We are not electing men to eat cake and debate abstruse theology. We are electing men who will guide the church at a time when few young people want anything to do with church. We are electing men to guide the church when lots of those who grew up in church have altered their memories, forgotten the love and care they received, and can only speak of church as a vicious, judgmental hellhole that deserves to perish on the ash heap of history. In this climate, what kind of leaders do we need? Who will spiritually and financially guide us? The answer is right here in the pages of 1 Timothy. When some depart from the faith, bring on the elders and deacons. I've provided a chart on the back of our prayer insert so you can see what I'm talking about. Paul lists fourteen characteristics for the elder, and 7 +1 characteristics for the deacon. Lord-willing, you've been meditating on this passage for the last four weeks, ever since this meeting was announced. Today, I want you to keep thinking and praying right up until the moment when we vote. There is no early voting in the church. Let your choices be guided, not by what I think, what your wife thinks, whether you think you'll hurt someone's feelings, or other worldly considerations. Make your decisions based on the law, which is here in the pages of Scripture, and the facts about the candidates who are on the ballot. We use secret ballots so that you can cast your vote in the presence of God alone.
What I hope to show you this morning is that God has certain expectations for elders and deacons in His church. Those expectations matter because we need to conduct ourselves rightly in the church.
