A Commentary in Simple English on 1 Timothy

CHAPTER 3

Verses 1-7: Church leaders - Elders

Each church in New Testament times had a group of elders. They were the church leaders.

Paul gives teaching very much like this in Titus 1:5-9. Paul says little about what an elder should do in the church. What matters is that the church should choose the right kind of men to be elders. The church will need God's help in this. So they must pray about it.

In verse 1, then, Paul uses another of the sayings which were common in the church at that time. If a Christian man feels a strong call from God to be an elder or a church leader, then he wants to do a very good work. In verses 2-7, Paul gives us a list of the qualities which an elder must have.

1. He must be 'above reproach'. His goodness must be well-known. People must know that he would not do wrong to anyone.

2. He must be 'a one-woman man'. [3.1] This means that he must only have one wife. If his wife dies he is, of course, free to marry another Christian woman.

A man who has more than one wife may become a Christian. He then has a duty to care for all his wives and for their children. Some of the wives may choose to leave him (1 Cor 7:12-16). But a man who has more than one wife will not be able to give enough of his time to his work as an elder in the church.

But Paul may just mean something more. A Christian man's wife should also be his closest friend. A Christian man sometimes has a close friendship with another Christian woman. They do nothing wrong. But the woman always seems to be with him. And the wife feels that she does not have the right place in her husband's life. There is no sin. But it is not wise. And it can do harm in the church. A husband and wife who are sure of one another's love can be open to other people.

3. The next three words are not very different in meaning from each other.

The whole picture is of a life in which there is good order.

'Temperate' or 'sober' is the first word. It is not to do with drink. It means that a man thinks clearly. His whole life is tidy. Paul uses this word, or one very like it, in 1 Thessalonians 5:6 and in 1 Timothy 3:11; in 2 Timothy 4:5 and in Titus 2:2. Peter also uses a word like it in 1 Peter 1:13 and 5:8.

'Sensible' or 'self-controlled' is the second word. It may help you to think of it like this, although not everyone would agree. Before we are Christians our minds are better than our hearts. Our minds are bad. But our hearts are worse. When a man becomes a Christian, God gives him a clean, new heart. So now the heart is better than the mind. We still have bad thoughts in our minds. But now we have the wish in our hearts to please God. So the heart has to control the mind. Paul uses this word or one like it in 1 Timothy 2:9 and 15; in 2 Timothy 1:7; and in Titus 2:2,4,5,6 and 12.

That is inside us. Now Paul talks about what we do. This is what people can see.

The third word is 'respectable' or 'dignified'. This means that the elder's life will be one which will bring him honour from other people. But his good life will not just be a show. What people see of him will be what he is really like. This word Paul also used in 1 Timothy 2:9. Your English Bible may have 'modestly' there.

4. He must be 'hospitable' (5:10; Hebrews 13:2; Romans 12:13; Titus 1:8; 1 Peter 4:9). This means that he must be willing to take people into his home. These people may be prophets who go from church to church (3 John:5). The enemies of the church may have destroyed the homes of some Christian people. Or they may have left their home cities because it was no longer safe for Christians to live there. But it may be just people who are on a journey. It may not be Christians. It is still today an important Christian ministry to welcome people into our homes (Isaiah 58:6 and 7). It is not always free from danger.

5. The elder must be able to teach. This is a real gift (James 3:1). Teaching is more important when people cannot read, or if they cannot buy Christian books.

6. (Verse 3) An elder must not drink too much strong drink. He must set a good example to other Christians. And if we drink too much we cannot think as we should. It seems that Timothy did not drink any wine at all (5:23).

7. Sometimes when men drink too much strong drink, they fight. The elder must not be a man who hits other people.

8. He must be gentle or 'yielding'. He must be ready to give way to other people about things that do not really matter.

9. He must not be a man who quarrels with other people.

10. He must not love money. Money is not wrong. But the love of money is wrong (Luke 16:14; Hebrews 13:5; 1 Peter 5:2).

11. He must keep his own house and his children in good order. (Verses 4 and 5). Eli is an Old Testament example of a man who did not rule his family well (1 Samuel 3:13). Because of this the Philistines destroyed the house of God at Shiloh. But see what God says about Abraham (Genesis 18:19).

