The Value of Good Leaders - 1 Timothy 5:17-25

This week, we’re back in 1 Timothy. If you can recall two weeks ago, we looked at an interesting, often overlooked passage of Scripture that dealt heavily with showing respect and honor to all people in the church. If you remember, Paul gave Timothy instructions for how to say difficult things to older men, young men, older women, and young women.

And after giving directions there, he addressed how Timothy should approach the church in Ephesus’ growing widow ministry. In fact, Paul gave very specific guidelines for selecting widows that the church would support. She had to be no less than sixty years old, she had to have been the wife of one husband, a good reputation, hospitable, and servant hearted.

In other words, the church was to care for, support, and honor godly widows. And now, Paul transitions from instructing Timothy on how to care for godly widows to giving him instructions for how to care for good, godly, elders. After all, if the church is supposed to care for, support, and honor godly, widows - then the church should do the same for godly elders.

Which is precisely what we see in verses 17-25. Paul outlines for Timothy what the church’s relationship is supposed to look like towards the godly elders who lead them. And so, Paul’s instructions break down into three parts: first, Paul says good elders should be honored (vv. 17-18), but secondly, that doesn’t mean elders are above church discipline (vv. 19-21), which lastly, reiterates a point he made earlier - that choosing elders is a serious task (vv. 22-25).

Honoring Elders (vv. 17-18)

I’ll be honest with you all, preaching on passages like this one can feel a little self-serving. It’s not like there’s any conflict of interests when the pastor stands up before the congregation to preach a sermon on how the church needs to do a better job honoring and respecting people… like me!

And yet, this is precisely what Paul, an elder, actually, an apostle in the church wrote to Timothy, another elder in the church instructing him to make sure, “...the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”

Paul speaks of elders who rule and elders who labor in preaching and teaching. From this verse comes the distinction our church and denomination make between ruling elders and teaching elders, which is the functional difference between lay elders and pastors.

But in terms of giving honor, Paul makes a caveat. He’s not instructing Timothy to start fishing for compliments, rather Paul says the church should honor the elders who rule well. It’s not just a blanket statement. It’s not just because you have the title you automatically deserve the honor.

No! The elders who deserve to be honored are those that rule well. That is, they discharge their duties in an exceptional manner.

But what exactly does Paul mean by “double honor?” The short answer is “double honor” means elders who rule well deserve not only the respect of the congregation but monetary compensation as well. And we know that the second part of the “double honor” is monetary compensation because of what he says in verse 18.

Paul quotes from both the Old and New Testament to make the case that elders, especially teaching elders, the men we often refer to as pastors or ministers deserve to be compensated for their work.

First, he quotes from Deuteronomy 25:4, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.”

You may wonder, how does someone get, “pastors should be compensated” from “you shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain?”

In the ancient world oxen broke open grain stalks by walking on them, that’s treading out the grain. Obviously, it was a more efficient way to get the grain from the stalks, but in some cruel ancient pagan cultures, they would muzzle the ox as it tread out the grain so that it wouldn’t be able to eat what was on the ground.

Oxen were supposed to tread out the grain, but if they were muzzled they couldn’t enjoy what they were able to enjoy the fruit of their labor. In other words, muzzled oxen would work without being compensated for their labor.

But God’s people weren’t supposed to treat their animals so cruelly. Instead, they were to keep their oxen unmuzzled so they could enjoy the fruit of their labor. And of course, Paul is making an argument from the lesser to greater. If that’s true for oxen then how much more should it be true for those who labor and work within the church!

Paul quotes the New Testament to make the exact same point stronger and more explicit. He actually quotes Jesus in Luke 10:7 where he said, “ the laborer is worthy of his wages.”

Obviously, Paul is talking about financially compensating teaching elders or pastors. If a teaching elder labors well in shepherding, preaching and teaching in the church - then he deserves to be compensated by the church for his work.

It’s a good thing church budgets aren’t controversial, right? Of course, I’m kidding. Church finances and the appropriate use of funds is an incredibly sensitive subject.

