Dear Church,

The Perfect Pastor preaches exactly 10 minutes. He condemns sin roundly, but never hurts anyone’s feelings. He works from 8 a.m. until midnight, and is also the church janitor.

The Perfect Pastor makes $40 a week, wears good clothes, drives a good car, buys good books, and donates $30 a week to the church. He is 29 years old and has 40 years’ worth of experience. Above all, he is handsome.

The Perfect Pastor has a burning desire to work with teenagers, and he spends most of his time with the senior citizens. He smiles all the time with a straight face because he has a sense of humor that keeps him seriously dedicated to his church. He makes 15 home visits a day but is always in his office to be handy when needed.

The Perfect Pastor always has time for church meetings and all of its committees, never missing the meeting of any church organization. And he is always busy evangelizing the lost. The Perfect Pastor is always in the next town over!

If your pastor does not measure up, simply send this notice to six other churches that are tired of their pastor too. Then bundle up your pastor and send him to the church at the top of your list. If everyone cooperates, in one week you will receive 1, 643 pastors. One of them should be perfect. Have faith in this letter. One church broke the chain and got its’ old pastor back in less than three months.

This little letter is obviously an exaggeration, but it does underscore the reality that everyone has expectations for their pastors and church leaders. What kind of expectations do you have for your pastors and church leaders? You all know that there is no such thing as a perfect pastor (or at least I hope you do), but the Bible does set forth some basic character qualifications for anyone who would serve in church leadership.

In 1 Timothy 3:1-7, the Apostle Paul presents a list of specific qualities required for people to serve in the office of overseer, which encompasses the role of both pastors and church elders. The Greek word translated “overseer” is evpiskoph/j (episcopes) from which we get our English word “Episcopal” or “Episcopalian.” It can also be translated as “bishop,” and it is practically interchangeable with the term “elder.” Both terms simply refer to a governing leader in the church.

The reason why Paul gives this list of necessary character credentials for church leaders to Timothy is because some of the previous and current elders had fallen away from the true gospel and had become the very false teachers and were causing problems within the church. Paul is trying to help Timothy change the course of the church by replacing the false teachers with qualified spiritual leaders who exhibit the character of Christ. They will promote sound teaching instead of heresy. The list of qualities, therefore, is to some extent a contrast with the vices of the false teachers.

Paul begins this whole section with the phrase “Here is a trustworthy saying…” This is his way of saying, “Pay close attention! What I am about to say is really important.” The actual saying affirms that the position of overseer is a noble task. The statement implies that there were some in the church who thought it undesirable and this may have been a result of the position being tainted by the false teachers. Since the office of overseer is a noble task, people of noble character must fulfill it. In any organization, it is imperative to have the right leaders in place.

Paul is not saying that these character qualifications are only for church leaders; he is saying that these character traits are absolutely necessary for church leaders. Not everyone here will aspire to be a pastor or elder in the church, but as Christians, we should all be striving for these aspects of Christ-like character. As we look at these thirteen traits, let us make these our life goals.

 

1.) Above Reproach (2)

The first character qualification for a church leader is to be above reproach. Paul is not suggesting perfection, but he means a blameless life—a person with such observable conduct that no legitimate charge could be brought against him or her, either in legal court or before other people. There should be no grounds for true accusation because this person deals with sin between self and God and others.

If someone falsely accused you of some wrong doing, would people believe it?

 

2.) Monogamous and Faithful (2)

The next character qualification for church leadership is “the husband of one wife.” Some people interpret this to mean that an overseer must be a married man, but this is probably not what Paul means since neither he nor Timothy were married. A better way to understand this phrase is monogamous and faithful. An overseer is required to live an exemplary married life (marriage was generally assumed but not required), faithful to one’s spouse in a culture in which marital infidelity was common.

For those of you who are married, are you monogamous and faithful to your spouse? If you are not married, is your life marked by relational and sexual purity?

 

3.) Temperate (2)

The third character qualification is temperance. This term typically used in regard to alcoholic beverages, but since that issue will be specifically addressed in verse 3, Paul is probably using this term figuratively to mean balanced and sober judgment—not given to emotional extremes or rashness.

