Lessons #17 and 18
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual exposition not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GWT = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Qualifications of an overseer (Titus 1:7-9)
7 Since an overseer is entrusted with God’s work, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8 Rather he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Disqualifying vices for an overseer (Titus 1:7b)
A second disqualifying vice from being an overseer concerns temperament. Thus, a person who is to be an overseer should be one that has full control of his temperament. It is that is given in the phrase not quick-tempered. The adjective “quick-tempered” is translated from a Greek adjective that (orgilos) appears only here in the Greek NT; it pertains to a tendency to become angry and so the word means “inclined to anger, quick-tempered.”
Anger in and of itself is not a sin. This we know from the fact that God who is perfect, without sin is said to be angry, as stated in Zechariah 1:2:
“The Lord was very angry with your forefathers.
So, anger in of itself is not a sin although it can lead to sin. Nonetheless, there are situations that require that a believer should be angry. For example, when there is injustice, a believer should be angry. This was demonstrated by David when he perceived the injustice in the narrative Prophet Nathan used to convince him that he had committed adultery and murder, as we can gather from 2 Samuel 12:5:
David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die!
If it is permissible to be angry under certain condition, then the vice that would keep a person from being an overseer is not anger in and of itself since it is impossible to find a human being who is never angry. Furthermore, the Scripture nowhere commands us not to be angry; instead, we are commanded to be slow with being angry, as stated in James 1:19:
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,
Every believer should adhere to this command of being slow to become angry, but it is especially important for an overseer. It is for this reason that quick-temperedness disqualifies a person from such an office. You see, a quick-tempered person is one that easily becomes angry with something the individual should not or over persons he should not. Thus, the vice of being quick-tempered is one that is spoken against in the Scripture. For example, it is stated that a quick-tempered person is prone to doing foolish things in Proverbs 14:17:
A quick-tempered man does foolish things, and a crafty man is hated.
We can understand the necessity for an overseer not to be quick-tempered because he is not to act foolishly if he should be a good leader. Furthermore, an overseer is one that, no doubt, should promote peace among believers in his congregation but we are informed in the Scripture that a quick-tempered person can bring trouble or disputes, as stated in Proverbs 15:18:
A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel.
It is because quick-temperedness is a vice that should be avoided that the Scripture commands avoidance of an individual characterized by it in Proverbs 22:24–25:
24Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, 25or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.
In any event, the second vice that should not characterize an overseer is quick-temperedness in the sense of being easily irritated or angry.
Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.
The apostle did not state any reason for using this vice of drunkenness to exclude someone from being an overseer. He did not have to do so because the Scripture gives various reasons against the vice or sin of drunkenness. Two reasons standout. First, an overseer should be one that those he leads will respect his judgment in the sense that they would consider him wise. However, anyone that is a drunkard is described in the Scripture as being unwise, as per Proverbs 20:1:
Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.
Second, an overseer is one that should be full of the Holy Spirit. Remember that when the early church chose those who are to help the apostles with the administrative affairs, one of the requirements is for such a person to be full of the Spirit, as we read in Acts 6:3:
Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them
The implication of the requirement of being full of the Spirit is that an overseer should certainly be an individual that should be described in that manner. However, we know that a drunkard cannot possibly be described that way since such a person manifests the production of the sinful nature in keeping with the statement in Galatians 5:19–21:
19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
It is true that we have given at least two reasons for ensuring that an overseer should not be a drunkard or one addicted to wine, but we should be aware that not every instruction in the Scripture is justified. In other words, it is not every time that God gives instruction in the Scripture that He explains it. Take for example, the specific instruction of God to the priests regarding the drinking of wine before going to minister in the Tent of Meeting, as recorded in Leviticus 10:9:
“You and your sons are not to drink wine or other fermented drink whenever you go into the Tent of Meeting, or you will die. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.
God did not tell the priests the reason they should not drink wine before entering the Tent of Meeting other than telling them the consequence of disobeying the instruction. Of course, the instruction was not that they should not drink wine any other time but specifically when they are entering the Tent of Meeting. We could speculate that the instruction may be to safeguard against being drunk since serving the Lord requires that one be in total control of his senses. This is only a speculation, but the reason was not supplied. Thus, although we have specified two possible reasons an overseer should not be a drunkard or one addicted to wine, the simple requirement is that such a vice should disqualify any person from being on overseer. By the way, it makes sense that a leader should not be addicted to wine as that will affect the person’s judgment, as implied in the instruction for kings not to habitually drink wine in Proverbs 31:4–5:
4 “It is not for kings, O Lemuel— not for kings to drink wine, not for rulers to crave beer,
5lest they drink and forget what the law decrees, and deprive all the oppressed of their rights.
