Restoring Pastoral Eldership

Qualifications of an Elder
Detailed Outline

The year is A.D. 394. One of most famous church leaders of that era, Jerome, wrote a letter to a young
leader named Nepotian. In his letter, Jerome rebuked the churches of his day for their hypocrisy in showing
more concern for the appearance of their church buildings than the careful selection of their church leaders.
He wrote, “Many build churches nowadays; their walls and pillars of glowing marble, their ceilings
glittering with gold, their altars studded with jewels. Yet to the choice of Christ’s ministers no heed is paid.”
(Biblical Eldership, p. 67).
It is important that every Christian understands what God has to say about leadership. Leadership affects
every aspect of the church and therefore affects every Christian in the church.
Leadership is important to God, and therefore should be important to all of us. When we come to subject of
elders, New Testament is emphatic about qualifications. In fact, it presents more detailed instructions on
elders’ qualifications than any other aspect of eldership.

I. Necessity for Biblical Qualifications

A. It is a matter of first importance. God has provided standards for those in pastoral oversight. Not
just anyone who thinks they ought to be an elder can be an elder.
B. We have no right to appoint men as elders because they are:
1. Friends or people of honor.
2. Persons with perfect attendance.
3. Rich, or powerful and influential.
C. Three important reasons for the necessity of biblical qualifications:
1. To protect the church from unfit men in leadership
a) Biblical qualifications protect church from hot-tempered man, fighter, dominating
personality, a greedy man, immoral, unfaithful, immature man, undisciplined man etc.
b) No sane person would allow anyone to run their business, family finances, or baby-sit
their children without knowing the person’s moral character. Similarly, it should be no
different when appointing men in God’s house. An unfit elder is a source endless trouble.
c) These qualifications can help the local church stop an unfit man from becoming an elder.
It also becomes the basis for removal of an unfit man from eldership.
2. To help improve the elders’ moral and spiritual character
a) There is much to learn for any elder from a deep reflection on these virtues.
b) Almost all of the qualifications for elders are characteristics God desires for all Christians.
They will help not just the elders, but all Christians to improve their character and identify
weaknesses that need work.
c) These character qualifications set up a standard for us to keep aiming at through life.
3. To help improve the elders’ shepherding skills
a) Meditating on the qualifications will show how to improve our skills with people.
b) Think of qualities like “not quick-tempered,” “gentle,” “hospitable,” “not quarrelsome,”
“able to give instruction in sound doctrine,” “[love] of good,” and “willing” to shepherd.
c) The more a person improves on these the better his relationships with others will be.
d) We can all improve our skills, both with people and family management.

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II. Qualifications of an Elder
Let us now look at the qualifications. There are a few main passages on this important subject.
A. Desire
1. Spirit-Given Desire
a) Eldership begins with Spirit-given desire to shepherd Lord’s people.
“Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has
made you overseers, to care for the church of God” (Acts 20:28).
b) A true desire to lead the family of God is always a Spirit-generated desire.
c) Paul reminded the Ephesian elders that it was the Holy Spirit, —not the church or the
apostles—who placed them as “overseers.”
d) The Spirit planted the pastoral desire in their hearts.
e) The Holy Spirit gave the compulsion and strength to do the work and the wisdom and
appropriate gifts to care for the flock.
2. Personal desire
“The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task”
(1 Tim. 3:1).
In addition to the desire placed by the Holy Spirit there is also the individual’s desire to
shepherd the flock.
3. Obedient desire:
“Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but
willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly” (1 Peter 5:2).
The personal desire is qualified in that there is both willingness to obey God and willingness to
serve eagerly.
B. Moral and Spiritual Characteristics
1. Desire is necessary, but is not enough; sometimes desire for eldership may actually be false
desire; deception of the heart, or the result of a dominating personality who wants to rule others.
2. So to protect the church from false desire and unfit men, the Spirit gives us practical, objective
qualifications to test the desire of candidates.
3. There are six areas of qualifications which can be grouped in different ways - Integrity.
a) “Being examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:3)
b) “Not greedy for gain” (Titus 1:7)
c) “Upright” (Titus 1:8)
d) “Above reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2, Titus 1:6)
e) “Hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught” (Titus 1:9)
f) “Holy” (Titus 1:8)
1) In America today credibility is a big issue.
2) Howard Hendricks says, “We are suffering from AIDS – Acquired Integrity
Deficiency.”
3) It is said of King David: So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his
heart, And guided them with his skillful hands. (Ps 78:72)
4. APPLICATION
a) Can you say about a person that you can trust his word? If he says he will do something,
does he do it? Does he fudge the truth to his advantage?

