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The Gospel Observer
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them
to observe all that I commanded you, and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age" (Matt. 28:19,20).
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February 17, 2013
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Contents:
1) 1 Timothy 3:3-7 (Tom Edwards)
2) News & Notes
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-1-
1 Timothy 3:3-7
by Tom Edwards
As we continue with the qualifications for an elder, 1 Timothy 3:3
shows that he must be "not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but
gentle, uncontentious, free from the love of money."
That he is "not addicted to wine" is also seen in Titus 1:7.
The phrase "addicted to wine" is from just one Greek word
(paroinos), which James Strong defines as "staying near wine, that
is, tippling (a toper)...." Though the dictionary defines
"tippling" as primarily "to drink liquor, esp. to excess," it also
means "to drink (liquor), esp. repeatedly and in small
quantities." And since Paul's message was said during a time
when wines were greatly diluted with about three parts water and,
therefore, much less in alcoholic content than the wine of our day,
how much more so do elders -- as well as all Christians --
need to be total abstainers in our time?
In addition, the elder is not to be "pugnacious," which is also
listed in Titus 1:7. It is from the Greek word "plektes,"
which Strong defines as "a smiter, that is, pugnacious
(quarrelsome)...." The English word "pugnacious" is defined as
"1. inclined to quarrel or fight readily; quarrelsome; belligerent;
combative" (Random House Webster's College Dictionary). The
KJV renders this as "striker," but as James Burton Coffman points
out, "The current application of this word to participants in labor
disputes should not cloud the meaning here. Even as late as
the times of Sir Walter Scott, a striker was one who went around
thumping people on the head with a quarterstaff.
'Skull-breakers' is a synonym."
Rather than being pugnacious, the elder is to be "gentle"
(epieikes). The KJV renders this as "patient"; but the Greek
word also means "equitable, fair, mild, gentle" (Thayer).
David Lipscomb refers to this term as indicating, "Not bitter and
impatient, but kind in manners even to the froward and
unpleasant." This Greek word is also used in Philippians 4:5
and translated as "moderation" (KJV), "forbearing" (NAS77), and
"gentle spirit" (NASB). Kenneth S. Wuest, in his Word Studies
in the Greek New Testament, states that "Lack of this grace was at
the bottom of the differences between those two saints, Euodia and
Syntyche, who were not on speaking terms." Developing this
virture of gentleness is taught elsewhere in pertaining to every
Christian: "to malign no one, to be peaceable, gentle [epieikes],
showing every consideration for all men" (Titus 3:2). And Paul
also gives a reason for this in Titus 3:3-7: "For we also once were
foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts
and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating
one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His
love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds
which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by
the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He
poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that
being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the
hope of eternal life." In speaking of the wisdom that comes
down from above, James, the half-brother of the Lord, speaks of it
as being "first pure, then peaceable, GENTLE [epieikes], reasonable,
full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy" (Jms.
3:17). In Philippians 4:5, it is translated as "forbearing,"
where Paul instructs to "Let your forbearing spirit be known to all
men. The Lord is near." We think of "forbear" as to
"refrain or abstain from," "to hold back." But it is also
defined as "to be patient or self-controlled when subject to
annoyance or provocation" (Random House Webster's College
Dictionary). So, again, being patient or self-controlled is
helping us to "hold back" from saying or doing something we
shouldn't when we are provoked. Rather, we maintain a proper
disposition and conduct toward others. Therefore, being
gentle, in this sense, is important for every Christian -- and not
just the elders.
The elder is to also be "uncontentious" (NAS77), "not a brawler"
(KJV), "peaceable" (NASB), which stems from the Greek word
"amachos." There is some overlapping with this Greek word and
the one that "pugnacious" is translated from. For "amachos"
not only means "2) not contentious," but also "3) abstaining from
fighting" (Thayer). So it would seem that "pugnacious" is
focusing more on its meaning of one who is given to physical
fighting; while "uncontentious" is used to emphasize the verbal
fighting one should not engage in -- even though both words could be
used to express either meaning. Some Bible versions translate
it as "not quarrelsome" (RSV, NIV, NKJV). Wuest adds to the
definition of "amachos" by saying, it also "describes a person who
does not go about with a chip on his shoulder." Since elders
are to work together as one, being contentious (or quarrelsome)
would interfere with that. And, again, we can point out that
not only the elders, but every Christian should strive to be
uncontentious and peaceable. For we find this commanded in
Titus 3:1,2 (where even the same Greek word is used for it).
The elder is also to be "free from the love of money." This
entire phrase comes from just one Greek word -- "aphilaguros" --
which Thayer defines as "not loving money" and "not
avaricious." Similarly, every Christian is to be free from
this, according to Hebrews 13:5,6: "Make sure that your character is
free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for
He Himself has said, 'I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER
FORSAKE YOU,' so that we confidently say, 'THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I
WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?'" One of the words
translated as "money" in the New Testament is "argurion." So
now we can divide "aphilaguros" into three parts and easily see its
literal meaning: "a/phil/aguros" (not/love/money).