In any event, the third vice that disqualifies a person from being an overseer is addiction to wine or being a drunkard.
A fourth vice that disqualifies a person from being an overseer of a local congregation is concerned with bullying. It is this vice that is described in the phrase not violent of Titus 1:7. The word “violent” of the NIV is translated from a Greek word (plēktēs) that properly means one who is apt to strike, that is, a striker or a brawler. Thus, the word is used to describe a person who is pugnacious and demanding and so means “a bully, violent person.” No reason is given for demanding that an overseer should be a person who is free of this vice of being a bully, but we can indirectly establish reasons a person who is an overseer should not be a bully who likes to intimidate others. A bully is one that loves quarrel but an individual who is to serve in the capacity of spiritual leadership should not be a person who loves quarrelling with others, as stated in 2 Timothy 2:24:
And the Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful.
There is more. The Scripture reveals some facts about quarrel or one who loves to quarrel. A person who loves quarrel invariably loves sin. This is the assertion of the Scripture in Proverbs 17:19:
He who loves a quarrel loves sin; he who builds a high gate invites destruction.
An overseer must be one who does not love sin and so if one who loves quarrel loves sin then the implication is that a bully who loves to quarrel is not fit to be an overseer since such a person will thrive in sin or likes to be in trouble all the time. A bully loves trouble so that even when there is no trouble, he will start one. An overseer who should promote unity and peace among believers should not be a person that can be described as a bully. It is not only that a bully loves to sin, but he is also a fool. This, we say because a bully love to quarrel but one that loves to quarrel is described in the Scripture as a fool, as we may gather from Proverbs 20:3:
It is to a man’s honor to avoid strife, but every fool is quick to quarrel.
An overseer is one that should be wise because he should provide leadership to others so he cannot afford to be foolish. The implication is that such a person cannot be a bully that intimidates others. Furthermore, to be a bully or one who intimidates others gives the impression that such a person wants to force others to do things he wants so that it can be said that such a person lords over others. This kind of conduct is unbecoming of a spiritual leader, as we have indicated previously by citing 1 Peter 5:3:
not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.
The word “lording” would include the concept of trying to be bossy or to act like a king, something that a bully loves to do. Therefore, it is important that an overseer is not a person who is known to have the tendency to bully others. In any event, the fourth vice that should not characterize an overseer of a local church is bullying or violence. In effect, he is not to be a bully or a violent person.
The fifth and final vice mentioned in Titus 1:7 that should not characterize an overseer is concerned with materialism that manifests itself in greed. It is this vice that is described in the last phrase not pursuing dishonest gain of Titus 1:7. The expression “pursuing dishonest gain” is translated from a Greek word (aischrokerdēs) that pertains to being shamefully greedy for material gain or profit hence means “shamelessly greedy for money, fond of dishonest gain or pursuing dishonest money or possession.” The word is used twice in the NT, in our present passage and in the qualifications of a deacon in 1 Timothy 3:8:
Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain.
Although the Greek word is used clearly twice in the Greek NT but there is a variant manuscript that suggests a third usage of it in verse 3 of the same chapter 3 of 1 Timothy. This being the case, our Greek word is used to describe a vice that should not characterize spiritual leaders of a local congregation. This vice is primarily concerned with greed for money that will cause an overseer to want to be wealthy through his ministry or even by neglecting his function because he is involved in other endeavors that generate more resources for such an individual, so he can have excess of material things.
Excessive appetite for further goods or food that is characterized by selfishness, that is, greed, is something that should not characterize a good leader. It is for this reason that God did not want Israel’s leaders to be such individuals, as we can gather from the prohibition placed on Israel’s king in Deuteronomy 17:17:
He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.
The verbal phrase accumulate large amounts of silver and gold is a description of greed or love for money. A leader who is guilty of this, will not be a good one. It is certainly unbecoming of a spiritual leader to be a greedy person or a lover of money that the Holy Spirit also through Apostle Peter conveyed the fact that elders of local churches should not be individuals who are greedy for money, as per 1 Peter 5:2:
Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve;
In any case, the disqualifying vice that should not characterize an overseer is that of materialism that is evident in greed or love of money as specified in the last phrase of Titus 1:7 not pursuing dishonest gain. Why is this a disqualifying vice, one might ask? The passage we are considering in Titus 1:7 does not directly provide the answer but the Scripture at large does. Therefore, based on the large context of the Scripture, we will provide some reasons an overseer of a local church should not be characterized by this last vice. First, greed or love of money is a manifestation of sinful human nature, as the Lord Jesus conveyed in Mark 7:21–22:
For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.
