How to Treat Elders

1 Timothy 5:17–25 CSB
17 The elders who are good leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says: Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain, and, The worker is worthy of his wages. 19 Don’t accept an accusation against an elder unless it is supported by two or three witnesses. 20 Publicly rebuke those who sin, so that the rest will be afraid. 21 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing out of favoritism. 22 Don’t be too quick to appoint anyone as an elder, and don’t share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure. 23 Don’t continue drinking only water, but use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses. 24 Some people’s sins are obvious, preceding them to judgment, but the sins of others surface later. 25 Likewise, good works are obvious, and those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden.

This morning we continue our elder series. Over the last two weeks Justin has taken us through some passages to look at the qualifications of elders. This morning we are going to look at how we are to treat elders.

Paul, in his first letter to the young elder, Timothy, gave some clear advice on how we are to treat elders. And he did so by categorizing elders into two camps.

2 Types of Elders

There are really only 2 types of elders: good ones and bad ones. While we may come up with ways to distinguish roles or areas of oversight, there is a classification that is above that. It is the classification of the heart as is evidenced by the words and deeds of each man.

The END of our passage clearly points out how we will know which is which:

1 Timothy 5:24–25 CSB
24 Some people’s sins are obvious, preceding them to judgment, but the sins of others surface later. 25 Likewise, good works are obvious, and those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden.

Elders, like everyone else, will be known by their deeds or actions. Some will make it obvious, others not so much. But in the end nothing remains hidden in the light of God’s Word.

So let’s start by looking at the good guys.

Elders who lead correctly

1 Timothy 5:17 “17 The elders who are good leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching.”

The first group we are going to look at are the “good” elders. And this verse also tells us what makes them a good elder.

Notice that it is NOT:

• the way they dress
• what translation of the Bible they use
• how many elders are under them
• how much they get paid
• how many followers they have on their social media channels

There are two things that makes for a good elder. The CSB says it is preaching and teaching. But… I think that is not the full impact of what Paul is trying to say. Every now and then I come across what I call “a translation situation” – where our English translations can keep us from seeing the full nuance of what is being said. Verse 17 is one of those verses. Let me show you how this could read:

1 Timothy 5:17 – The elders (πρεσβύτερος) who lead correctly (καλῶς) are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard (labor/toil) at the word (λόγος) and instruction (διδασκαλία).

In this passage, the word that is translated as “preaching” is the word “logos” which means “word” or “message”. There are two Greek words used for preaching in the New Testament, and “logos” is not one of them. “Preach” or “preaching” is found 82 times in the NT in the CSB, and this is the ONLY passage that translates the word “logos” as preach. The rest use the other two Greek words. A good illustration of how preaching and the word are distinct can be found in passages like these: ⭐

Acts 8:4 “So those who were scattered went on their way preaching (εὐαγγελίζω) the word (λόγος).”

2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach (κηρύσσω) the word (λόγος); be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and encourage with great patience and teaching.”

So, why does it matter? What might we be missing with our English translation? Earlier in Paul’s letter, he gave instructions to Timothy about what to watch out for (bad teachers) and what to do. His encouragement was: ⭐

1 Timothy 4:6 “If you (an elder) point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good (καλός) servant of Christ Jesus, nourished by the words (λόγος) of the faith and the good teaching (διδασκαλία) that you have followed.”

Then, a little later in this letter, in the passage we are looking at today, Paul says: ⭐

1 Timothy 5:17 “The elders who are good (καλῶς) leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching (λόγος) and teaching (διδασκαλία).”

Paul is not stating something new, he is restating what makes a good elder: one who works hard at being faithful to the Word and teaches it to others. Though faithfulness to the Word will become apparent in preaching, it is a much bigger task than that! Working hard at the word, toiling in the word, is as much about understanding as it is applying to one’s actions.

In his second letter to Timothy, Paul phrased it this way:

2 Timothy 2:15 CSB
15 Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth.

A worker of the word who correctly teaches the word. Just like all of the other qualifications of an elder, this should be the mark of every mature believer – but especially so of elders.

The elders who lead correctly, good elders, rightly handle God’s word and teach it to others.

So how are we to treat these kinds of elders?

We take care of them. [they are worthy of double honor]

1 Timothy 5:17–18 CSB
17 The elders who are good leaders are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says: Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain, and, The worker is worthy of his wages.

These elders deserve double honor, Paul says. “Double honor” – some say this means double pay. Others say it is pay + respect. While respect is not mentioned in this passage, the author of Hebrews does mention it:

Hebrews 13:17 CSB
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

However, most understand the phrase to mean double the pay since the immediate context says “do not muzzle the oxen” and “a workman is worthy of his pay”. The fact that a church is to pay its elders is a clear message. Paul had this same conversation with the church in Corinth.

1 Corinthians 9:7–11 CSB
7 Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who shepherds a flock and does not drink the milk from the flock? 8 Am I saying this from a human perspective? Doesn’t the law also say the same thing? 9 For it is written in the law of Moses, Do not muzzle an ox while it treads out grain. Is God really concerned about oxen? 10 Isn’t he really saying it for our sake? Yes, this is written for our sake, because he who plows ought to plow in hope, and he who threshes should thresh in hope of sharing the crop. 11 If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it too much if we reap material benefits from you?

