Paul's Exhortations & Instructions to Brother Timothy 1st Letter Volume 25

Paul Details to Timothy the Qualifications of Leaders in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ Part 2

1 Timothy 3:3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; KJV

Paul in continuing his instruction to Brother Timothy concerning the requirements a man must meet before he is allowed, admitted, and approved for the office of Bishop in the Church of our Lord, Master, and Savior Jesus Christ begins his next list with one (1) positive quality the man must have and five (5) negative qualities he should not have in order to be a good steward of the Gospel and the Church of Jesus Christ by writing these words to Timothy, "Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;" (1 Timothy 3:3) (KJV). The first (1st) of the five (5) negations begins with the little English phrase 'given to wine' which is translated by one Greek word paroinos (only used here and one other place (Titus 1:7) in the entire New Testament) meaning staying near wine, that is, tippling (a toper): that is, one who drinks wine to excess becoming a danger to himself and to others. In other words, the Apostle Paul by command from God is strictly prohibiting the approval of any man to the office of Bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ who makes the drinking of wine a habit that has become unmanageable and causes himself and others literal harm and more importantly spiritual harm.

Paul believed that the use of wine was not bad or wrong or evil, for it had been used for many years to help the infirmities of those suffering from certain ailments, just as he prescribed to this same Timothy later on in this same letter with these words, "Drink water no longer exclusively, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent illnesses." (1 Timothy 5:23) (Amplified Bible). Here is what Albert Barnes had to say concerning the use of wine, "It cannot be inferred, from the use of the word here, that wine was absolutely and entirely prohibited; for the word does not properly express that idea. It means that one who is in the habit of drinking wine, or who is accustomed to sit with those who indulge in it, should not be admitted to the ministry. The way in which the Apostle mentions the subject here would lead us fairly to suppose that he did not mean to commend its use in any sense; that he regarded its use as dangerous, and that he would wish the ministers of religion to avoid it altogether. In regard to its use at all, except at the communion or as a medicine, it may be remarked, that a minister will do no injury to himself or others by letting it entirely alone; he may do injury by indulging in it."

The second (2nd) negation Paul list here for Timothy is the little English phrase 'no stiker' and it is translated by the Greek word plēktēs which means a smiter, that is, pugnacious (quarrelsome): that is, one known to inflict with (calamity): i.e. who is ready and able to resort to force or violence. Simply, Paul declares such a violent man as this unqualified and disqualified to the office of Bishop in Christ Church, for it would be utterly disgraceful to portray the image that our Lord Jesus Christ is leading His Church with His Children apart of His Body by force or violence, for this is exactly what the Corinthian Church accepted from some of its so-called leaders and Paul rebuked the leaders and the followers for putting up with it with these words, "For you readily {and} gladly bear with the foolish, since you are so smart {and} wise yourselves!For you endure it if a man assumes control of your souls {and} makes slaves of you, or devours [your substance, spends your money] {and} preys upon you, or deceives {and} takes advantage of you, or is arrogant {and} puts on airs, or strikes you in the face." (2 Corinthians 11:19-20) (Amplified Bible).

The third (3rd) of the negations Paul writes to Timothy is that no Bishop should be 'greedy of filthy lucre' and this English phrase is translated by one Greek word aischrokerdēs meaning (gain); sordid: - that is, unethical or dishonest gain by virtue of fleecing the flock of God for their money and giving them nothing of spiritual value from the Word of God energized by the Spirit of God, such as many of these fleecers around today telling people to send them $100 and watch God multiply that back to them ten (10) times or ten (10) fold and lying to people about an ordinary handkerchief that if they send money one will be sent to them that will heal them of their sicknesses and diseases (complete lies and fleecing). Here is what Mathew Henry says of this negation, "One who is not greedy of filthy lucre, who does not make his ministry to truckle to any secular design or interest, who uses no mean, base, sordid ways of getting money, who is dead to the wealth of this world, lives above it, and makes it appear he is so." The fourth (4th) negation is similiar to the previous and that is 'not covetous' and this little English phrase is translated by the Greek word aphilarguros meaning unavaricious: - that is, to not be one so fond of and in love with money that he would do anything to get more and more, even fleecing the flock of God; immoderately desirous of acquiring wealth, just as Paul warns Timothy with even more detail later on in this very same letter with these words, "But those who crave to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish (useless, godless) and hurtful desires that plunge men into ruin {and} destruction and miserable perishing. For the love of money is a root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have been led astray {and} have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves through with many acute [mental] pangs." (1 Timothy 6:9-10) (Amplified Bible).

The fifth (5th) and final of these five (5) negations is that the Bishop of the Church of Christ is 'not a brawler' and this little English phrase is translated by the Greek word amachos meaning some one who does not battle, that is, (figuratively) stir up controversy: - fight or strive with others. In other words, the Bishop should not be like the neighborhood bully going about seeing who he can physically fight, but instead he should be one who lives a peacable life doing no harm to others. Note: "This in no way means that a man of God should not defend himself against physical attack by any means necessary." The one positive quality the Apostle Paul places in this list of negatives is one impossible to come by in human effort, but is produced by the Power of God the Holy Spirit and that is to be 'patient' and this little English word is translated by the Greek word epieikēs which means appropriate, that is, (by implication) mild: - gentle, moderation, patient. It is a quality I must say is very hard for me to cultivate without the Power of God the Holy Spirit taking over and control for me, for my old nature abhors patience (this is why I love the Microwave so much, lol). King Solomon learned this over the years despite his many blunders and wrote these words when he was an older man, "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning of it, and the patient in spirit is better than the proud in spirit." (Ecclesiastes 7:8) (Amplified Bible).

If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...

Sincerely in Christ,

Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reade, Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…