A spiritual leader is one that should strive to be under the control of the Holy Spirit constantly; so if a person is known to be greedy then it is difficult to see how such an individual could be thought of as being controlled by the Holy Spirit.
Second, this vice of greed or love of money will be a problem in the last days that we are under, according to 2 Timothy 3:2:
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
Most of prosperity preachers can be described as “lovers of money” or “eager for shameful gain” because they seem not to be so concerned that they live big at the expense of those in their congregation that are constantly made to feel guilty for not giving so much in their congregations. They live such lavished lifestyles that they really do not take care of the poor in their midst. Some of them want to be paid millions of dollars like the CEO of many multimillion companies. It is difficult to understand why a pastor should want to live that way when majority of his congregation or those who support him are struggling to make ends meet. True, the Scripture demands that believers should adequately compensate hardworking spiritual leaders, as per 1 Timothy 5:17:
The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.
The idea of double honor does not mean that these leaders should live in luxury that parallels that of those who are in powerful position in large multimillion-dollar corporations. Because we believers are prone to misapplying passages or concepts found in the Scripture, let me be clear in what we have said with respect to spiritual leaders, particularly pastors being adequately compensated. The compensation of a local church to an overseer should reflect the financial status of a given congregation. This means that if the congregation is made of those who are financially buoyant then the compensation of the pastor should reflect it. I say this because of the instruction of the Holy Spirit given through Apostle Paul in Galatians 6:6:
Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.
Application of this passage implies that a pastor’s compensation should reflect the financial status of the congregation. On the one hand, if it is a congregation with mostly poor individuals then the compensation of the pastor should reflect it so that he does not live a lifestyle of the type no member of his congregation enjoys. On the other hand, as we have stated, if the congregation consists mostly of affluent individuals then the pastor’s compensation should reflect that. This is because of the command must share all good things. The command does not say must share in “some good things,” but “all good things.” Furthermore, it does not say “our leftovers” or “our excesses”, no, it simply says “all things.” The phrase good things refer to all kinds of possession. Thus, if there are good things believers in each congregation enjoy then they must share the same with those who instruct them. The implication is that the compensation of a pastor in such a local church should reflect the level of enjoyment of material things of most of those in that congregation as there will always be poor members of any congregation for one of the many reasons people are poor. If pastors are compensated following this principle, then it is difficult to see how they should own personal jets when most members of the congregations do not. Of course, in commenting on this matter of compensation, we should not forget that those who are to be adequately compensated are those who work hard in preaching and teaching. It is difficult to understand how a twenty or a thirty minutes’ sermon of Sunday mornings could be considered working hard in preaching and teaching of the word of God. Anyway, compensation of pastors should not mean they are to live a lavished lifestyle in comparison to the congregation.
The other fact we mentioned with respect to the compensation of an overseer involves helping of the poor in the congregation. This also requires a comment because believers often choose what truthful principle that they think apply to them because it is favorable and ignore the ones that are not favorable. A congregation that compensates it pastor adequately does not mean that there will be no poor believers in the congregation. Someone may say that what about the early church? Did the Scripture not say that there was no needy person among them? Yes, the Scripture says that in Acts 4:34:
There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales.
The idea of needy person in this context involves primarily the matter of food since some of the wealthy believers sold their houses and brought the money to the apostles, as stated in Acts 4:35:
and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.
It is not difficult to understand that the need here is not of the kind of wants of many people today. No! It is concerned with food. Therefore, any believer who thinks that a local congregation is supposed to meet his or her needs should be thinking in terms of primarily food and not the other surpluses of life. Of course, a local church is not bound to provide the needs of any believer to encourage laziness on the part of any believer. That aside, the point we are stressing is that we are in a time when pastors or spiritual leaders may be lovers of money and so an overseer of given congregation should not be a person who is greedy for money.