So, the one who serves as an elder should be compensation for his work, and is worthy of double honor.

Paul is calling this issue out because apparently there were issues in the church in Rome and Corinth. However, I can say that I have been treated with honor by NCF in both respect and pay. For that I am grateful and would be remiss if I did not commend this body for being faithful to God’s commands.

Some of you might be wondering why, with the number of people and budget we have, I am only part-time. There is nothing wrong with being compensated full time as an Elder. Being bi-vocational was a choice that I made so that the church our size could afford to have multiple elders serving together, which is a biblical precedent.

As an elder, I believe I receive so much more than I give!

As a congregation you have given me double honor. Thank you! I also receive honor because of the way you treat my wife. You have blessed her, prayed for her, encouraged her. I honestly wonder sometimes if you only keep me on as an elder so you can keep her around! 😂 Thank you for honoring me by blessing Laura.

I am also honored when I get to see men, women, and children come to know Jesus, grow in their faith, stand firm on the truth and serve others out of love. You are a testament to the Father when you do these things, and as an overseer of his household, that brings me great honor and joy.

But I also will receive a greater honor some day when I receive a crown glory from my savior for taking care of his flock like we learned about in 1 Peter:

1 Peter 5:4 CSB
4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

So, while the statement is that an elder is worthy of double honor – the reality is that we receive infinitely more than that!

We protect them. [Stop listening to accusations unless there are multiple witnesses]

1 Timothy 5:19 CSB
19 Don’t accept an accusation against an elder unless it is supported by two or three witnesses.

This is a present imperative. A command to act at once. Stop it while the words are being spoken. If you do not do this, you encourage people to say whatever they want about an elder without evidence. A good many attacks on God’s leaders have taken place this way, and for some, the damage done by the accusation (though false) has forced them to leave the ministry. Do not allow it. Stop it. The law says:

Deuteronomy 19:15 CSB
15 “One witness cannot establish any iniquity or sin against a person, whatever that person has done. A fact must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

The gospels even give us practical application of this principle:

Matthew 18:15–17 CSB
15 “If your brother sins against you, go tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 But if he won’t listen, take one or two others with you, so that by the testimony of two or three witnesses every fact may be established. 17 If he doesn’t pay attention to them, tell the church. If he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like a Gentile and a tax collector to you.

In the event of accusations against Elders, we have a policy at NCF that a board of elders should convene to discern the matter. If we do not have 3 elders we borrow some from like-minded churches. The goal is to discern if there is an issue so we can address sin and bring about repentance and restoration. But not every accusation is legit, and we should not entertain accusations unless there are multiple witnesses.

Elders need to protect other good elders.

So let’s move on to how we are to treat bad elders.

Elders who lead badly

Paul talks about what to do with the elders who lead badly, but how do we identify them? Well, it would be the opposite of what we just read. It will be those whose actions are sinful. Paul says we are to Publicly Rebuke them:

1 Timothy 5:20 CSB
20 Publicly rebuke those who sin, so that the rest will be afraid.

Paul says that elders that lead badly need to be publicly rebuked. Why publicly? Because they are a public figure and a public representation of the Name of God because of their title Elder.

Actually, Paul identified them in his second letter to Timothy, even naming some of them:

2 Timothy 2:15–17 CSB
15 Be diligent to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who doesn’t need to be ashamed, correctly teaching the word of truth. 16 Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness, 17 and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among them.

Those that are bad leaders are full of irreverent and empty speech. Their mouths spew profanity and they make empty accusations and promote doctrine without backing it with scripture. They are the opposite of 2:15.

I recently spent two weeks being bombarded by irreverent and empty speech by someone who once taught the truth of God’s word. Elders and mature followers of Christ should not be characterized by such. They should have speech that is NOT shameful, and their teaching should be based upon the word of truth.

While any elder can sin, bad elders remain in sin, teaching things contrary to God’s Word, and are unrepentant. They deserve to be rebuked. Paul even called out two of them by name in his letter to Timothy.

Stop showing favoritism in areas of discipline.

1 Timothy 5:21 CSB
21 I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels to observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing out of favoritism.

If an elder is in sin, he needs to be confronted, and if unrepentant he needs to be rebuked and removed from leadership. This seems obvious, but what might not seem obvious is why Paul says this needs to be done without favoritism.

Why would an elder show favoritism to another elder who is in sin?

Perhaps because they don’t want to cause division or escalate conflict in the church? The reality is that if there is an elder that is living in sin, there already IS conflict in the church. And the gangrene will continue to spread unless it is removed.

Perhaps it is because we care about the other leaders we serve with and do not want to do anything to hurt them. However, we need to protect God’s flock more than we need to protect a leader who is ignoring God’s commands, even if we love that brother dearly.

Acts 20:28 CSB
28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.