Paul then gives another qualification for the elder in 1 Timothy
3:4: "He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his
children under control with all dignity." Some have wrongly
understood this to mean that an elder doesn't have to have any
children at all; but if he does, THEN they need to be under his
control with all dignity. In Titus 1:6, however, it is also
shown that the elder needs to not only have children; but also have
"children who believe." The phrase "keeping his children under
control with all dignity" is translated in the KJV as "having his
children in subjection with all gravity...." Some other
versions render this as "...keeping his children submissive and
respectful in every way" (RSV), "...and see that his children obey
him with proper respect" (NIV). Commenting on this, David
Lipscomb writes that the elder "...is to train his children to be
grave and sober in manner and to respect him and to honor
God." And if these children are taught to truly believe in God
then will they not also honor Him, as part of that faith?
There has been some debate over the term "children." Does this
mean that an elder MUST have a plurality of children who
believe? Would one believing child not be enough? Some
folks see the use of "children" to also include for the man who
would have just one child. For example, E.M. Zerr
writes, "The captain of a sinking ship orders that women with
children should enter lifeboats first. This does not mean that
women with only one child would be denied entrance. Sarah
remarked (Gen. 21:7), 'Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah
should have given children suck? For I have borne him a
son.'" Sarah never gave birth to more than one child, but she
uses the word "children" to refer to him. Isn't it still a
man's household even if he has only one child? And can't a man
prove that he can rule over that household with just one
child? "Thus, the scriptural use of the plural 'children' to
include also the meaning of a single child is fully established in
the OT. ...Not the number of the children, but their behavior
is in view here..." (James Burton Coffman). Of course if a
congregation had members who would disagree with this, appointing
elders from only those with at least two believing children would
solve that problem.
Paul then parenthetically explains in 1 Timothy 3:5 why the elder
has to have believing children: "(but if a man does not know how to
manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of
God?)." Commenting on this, Don DeWelt writes, "If one be
incapable of governing so small a society as his own family, but
suffers his children to be disobedient and vicious, how shall he
govern in a proper manner that greater and far more important
society, the church of God?"
Paul also brings out something else regarding the elder that is not
mentioned in the list of qualifications in Titus 1:5-9, and that is
what we see in 1 Timothy 3:6: "and not a new convert, so that he
will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by
the devil." So even if he is an older man, he is not to be one
who has just recently been converted. For if that be the case,
Paul shows of the possibility of pride that would cause the elder to
fall away from the Lord. The KJV translates this as: "Not a
novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the
condemnation of the devil." This "fall into the condemnation
of the devil" might seem ambiguous. Does it mean that the
devil is the one who is doing the condemning? The NASB makes
this clearer by using the word "incurred" in the phrase "the
condemnation incurred by the devil." For to "incur" means "to
bring upon oneself." Therefore, it is not the devil who will
do the condemning. Rather, this verse is referring to the
condemnation that the devil brought upon himself; and from this
passage, it appears that "pride" is what became Satan's
downfall. The concept that some people visualize as Satan
being the king of hell whom all there must submit to is not founded
upon the Scriptures. Rather, hell will be a place of suffering for
the devil and his angels, along with all others there (cf. Rev.
20:10). And when thinking about pride, isn't that involved in
about every sin? For when a person sins, is not that person putting
his own way above God's -- instead of humbling himself by accepting
the way of the Lord? The Bible clearly shows how detrimental
to our faith, and relationship with God, pride can be: From 1
Timothy 6:3-5, it appears that pride can deceive us into thinking we
know the right answers, when we really don't. Pride can blind
us toward God. Consider, for example, Hezekiah: "In those days
Hezekiah became mortally ill; and he prayed to the LORD, and the
LORD spoke to him and gave him a sign. But Hezekiah gave no
return for the benefit he received, because his heart was proud;
therefore wrath came on him and on Judah and Jerusalem. However,
Hezekiah humbled the pride of his heart, both he and the inhabitants
of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD did not come on them in
the days of Hezekiah" (2 Chron. 32:24-26). The danger of
conceit can also be seen in Proverbs 16:18,19: "Pride goes before
destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. It is
better to be humble in spirit with the lowly Than to divide the
spoil with the proud." "A man's pride will bring him low, But
a humble spirit will obtain honor" (Prov. 29:23).
