The Church Pastor

["Click here for scripure"]

A Good Pastor

["Click here for I Timothy 4:1-6"]
We are going to talk about the minister again. We are going to ask and Paul is going to answer the following questions.

1. What is a good minister?
2. What is a godly minister?
3. What is a growing minister?

Here Paul says that a good minister is one who instructs the brethren and nourishes them on the Word of faith and expounds to them, good doctrine. Basically, he teaches and preaches the Word of God, without compromise. This was needed at Ephesus because of the presence of false teachers. Paul says that these false teachers can be recognized by four characteristics:

1. They are Christians being used by Satan. This truth shocks some people. Satan has, is and always will use Christians to accomplish his work. One of the first incidents of this in the New Testament was when Satan used Peter to try to lead Jesus down the wrong path. In the Garden of Gethsemane, Peter drew a sword to try to keep Jesus from being arrested and Jesus reprimanded him and said, "Peter, put your sword away, shall I not drink of the cup which the Father has given me?" Satan used Ananias and Sapphira at the church in Jerusalem when they kept back a portion of money that they received from the sale of a piece of property. In Ephesus, they were adding to that which was necessary for the Gentile convert to live a life acceptable to the Lord by saying that it was better if they did not marry but rather stayed single. Paul may have added to this confusion by stating once that the responsibilities of marriage might take from the time that you have to serve the Lord, but later he assured them in First Cor. 7, "It is well for a man not to touch a woman, but because of the temptation to do evil, each man should have his own wife." God said in the Book of Genesis that it was not good for man to live alone, so he created Eve.
2. The second characteristic was their insistence on not eating certain foods. The fact that God, in a vision, showed Peter three times that these foods were good to eat, did not interest these false teachers. They, being converted Jews, liked the position that they had held for so many years of being God's chosen people, and they used this position to influence the Gentile converts. The Gentile's thought that the Jews knew, after all, wasn't their Savior a Jew? Jesus taught in Mark 7 that all foods are spiritually clean. Now what difference does it make if we eat or we don't eat, or if we marry or if we don't marry? The evil is in the teaching, the false teaching that suggests that there is credit in the doing or the not doing of some things. It infers that we promote or work for our salvation by abstaining from certain things. This is called "apostasy". The opposite of "Justification by Faith" is "justification by works" and this is an apostasy. Those who taught these false teachings needed to be recognized for what they were, false teachers.
3. The third way that they could be recognized was that they did not practiced what they preached. They preached one thing and practiced another. In other words, they were hypocrites.
4. The forth way they could be recognized was that they denied God's Word. The attempt to combine Jewish legalism and Eastern asceticism with Christianity was prevalent in many churches in Asia Minor. Jewish converts found it hard to let go of the old traditions, and the rituals and color of the eastern religions found their way into Christianity as these people became converts and believers in Christ. It was not until 1700 and some years later, at the Reformation, that these influences were recognized for what they were, false teachings.

Timothy had a big job to do. If he was to be a "Good Minister", he was going to have to disclose these people for what they were and, in love, attempt to turn them from their false beliefs.

A Godly Pastor

The second instruction to Timothy was to be a "Godly Pastor". Here, his instructions were simple. Set an example for the believers in five areas, in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. Paul calls this "spiritual calisthenics". Training in "godliness". Training spiritually just as you would physically.

Paul discuses "spiritual exercise" on three levels of life. The bad, the temporary and the eternal. The eternal is what Paul says that we should seek after. He calls this "the great purpose of the Christian life". Spiritual training like physical training, requires dedication. But it should also be a labor of love. By the Grace of God, a Christian can excel in spiritual things.

Paul lists 5 areas of life that need spiritual exercise if we are to be God like:

1. Speech. It must always be honest and loving.
2. Conduct. Our walk in life must be controlled by the Word of God.
3. Love. This should motivate all that we do. We do not do this for the phrase of men, we love, because Christ first loved us.
4. Faith. Faith imparts trust. We accept the promises of God and by faith, trust His word.
5. Purity. This would not have been easy for any body in Ephesus. This city was the center of impurity. Timothy was young it would not have been easy for him to keep himself pure in mind, heart and body.

These are the five qualifications that Paul suggests that Timothy and all Pastors strive for. Not only for themselves but also for the church and the influence that it will have on the lost. Paul reminds us that Jesus is the Savior of the world. This does not imply that everybody will be saved. That is called "universalism". It also does not imply that God saves those who do not want to be saved, for while faith sufficient to believe is a gift of God, the choice is still left to us after we have been "enlightened" by the Holy Spirit and know of our need.

Then Paul encourages Timothy about his age. "Let no one despise you for your youth." "Use it as a witness for God." The fact that Timothy was under 40 years of age probably was a deterrent to his ministry. Contrary to today's belief, knowledge was equated with old age and youth with immaturity in those days. But if Timothy would follow the 5 suggestions that Paul listed above, he was sure that people would see him as a "Godly Pastor" and honor his ministry.

A Growing Pastor

Paul wanted Timothy to grow in Grace as he grew in years. This hope was not just for Timothy but more importantly, it was for those to whom he ministered. For a church to grow, the minister must grow. The minister gives to the church what he has. No minister can lead people in areas where he has not been himself. All believers must grow else they fall by the wayside. You are either growing or you are going backwards.

There a 4 tools that aid in the growth of a Pastor:

1. Emphasizing God's Word. Paul suggests that in order for us to this, we must read it, study it and develop. with the help of the Holy Spirit, an understanding of it. It is not something that you do if you get time. It does not come after visitation and fellowship, it must come first. It must never be replaced, as it has in some churches, by dinners, special music or other forms of social activity, as important as they may be, they must never replace Bible study. Then, after proper preparation, Timothy was to apply it to the congregation. Read it, study it, understand it and then apply it. This is what Paul calls "emphasizing God's Word".
2. Use our "spiritual gifts". The word "gift" is taken from the Greek word "charisma". To the world, people with "charisma" have a dynamic personality. Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift (Ist. Cor. 12:1). Every Christian has the gift of the Spirit (Rom. 8:8) But when God calls a believer to a special task, He imparts a special gift for that ministry, what ever it might be. Paul reminds Timothy that he had been called of God and set apart, by the laying on of hands, into the ministry of the Lord. Now it would seem that Timothy had failed to cultivate this gift of the ministry, probably because of his youth. Paul tells Timothy, in his second letter, to "Stir up the gift of God that is in you by the laying on of hands." This is good advice for all who are called and ordained by the laying on of hands. Remember, God who calls, also equips.
3. Devote yourself to Christ. To devote yourself to something, you must make it the most important thing in your life. No minister can succeed in his ministry unless he is totally dedicated to the task. Wiersby believes that to many Pastors are dividing their energies between the church and other interests. Some of those interests are real estate, trips to the Holy Land, politics, social affairs and denominational meetings and duties. Paul said many times, "This one thing I do." The preaching of the Gospel took all of his energies.
4. Take a spiritual inventory. "Examine yourself in the light of the Word of God." Paul gave this same instruction to the Elders at Ephesus. Take heed of what you do. Examine your motives. Never neglect your spiritual walk. Never take your spiritual standing for granted. Paul said, "Let him that thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall."

Previous Chapter

Return to Outline

Ask Questions

Next Chapter