Who's Going to Lead Us?

How the Church Family Functions....

A study of the NT book of Titus

by Pastor Frank Rice

Titus 1:5-9

Any group that has ever gathered together, stayed together, and done anything worthwhile must have some essential ingredients. There has to be a clearly defined purpose and a plan for achieving it. There must be organization and structure. And there must be qualified leadership!

 

v      The apostle had evidently been in Crete and helped the believers in Christ to come together for worship, teaching, and serving.

1.      Some of these believers may have begun their spiritual journey in Jerusalem at Pentecost when they met Messiah (Acts 2:11).

2.      When the apostle visited Crete, he most likely gathered these believers and seekers together to form a local witness for Christ.

3.      When for unknown reasons he departed, he intentionally left his associate Titus behind for known reasons; to help promote unity, stability, maturity, and full participation in the local body of believers.

 

v      There were two specific assignments that would help to accomplish the aforementioned. Titus’ mission was clearly delineated.

1.      He was to set in order the things that hadn’t been addressed.

(a)   There was a lack of needed organization and structure.

(b)   There were false teachers who needed to be refuted!

(c)   There was a desperate need for solid biblical teaching.

2.      He was to appoint leaders (elders) in every community where a group of believers was present. “Probably the congregation chose the elders with the encouragement of Titus who had the responsibility of formally appointing them to office.” (Hiebert)

 

v      Leadership in the home is of utmost importance (v. 6).

1.      The position of elder is the only one mentioned here, indicating some organizational flexibility and their phase of church maturity. There is no justification for a religious hierarchy here or for the Douay Version’s translation of “ordain priests!”

2.      Men, before they’re considered for leadership, must be able to lead in their own homes, being blameless & above reproach. BTW What you expect in your leadership you must be willing to pursue in yourself! There is no NT support for female elders (pastors). There is no NT support for celibacy.

3.      Choose your structure and leaders carefully; you must live with your choices (Heb 13:17)! Flexibility w/o structure is impossible! “Extreme caution should be used in making dogmatic statements or taking dogmatic positions on church organization. The flexibility afforded the church by this absence of rigid rules and regulations allows the local congregation to be organized in ways appropriate to its own situations and circumstances.” (Lea-Griffin)

4.      Selection is a joint effort; people are involved (Acts 14:23) and leaders are appointed by the Lord (Acts 20:28), not forced or foisted upon the church.

5.      He must be a one-woman man, dedicated, devoted and unquestionably loyal to his wife. Normally he’d have a family. Marriage & fathering are ministry training & proving grounds!

6.      He must have a convincing testimony with his children. His conversion and life must be real to those who know him best. His children must give evidence of being believers. “This applies to children who are still at home, under the authority of their father.” (Wiersbe)

 

7.      His children should be respectful & respectable, not perfect! Dissipation indicates a riotous, self-indulgent lifestyle. Rebellion is resenting and rejecting authority, refusing to be controlled. “Effective spiritual leadership in the home suggests the probability of effective spiritual leadership in the church.” (Lea-Griffin)

 

v      Leadership is qualified by negative traits, things they DON’T do! [Note the required blamelessness; no charge can be leveled against them, there is no general suspicion of defective character. Note also the realization that he is God’s steward, not the owner but the manager of what is not his. He is ultimately accountable to God his Master.]

1.      He must not be self-willed, overbearing, arrogant, always insisting on his own way. He must be willing to “listen and learn” from the suggestions or criticisms of others!

2.      He must not be a “hot-head,” defensive, and emotionally volatile. “A lost temper is a short circuit for thinking.”

3.      He must not be a drinker, with alcohol as his constant companion!

4.      He must not be belligerent, antagonistic, contentious, or prone to solving problems with verbal or physical violence.

5.      He must not be a money-grubber, always looking for ways to use his position for financial advantage or favors.

 

v      Leadership is qualified by positive traits, things DONE habitually!

1.      He must be hospitable, with an open heart and an open home. He and his home are transparent with nothing to hide.

2.      He must be a lover of good things; books, companions, and music. He surrounds himself with healthy things (Php. 4:8).

3.      He must be sensible, willing and able to think through the implications of his decisions & actions on himself and others.

4.      He must be just and upright, a man of integrity, one who “says what he means and means what he says.”

5.      He must be holy, different, unique, unstained. “’Holiness’ is a condition of inward purity that has outward results.” (Towner)

6.      He must be self-controlled in his appetites and actions. He keeps his mind and body under control. Self-control has everything to do with a person’s thought life and subsequent behavior.

 

v      Leadership is qualified by theability to handle God’s Word (v. 9).

1.      He clings to the Word of God as his guide and sourcebook! He is a student of sound (health producing) doctrine!

2.      With it, he is able to encourage listeners to do what is right!

3.      With it, he is able to correct those who embrace error!

 

“The fact remains that the increased visibility of the church leader, both to the church and the non-believing community, requires that his personal conduct clearly reflect the saving gospel of God’s redemptive grace and the ongoing process of sanctification in his life.” (Lea-Griffin)

 

“Everything rises or falls on leadership.”