Overseeing The Flock: Part Four - Developing Elders
God has always sought for men to stand up and lead His people. We can read in Ezekiel 22:30, "And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none."
There is a shortage of qualified men desiring to serve as elders in the Lord's church today. There are many congregations that do not have elders, and don't see any hope of appointing any in the near future. It appears many don't think much about elders or appointing them until the time is upon them to do so.
It is impossible to appoint qualified men into the eldership that have not qualified themselves years before. Qualified men don't just appear overnight. It is a long process. It begins with the home. A man can be a Christian without being married and having a physical family, but he cannot be an elder without a wife and believing children (1st Tim. 3:1-7).
Spiritual teaching and righteous living must begin at home. God intended it to be so (Deut. 6:6-9). Teaching our children the word of God takes time and example. Parents must set the proper priorities. Parents must stop "over-scheduling" themselves and their children. Many families spend very little time together at home.
We need more preaching and teaching about the home as God intended. We need to hear teaching that Christians should marry Christians. We need more like Joshua that will stand up and say, "As for me and my house we will serve the Lord."
Many Christians have just gotten too busy for family. Thus, we have gotten too busy to develop elders.
Dickey Howard 1713 Jackson Road, Florence, AL 35630
Preacher Training Series
Preacher Training: The Teaching
In our last installment we looked at the work of preaching. Although preaching and teaching are sometimes synonymous, at other times they are very different works and require the use of a different set of abilities. The Holy Spirit separated them into two works in Ephesians 4:11.
In Acts 20:20 Paul reminded the elders from Ephesus that he had not avoided proclaiming to them anything that was spiritually profitable both publicly and from house to house. This is the same distinction that we are making between public proclamation (preaching) and teaching.
One who sincerely desires to be set for a defense of the gospel needs to be familiar with how to do so in private, as well as publicly. He needs to be able to look one in the eye and speak sincerely over a kitchen table and a cup of coffee, not just entertain a large crowd. He needs to be able to answer questions, and explain the scriptures further, and carry on a dialogue. This is teaching!
Teaching is communication. It requires feedback from the student. It is the art of putting that information into palatable and interesting forms—not to make it acceptable—but to make it unforgettable. Word pictures like wolves, sheep, carpenters, vines, washed out houses, half finished battles, and eating body and blood stick in our minds! This is teaching!
Men in training programs ought to be teaching a class every quarter. An organized, laid out, finished on time, homework preparing type of Bible study.
Carl McMurray 220 Swift Dr, Nashville, TN 37072
Passing the Sword Series
Passing The Sword: First Timothy Overview
Since the Books of First and Second Timothy and Titus are the major books that you should learn to use very efficiently in your preparations, I will spend some time dealing with the teaching of these books.
Chapter One: Paul begins this book with warnings about false teachers. He speaks of his own prior activities that were actually a detriment to the cause of Christ. But he tells of the grace of God that enabled him to make a complete change in his life. He tells Timothy to wage a good warfare having faith and a good conscience.
Chapter Two: He exhorts that prayers, supplications, intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men. He speaks of the One Mediator, Jesus Christ. He speaks of the conduct and activities of both men and women.
Conclusion: When we get to Second Timothy where Timothy was told to "Study to show himself approved unto God, rightly dividing the word of truth" we will present some examples of how preachers in the past studied. Studying is one of the major activities in preparing oneself to preach the gospel. One cannot preach what he does not know.
Jim Sasser 1722 W. Market St., Athens, AL 35611
Deacons Series
The Deacon's Work: Qualifications Part 2
The fourth qualification: A deacon must not be greedy for money. If a deacon was greedy for money he would possibly spend all his time striving after that and neglect his work for the Lord. Also, deacons are sometimes responsible for handling the money that is collected by the church. One who is greedy might use these funds where they shouldn't be used.
The fifth qualification: A Deacon must hold the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. The word "hold" implies grabbing something tightly and hanging on with the tightest grip. This is the kind of dedication to the faith that is required. He is to hold the mystery of the faith WITH A CLEAR CONSCIENCE—a mind that is free from guilt of wrong doing.
A deacon must be a man who is striving with his whole self to cling to the mystery of faith that was once for all delivered to us. If a man is working to accomplish this, then he will serve the congregation well as a deacon.
Kent Ward 8915 East County Road 400, North Brownsburg, IN 46112
Home Series
"Home": Of What Is It Composed?
In our present society, the home (family) is not thought of, by many, in the way God originally intended it to be. Today many people do not even consider the marriage relationship between a man and a woman to be necessary in the formation of a home or "family unit."
Today, women who are not even contemplating marriage decide they want to have a child, thereby forming what they call a "home" or "family". Having a husband as God intended is the furthest thought from their mind. They simply go to a doctor who specializes in artificial insemination.
Also, you may have some man who decides he wants a child, but doesn't want to be married, so he simply finds a woman who is willing to bear him a child. These arrangements are not what God intended for the home.
From the beginning, God's intention was that husband and wife bear children fulfilling his plan in establishing the home (family). Nowhere in the Bible did a home (family) ever consist of two males or two females and their offspring. God's first institution consists of a husband (male) and wife (female) producing children as a result of their becoming one flesh.
Jerry L. Henderson 202 15th Street, Trenton, TN 38382