1 Timothy 3:3

Qualifications of Overseers

1 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a¹ bishop, he desires a good work.

2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;

3 not¹ given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not³ covetous;

4 one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence

5 (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?);

6 not a¹ novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil.

7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the ^asnare of the devil.

Qualifications of Deacons

8 Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, ^anot given to much wine, not greedy for money,

9 holding the¹ mystery of the faith with a pure conscience.

10 But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless.

11 Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not¹ slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things.

12 Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?

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What Does 1 Timothy 3:3 Mean?

1 Timothy 3:2-7

A spiritually immature person in an office of authority like this will follow the same course that Satan took. He will get a big head and try to grasp beyond his position.

Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Countering Presumptuousness

1 Timothy 3:2-7

Self-will is insisting stubbornly and arrogantly on one's way, as opposed to following the will of God. Paul states that a minister of God must not allow himself to be self-willed but must be led by and do God's will. What kind of minister would a person with false pride and stubbornness make?

Martin G. Collins
Overcoming (Part 4): Self-Will

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