ReListened this message today, it was given by Pastor Mark Driscoll from Mars Hill Church, Seattle, at one of the ACTS29 bootcamps.Basically it follows through the qualifications of an elder as God gave us in 1 Timothy 3.
My bro Tim listened it today as well and our conversation was pretty much, "where are the guys who fit this"? & "I fall Wwaaaayy short of the standard"!
The standards are set very, very high and we pretty much agreed that this was the most challenging, informative, kick up the back side, sermon we've heard this year!
A quick outline:
~He has to be a dude, masculine man, not just a nice guy, a mans man!
~He has to be blameless
~He has to be the husband of 1 wife (operative word "husband", serving his wife as Christ served and loved the church)
~He has to be Temperate
~Soberminded
~Have good behavior
~Hospitable
~Able to teach (Churches are built on teaching the word of God so it is necessary that elders can teach).
~Not given to wine (personally I believe that elders are to totally abstain due to the difference between here and deacons who are not given to "much" wine).
~Not violent
~Not greedy for money
~Gentle
~Not quarrelsome
~Not covetous
~One who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverance (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God). [If a man is not active in family devotions, serving his family, leading them in Christ he cannot lead the church! The home is the litmus test].
~Not a novice [imature believer], incase he gets puffed up and falls into the same sinful pride as the devil.
~Must have a good tesimony among unbelievers [non-christians must like these guys].
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