'' This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work.2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, Sober , of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.8 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.10 And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless.11 Even so must their wives be grave, not slanderers, sober, faithful in all things.'' 1 Timothy 3:1-11
1.Blameless,
To be blameless means that there is no fault with you , no charges against you , nor anything bad against you . A blameless person is innocent , has nothing to do with the evil that happens , and that is one of the qualifications of a minister of the gospel .
As a man of God you are expected to be blameless , when it comes to the sinful things that people are doing . You cannot be a minister of God , and there are so many faults against you that are somewhat true . Members can accuse you , and point fingers at you , ' you have done this ' you have done that ' and it is all true . Pray for the grace to be blameless as the minister of the gospel .
The fallibility of your human nature does not guarantee that you should do all kinds of sinful things , so that people can put all the blame on you.
2. Husband of One wife
The man of God must be married to one wife at a time , he should not indulge in polygamous marriage . As a minister of the gospel you must avoid having sexual relations with women more than the one wife . A man of God must marry only one wife ,there is no place for a second wife ,or 'side chicks .
God created one wife for Adam , Moses the man of God married one wife , Isaiah the prophet had one wife , Joseph had one wife that is Mary the mother of Yeshua ,and Peter the apostle had one wife '
3. Vigilant
Every minister of the gospel must be vigilant in watching and observing the word of the Lord This means the man of God must be watchful , in all things , been careful to obey God's word . The scriptures declares , ''Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:9 Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.'' 1 Peter 5:8-9
4. Good behaviour
It is important that any man of God put up the best of behaviour worthy of emulation , because he is a leader of God's flock . People of God are looking unto him as a minister to be their role model . So people cannot afford to learn wrong behaviour from you . Wrong behaviours like , high temperament , full of insults , abusive , insolent , disrespectful , womanizing and the like .
5. Good hospitality
Good hospitality is an aptitude that is strictly required , because you might need to entertain strangers in the near future . This is very important because , even angels might come down to you as visitors ,and you have to entertain them anyway .
''Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.'' Hebrew 13:2
6. Apt to teach
Teaching is a necessary requirement for the minister of the gospel . When God calls you , he will give you the teaching anointing , so that you can teach the people of God . Every pastor or minister of the gospel who cannot dissect the word of God to the lowest understanding of the simple person , must pray for the grace of teaching .
7. Not Given to wine
As a man of God you should not drink any alcoholic drink that causes intoxication in one way or the other . This will ruin your ministry and disqualify your holy calling as a minister of the gospel . '' not given to wine'' means that a pastor or leader of God's flock should not be a drunkard in any way possible . It is necessary ,so that you can attract a holy anointing of God .
According the scriptures strong drink is designed for fools who are distressed and ready to perish in hell , '' It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink:5 Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted.6 Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.7 Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more.'' Proverbs 31:4-7
8. Not Striker
A striker is a violent person , a bully who delights in, forcing , beating or fighting people to do their bidding very often . A man of God must not be a bully in any way possible , rather be gentle and earn the respect of the people .
9. Not greedy
A servant of the Lord must not be greedy nor show any sign of greediness in his or her life . If you are a man of God avoid being greedy . A greedy person is someone who wants all for himself , even what belongs to another person , he wants to get it in addition to his own .
Greediness is the nature and character of satan , he is the greediest being who influences human beings to be greedy for things , to the extent they are not satisfied with what they have . A greedy person can have so much , yet is never satisfied with it and still wants what belongs to others .
10. Patience
Any man of God who does not have patience will fall into temptation , because he cannot wait upon God ,due to his impatience . An impatient person will always end up giving up in the ministry . So patience is a sure qualification for any man of God who wants to do ministry until Jesus comes .
12''This is so you won’t be lazy but follow the example of the ones who inherit the promises through faith and patience.'' Hebrews 6:12 It is only the patient who can inherit the promises of God .
11. No brawler
Brawler is a person who engages in rough or noisy fights or quarrels, especially habitually. Imagine a man of God who engages in noisy fights and quarrels . How badly it will affect the kingdom of God , and the church congregation he represents . It is not befitting for any church leader or minister of the gospel to be a brawler . It destroys the healthy image of the man of God and the name of God is blasphemed in the process .
12. Not a Novice
The minister of God should not be a novice , that means , he has to be matured in the Lord , in the word of God , and above all he should be a christian for a lengthy period of time .
Here the church is admonished not to be in a haste to make any person a church leader or appoint new converts as ministers of the gospel . It is very important because , the leader must be first of all a christian with a proven character that the church members can attest to . Without experience of the born again life , a person is not verified as a christian leader .
The scripture gave a reason that , such a person is capable of becoming proud ,and eventually fall into the devil's trap of destruction, '' Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.'' 1 Timothy 3 : 6
13. Ruling your house well
Another area that is very important is when the man of God does not know how to rule his own house very well . He cannot keep his house in order , the wife is not submissive to him for one or two reasons , the children have gradually gone astray from the Lord .
As a leader in the house of God , the first thing you should lead is your family ; your wife and children must be your first ruling of your spiritual authority , then the church second . You have to teach your family first before teaching the church members . Pray with your family first , before you pray with the church congregation , worship God with your family , before leading the congregation to worship the Lord . Consider God's testimony about Abraham and how he ruled his family ;
''19 For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the Lord, to do justice and judgment; that the Lord may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him '' Genesis 18:19
14. Good report
Any minister of God must have a degree of good report from people within and without . The people in the church must have something good to say about the character of the man of God . At times people may lie against you or say bad things about you. But that is just once in a while, most people in the church will have a good report about you .
Although according to scripture , a true man of God is characterized by both good and bad report '', by honor and dishonor, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;'' 2 Corinthians 6:8 Those who disagree with your ministry might say bad things about you .However , you will also find those who are partakers of the grace of God upon your life , giving good testimony about your ministry .
15. Sober
Sober is defined as '' not affected by alcohol; or not drunk.'' and the second meaning is
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