The implication from Paul’s words to Timothy is that the church in Ephesus didn’t have a high degree of respect for their elders and potentially didn’t think they were worthy of compensation.

Which is a thing that still happens today. There are some within the church that believe pastors’ should be paid as little as possible. There are even some that believe an impoverished lifestyle makes them holier. It’s as if the church is aiding the pastor’s sanctification by paying him as little as possible.

But assuming they’re good teaching elders or pastors, then this isn’t showing them honor. In fact, it’s somewhat of a slap in the face, and reveals something about how the church views the work of ministry. They don’t really respect what their pastor does. And don’t get me wrong, there are lazy pastors out there, but that’s not who we're talking about! We’re talking about the ones who work diligently and hard - those men should be honored.

But if one extreme is that pastors are not compensated well, we all know what the opposite extreme is: they’re paid too well. We’ve all seen where a pastor is paid an exorbitant salary and lives a luxurious lifestyle that is foreign to his congregation.

Both extremes when it comes to pastor salaries are wrong. As one commentator said, “pastors ought to be paid on the same scale as others in the congregation of the same age, education, level of experience, and responsibilities. They should not live above or below their congregation.”

I was often told that pastor’s salary packages should “prevent them from wanting worldly care.” That is, they shouldn’t be so worried about money they’re unable to execute their responsibilities, and at the same time, they shouldn't be so stressed about their personal finances that they’re unable to perform their duties to the church.

Which is why it’s best, in my opinion, for churches to err on the side of generosity, but of course within reason.

You don’t go into ministry expecting to get rich and at the same time, we shouldn’t expect pastors to take a vow of poverty either.

As many of you probably know, Paul didn’t exercise his right to compensation. Paul supported himself and his ministry through tent-making, but didn’t require every minister to be a tent-maker. He chose that for himself and encouraged churches to support their ministers.

Paul essentially repeats the argument he makes 1 Timothy 5 in 1 Corinthians 9:9-14 for compensating pastors. In fact, what he says in 1 Corinthians 9 is even more explicit than what he said here.

1 Corinthians 9:9-14 says,

“9 For it is written in the Law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain.” Is it for oxen that God is concerned? 10 Does he not certainly speak for our sake? It was written for our sake, because the plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of sharing in the crop. 11 If we have sown spiritual things among you, is it too much if we reap material things from you? 12 If others share this rightful claim on you, do not we even more?

Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right, but we endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. 13 Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? 14 In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.”

I’ll never forget several years ago, I went to a friend’s wedding and Lauren and I ended up riding with some other folks to the reception maybe, and I was in seminary at the time, we were catching up and I was telling them that I was going to be a pastor, and the woman that we were riding with was like, “how do pastors get paid?” I was sort of shocked by the question. Even if you didn’t grow up in the church, this is still America, right? So I told her, “the church pays them…”

I’m pretty sure she asked me that because in her mind it was an ethical dilemma. How can someone earn their living on the back of a non-profit that is supposed to help people? Shouldn’t we just give every penny from the church to a homeless shelter or something along those lines?

But that demonstrates an incredibly low view of the church. God ministers to his people through the preached word using ordinary men like me. The Lord Jesus created the church not to be another version of a welfare program, but to be the primary means for your spiritual growth. Bible studies are great, reading the word on your own is wonderful, I encourage each of you to spend more of your personal time in prayer, and yet, it’s right here, the corporate gathering of God’s people in worship is where we experience the greatest spiritual blessing from the living God.

In order to fully appreciate the work of the ministry you have to fuller appreciation of the work of the church.

But in general, it seems to me that there is a growing distrust for pastors and ministers. Even if pastoral ministry doesn’t present an ethical dilemma - many tend to think it’s an easy job. Pastors only work one day a week and then have biblical cover for why the church has to pay them. What could be better? I woke up from a six-day nap barely in time to preach this sermon! I hope you all know that I’m just kidding.

The reality is, pastoral ministry, if taken seriously as it should, requires a tremendous amount of hard work.