Are you emotionally stable? Do you think through decisions before you make them?

 

4.) Self-Controlled (2)

Fourth, the quality of self-control is required for church leadership. This person is able to control his or her words, actions, and passions—not given to anger or selfish ambition.

Are you sensible and in charge of your life? Can you say “no” when you need to?

 

5.) Respectable (2)

Fifth, a church leader must be respectable, which means to have such a well ordered life that it gains the respect of others.

Do other people respect you? Do they look up to you?

 

6.) Hospitable (2)

The church leader must also be hospitable, which means “open to strangers.” It reflects a vulnerability to others, a desire to care for guests and those in need.

How hospitable are you? When was the last time you welcomed a non-family member into your home?

 

7.) Able to Teach (2)

The church leader must also be able to teach. Not every church leader is going to preach sermons or even teach Sunday school lessons (although many will), but they must be able to communicate biblical truth and refute heresy and error

Are you able to teach? Can you distinguish biblical truth from falsehood?

 

8.) Sober (3)

The eighth character qualification for church leadership is sobriety or “not given to drunkenness.” Drunkenness was a common vice in the ancient world, just like it is today. Leaders that are controlled by chemical substances cannot think clearly or lead with integrity.

How much do you drink? How often do you go overboard?

 

9.) Gentle (3)

Next, a church leader must be gentle or “not given to violence.” A violent person lacks self-control and is given to emotions that are rooted in selfishness and anger. People with such a turbulent inner spirit would be disqualified from any leadership, especially in God’s church.

Would your family and friends describe you as a gentle or violent person?

 

10.) Peaceful (3)

The tenth quality is peacefulness or “not quarrelsome.” This describes a person who “calm, cool, and collected”—someone who can listen to others without reacting or arguing. Quarrelers are counterproductive in any group or organization, and they can wreak havoc in a church, like the false teachers in Ephesus.

Are you a peaceful person or do you find yourself constantly fighting with others?

 

11.) Financial Responsibility (3)

Church leaders must also be financially responsible people. Greed ruins people and greedy people ruin organizations and churches. If someone cannot manage their own money, they should not be managing the church’s finances.

How financially responsible are you?

 

12.) A Good Parent (4-5)

Likewise, overseers must be good parents. The home is always the true test of a person’s character and leadership abilities. If someone is able to manage their children well (which is an extremely difficult task), then they will most likely be able to shepherd God’s flock well too. But if a person’s children do not respect or obey them, one may wonder about the parent’s shepherding skills.

Do your children respect and obey you?

 

13.) Spiritually Mature (6)

The thirteenth character trait necessary for leadership in God’s church is spiritual maturity. The person should not be a recent convert to Christianity. Novices that are put in leadership too quickly tend to become conceited with swelled egos and wind up being detrimental to the organization. This is exactly what happened to Satan. He became so conceited that he led a rebellion against God in his attempt to achieve ultimate glory for himself. One must prove their spiritual maturity over time to be considered for spiritual leadership.

How long have you been a follower of Christ? How spiritually mature are you?

 

14.) A Good Reputation (7)

And finally, a church leader must have a good reputation with those outside the church as well as inside the church. If a church leader does not have a good reputation with unbelievers in the community, the gospel mission of the church will be compromised.

How would your co-workers and community members describe your spiritual life? Do you act one way at church and another way everywhere else?

 

This list certainly gives us a lot to think about. For one, when we hire pastors and elect church elders, we need to make sure that our candidates meet this list of character qualifications. If we don’t choose the right people to lead our church, we could run into the same problems that the Ephesian church faced—heresy and internal conflict.

Also, as Christians, we should all use this list a standard of conduct. It is true that none of us will ever be perfect, but Jesus calls us to a high standard. He calls us to model our lives after his life. Some of us are weak in some of these areas of character. So then, let us use this list to help us conform to the character of our Savior Jesus Christ. May we become more like him this year than we were last year!