In verse 5, Paul asks a question. The answer to the question has three parts.

A. A man has to look after his own home or house. The work he must do to look after a church is much bigger.

B. A man may be able to 'manage' or run his own house. The church needs a love and a care which is greater.

C. Then a man's house or home is his own. The church belongs to God. We ought always to take extra care of things which belong to other people. This is true most of all when something belongs to God.

So Paul says, that a man may be quite able to care for his own home.Yet he may not be able to care for thc church But if man cannot keep his house and family in good order, we cannot expect him to care for the church.

12. The elder must not be a man who has not been a Christian for very long (verse 6).

Sometimes it happens that a man who has a lot of money becomes a Christian. Or perhaps he was important in some other religion which he has left. Or he may be a clever man. Or perhaps he has power in the government. We are so pleased that he has joined the church. We think: 'He would be a fine elder.' However, we must let him have time to 'grow in grace' and gain Christian wisdom (5:22). If he becomes an elder too quickly, we can be sure that there will be trouble in the church. He will become proud. We sometimes say: 'He has his head in the clouds.' Paul uses a word which is rather like this. God judged the devil because the devil was proud. A proud church elder will be judged by God.

13 Then people who are not Christians must think well of a man who is an elder. They must honour him. People outside the church must not be able to talk about wrong things which an elder has done. The devil has traps ready to trip up well-known Christians.

It was not easy to be an elder. The elders were well-known. When the Jews or Romans attacked the Christians, the elders would often be the first people to suffer.

Verses 8-13: Church leaders - Deacons

The word 'deacon' really means someone who serves or helps. Probably all the early churches had deacons. (See Philippians 1:1.) Almost everyone thinks that the Jerusalem church chose seven deacons (Acts 6:1-6). But those verses do not call the seven men deacons. And it is likely that Phoebe (Romans 16:1) was a lady who is called a deacon. [3.2] Deacons look after the money of the church and any buildings which the church may have.

So these are the things that Paul says about deacons:-

1. The deacon must be a man in whose life there is order. He must be 'dignified'.

2. The deacons might have to visit people in their homes. Their wives might go with them. So they must not tell stories about the people in one house to the people in the next house that they go to. They must not be 'tale bearers' or as we say, 'two-faced' or 'double- tongued'.

3. They must not drink too much strong drink.

4. They must not love money or be men who get money in wrong ways.

5. Then (verse 9) they must not be men who listen to false teaching. [3.3] They must hold on to the 'mystery' or deep truths of the Good News about Jesus. We use the word 'mystery' to mean a secret which we cannot find out. But the 'mystery' of the Good News is a secret which God kept for us. Now he has made it known to his people. (Ephesians 3:9) But it is not enough to believe what is right and true. A deacon must also have a clean, pure 'conscience'. He must know that other people cannot complain about his life.

6. In verse 10, Paul says that the men who may become deacons must be tried out first.

Now all too often in some churches people say: 'This or that man is not a very good Christian. His life is not as good as it should be. So we will give him some work to do in the church. Find him a job! Then he will settle down and be a stronger Christian. He may get better.' Now that is just what Paul tells us here that we should never do.

What Paul says is that we should watch men in the church. If there is 'nothing against them' then they are the men to become deacons.

7. In verse 11, we are not quite sure whether Paul means 'the deacons' wives' or 'lady deacons'. [3.4]

Verses 8-10 speak about deacons. So do verses 12 and 13. Paul would not be likely to write about deacons first, then about their wives in verse 11, and then about deacons again. It may well be that the wives of deacons had a part in the work. They would go to visit women in their homes. The deacons might not be able to do this. Deacons' wives would help with the baptism of women. These women must have the same good qualities which Paul set out in verse 8.