And I’ll let you all in on a little preacher secret: the best preachers, the ones who make it look easy, and consistently deliver powerful sermons from God’s Word are almost always the men who work the hardest in secret. On Sunday you’re getting the finished product, but what you don’t see are the countless hours of study, preparation, and prayer that goes into preaching week in and week out.

For me, I probably spend 15-20 hours a week on sermon preparation. Combine that with session meetings, presbytery meetings and work, administrative tasks, officer training, Bible studies, meeting with individuals and you’re working typically a minimum of 40 hours a week.

Have you ever anecdotally noticed the number of ministers who walk away from the ministry due to burn out? I don’t know the numbers, but I think pastoral turnover is high. I would speculate higher than other professions. Several men who I went to seminary with have already gotten calls to churches and quit.

I’m not telling you this in order to garner your sympathy. I’m tremendously blessed and grateful for what I get to do. It’s an honor and privilege and I don’t take any of it for granted.

The point that I want to make is the point that I think Paul is trying to make: the ministry is hard and elders who work hard, or to use Paul’s language labor and toil, are the men who deserve your respect and honor.

Isn’t that generally the way things work anyway? Those who work hard are often the easiest people to respect.

Disciplining Elders (vv. 19-21)

But as we all know, there are good elders and there are bad elders, and apparently, Ephesus where Timothy was - was no different.

It’s kind of a popular saying right now to say that, “no one is above the law.” And it’s a good saying if it’s actually true and put into practice, right?

The same is true in the church as well. Church discipline is applicable to both the layman and the elder after all, no one is above the law.

But Paul stresses an important point to Timothy when approaching a sensitive issue like disciplining an elder and that is to exercise caution. Before you level all sorts of accusations against him, make sure you have sufficient evidence.

Which is why Paul says in verse 19, “Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses.”

There must be sufficient witness testimony in order to establish a charge against an elder. There needs to be at least two or three witnesses. Don’t rush to judgment. He may be accused of some sort of heinous sin, but before you charge him, take the time to do your due diligence.

After all, for those in ministry there’s a lot at stake here. A ruling elder’s character is incredibly important, but a pastors’ character is all that he has, right?

If a pastor is put under church discipline he could easily lose everything, outside of his salvation in Jesus Christ. He could lose his livelihood, his reputation, friendships, his character is all on the line.

Unfortunately, false accusations are a reality of the world we live in, and they can easily destroy an innocent man’s ministry. Which is why, due diligence, honest investigations, research, gathering evidence, and testimony from multiple witnesses are crucial elements of any church discipline case.

Church discipline is not something that should ever be treated lightly or rushed into.

But if an elder remains in public, open unrepentant sin, then that sin must be dealt with publicly. They need to be “rebuke[d]... in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear.”

Public sin must be handled publicly, which may sound harsh to our modern ears. But the public rebuke isn’t meant to shame the unrepentant sinner, rather, the public rebuke is supposed to serve as a warning to the church, as in, look where unrepentant sin will take you.

The temptation is to believe I would never do something like that. I would never fall into a grievous sin like him or her. Ladies and gentlemen that’s exactly what Satan wants you to believe. He wants you to tell yourself, that could never be you, but sin is always crouching at the door. None of us are beyond falling into grievous sin.

Rather than casting a judgmental eye upon someone who has fallen, we need to let it serve as a reminder - that you too could fall, which is why you must remain humble and vigilant against the schemes of the evil one.

But here’s the big idea that Paul is trying to get across to Timothy: Timothy must maintain fairness and impartiality throughout the whole process. Elders must be treated in the same manner as anyone else.

Paul emphasizes this point with strong words in verse 20: “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality.”

Paul invokes God, Jesus Christ, and elect angels in order to emphasize to Timothy that he must treat everyone the same, including fellow elders.

When I was in seminary, a pastor once told me that sometimes presbyteries can function as a pastors union. At first, I didn’t fully understand what he meant by that, but eventually it made sense.

When I saw a presbytery circle the wagons around a pastor who was caught dead to rights in grievous sin and give him a mere slap on the wrist. Suddenly, it clicked, “ah, this is a pastor’s union.” We protect our own.