And, as we saw earlier, the elder needs to not only have a good
standing among the Christians, but also among the world in general:
"And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church,
so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil"
(1 Tim. 3:7). The phrase "the church" is in italics, so not in
the original; but it is in harmony with the passage and helps us
better understand it. The KJV renders this as "them which are
without...." So that is referring to those without Christ,
those without the church -- the non-Christians. Not only the
elder, but every Christian should strive for a good
reputation. Of course, it really isn't our reputation we focus
on, but our character. For your character is what you truly
are, while your reputation is how others perceive you. And we
can also say that even developing the right character is not our
primary focus. For our primary focus should simply be to
please God -- to put Him above all else. When one does that,
then other things fall into place, such as having the right type of
character, having the proper attitudes, having the right conduct,
etc. For in loving God, we humbly submit to Him through His
word, whereby He then helps us to develop these needful qualities
(cf. Phil. 2:12,13).
Paul shows that the elder needs to be concerned about having a good
name "...so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the
devil." Commenting on this, Zerr states: "Not that the
questionable reputation would cause the reproach, but if a man's
standing is in doubt, it will indicate that his conduct has not been
the best in the eyes of the world. If that is the case, then
he might again be caught in some of his former irregular habits and
thus be snared by the devil. And if such a man had been put
into the eldership, it would present an embarrassing and damaging
problem for the church."
The need for the elder (as well as all Christians) to be of good
reputation can also be inferred from Romans 2:17-24 where Paul
speaks of those Jews who "rely upon the Law and boast in God, and
know His will and approve the things that are essential"; yet, in
their failing to obey those laws, which they had been teaching
others to obey, it was not only dishonoring God, but also causing
the Gentiles to blaspheme the name of God because of them.
Peter also speaks of a similar thing in 2 Peter 2:1,2: "But false
prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be
false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive
heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift
destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and
because of them the way of the truth will be maligned." And as
we think about our concern toward our relationship with those
outside the church, consider these following verses: "...make it
your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business
and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, so that you will
behave properly toward outsiders and not be in any need" (1 Thess.
4:11,12). "Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the
church of God; just as I also please all men in all things, not
seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may
be saved" (1 Cor. 10:32,33). In striving to please others,
Paul, of course, would never compromise the truth of God's word in
order to do so, as he points out in Galatians 1:10. But he
strove to do his best in setting forth that right example before all
and practiced what he preached: "Conduct yourselves with wisdom
toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your
speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that
you will know how you should respond to each person" (Col. 4:5,6).
The "snare of the devil" that the elder is to avoid has been
referred to as that which would lead to "blasting the character and
influence of the minister of the gospel" (Albert Barnes).
So these are the rest of the qualifications for an elder that are
set forth in 1 Timothy 3:1-7. In our next installment of The
Gospel Observer we will begin with the duties and functions of the
elders as seen in the Scriptures.
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News & Notes
Let those of us who are Christians be remembering the following
people, and their families, in prayer:
* We extend our condolences to all the family and friends of Barbara
Teer (Denise Guillot's mother) who passed away February
21. There will be a visitation this Monday (Feb. 25) from 6 to
9 PM at the Resthaven Funeral Home, 11817
Jefferson Highway, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. There will also
be a visitation Tuesday (Feb. 26) from 1-2 PM, with the funeral
sermon beginning at 2 PM.
* Our sympathies also go out to the family and friends of Dempsey
Jones (Ken Robertson's uncle) who recently passed
away. He had been in his mid 80's and was from Jasper,
Alabama.
* Let us also continue in prayer for Tom Smitherman (Lee's
father) who has been diagnosed with an aggressive prostate cancer.
* Remember, too: Bill Barfield (Linda
Blevins' uncle) who had been in the hospital and now a rehab center
for a total of about one year; Pam MacDonald who has serious
back trouble; Cheryl Crews who has chronic ailments; Shirley
Young who suffers from fibromyalgia; Jean Calloway
who has health problems and had to recently be back in the hospital
for dialysis; and Virginia Fontenot who is a little under
the weather.
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The Steps That Lead to Eternal Salvation
1) Hear the gospel, for that is how faith comes (Rom.
10:17; John 20:30,31).
2) Believe in the deity of Christ (John 8:24; John
3:18).
3) Repent of sins (Luke 13:5; Acts 17:30).
4) Confess faith in Christ (Rom. 10:9,10; Acts
8:36-38).
5) Be baptized in water for the remission of sins
(Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet.
3:21).
6) Continue in the faith; for, if not, salvation can
be lost (Heb. 10:36-39; Rev. 2:10; 2 Pet. 2:20-22).
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Park Forest
CHURCH OF CHRIST
9923 Sunny Cline Dr., Baton Rouge, LA 70817
Sunday services: 9:00 AM (Bible class); 10 AM & 6 PM (worship)
Tuesday: 7 PM (Bible class)
evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520
Tom@ThomasTEdwards.com
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/go
(Gospel Observer website)
http://ThomasTEdwards.com/audioser.html
(audio sermons)