REGARDLESS of WHY we might sow favoritism, it is wrong, because God’s Word does not change, and it is not to be applied to people differently. We cannot apply a different set of standards to one person than another. Elders are to be examples – and if they are acting sinfully it needs to be addressed, not over looked.

Elders need to protect the sheep from bad elders.

Practical Advice for Elders

As we wrap up this section on how to treat elders, there is some practical advice that I think we can take to heart as Elders.

Don’t be hasty in appointing elders

1 Timothy 5:22 CSB
22 Don’t be too quick to appoint anyone as an elder…

Back in February, some of you asked what the plan was to add another elder. Here we are in September and we are finally ready to add Justin – after he has been among us and teaching for about 7 months. Why such a long time?

When we are hasty in appointing elders a few things can happen:

a) we can set the new elder up for failure because people might see them as a replacement and constantly compare

b) we might invite skepticism as to why the previous elder was let go (if they were). Paul told Timothy to remove bad elders and appoint good elders. But if that happens rapid fire it can look like a power move or favoritism.

c) you cannot know a leader in a week. This is what Paul talks about at the end of our passage:

1 Timothy 5:24–25 CSB
24 Some people’s sins are obvious, preceding them to judgment, but the sins of others surface later. 25 Likewise, good works are obvious, and those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden.

Some people you can look at their actions and immediately see the sin. Other… it takes time for it to surface. If you appoint Elders without knowing their character and testimony, without being able to clearly discern if they have “mastered” the qualifications mentioned over the last two weeks, then you set the church up for more uncomfortable confrontations.

We need to be able to see the fruit of their ministry.

Luke 6:43–45 CSB
43 “A good tree doesn’t produce bad fruit; on the other hand, a bad tree doesn’t produce good fruit. 44 For each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs aren’t gathered from thornbushes, or grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 A good person produces good out of the good stored up in his heart. An evil person produces evil out of the evil stored up in his heart, for his mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.

Elders need to be patient and discerning when they appoint other elders.

Take care of yourself

1 Timothy 5:23 CSB
23 Don’t continue drinking only water, but use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.

When being an elder… drinking alcohol helps.… LOL 😂 – what a crazy way to interpret that passage! NOT what he is really saying here.

I have the problem of not drinking enough water in a day, but we live in times when our water is treated for contaminants that might hurt us.

When we went to Bolivia on a missions trip we were not allowed to drink the water or to each fresh vegetables that were washed in the local water. Our stomachs could not handle what was in that water. In many countries, bad water still kills people.

Paul told Timothy to drink wine. Yes, this was alcoholic. That was the point! The fermenting kills off the bad bacteria in the water you would use to make the wine, and the alcohol after fermentation helps to fight off other nasties in your gut.

It is interesting that a young man like Timothy would have stomach issues. Perhaps it was because he was dealing with bad leaders in the church! When you are an elder and you have to work with bad elders it affects your health! I would not be surprised if Timothy had ulcers!

But the point is not about wine, the point is that Elders need to take care of themselves physically.

• The toil of ministry can take a toll on us. Sometimes we need a break to recharge.
• Conflict can wreak havoc on our bodies. Sometimes we need medical help to heal.
• It also might happen that we are so busy taking care of others that we neglect ourselves.

CHURCH: you can be a part of making sure your elders are taking care of themselves. How? I know one church that forced their pastor to use all his vacation. But just making sure that you do your part in ministry is so important. Something to think about – when your life is overwhelmed it is easy for you to step back and do less so that you do not burn out. Elders rarely feel they have that opportunity. That is one of the reasons I am praying that God gives us a third elder in the near future.

Sandwiched in the middle of these verses is a simple set of commands. A DON’T and a DO.

1 Timothy 5:22 CSB
22…and don’t share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.

Be Holy

Basically, what he is saying is: Be holy.

Don’t share in the sins of others.

That means that you need to expect to face opposition, perhaps even ire, when you stand up against what others are doing that is sinful. Trust me on this – as elders, we get our share! Even if the sins of others includes those of other elders – as individuals we must choose to NOT participate in that which contradicts God word or tarnishes his name.

Keep yourself pure.

This is not just talking about sexual purity. It is referring to all areas of our lives as elders.

• Keep our thoughts pure
• Keep our words pure
• Keep our bodies pure
• Keep our hearts pure

The items used in the temple all had to be made of pure materials and had to be purified to be used by God. If we expect to be used by God we must remain unstained by the world and the corruption of the flesh.

James 1:27 CSB
27 Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Elders have a tremendous calling and an incredible privilege. I am excited for next week as we anticipate appointing Justin as an elder here at NCF. I hope that you have seen over the past seven months that he is a good leader who carefully examines the Word of God and teaches it. He strives to live a holy life.

Justin, as a fellow elder I promise to protect you by not taking accusations without two or more witnesses and I promise to honor you and hold you in high esteem as a fellow elder.

PRAY:

Father God, give each one here, and those listening or watching online, the wisdom and discernment to be able to recognize good and bad elders. Protect them from the bad and lead them to the good.

God grant Justin and me the strength that we need, through the empowering of your Holy Spirit, to remain true to you, your Word, and your family all the days we have on this earth.

Amen.