“A bishop then must be
blameless…” (1 Timothy 3:2 NKJV)
A house is only as stable as its foundation, and a pastor’s
ministry is only as strong as his character.
No matter how hard he works and what he tries to build, eventually it
will crumble with a lack of character at the foundation.
People are going to find fault with a leader. Critics will abound. If a man seeks to do the
will of God and lead the church forward in her mission, the Wicked One will
raise up those who will vehemently oppose him—and their weapon of choice will
be the wagging tongue. What we must seek to do, as men of God, is to give them
no real reason for these personal attacks.
Our character needs to be unassailable.
False accusations hurt, but they will not stick if we have the Teflon of
truth and integrity coating us.
On occasion, even the best of men will mess up—so then, let
us ‘fess up. Yet, by God’s grace, may we
strive to be as stainless and scandal-free as we can. If there is a chink in the armor of our
character, be certain the Enemy will exploit it.
“The qualification of being “above reproach” frames the
other qualifications (3:2, 7); this was an ancient way of emphasizing that the
qualifications focused on this issue.”[1]
A foundation, a framework, a focus—all this is about the
virtues flowing from a godly life. The
man of God is essentially a man who reflects God’s character. This is not optional.
must. The use of this Gr. particle stresses emphatically that living
a blameless life is absolutely necessary for church leaders. above reproach. Lit. “not able to be
held” in a criminal sense; there is no valid accusation of wrongdoing that can
be made against him. No overt, flagrant sin can mar the life of one who must be
an example for his people to follow (cf. v. 10; 4:16; 5:7; Ps 101:6 ; Php 3:17 ; 2Th 3:9 ; Heb 13:7 ; 1Pe 5:3 ). This is the
overarching requirement for elders; the rest of the qualifications elaborate on
what it means to be blameless. Titus
1:6 , 7
uses another Gr. word to mean the same thing. [2]
A PRAYER
O Righteous One,
I worship You—flawless in Your character. Yet, you find us in our filth, lift us from
the mire, and cleanse us by the blood of Your Son. Now, the Holy Spirit can generate holiness in
us as we yield to Him. Lead us away from
temptation and when it finds us, deliver us from evil!
In the name of Jesus and for Your Glory,
Amen.
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