John 10: “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me– 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father– and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 10: I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.

John 10: The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life– only to take it up again.

18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” John 10:14-18

The Functions & Qualities of Elders Part 1

I Timothy 3:1-7 It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do. An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money.

He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

I. It is a fine work! The word is “ Kalos ” in the Greek. It means excellent, good, worthwhile or noble. “ Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. ” (Acts 20:28 )

II. Since it is an excellent work it follows that the overseer must be a man of excellent character. III. He must be! These are necessary, compulsory and fitting. Desire is not enough. Properly qualified elders are a non-negotiable requirement for the governing of God ’ s household.

IV. The qualities seem to focus on two main areas: A. Personal self-discipline and maturity. B. Ability to teach, care for and relate well to others.

V. The noted qualities: A. The husband of one wife. (A one woman man) B. Temperate - An elder must have balanced judgment and freedom from debilitating excesses or rash behavior.

C. Prudent/Self-controlled - to be prudent is to be sound-minded, discreet and sensible, able to keep an objective perspective in the face of problems and disagreements. D. Respectable - A sensibly minded person will also be a well-behaved person. An elder/shepherd cannot expect people to follow him if he is not respectable.

E. Hospitable - The shepherd is to give himself lovingly and sacrificially for the care of the flock. Those who love people, love hospitality and ministering to people ’ s need.

F. Able to teach - The ability to teach entails three basic elements: 1. A knowledge of scripture. 2. The desire and readiness to teach. 3. The ability to communicate.

VI. Remember the lists in I Timothy 3 and Titus 1 are not intended to be exhaustive, seen in the fact that the are not identical. Neither mentions prayer, or forbids the elders from being robbers, liars or gossips, etc. Paul takes numerous virtues for granted and gives us these examples.

VII. We are not to look for super- humans or perfect people. We are simply looking for men who are mature in the qualities that we are all to be pursuing.