THE PASTOR’S JOB DESCRIPTION: 1. Correct False Teachers

THE PASTOR’S JOB DESCRIPTION
1. Correct False Teachers
1 Timothy 1:1-3

Introduction:

One of the most imperative issues that faces Gateway Baptist Church is the issue of organization and leadership. As we restructure and restore the organization and leadership of our church, we must ask ourselves two questions:

1. What is the authority for how we organize and lead?
2. What is that structure?

To Christians, the answer to the first question is comparatively clear-cut because the authority for faith is scripture. “All scripture is God breathed, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim 3:17-17).

Therefore, the authority for how we organize and lead must be scripture, the Holy Bible, God’s specific revelation to man. Everything we need for life and godliness.

The second answer may be a little more difficult because the Bible contains all kinds of leadership styles. For instance, in the OT, there were Patriarchs, Kings, Judges, Elders, prophets and governors. In the NT there were also governors, kings, Caesars, rulers, a Sanhedrin’s, the Jerusalem council as well as Prophets and Apostles, bishops, elders, deacons and pastors.

The simple answer to the question what structure should the church adopt, while not ignoring the whole counsel of God, is most explicitly found in the Pastoral Epistles: 1 and 2 Timothy, as well as Titus. These three letters were written to respond directly to these issues.

They were written by Paul to the men whom he mentored to instruct them on how to lead the local church. These instruction carry the wait of inspiration and if they were not relevant to the church, one would suspect that God, in His providence, would not have included them in the New Testament cannon. They are there for a purpose.

Therefore, the pastoral letters must be foundational for Gateway.

Here is why I think church structure and leadership matter to God: God is a God of order. and Christians are His ambassadors. Therefore God expects His church to represent Him accurately. He expects order in His Church. And the degree to which we conform to that order, will be the degree to which we reflect the glory of God to a watching world.

Organizing this church must become the forefront of Gateway’s ministry this Fall. And I believe that the level of our success will have tremendous impact upon the level of each member’s sanctification and walk with God.

Premise: I believe that an examination of what Paul teaches concerning church organization and leadership will reveal that the traditional Baptist model of congregational church government with biblical Elders and Deacons as the leaders, is the most biblical form of church government.

It was so important to the founders of the Baptist movement that they suffered severe persecution for their desire to conform to the biblical pattern of congregational church government. It should also be important to us. Not because of tradition, but revelation.

Let us therefore diligently strive for God’s glory (not ours) as we seek to conform our organization and leadership to His will (not ours) as it is revealed in scripture (and not the fading traditions or wisdom of man).

I have structured my inquiry and therefore my preaching outline into the three levels of leadership:

1. The job description of the pastor
2. Biblical Eldership and Deacons
3. The Congregation

All three levels of leadership are equally important because they provide the appropriate checks and balances and provide a God-ordained pattern for discerning God’s will for the local church.

1. The Job Description of the Pastor: Read 1 Tim 1:1-5

In Verse 3, Paul reminds Timothy that he commanded him to remain in Ephesus and gave him certain instructions. Instructions which he is now, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, putting into a more permanent written form for the benefit of all God’s people.

Let’s look at Paul’s instructions to Timothy, they are spread throughout this letter, so for the purpose of brevity and in order to grasp the weight of Paul’s job description for Timothy, we will look at five key areas of the pastor’s job description:

1. Correct False Teachers (Apologetics)- 1:3
2. Commune with God (Prayer)- 2:1-3
3. Call Certain Leaders (Elders and Deacons)- 3:1-16
4. Conform to the Image of Christ (Godliness) 4:12
5. Command and Teach the Whole Counsel of God (Sound Doctrine) 4:11, 13-16

1. Correct False Teachers (Apologetics)- 1:3
Salvation is defined by Paul as loving the truth (2 Thess 2:10). To abandon the truth is to have believed in vain. Remember that Jesus called Himself the Truth. Truth is not optional to the Christian experience. Christians need not ask with Pilate, “what is truth,” because it has been revealed to us in scripture and by the Holy Spirit.

