1 Timothy 3
3
Rules for Choosing Leaders and Deacons
1Here is a saying you can trust. If anyone wants to be a leader in the church, they want to do a good work for God and people. 2A leader must be free from blame. He must be faithful to his wife. In anything he does, he must not go too far. He must control himself. He must be worthy of respect. He must welcome people into his home. He must be able to teach. 3He must not get drunk. He must not push people around. He must be gentle. He must not be a person who likes to argue. He must not love money. 4He must manage his own family well. He must make sure that his children obey him. And he must do this in a way that gains him respect. 5Suppose someone doesn’t know how to manage his own family. Then how can he take care of God’s church? 6The leader must not be a new believer. If he is, he might become proud. Then he would be judged just like the devil. 7The leader must also be respected by those who are outside the church. Then he will not be put to shame. He will not fall into the devil’s trap.
8In the same way, deacons must be worthy of respect. They must be honest and true. They must not drink too much wine. They must not try to get money by cheating people. 9They must hold on to the deep truths of the faith. Even their own minds tell them to do that. 10First they must be tested. Then let them serve as deacons if there is nothing against them.
11In the same way, the women must be worthy of respect. They must not say things that harm others. In anything they do, they must not go too far. They must be worthy of trust in everything.
12A deacon must be faithful to his wife. He must manage his children and family well. 13Those who have served well earn the full respect of others. They also become more sure of their faith in Christ Jesus.
Paul’s Reasons for Giving Instructions to Timothy
14I hope I can come to you soon. But now I am writing these instructions to you. 15Then if I have to put off my visit, you will know how people should act in God’s family. The family of God is the church of the living God. It is the pillar and foundation of the truth. 16There is no doubt that true godliness comes from this great mystery.
Jesus came as a human being.
The Holy Spirit proved that he was the Son of God.
He was seen by angels.
He was preached among the nations.
People in the world believed in him.
He was taken up to heaven in glory.
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1 Timothy 3: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®
Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
1 Timothy 3
3
1 THE SAYING is true and irrefutable: If any man [eagerly] seeks the office of bishop (superintendent, overseer), he desires an excellent task (work).
2 Now a bishop (superintendent, overseer) must give no grounds for accusation but must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, circumspect and temperate and self-controlled; [he must be] sensible and well behaved and dignified and lead an orderly (disciplined) life; [he must be] hospitable [showing love for and being a friend to the believers, especially strangers or foreigners, and be] a capable and qualified teacher,
3 Not given to wine, not combative but gentle and considerate, not quarrelsome but forbearing and peaceable, and not a lover of money [insatiable for wealth and ready to obtain it by questionable means].
4 He must rule his own household well, keeping his children under control, with true dignity, commanding their respect in every way and keeping them respectful.
5 For if a man does not know how to rule his own household, how is he to take care of the church of God?
6 He must not be a new convert, or he may [develop a beclouded and stupid state of mind] as the result of pride [be blinded by conceit, and] fall into the condemnation that the devil [once] did. [Isa. 14:12-14.]
7 Furthermore, he must have a good reputation and be well thought of by those outside [the church], lest he become involved in slander and incur reproach and fall into the devil's trap.
8 In like manner the deacons [must be] worthy of respect, not shifty and double-talkers but sincere in what they say, not given to much wine, not greedy for base gain [craving wealth and resorting to ignoble and dishonest methods of getting it].
9 They must possess the mystic secret of the faith [Christian truth as hidden from ungodly men] with a clear conscience.
10 And let them also be tried and investigated and proved first; then, if they turn out to be above reproach, let them serve [as deacons].
11 [The] women likewise must be worthy of respect and serious, not gossipers, but temperate and self-controlled, [thoroughly] trustworthy in all things.
12 Let deacons be the husbands of but one wife, and let them manage [their] children and their own households well.
13 For those who perform well as deacons acquire a good standing for themselves and also gain much confidence and freedom and boldness in the faith which is [founded on and centers] in Christ Jesus.
14 Although I hope to come to you before long, I am writing these instructions to you so that,
15 If I am detained, you may know how people ought to conduct themselves in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and stay (the prop and support) of the Truth.
16 And great and important and weighty, we confess, is the hidden truth (the mystic secret) of godliness. He [God] was made visible in human flesh, justified and vindicated in the [Holy] Spirit, was seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, [and] taken up in glory.
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