Aspiring to Greater Things {1Timothy 3}

I once was a young ballerina, at least in my mind I was! In truth, I took ballet lessons from a woman who once danced in the finest ballet company in the country; who filled me and the other girls with great aspirations of doing the same one day! Have you ever dreamed of fame and fortune? Of being someone greater than you consider yourself to be? If so, you certainly aren’t alone! For every singer, every actor, dancer... person that makes it to the top of their profession there are hundreds that never do. Thousands perhaps, that laid down their dreams somewhere along the way.

One thing is certain for all of us however, no matter if we accomplished our dreams or left them behind somewhere, one day the bright lights will dim, and the applause will grow silent for each one of us, and we will find ourselves bowed low before Almighty God- our Creator and have to give an account. On that day we will all be equal as our lives; accomplishments and past failures are laid out before Him.

The question that will be first and foremost on His mind will be, “What have you done with My Son? Did you love Him, accept Him, follow Him and make Him Lord of your life?” Then, I believe, next He’ll want to know what we did with the talents He gave each of us. This is where each of us won’t be equal, for the Bible clearly states that some have been given more than other, and to those given more, more will be expected.

Verses 14 and 15 are significant verse in this letter to Timothy, for here Paul states his reasons for writing, “...I am writing these instructions to you  in case I am delayed, so that you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God.” But what truly struck me the most was how he began his list of qualifications for the overseer and deacons of the local body, “The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.” (1 Tim 3:1) The terms overseer, pastor, elder or bishop are all used in the New Testament to refer to the same office, which would be the man placed in charge of watching over the congregation, or local body of believers.

The next thing that stuck me was Paul’s list of qualifications! Looking down the list I noticed that Paul is not giving a job description, but in essence is describing the character of the person who should serve in the position of overseer, “must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.” (3:2-7) The description for deacons is fairly similar except that the overseer must be able to teach.

I love that when it comes to God’s church He has leveled the playing field. It doesn’t matter how rich or poor, nor how talented or beautiful, what matters is the heart. It's clear, Paul is speaking of a man  as an overseer, though I think all of us should aspire to possess these same qualities when we come before Him one day.

Hi Everyone!
If you enjoyed this post I'd like to personally invite you to join me and a wonderful, eclectic group of women from all over the world on a Facebook site we call, Women in the Word . We are currently traveling through the entire New Testament - one chapter a day! It has been such an incredibly journey which we want to share with you! So, if you've ever wanted to know more of what God's Word has to say about everything, and meet and make new friends from all over the world, come join us by clicking on this link . 
There will always be someone there to welcome you! Oh! And please feel free to invite others!
God bless you,
sue