Moments in the life of a Pastor

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7. Vices and Virtues – Part 3

Titus 1:5-9

“I left you on the island of Crete so you could complete our work there and appoint elders in each town as I instructed you. An elder must live a blameless life. He must be faithful to his wife, and his children must be believers who don’t have a reputation for being wild or rebellious. A church leader is a manager of God’s household, so he must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money. Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life. He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong.”

So let’s look at the Life of the Leader and see the Virtues vs the Vices. 

  1. Loving leader instead of a lording leader – Vs 6-7

He must not be arrogant, conceited and caught up in self but instead he should serve. Are you being bossy or are you being a blessing? This brings us to a leaders first focus, faithfulness instead of foolishness. Paul here points to 2 areas of faithfulness, first a leader must be:

A. Faithful to the Father – Manager of God’s house

Pastor this is not your church, its Christ’s. You are not the owner you are the steward. Which brings us to a challenging question, Am I making it about me or about the Messiah? Many leaders are in it for the position instead of the people. Great leaders are motivated by their love for the Lord and His church, they make it about serving not about self. Second an Elder must be:

B. Faithful to His Family –

An Elder is a manager not just of God’s house but also His own home. Paul provides two distinct focal points here, your wife and your children. Because how you treat your Bride will be how you treat the bride of Christ. If you are not being faithful to your own family what makes you think you will be faithful to your family of faith? Men how are you treating your wife? Are you treasuring her or trashing her. If you want to know what kind of leader you are getting just watch his wife. Because how he leads his wife will either reveal a loving leader or a lording one. As leaders we need to live a balanced life because it’s easy to get so focused on the church that you neglect your calling to your wife and kids. Many ministers get so busy feeding the flock that they forget to feed their family. We are called to be married to our wife not married to ministry. Unfortunately many ministers treat their ministry like their wife and their wife like a mistress. Paul goes on to say that our children should have a righteous reputation not a rebellious one. Sadly most churches interpret this as nothing more than the pastor’s kids being under control, but this is not about control it’s about care. God has commissioned you to care for your kids not just control your kids, to be a loving leader not a lording one. Rebellion is often the result of control without care. Why does it matter if the preacher’s kids are respectful or rebellious? Because if I can’t teach my kids to live out the truth how am I going to teach the church? For ministry to extend beyond one’s family it must first be established within one’s family. Many churches put unfair expectations on the pastors kids, crushing them under the weight of unrealistic and unhealthy demands and constant criticism. Rebellious kids are one of the worst reputations a church can have in its community. Love your Pastor’s kids, be kind to them and pray for them. Pastor’s don’t be carless with your kids take time to lovingly lead them.


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5. Vices and Virtues – Part 1

Titus 1:5-9

“I left you on the island of Crete so you could complete our work there and appoint elders in each town as I instructed you. An elder must live a blameless life. He must be faithful to his wife, and his children must be believers who don’t have a reputation for being wild or rebellious. A church leader is a manager of God’s household, so he must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money. Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life. He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong.”

As we continue in our series, “Firm Foundations” in the book of Titus Paul moves from introductions to instructions, as he charges Titus with completing the work and appointing elders in each town. Verse 5 starts with Titus’s task, to “set in order” or “straighten out what was left unfinished.” Some have wondered how Crete could be evangelized so thoroughly if Paul never preached there during his earlier missionary journeys. The key is found in Acts 2:11, where we read that some Cretans were present on the Day of Pentecost, and after hearing the gospel in their own language, were converted and went back to the island where they spread the good news. And you thought I made the word Cretans up!! This word to “set in order” is where we get the words orthodontist and orthopedist. Their job is to correct what is crooked whether that be teeth that need straightening or bones that need bracing with a cast. It literally means “to set right. Titus just like a doctor, had the tall task of correcting what was crooked. What needed attention was the lack of leadership in the local churches. As we read this verse, I am reminded of all the things that are still unfinished around me and I’m thankful that God will complete what He has begun (Philippians 1:6). No church has completed its chore and no ministry is without messes. It’s here that Paul provides us with more than just a list of qualifications but with a litmus test for leadership. If Titus is going to set in order the things that are lacking then he needs to start with leadership, because the leadership of the church affects the life of the church. If a church has lax leadership, it will have a limited impact for the Lord. Today as we tackle the topic of Eldership in the church, it would be easy for many of us to zone out because we are not Elders. But I want you to understand that this is more than just a list for leaders it’s a litmus test for all of our lives. You see what Paul does is provide us with a list of virtues and vices and as we go through these I want you to be asking yourself are you living a virtuous life or are you being controlled and consumed by the vices? Now one of the things that 3 decades of ministry has taught me is that people have many different expectations when it comes to their church leaders. But more important than pleasing the people in the church the pastor should seek to please the Lord. But we need to ask ourselves is the Bible going to be our basis for both belief and behavior or is our bias? When it comes to church leaders are we going to make it about what we want or are we going to make it about the Lords Will?