The requirements of the elders in Titus 1 are nearly the same as those in 1 Timothy 3. However, in Titus 1:7 Paul adds that an overseer “must be unreprovable as a steward of God.” A steward is not only a servant but also one who dispenses. Therefore, an elder should be one who dispenses, or ministers, God to others. To serve God is not merely to do something for God but to minister God to others.
In Titus 1:8 Paul writes that an overseer must be “righteous, holy.” These words are not used in 1 Timothy 3, but they show that Paul’s concept is that the requirements of an overseer are based not on his ability but on his manner of life. An elder must be one who is righteous and holy. To be righteous is mainly toward man, and to be holy is mainly toward God.
Verse 9 begins, “Holding to the faithful word.” The faithful word is the full revelation of the New Testament. The elders must hold to the New Testament revelation. This implies that the elders have to study and learn, for we cannot hold to what we have not first received.
First Timothy 3:2 says that the overseers must be “apt to teach.” This kind of teaching is mainly on the positive side—to strengthen the members of the church. However, the elders’ holding to the faithful word is both to “exhort by the healthy teaching” and to deal with the opposers (Titus 1:9). This indicates that the overseers need to have two kinds of teaching—one kind to edify the saints and the other to fight the battle so that the mouths of the vain talkers and deceivers may be stopped (vv. 10-11). The elders must learn how to teach in order to stop the vain talkers and deceivers.
By “vain talkers and deceivers,” Paul means mainly the Judaizers, “those of the circumcision” (v. 10). The Judaizers were those who perverted and distorted the truth of the gospel in order to mislead the believers into going back to the law of Moses. Today different kinds of vain talkers and deceivers try to mislead believers. The elders must speak to stop the mouths of such ones. Like a mother’s cooking of food for her children, the elders’ teaching to convict the opposers is a matter not mainly of gift or ability but of duty. If a mother does not know how to cook, she must learn. Similarly, an elder cannot excuse himself from teaching because he is not a gift to the Body as a teacher. To be an elder is not easy. When deceivers are spreading lies, the elders in a local church should not need to call someone from another locality to come and help them. It is the burden of every elder to learn to teach.
All the elders have to study the Bible and the ministry books in order to be fully educated in the crucial aspects of the truth. The teaching of the apostles is fully contained in the Bible, but because the Bible is deep, we need the ministry books to help us in our study. We first need to spend time in the Bible directly, and then we need to spend time to study the ministry books. These books include all the positive Christian teachings throughout the centuries and sift out the wrong things. If we read them, we will receive a thorough education. When we are educated in the teaching of the apostles, we will be able to safeguard and protect the local church. To be an elder is not a matter merely of administration. More importantly, every elder must learn the truth thoroughly and be able to teach it to others.
If we know and experience the truth, our speaking will have impact, not because of eloquence but because of reality. We will be able to refute the lies of those who oppose just as the overseers stopped the mouths of the Judaizers in ancient times. When we have the knowledge and experience of the truth, our speaking is our testimony. This is the urgent need today because, as elders, we must not only safeguard ourselves against the deceivers but also expose and stop the deceiving mouths by speaking the truth with impact.
Verse 9 mentions the healthy teaching. When we have been nourished and healed by the healthy teaching, we can pass it on by exhorting others. Every elder must be able to do this. The elders need to dedicate themselves to study the Bible and the ministry books. If we are elders merely in name, we are like practicing doctors who have not studied medicine. The need for potential elders to apprehend the faithful word may have been the reason that Paul hesitated in the appointment of the elders in Crete (v. 5).
If we have adequate knowledge and experience of the spiritual truths, we will know what to speak not only in the meeting but also on any occasion, just as a carpenter knows which tool to use for different tasks. If we lack skill in speaking, it may be because we are not thoroughly educated in the spiritual truths or have not adequately experienced them. The elders should not rely on traveling co-workers. We all have to learn for ourselves. The practice of many in Christianity today is to donate their money to hire someone to do things for them. Brother Watchman Nee summarized the attitude of most Christians in this way: “For illness, call the doctor; for lawsuits, call the lawyer; for spiritual affairs, call the pastor. What about us? We can devote ourselves to secular work without distraction” (The Orthodoxy of the Church, p. 18). On the contrary, we all, especially the overseers, need to be trained in spiritual matters.
Apparently, to be an elder is difficult, but actually, it is an enjoyment. The more we study the Bible and the ministry books, the more enjoyment we receive. It is also a great enjoyment to help the others in the church, especially to minister Christ to the young ones and the weak ones. In God’s economy to be an elder is a great blessing. Thus, we should treasure the eldership.
The elders are crucial for the successful carrying out of God’s economy. If the elders fail, God will be defeated temporarily. The testimony of God today rests on the shoulders of the elders; they bear the Ark of the Testimony. Paul was the top apostle, but many of the churches under his ministry were in a poor condition because the elders were inadequate. The direct burden of God’s testimony is not upon the apostles or prophets but upon the elders.
If the elders function as they should, the local churches will not become an improper hierarchical organization under someone’s control. Every local church should be administrated locally, and no local church is higher than the other local churches. This is according to God’s administration in His economy, which is unlike any government or administration in human history. When every member of the Body of Christ functions properly, the headship and kingship are kept for the unique Lord. The church is not an organization but a universal organism. We all must learn these things and hold fast to them in order to stop the mouths of the vain talkers and deceivers.