Titus 1:6-9 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“6An elder must be blameless, the husband of but one wife, having children who are believers and who are not open to accusation of indiscretion or insubordination. 7As God’s steward, an overseer must be above reproach—not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not greedy for money. 8Instead, he must be hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. 9He must hold firmly to the faithful word as it was taught, so that he can encourage others by sound teaching and refute those who contradict it.”
What is the biblical meaning of “Elder” within the church?
He is to be a man, but not just any man, but a man of God, led by the Spirit, mature
in age and in experience, having good sound biblical judgment in matters of
faith and practice. His position is the same as an overseer, and an overseer is
a man with a spiritual responsibility to supervise and to manage the gatherings
of the church to make certain that they are in line with the Scriptures and
that they are serving the purposes for which God called the church to serve.
And there are biblical qualifications of this position of
elder (overseer, pastor) which are to be met for anyone to fill these
positions. And they are listed for us here in the passage of Scripture above.
And if a man being considered for that position does not meet the spiritual
qualifications of elder/pastor, then he should not be permitted to serve in
that position. But that doesn’t seem to be being taken into consideration in
the majority of cases in the “church” today. So many are chosen by seminary
degrees or by popularity, instead.
Many Are Rebellious
Titus 1:10-14 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“10For many are rebellious and full of empty talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision, 11who must be silenced. For the sake of dishonorable gain, they undermine entire households and teach things they should not. 12As one of their own prophets has said, ‘Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.’ 13This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sternly, so that they will be sound in the faith 14and will pay no attention to Jewish myths or to the commands of men who have rejected the truth.”
And this is where the church at large (overall) is today,
having men in their congregations serving as pastor and elders (overseers) who
do not meet the spiritual/biblical qualifications for the position, many of
whom are spiritually rebellious for they are teaching lies as though they are
truth and while many of them are refuting the truth of the Scriptures while
calling them false teachings. And this is especially in relation to the
teachings of the gospel of Christ in its fulness. So many of them are teaching
the gospel falsely.
For we have many men serving as pastors (elders) who are “wolves
in sheep’s clothing” out to destroy the church. They are manipulators and
opportunists who are morally unclean, malicious, untrustworthy, liars,
deceivers, and fakes who fake their Christianity in order to win the trust of
the people. For they are those who are deliberately teaching a false gospel of
salvation, convincing many people that all God requires of them is a verbal
confession of faith, while death to sin and obedience to God are not being taught
as necessary and critical components of faith which saves.
For they are outside of The Light, going against God’s
biblical and moral boundaries. For Jesus Christ taught that to come to Him we
must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin), and follow (obey)
Him. For if we hold on to living in sin and for self, we will lose our lives
for eternity. But if we deny self, die daily to sin, by the Spirit, and we walk
in obedience to our Lord and to His commands, in His power, then we have
eternal life with God. For not everyone who calls Him “Lord” will enter the
kingdom of heaven, but the one DOING (obeying) the will of God (Luke 9:23-26;
Matthew 7:21-23).
Defiled Consciences
Titus 1:15-16 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“15To the pure, all things are pure; but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure. Indeed, both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16They profess to know God, but by their actions they deny Him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.”
As I was looking at my shower curtain today with all the
writings on it, I got to thinking about what is behind the curtain. On the outside
of the curtain are messages of faith, hope, joy, and love, but sometimes when I
pull back the curtain I may find spiders and cockroaches. And people who are
regarded as “cockroaches” are the malicious, morally unclean, deceivers, and
manipulators who teach lies to the people in the name of truth. And a spider is
a predatory creature which injects venom in their prey, and they represent
those who spin webs of deceit in order to catch their prey.
So, the message I was getting from this fit perfectly with
this passage of Scripture. For something can look good on the outside, and it
can give off an outward image of love, joy, peace, faith, and hope, but while
behind the curtain it is full of deceit, venom, malicious intent,
manipulations, and fakery. For not everything or everyone is as it or they appear
on the outside. And not everyone who calls himself “pastor” or “elder” is a man
of God who fits the biblical qualifications for elder and who is teaching the
truth of the gospel. The position and the man may be exact opposites, in fact.
So..
Behind The Curtain
An Original Work / September 21, 2026
Christ’s
Free Servant, Sue J Love
Zeal for Your House
Based off John 2:17; Psalms 69:9
An Original Work / August 1, 2016
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
Zeal for Your house,
it consumes me.
Lord, I love my
times with You.
I love to worship
You and sing Your praises.
Time in Your Word
brings me closer to You,
List’ning to You
speaking to me,
Gently guiding me in
truth.
Lord, You are my
life’s example,
Showing me how I
should live.
I love to walk with
You where’er You lead me.
No greater joy have
I when serving You.
Loving, giving,
resting in Your strength,
I’m yielding to Your
will.
Zeal for Your house,
it consumes me.
See the church
turned upside down:
Marketing ventures
taking place of worship,
Men of the gospel
turning into clowns.
Gospel message made
appealing,
So the world will
feel at home.
Lord, we need a
great revival.
Turn their hearts,
Lord, back to You.
Open the blind eyes,
turn them all from darkness,
Lord, to the light.
May they return to You,
Turn from their sin,
forsake idols,
Be restored to God
again.
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