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 b) Ask his children, does he keep his promises.
c) Illustration: A person was being considered to be an elder, but his employer found out,
and contacted the elders. They were told that he had called in sick, but was discovered
mowing his lawn that day.
d) It is said about a man of integrity that he “swears to his own hurt and does not change” (Ps
15:4).
e) A man of integrity keeps his word even if it means loss or hardship.
5. Reputation
1) “Above reproach” (1 Tim. 3:2, Titus 1:6)
2) “Respectable” (1 Tim. 3:2)
3) “Well thought of by outsiders” (1 Tim. 3:7)
Illustration: Great Wall of China is 1,500 miles (2,400 km) long. Its height varies from 15
to 30 feet (5-9 meters). It is wide enough to drive chariots with four horses. The work
started over 2,400 years ago. It was breached three times and each time it was because the
guards were willing to be bribed to let the enemy walk through its gates. The government
had invested a great deal of money and man-power to protect nation, but they had not
invested in the moral character of its people.
C. Family Life
1. “Husband of one wife” (1 Tim 3:2, Titus 1:6)
a) This qualification appears in both lists and deals with the marital and sexual life of the
leader.
b) It is a major issue today and is not a simplistic surface issue.
c) The Greek construction implies “One woman kind of man”.
d) What does that mean?
e) A man can have only one wife, but still not be a one-woman man!
f) Women are comfortable around him.
g) Faithful to his wife (monogamous)
h) Why is this important? So that women are valued, and respected. They must not feel that
they are treated subtly in a sexual way.
2. “Manage his own household well” (1 Tim 3:4)
3. “His children are believers, not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination” (Titus 1:6)
a) How do we understand this verse? It can be understood in the following ways:
1) “faithful” - Children are “faithful” meaning behaved, since we can’t control whether
our children believe.
2) Not “rebellious”.
3) An elder is above accusations of being a negligent father.
4) ILLUSTRATION: Eli the priest in 1 Samuel 2:12 lost control of his sons. His sons
were called “Worthless men”.
5) How can someone expect to manage the household of God if they fail miserably in
managing their own family.
b) Caveat:
1) We must remember that no one is perfect -- “What man can say he did perfect?”
when even God, the perfect father, has children who rebelled.
2) However, this does not justify blatant failure in this area.

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 D. Personal
1. “Sober-minded” (1 Tim 3:2)
2. “Lover of what is good”
3. “Not recent convert”
4. “Disciplined” (Titus 1:8)
5. “Not a drunkard” (1 Tim. 3:3)
6. “Self-Controlled” (Titus 1:8)
Proverbs says, “Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control
over his spirit” (Proverbs 25:28).
A person without self-control becomes vulnerable to vices, passion, lust, and emotion.
Self-control protects and balances a man’s character. An elder must be a man who displays self-
control and a balanced, stable mind and life.
This matter of self-control is important. A number of the qualifications revolve around a person
being “self-controlled.”
Self-control is especially needed in the following areas:
• Use of alcohol and Money
• Thought life and Speech
• Use and abuse of authority
• Emotions and anger
• Reactions and judgments.
ILLUSTRATION: Some people are quick to speak their mind. Careless in words they use. Don’t
realize the hurt they cause.
A man who always speaks his mind, says unkind things about people, always passing judgment
without regard to how it affects others is not fit to be an elder.
E. Relational
1. “Not quick tempered” (Titus 1:7)
2. “Not quarrelsome” (1 Tim. 3:3)
3. “Not arrogant” (Titus 1:7) (NASB: “self-willed”)
4. “Gentle” (1 Tim. 3:3)
Example of Diotrephes in 3 John.
… Diotrephes, who loves to be first among them, does not accept what we say. (3 Jn 9)
These kinds of men push their way into leadership, often with subtle manipulation. These are
not humble servants and forget that the focus is on being “Gentle”.
There is nothing worse than a person who knows the Bible, but is forceful with his opinions and
ways. An elder like that is like a shepherd who kicks his sheep.
5. “Upright” (Titus 1:8)
6. “Hospitable” This seems an odd criterion. It means that the Elder has an open life; is welcoming
of people into his life and home.
F. Ability to teach, rebuke and protect the people of God. Elder must:
1. “able to teach” (1 Tim. 3:3)
2. “be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus
1:9).

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 3. Essential for elders to be firmly committed to apostolic, biblical doctrine:
a) Give instruction in sound doctrine.
b) Rebuke those with false doctrine.
c) Teachers and Guardians of the truth.
d) Doesn’t mean every elder must be a gifted teacher but that they are able to show from
Scripture the truth of the gospel and the major doctrines of the Christian faith.
e) The best protection from false teaching and provision for maturing the congregation are
elders who labor at preaching/teaching Word.

III. Conclusion – Three applications

A. To elders.
B. To those who desire to be elders.
C. To all Christians.
1. Use the qualifications as a check list on your own Christian character development.
2. Pin this list up on your mirror at home
3. Each day pray about one of the characteristics. Ask God to develop that one thing in you that
day.
4. Identify one of the characteristics that you need to work on. Pray about it; ask for opportunities
to develop it. Like an athlete who works on his weakness, find yours and work on it.
5. Ask a trusted friend, fellow elders, associate, family member – to honestly give you feed back.
What you are doing good at? And, what you need to improve on?

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