By 1 Timothy 3:2-3
Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.
I am going to combine the next couple of attributes of the pastor of Jesus’ church. We already talked about the qualification of being “sober-minded,” so I do not feel the need to discuss the role of alcohol again in the life of the pastor.
The pastor is not to be an angry man; one who is quarrelsome and violent. These sins lie very deep in the hearts of many men. I think that men have a tendency towards anger more then women in general. Before I was a christian, I remember getting so angry when I was driving to work every day. I would grit my teeth, curse and yell when someone would “cut me off.” I would reach to the passenger seat of my van and punch it repeatedly while screaming at the top of my lungs. Boy would I get angry. Thank the Lord that being born again plucked the root of that sin out of my heart.
Rather than being quarrelsome and violent, the pastor is to be gentle like Jesus. He said in Matthew 11:28-30:
Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
This is what happened to me when Christ’s yoke was placed upon my neck; I learned from him and found rest from all of my anger and quarrelsomeness. His yoke is easy, and his burden is light.
Remember that quarreling and arguing are not the same thing. Arguments give reasons and evidence to some proposition. Quarreling is bickering; they are very different.
Lastly, the pastor is not to be a lover of money. The love of money is the root of all evil. How many pastors these days are in it for the money? I would say a great deal of them. How many of them loose their qualifications to hold their position when they get to this stage of being in it for the money? All of them. God is the one who qualifies a man of God to be above reproach, and when a man bows down in the throne room of the dollar bill, he should be stepping down from the pulpit as well. This is a good word for us too, for this root can just as easily grip any of our hearts. It is a powerful snare and we need to be careful that we never use people to get money rather than using our money to serve people.
Leading Family Devotions 