Third, this vice of greed or love of money is a disqualifying one for an overseer because it characterizes bad shepherds and false teachers. Prophet Isaiah described Israel’s shepherds as bad because they were in part characterized by desire for shameful gains or greed, as we read in Isaiah 56:10–11:
10Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep. 11 They are dogs with mighty appetites; they never have enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, each seeks his own gain.
Prophet Zechariah described the activities of bad shepherds in terms of greed or being eager for shameful gain in Zechariah 11:16:
For I am going to raise up a shepherd over the land who will not care for the lost, or seek the young, or heal the injured, or feed the healthy, but will eat the meat of the choice sheep, tearing off their hoofs.
This passage describes figuratively the activities of an uncaring shepherd who failed to carry out his duty because of greed. He abused his privileges as conveyed in feeding on the best sheep instead of caring for it. Furthermore, such a person is greedy and voracious as reflected in the imagery of tearing off the hoofs of the sheep to suck out all the nourishment he can find. The Lord Jesus described false teachers and Pharisees in terms of being greedy in Matthew 23:25:
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
The Holy Spirit through Apostle Peter described false teachers as greedy, as recorded in 2 Peter 2:3:
In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
So, if bad shepherds and false teachers are described as greedy or eager for shameful gain then it makes perfect sense that those who are to be true overseers of local congregations should be free of this vice.
Fourth, the vice of greed or love of money is a disqualifying one for an overseer because such may damage a local congregation. This vice may bring strife in a local congregation because people may not tolerate the overseer with it for long before they start protesting or at least before some faction of the local church start complaining about it. When this happens, dissension will set in the congregation. This is in keeping with what is stated about a greedy man in Proverbs 28:25:
A greedy man stirs up dissension, but he who trusts in the Lord will prosper.
This dissension will be a sign of instability in a local congregation or that which tears it down as will be the case to a nation when it has a greedy leader, as per the declaration of the Scripture in Proverbs 29:4:
By justice a king gives a country stability, but one who is greedy for bribes tears it down.
It is true that greed or love of money may eventually lead to dissension or instability in a local church but perhaps one of the greatest damages to a local church by the vice of greed is that it puts any given congregation in an unattainable position since God requires believers to avoid such a person, as stated in 1 Corinthians 5:11:
But now I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat.
It is difficult to see how a local congregation can obey this instruction of avoiding a person who is greedy if its leader is such a person. Thus, the local church would be put in a difficult positon of how to avoid association with its leader and still have the individual as a leader. Of course, this passage implies that the local congregation must cut ties with such a leader. Hence, it is important that before anyone is appointed an overseer that it is determined he is not a person that will damage the local congregation because he has this vice of greed or love of money.
Fifth, the vice of greed or love of money is a disqualifying one for an overseer because the examples of spiritual leaders we have in our Scripture are those without this vice. Prophet Samuel indicated he did not have this vice in his last address to Israel when he challenged them to prove him to be greedy in the sense of cheating people or taking bribes, as we can gather from 1 Samuel 12:3:
Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the Lord and his anointed. Whose ox have I taken? Whose donkey have I taken? Whom have I cheated? Whom have I oppressed? From whose hand have I accepted a bribe to make me shut my eyes? If I have done any of these, I will make it right.”
Apostle Paul indicated he was free of this vice of greed or eager for shameful gain when he addressed the elders in Ephesus, as recorded in Acts 20:33:
I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.
He expressed similar concept in his epistle to the Thessalonians in 1 Thessalonians 2:5:
You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness.
These two examples are sufficient to support our assertion that we have examples in the Scripture of spiritual leaders being individuals without this vice of greed or love of money.
We have considered the vice of greed or love of money that should not characterize an overseer but it is important that an overseer should constantly be on the guard against this vice. It is because overseers or spiritual leaders are capable of being drawn into this vice that our Lord warned His disciples and so all spiritual leaders as well as all believers to guard against greed, as recorded in Luke 12:15:
Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
An overseer or any believer for that matter guards against greed by constantly being content with whatever compensation that the congregation provides him. In effect, the way to guard against greed is to be content in the Lord and His provision, as implied in Hebrews 13:5:
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
An overseer or any believer should be content with what he has, knowing that the Lord will never forsake him. The Lord will never fail to meet to his needs. He can count on the Lord to provide all his needs on this planet. This truth is confirmed by David’s testimony recorded in Psalm 37:25:
I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.
To this testimony, the overseer or any believer can add the promise given in Psalm 84:11:
For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.