In other parts of evangelicalism I’ve seen churches handle the discipline of a pastor very differently from the way they would handle the discipline of a layman. When it’s the pastor who has done something wrong, suddenly it’s couched in therapeutic language. He didn’t sin, rather, he has some “unhealthy practices,” and he needs to take some time off from preaching in order to work on those things.

But that’s not how it should be! There shouldn’t be two standards within the church. Everyone must be treated the same regardless of their office or position in the church. But in every case, investigations, gathering testimony, due process and impartiality are absolutely necessary elements to conducting a fair church discipline trial.

Choosing Elders ( vv. 22-25)

But ideally, you want to avoid having to put an elder under church discipline, don’t you? How about we just skip discipling an elder altogether by ordaining qualified elders to begin with!

But that requires the congregation getting to know men’s character and hearts. You want to see if their profession of faith in Jesus Christ actually permeates throughout every aspect of their lives! Do their lives actually reflect what they profess?

That takes time doesn’t it? There’s no way to short circuit getting to know something outside of spending time with them. Which is why Paul instructs Timothy not to “be hasty in the laying on of hands,” which is a reference to ordination.

In other words, don’t rush into ordaining elders. First, make sure they’re qualified, and again, that takes time! But elders should be men of high character. They should avoid being entangled in the sins of others. Timothy in particular needed to maintain his witness in the church.

Which helps us understand this odd parenthetical statement that Paul makes to Timothy in verse 23, “(No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.)”

Paul wasn’t encouraging Timothy to relax every evening by enjoying a cabernet or pinot noir.

Rather, Paul was encouraging Timothy to drink wine for its medicinal properties, specifically for his stomach. Apparently, Timothy has stomach issues, and a common first century remedy was to drink a little wine.

Tums and Pepto Bismol hadn’t been invented yet.

But here’s why Paul would write this strange parenthetical statement: it seems that Timothy was so worried about maintaining his Christian witness, he was willing to sacrifice his personal health. Many scholars think that Timothy might have only been drinking water in order to avoid even the potential of looking like a drunkard to outsiders.

And so Paul was saying, “By the way Timothy, you’re not going to ruin your witness by drinking wine for its medicinal purposes that can benefit your stomach ailments.”

But then he offers more helpful advice related to his concern about ruining his witness in verses in verses 24-25: “The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.”

The word conspicuous means obvious, clear, or evident. So Paul is saying that some people’s sins are obvious and clear, while others sins will present themselves in due time. And in a similar manner, some good works are obvious and clear while other good works will present themselves in due time.

We’ve all experienced this right? We meet someone and they give off an amazing first impression! These people appear to be rock solid believers, but over time, as you get to know them better their sins become more pronounced.

And the opposite is true as well. You might meet someone and at first, all you can see is their glaring faults, but then over time as you get to know them you understand them better and realize that maybe the things you couldn’t look beyond at first, aren’t as big of a deal.

The same is true for good works. Some flaunt their good works for the praise of men. And then there are some who you think go to work and go home everyday, and eventually you find out they volunteer for the boys and girls club or check on someone in the nursing home.

Again, someone’s personal character will only begin to be clear in due time which is why you don’t rush to lay hands or ordain a man as an elder - you don’t want to rush to judgment!

This is a serious passage, particularly for pastors and elders, because so much of it deals with handling difficult situations within the life of the church. Things like pastors’ compensation and disciplining pastors. Potentially two of the most sensitive things that a church has to deal with.

And yet the church is supposed to handle these issues in a way that reflects our faith in Christ! We’re not supposed to treat those in leadership with disdain. We’re supposed to love, encourage, and respect those whom God has put in authority in the church. Likewise, we’re not supposed to rush to judgment in discipline cases. We’re supposed to hear and weigh the evidence before jumping to conclusions.

These things testify to the work of Christ in our lives, don’t they? If Jesus is at work in our lives that certainly should affect the way we treat those outside of the church, but it should impact the way we treat one another inside the church even more so, shouldn’t it?

May each of us faithfully represent Jesus Christ outside and inside the church. Amen.

Let’s pray together.