The problem in the early church just as with us today was that false teachers were constantly attempting to pervert the gospel. When Paul was returning to Jerusalem to face imprisonment and possibly death, he warned the Ephesians saying,

“You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you… I have preached to both Jews and to Gentiles that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in Jesus Christ… I am innocent of the blood of all men for I have not hesitated to proclaim the whole counsel of God… Be shepherds of the church, [For] I know that after I leave savage wolves will come in among you and not spare the flock.” (Acts 20: 18-31).

To underscore the seriousness of false teaching, Paul even described it as demonic when false apostles came into Corinth. He described them as being messengers of Satan (2 Cor 11:13-15). When false teachers came into the Galatian church, Paul asked them “who has bewitched you?” He wanted to know why they would willingly exchange the grace of God for a manmade religion of uncertain works. He called it a false gospel and called eternal condemnation on those who preached it because it was so destructive naïve men and women (Gal 3:1; 1:8).

In spite of the fact that we should be tolerant of all religions and creeds in our pluralistic and democratic society, we should not take false teaching in the church as lightly. Satan’s best strategy against the church is disguise his lies in truth. His is a secret war against the gospel. “He uses a Trojan Horse stratagem by placing false teachers in the church, where they can ‘secretly bring destructive heresies’ (2 Pet 2:1)” (J. Macarthur, “Fools Gold” 33).

John Macarthur writes that the way to determine “a Spiritual counterfeit requires [that we] master the truth” (“Fools Gold” 33). “Study to show yourself approved,” Paul tells Timothy.

The role of the pastor is sort of like a firewall on a computer filtering out destructive viruses that ruin hard drives. The pastor must be ever vigilant and always sensitive to the latest Christian fads that they are not the guise of the enemy (For even Satan masquerades as an angel of light).

Apparently these men in Ephesus were trying to claim authority as teachers of the law, obviously abusing the law for their own gain. Paul instructed Timothy to command them not to teach false doctrines and old wives tales and myths and endless genealogies.

Paul is not cautious about mixing his metaphors in describing pastoral ministry. He describes the role of pastor as a shepherd and then as a soldier. The battle against error as a kind of warfare in verse 18 and Paul tells Timothy to suffer in this fight like a good soldier of Christ (2 Tim 2:3). Jesus suffered for the truth. In fact, he went to the cross because others lied about him. But he told the truth.

Look at how pervasive the problem of false doctrine is to the church today (Read ch. 4:1-4; 2 Tim 3:1-9)

The pastor must do three things in the face of false teachers.

i. He is to remind the church what it is that they believe and the best rule for this is to keep it simple, because it is simple. False doctrine tends to complicate things; it’s confusing.

ii. He must reject the false teaching. We are told to have nothing to do with these godless myths (1 Tim 4:7) and to avoid foolish controversies because they are useless (Titus 3:9).

iii. The pastor is to warn a person who tries to divide the church over false teaching twice and then have nothing to do with him (Titus 3:10).

Finally, Paul says that the goal of this command is love, 1 verse 5, “which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”
I want to wrap it with this observation from Revelation, written some time after the letter to TImothy. Turn to Revelation ch. 2 lets read another Epistle, sent by Jesus himself to the church that Timothy pastured.

(Read 2:1-3)

What, what a compliment to Timothy! He got it right. And even after he left the church had become known as a church that could not bear those who were evil and they tested those who claimed to be apostles, but were liars. They took Paul’s exhortation to heart, correcting false teachers and keeping their doctrine pure.

But let’s read on, (Read v. 4)

They got so busy with the command, but they missed the goal, the purpose of this command is love! Let us not become so pure in our doctrine and so discerning of false teachers that we lose sigh of the goal. Holding on to our first love, and speaking the truth in love, we must labour in the word and command false teachers not to teach false doctrine.

There have been times in Christian walk when I have been so prepared to give an answer for the faith, but I lacked gentleness and respect. For that I must repent and strive to be more loving.

Let’s model ourselves after Jesus who was full of grace and truth. Let us be full of love and full of truth.