In yesterday’s study, we saw that when Paul talks about the church as being the pillar and foundation of the truth, he is not saying that the church is therefore the foundation for Christ. It also does not mean that the church is the foundation of the Bible. The Bible is the truth, of course, but the church did not invent the Bible; nor did the church decide which books would be in it and which would not. 

You know, all these qualifications of leadership that he gives here—not only in 1 Timothy 3, but also in Titus 1—are more or less the same for the office of elder and the office of deacon. But there is one qualification that’s given for the office of elder that is not given for the office of deacon, and that has to do with teaching. You find it here in verse 2, where he uses the expression “able to teach.” Now that doesn’t necessarily mean that all the elders must be orators. Nor does it mean that all the elders must be preachers. It doesn’t even mean that all the elders must teach Sunday school classes. But it does mean that by the ordination of God, they must have an aptitude for sharing the truths of the Word of God with the people of God, and be able to do that in such a way that they and those in their charge might be guarded against the false doctrine that is prevalent in every age. 

Therefore, as we think about church leadership, it is right to begin with the deaconate because it’s in the office of deacon that we see this servanthood of Christian leadership most exemplified. You remember that the office of deacon is instituted in the sixth chapter of Acts, and it’s a very interesting passage to study because it teaches us certain principles of Christian leadership. It teaches us, for example, that there’s to be a division of responsibility. The problem that needed to be addressed in Acts 6 was that the apostles were doing everything because they were the only acknowledged leaders. There was too much work to do, and other needs kept coming up that kept the apostles from their primary focus. They needed others to help with these other matters. And so deacons were elected for those particular responsibilities. 

Therefore, having spoken in the first two chapters about strong doctrine, he goes on in chapter 3 to speak about strong leadership. This is important because the doctrines need to make their way in the church through those whom God calls to particular forms of service. So when we think about the church, whether in Paul’s day or in ours, leadership is an area in which we want to concentrate as well. 

In Hebrews, the author talks about the mediator as a priest because in the language of Scripture, that is what a priest did on behalf of the people. The author of Hebrews develops that and points out that as the mediator, Jesus is the perfect priest. In addition, not only is Jesus the perfect priest, but he is also the perfect sacrifice. And because he’s the perfect sacrifice, it is therefore the final sacrifice. We need look for no other. Let me mention just a few of those important texts.