Of course, an overseer should be confident that the Lord will meet all his needs, as that agrees with God’s promise given through the pen of Apostle Paul as he discussed the matter of supplying of his needs by God in Philippians 4:19:
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
In any event, it is important that overseers be individuals without the vice of greed or love of money for the reasons we have considered or even a person who because of greed will seek extra income at the expense of his primary function of being a teacher of the congregation. The implication then is that those who are responsible for appointing anyone to be an overseer of a local church should be careful that the vice of greed and all the ones we have considered do not characterize such a person. With this we proceed the desirable virtues of an overseer of a local church.
Desirable virtues (Titus 1:8)
Apostle Paul signaled that he was moving from vices to virtues because of the first word Rather of Titus 1:8. The word is translated from a Greek word (alla) that is generally used to indicate a difference with or contrast to what precedes. When the word is used after a negative, as in our passage, the Greek word may mean “on the contrary, but, yet, rather.” Thus, the Greek word is a sign post placed here in verse 8 to tell the reader that the apostle was now concerned with that which is different from what preceded. In previous verse, the apostle stated what should not characterize an overseer, hence vices that should be avoid. Therefore, with the Greek word translated “rather” in the NIV, the apostle alerts us that he was about to consider the characteristics that are desirable in an overseer of a local church, hence virtues that should be evident in an overseer.
The first virtue the Holy Spirit gives us through the apostle concerns hospitality as in the first clause of Titus 1:8 Rather he must be hospitable. Recall, we indicated that the qualifications listed for all overseers are applicable to believers but that the emphasis in dealing with these qualifications is on overseers. This first virtue proves our point in that the concept of hospitality is one that concerns every believer as we will demonstrate. The Lord Jesus considered hospitality as an important concept that in His parables He gave great importance to it as, for example, in the parable of the Good Samaritan. Certainly, Jesus considered the custom of hospitality as important that He implied that its practice is that which is to characterize His disciples, as implied in Matthew 25:35:
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in,
Consequently, we see in the early church the practice of hospitality although it was highly valued in the ancient world. It is because of its importance that we find Lydia, a new convert, extend hospitality to Apostle Paul and his team, as we read in Acts 16:15:
When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
Likewise, Luke reports the hospitality shown to the apostle and his team in Acts 21:7:
Leaving the next day, we reached Caesarea and stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven.
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Hospitality as an important concept is evident in the instructions of the Holy Spirit to the church with respect to it. Thus, the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul commands all believers to practice it in Romans 12:13:
Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
The Holy Spirit through Apostle John conveys the importance of hospitality, especially to those who preach the gospel, as we can gather from 3 John 5–8:
5 Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God. 7 It was for the sake of the Name that they went out, receiving no help from the pagans. 8 We ought therefore to show hospitality to such men so that we may work together for the truth.
The manner of hospitality is important that the Holy Spirit indicates it should not be done reluctantly, as we read in 1 Peter 4:9:
Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
The instruction here is more than offering hospitality but with having the spirit of generosity. It is not difficult to understand why the apostle demands believers to have this spirit. You see, as Christians at that time were driven from their homes, they might run into the next town where, for example, Christians are not persecuted then his fellow Christians must take him in and help him in spite of the risk of those who helped being persecuted themselves for helping other Christians. But if Christians do not have this spirit then it becomes very difficult to help each other. So, since suffering and persecution have been the concern of the apostle in the context of 1 Peter 4, we should understand then the importance of Christians being generous or having the spirit of hospitality. Anyway, the various passages we have cited regarding the subject of hospitality prove that it is a practice expected of all believers hence substantiate our assertion that the qualifications given for overseers should also be in all believers although the focus is on such leaders.
Be that as it may, the focus, as we have stated is on the virtue that should be evident in an individual that is to be considered an overseer so that Apostle Paul wrote in Titus 1:8 he must be hospitable. The word “hospitable” is translated from a Greek adjective (philoxenos) that is a compound word that consists of two Greek words that mean “loving strangers”; nonetheless, the Greek word means “hospitable, generous to guests.” With a little nudging, it is possible for anyone to be hospitable, so it is probably that in stating that an overseer should be hospitable that the apostle was concerned not merely in showing hospitality but in possessing the spirit of hospitality. The importance of this spirit of hospitality is easy to understand, especially with an overseer because many people will visit him. If he is not the type that has the spirit of being generous and willing to entertain guests, he would have a hard time interacting with people. The point is that an overseer should have the spirit of hospitality and so the virtue of being hospitable.
03/10/17