8. Verse 12 tells us that a deacon must be a 'one-woman man'. This is like the elder in verse 2.

9. Again like the elder (verse 4) a deacon must have control over his own children. And there must be good order in his house too.

We are not sure whether verse 13 is only about deacons. The word which Paul uses could mean both elders and deacons. He does not mean that a good deacon should soon become an elder. Elders and deacons do different work in the church. Paul says two things about such people:-

a) They gain 'a good standing' in the church. Other people will give them honour for their good work.

b) They gain great 'confidence' or 'assurance'. They will grow strong and open in their faith in Jesus.

It is clear that Paul wants to see men of the right kind picked out to serve as deacons. This matters more than the work they are to do.

Verses 14-16: The church is Christ's

In verse 14, Paul says that he hopes soon to come to Timothy. No one knows whether he was able to do this. Paul writes this letter to Timothy but he would rather talk to him and work with him in the church. People often said things like this in their letters in those days. (See 3 John 13 and 14.)

Paul then goes on to speak about the church (verse 15). The church is like a great house which belongs to God. We have had this picture before in 3 : 5. Dead 'false' gods could have a dead house. But our God is the living God: so his house is a living house. The church is like a great family. Now the Good News is not just true. It is true, but it is more than that: it is the Truth. God has given this Truth to men to live by. Nothing can shake the Truth. The church must support the Truth. The Truth does not change. If the church does not support the truth, it is because the church has changed. And that means the church has changed for the worse. The church is the 'pillar' or 'foundation' or the ground on which the truth is built and on which it now rests. Nothing can shake this truth.

So we come to verse 16, which is a verse which is full of great teaching for us. Paul says that we do not argue. We all agree. We all say the same thing. The great truth of the Christian faith is at work in our lives. It works to change our lives and to make them lives which will please God. [3.5] The 'mystery' is not something which God has kept from us. It is a secret which God has kept for us. The 'mystery' is truth which no one could ever have found out. God has made it known to us. Paul tells us in Colossians 2:2 and 3 that Jesus is God's mystery. (See also Ephesians 3:9.) It is in Him that God has hidden for us the truth of the Good News.

So in the rest of the verse, we have a saying about Jesus. Maybe this saying began back in 1:15. There we read:

'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners'. Now we go on. There are six more lines:-

1. God appeared in the flesh
2. He was justified in the Spirit
3. Seen by angels
4. Preached among the nations
5. Believed on in the world
6. Taken up in glory.

Now in Greek each of these six lines ends with the same sound. This is because they all end with the same kind of word. This is called 'rhyme'. It is clear that these words are a poem. There are poems which do not have 'rhyme'. Yet where there is 'rhyme' we can be sure that we have a poem.

Before we look at what these words mean, please notice that lines 1,4, and 5 belong on earth. Lines 2, 3 and 6 do not belong on earth. That is the shape of this saying.

So the six things which we have here are these:-

1. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He came from God his Father into the world and took a real human body. He lived among men and he was seen by them.

It is a very great honour for all men that the Son of God should choose to take a human body. And because he has done this, we should treat our bodies with honour.

2. God gave judgment in favour of our Lord Jesus Christ. On earth, men judged against the Lord Jesus. Both Romans and Jews agreed that he should die on the cross, but God says: 'The judgment of men is wrong.'

3. In heaven, angels see our Lord Jesus, the Son of God and the risen Man. They love him and they wonder at him.

4. Men in the world no longer see Jesus. But preachers go about. They preach the Good News about Jesus. They preach 'among the nations.' They do not only preach to the Jews (Matthew 28:18-21).

5. Then people from all the nations believe the Good News about Jesus. They trust him. They are saved. The world is not a friendly place to people who believe in Jesus. But although the world is against them, they hold on to their faith.

6. Then God the Father took Jesus up to be with him in the glory of heaven. In more than twenty places, the New Testament teaches us that Jesus now sits at God's right hand in glory. And the right hand is the place of honour and power.

Many people think that these words were part of a song or hymn which the early churches used to sing.[3.6]