1 Timothy 1:18-20

This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.

The Church is Bigger than Your Ministry

We are blessed to possess Paul’s letters to Timothy, especially given Paul’s circumstances. As he writes 1 Timothy, Paul is nearing the end of his life and ministry. The church in Ephesus would persist beyond Paul’s death. Paul did not equate his ministry with the church’s ministry. While Paul would depart to be with the Lord, the church in Ephesus would continue to face both external and internal threats to the gospel. Other pastors had to be developed, and such development required trust. So in verse 18, Paul “entrusted” Timothy with the command to guard the primacy of the Gospel in the church at Ephesus. Paul refused to allow the churches under his apostolic care to be built around his personality. He was not concerned with his personal brand. He was concerned about guarding the church against false teaching. Such protective measures simply cannot be carried out by one person. No one person is adequately gifted for such a task. Paul understood this and made sure to entrust this pastoral responsibility to Timothy, who would, in turn, entrust it to others in the church.

Church Health and Pastoral Leadership

Pastor, the health of the church depends in many ways on strong pastoral leadership. Yet, you cannot do it all on your own. If you attempt to do it all on your own, the church will suffer in several ways. First, the other church leaders will not develop their gifts and discern their calling in the context of the church. If Paul would have never entrusted Timothy with any pastoral responsibilities along the way, how could Paul have entrusted Timothy with the command to fight for the supremacy of the Gospel in Ephesus? Good pastors seek out and develop other pastors, regardless of their ecclesiastical structure. A pastor does not have to have an “elder board” in order to nurture other men in pastoral ministry. In fact, the men that the pastor seeks to nurture do not even have to feel a particular call to pastoral ministry as long as they are biblically qualified. Part of a pastor’s responsibility should be to not be responsible for every pastoral matter in the church. When the pastor accepts or understands everything in the local church as “his responsibility,” the pastor will either burn out, fail in areas that are more important (preaching, praying, discipleship) or build the church around his personality and preference.

Entrust Others with Pastoral Ministry

Pastor, you must make an effort to entrust pastoral responsibility to other qualified men in the church. This means you will have to learn to affirm and rejoice when others are praised for preaching a good sermon or providing helpful counsel. As mentioned above, Jesus is the only real hero in our story and in his church. Therefore, do not fret over enlisting others in the service of the church. Teach them to love and defend the truth, so when the Lord calls you home or calls you elsewhere, the leadership that remains will be able to continue the good fight.

CBH

For more resources on faithful ministry, be sure to check out this sermon series entitled, “Faithful Ministers – A Study through Titus

For resources on preaching in faithful ministry, check out the following blog post, entitled, “What Does It Mean to Preach the ‘Glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ?’”

For a wonderful book on faithful ministry, see Brian Croft’s work, entitled, “The Pastor’s Work“