Daily Scripture
“The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.”
1 Timothy 3:1-7
Daily Devotion
I have held several positions within the church over the years and not once did I believe I was the right person for the job. I have compared myself to saintly servants that I have witnessed lead in these roles over the years and felt that I just did not measure up. This is especially true when I read the qualifications set forth in 1 Timothy 3. Paul spends much more time talking about the traits needed for the worker than the actual task that is to be done. This should tell us how much character matters with our church leaders.
When I look at these qualifications I cower because I look at qualifications that I do not feel I have. Am I above reproach? Can someone rightly accuse me of sin in my life? Do I manage my household well or do I fail to lead my family in the right way? Am I self-controlled? At times maybe but at other times I feel I may be severely lacking in those areas.
The thing is, that while I feel that I do not measure up to the standard that Paul lays out here, I know that someone did measure up to it, our savior Jesus Christ. He obeyed perfectly so that when I do not, the Father sees His obedience and not mine. No leader is perfect in any way. We will fail constantly and sadly we will often make the same mistakes over and over. But we are forgiven and justified in Jesus Christ. I have the power through Jesus to conquer sin in my life so I can be a worthy example as a leader in the church.
Paul tells us that one who desires to serve as an overseer desires a noble task. The desire of these positions is a good thing to seek if you feel like the Lord is calling you to it. These are not positions to gain status, take some sort of control or power, or puff up your chest with pride. It is not about elevating yourself at all but humbling yourself to serve others. What a privilege it is to serve, lead, teach and be able to show God’s love to others and getting to watch your brothers and sisters grow and mature in Jesus.
Our churches need many more willing leaders for these noble tasks. I hope that you do not make the same mistakes that I have in comparing yourself to others who may appear better suited for the task or being intimidated by the qualifications laid out in this verse. Rather I encourage you to aspire to living up to these qualifications and pray about taking on a role of leading and helping others.
“Dear Father, we thank you that you have such high standards for our overseers. We ask that you help us to consistently meet each one of these requirements daily. Lord, we also ask that you help us not be so critical of our church leaders and hold them to our own sometimes absurd and impossible demands. Rather help us to consistently pray for them and provide them encouragement to be able to do noble but difficult tasks. We thank you for including us in your work. We thank you for the opportunity to serve others and thank you for the blessings we receive from doing so. We thank you that we have been blessed with wonderful leaders in our church and we pray that more will make themselves available to serve in these needed roles. Help us to remember that we have been made holy by you and therefore useful for service for your kingdom. Help us not to cower to the qualifications but rise to the task you have chosen for us. In your most gracious holy name. Amen.”
Gary Jones