

what Jesus said

with the measure

you use

it will be

measured to you.

We're not a

perfect family

and at times

in the Lord's

household

sin happens

dysfunction

happens

and the Lord

has given us

these means of

grace in his

word to address

those times

and correct

those times

when it comes to

leadership in the

church

but sometimes

it will take

great courage

and strong

love

to see

dysfunction

restored

to see

brokenness

healed.

Elders are

entrusted with

real authority

in the church

but two or

three witnesses

in the family

may at times

need to come

forward

holding an

elder to

account

and if a

pattern

or continual

sin

is exposed

elders

must be

rebuked

in front of

the church

by the other

elders

and there must

not be

favoritism

shown to

elders in

these situations

to shield

them from

God's means

of discipline

but

the good

news is

that we can

avoid having

these kinds

of things

happen more

often than

not

simply by

taking our

time

when we

appoint and

approve elders

to the

position.

Verse 22

Paul says

do not be

hasty in the

laying on of

hands

nor sharing in

the sins of

others

keep yourself

pure.

virtually all

scholars and

commentators see

this laying on

of hands

to refer to

appointing

someone to

the position

of elder.

The context

of this whole

passage is

elders

it's not

healing

and this

language was

used to

describe what

happened when

Timothy received

his gift

by the

spirit

and when a

word was

a prophecy

was spoken

over him

about the

special work

of leadership

that God

had for him

to do.

And so

do not be

hasty in the

laying on of

hands.

Don't be in a

rush to fill

the position

of elder

in the church.

Slow down.

Take time.

Know the

character of a

man first.

Is he

qualified to

serve as an

elder in the

church?

As we

heard that he

should be in

chapter 3.

And Paul

sort of

tacks a

couple other

imperatives

onto all

this.

He says

do not be

hasty in the

laying on of

hands nor

sharing in

the sins of

others.

We got two

imperatives there

in the same

breath and I

think that these

ideas are

connected.

The idea here

seems to be

that rushing to

put someone in

leadership in the

church without

first knowing the

kind of man they

are may lead to

you, Timothy,

sharing in their

sins, their

guilt.

Or, still

looking at the

context here,

perhaps you do

know the man and

he's a close

friend and

favoritism or

partiality leads

you to recommend

him for the

position of

leadership even

though you know

there's something

about going on

in his life that's

not above

reproach.

or also looking

at the context in

the case where an

elder is sinning

and you know

about it,

Timothy, but

fail to follow

this instruction

and rebuke him

publicly, you

then may share

in his guilt

like an

accomplice helping

to cover it up.

keep yourself

pure, Timothy.

Don't be a

participant in the

sin of others by

putting people in

leadership who

aren't qualified

or by failing to

rebuke men

publicly who now

hold the position

and are sinning.

So these are the

instructions that

Christ has through

Paul about elders

in the local church.

Elders should be

honored, elders

should be trusted,

elders who sin

should be rebuked

publicly,

favoritism should

not be shown to

elders, and elders

should not be

appointed hastily.

Next in verse 23

Paul gives some

brief advice to

Timothy about his

frequent illnesses.

He advises Timothy

to use a little

wine and not to

drink only water.

We don't have time

this morning to

talk about the

various speculations

on this and its

relevance to the

issue of alcohol,

so we're just going

to pass right by

that and go on to

the final words of

wisdom that Paul

gives in verse 24

and 25.

Paul says,

the sins of some

are obvious,

reaching the place

of judgment ahead

of them.

The sins of others

trail behind them.

In the same way,

good deeds are

obvious, and even

those that are not

obvious cannot

remain hidden

forever.

These words remind

me of what Jesus

said about how to

recognize false

prophets.

Jesus said in

Matthew chapter 7

Matthew 7 · chapter mention

that you will

recognize them by

their fruit.

fruit.

Whether they are a

good tree, a true

prophet of the

Lord, or a bad

tree, a false

lying prophet, the

stuff that comes

from them in time,

the fruit, will show

beyond the shadow

of a doubt what

kind of person they

are.

Time will tell.

And that's what

Paul is saying

here.

There are some who

are sinning so

visibly and

obviously that there's

no question about

whether or not

they're Christians,

or there's no

question about

whether they are

qualified to be an

elder.

Even before the

moment of judgment

comes, everybody

knows that the

verdict is guilty,

or everybody knows

that the verdict is

unqualified.

But there are

others whose sins

trail behind them

to the place of

judgment, says

Paul.

They get to the

moment of judgment

and that moment

where everybody's

looking at them

and wondering

about them.

They're under

the scrutiny of

everybody and it's

not until a bit

later as the

proceedings of the

trial unfold that

the facts begin to

emerge of some of

the wrongs that they

have done in the

past, the things

that they have

said.

Now the flip side

is also true,

says Paul.

In the same way,

good deeds are

obvious and even

those that are not

cannot remain hidden

forever.

Time will tell.

Now in the

context, this

wisdom applies to

discerning whether a

person is qualified

to become an elder

or whether discipline

is needed for a

sinning elder.

Don't be in a

rush.

Don't be hasty.

Let a careful

examination be made.

And time has a

way of bringing out

the truth.

But these words are

also helpful for our

own everyday

discernment.

Let's not be hasty

to judge the

character of others

or the sincerity of

others by words

that they say or by

things that they do,

whether good or bad.

Time will tell.

this is a

wonderful warning to

any of us who may be

drifting in our

faith or who may be

giving ourselves

regularly and

knowingly to sinful

behaviors.

The truth will come

out eventually.

Far better to

humble ourselves and

repent now.

this is also a

wonderful encouragement

to those of us who

may be serving the

Lord tirelessly and

doing good and yet

maybe your good deeds

have gone unnoticed.

Be encouraged.

Your good deeds will

not remain hidden

forever.

You will receive your

reward and your

commendation in time.

So these are Paul's

instructions concerning

elders in the local

church.

elders should be

honored.

Elders should be

trusted.

Elders who sin

should be rebuked

publicly.

Favoritism should not

be shown to elders.

Elders should not be

appointed hastily.

And as we work in

this last word of

wisdom,

patience,

time,

and care

should be given as

we appoint new

elders and as we

examine current

elders.

elders.

Now I know that

these words are all

about elders and how

we should treat them.

May we give good

consideration and

reflection to these

things as they pertain

to our church.

But I also know that

most of these things

are not everyday

things.

These are things that

happen occasionally in

the life of the

church.

church.

One of the

undergirding truths of

all this is that

elders ought to live

lives that are

worthy of the

calling and

position they have

received.

But let's not go from

here today thinking

that it's only the

elders who must live

this kind of exemplary

life devoted to

Christ.

Christ.

As Paul wrote to the

entire church in the

city of Philippi.

Philippians chapter 1

Philippians 1:27

verse 27.

He said whatever

happens conduct

yourselves in a

manner worthy of the

gospel of Christ.

Conduct yourselves in a

manner worthy of the

gospel of Christ.

We are all called to

live lives worthy of our

king and worthy of his

glorious good news.

Let our elders lead the

way.

But may we not hesitate

to follow and to do

the same.

Let's pray.