Paul begins this section of the letter by telling the church, “Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine.”
In more simple words this verse would read “Let the pastors who lead well be worthy of double honor.”
Paul further said in verse seventeen that the one who is worthy of honor is the one who “labors in word and in doctrine.” The word “labor” means to toil or work hard. Paul having set out the reason why pastors should be honored he now sets out to explain how this honor is to be displayed.
First, we honor them by deeming them worthy of Financial Support (vv. 17-18)
“Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine.”
Here, the Scripture says that the church leader is to be counted worthy of double honor. But what does that mean? Some understand this statement to mean “double pay.” However, it also means “twofold honor” or honor shown in two ways.
First, there is to be an attitude of honor, as in 1 Thess. 5:12-13 where Paul says, “And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, (13) and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake….”
Now, beyond this attitude of honor, secondly there is to be literally financial support for them as they work. That is those who’s calling is communicating the truth of Scripture are worthy of the church’s financial support. In fact from this Greek word we get our English word “honorarium,” which refers to money given someone to honor them.
Paul support his claim that pastoral leadership should be paid he quotes from two undeniable sources. First he appeals to the Old Testament in verse eighteen, “For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,”
Paul first quotes Moses from Deuteronomy 25:4. The principle here was that when the farmer brought his oxen onto the threshing floor they were to allow the ox to eat some of the wheat as he works. Although the comparison of pastors to oxen may not be very flattering to us, he said that even the oxen has the right to benefit from his labor, so a leader called to full-time leading and teaching in the church has the tight to the financial support of the church.
Paul also quotes Jesus when he says, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.” This is a word for word quote of Luke 10:7. Thus Paul uses both an Old Testament and a New Testament quotation to case that churches are to honor there pastors with appropriate pay. So what is appropriate pay?
A general rule of thumb would be that pastor (and other full time workers) should be paid on the same scale as others in the congregation of the same age, education, level of experience and responsibilities. Obviously the size and ability of the church to pay would have to be considered.
Yet many even within the church do not understand what it is that a pastor does with his time.
Someone has explained it this way; “The pastor teaches, though he must solicit his own classes. He heals, though without pills or knife. He is sometimes a lawyer, often a social worker, something of an editor, a bit of a philosopher and entertainer, a salesman, a front man for public functions, and he is supposed to be a scholar. He visits the sick, marries people, buries the dead, labors to console those who sorrow and to admonish those who sin, and tries to stay sweet when chided for not doing his duty. He plans programs, appoints committees when he can get them, spends considerable time in keeping people out of each other’s hair. Between times he prepares a sermon and preaches it on Sunday’s and Wednesday’s to those who don’t happen to have any other engagement. [www.bible.org/illus/pastoring]
Luther’s Ten Qualifications for the Minister
1. He should be able to teach plainly and in order.
2. He should have a good head.
3. Good power of language.
4. A good voice.
5. A good memory.
6. He should know when to stop.
7. He should be sure of what he means to say.
8. Be ready to stake body and soul, goods and reputation on its truth.
9. He should study diligently.
10. And suffer himself to be vexed and criticized by everyone.
[www.bible.org/illus/pastoring]
Secondly, we honor them by demanding that they be Treated Fairly. (vv. 19-21)
“Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. (20) Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear. (21) I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality.”
There were those in leadership in the church in Ephesus who were worthy of double honor because they did their job with integrity. However, there were others who were failing. So Paul develops here how the offending brethren were to be disciplined.
Paul says that no accusation against a church leader is to be considered as true unless it comes from at least two witnesses. In other words the leaders were to receive the same protection everyone else. “If this procedure were observed it would cut down a great deal on the gossip and misunderstanding and the strife that goes on in our churches today.
In the United Methodist Church, if there are complaints against any of our church workers they should be brought in to the attention of the local church Committee on Pastor-Parish Relation for initial resolutions. The case goes up to the Bishop cabinet if no resolution was made in the local church level.
Our church provides clear instruction found in UMC Book of Discipline par. 2702 containing all the chargeable offenses, for clergy and the process of dealing with these charges which give a very fair trial to the respondent. I hope to God it never happens to our pastors here at FUMC…
So here we find the second way to honor our spiritual leaders. WE HONOR OUR SPIRITUAL LEADERS BY TREATING THEM FAIRLY.
Third, we honor them by expecting them to act with Integrity (vv. 22, 24-25)
“Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people’s sins; keep yourself pure…. (24) Some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of some men follow later. (25) Like-wise, the good works of some are clearly evident, and those that are otherwise cannot be hidden.”
The overriding concept of these verses is that we expect a life of integrity from the leaders in the church. It may sound odd to our ears that an expectation of integrity on the part of church leaders is a means of honoring them, but it you think about it, it makes sense. To expect church leaders to act with honesty and integrity is resounding vote of confidence.
The verse “lay hands suddenly on no man” (v. 22). refers to the process of ordination, in which case it would mean, that the best way to avoid the scandal of having to discipline a leader is to thoroughly screen candidates before they are ordained.
It might sound odd that expecting our leaders to act with integrity honors them, but it makes sense when you think about it. There’s an honor that goes with being a church leader because it’s a noble, honorable calling to serve in Jesus’ Church as a leader. To expect our leaders to live consistently with the honor of that calling really does honor our leaders. Now don’t confuse integrity with perfection. If leaders had to be perfect, the only church leader would be Jesus, because he’s the only sinless person. Integrity doesn’t even mean close to perfect. Integrity means that a person’s private life and public life are consistent, that the leader is seeking to live a lifestyle that reflects the values of Jesus.
A person with integrity is brutally honest about his or her shortcomings and failures, but they’re not content to stay there. They want to grow, to move forward, even while being honest with where they fall short.
So this is the third way we honor our leaders. WE HONOR OUR LEADERS BY EXPECTING THEM TO ACT WITH INTEGRITY.
Fourth, we honor them by encouraging them to live a healthy lifestyle. (5:23)“
Now v. 23 says “Don’t drink water anymore but use a little wine because of your stomach problems and your frequent illness.” Why was instruction?
In chapter 3 Paul warned against drunkenness among church leaders, that being addicted to alcohol disqualifies a person from spiritual leadership. Mostly likely, in his passion to be pure and avoid controversy, Timothy simply abstained from alcohol completely.
Now it was commonly believed in the ancient world that wine had important medicinal value. So Timothy’s total abstinence from wine was hurting his health, leading to stomach problems and frequent illnesses. So Paul tells Timothy that he can keep himself pure before God without hurting his health. In fact, Paul doesn’t want Timothy to engage in actions that will hurt his health, even if those actions are done in the name of being pure before God.
So the principle here is for Timothy to live a healthy lifestyle, with the application of the principle for Timothy to drink some wine in moderation.
So here we find a fourth way to honor our spiritual leaders. WE HONOR OUR SPIRITUAL LEADERS BY ENCOURATING THEM TO LIVE A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE.
Conclusion
From Facebook article we have the following description about pastors:
“A pastor never gets to say, “I’m off duty, never gets to punch Out at 5. Never gets to have a normal schedule. We don’t how many sleepless night they spend on their knees praying for their church. How much opposition they face. How many family opportunities they to meet hurting people. We can’t carry their burdens for them but we can do what the Bible tell us to. Pray for them, encourage them, support them. By blessing them we will only be blessed in return.”
God wants us to honor the spiritual leaders in our lives, such as our pastor. We do that by supporting them financially,
by treating them fairly,
by expecting them to act with integrity,
and encouraging them to live a healthy lifestyle.
Amen.