HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Ver. 1.-77ie Ohriseian pastO'l'ate a good WO'l'k. The apostle, having in the previous chapter regulated the worship of the congregation and placed it in the hands of men, not women, now proceeds to describe the qualifications of the pastors of congregations, as if to imply that the pastorate did not belong to all men. I. THE OFFICE OF PASTOR 18 A GOOD WORK. "Faithful is the saying, If any one seeketh the office of pastor [or,' bishop'], he desireth a good work." 1. The office in question was held by persons called by the two names of bishop and elder. (1) The apostle uses the terms of the same office (Titus i. 5-7). (2) The terms came from two different quarters. The term" elder," or" presbyter," was of Jewish origin, and was earlier than the other, having been long in use in the synagogue administration. It had respect primarily to the age of those presiding over the religious co=unity, but came by-and- by, and especially in the Christian Church, to signify its head, and was a title of dignity and gravity. The other term, "bishop," came from the Greek world, and was a designa- tion of the duties of the office as involving an oversight of the Churches. (3) The term "bishop" is, therefore, mostly employed of the Churches in Asia Minor, consisting of converted Greeks, but the Jewish term "elder" had precedence of it at that earlier stage when the Church consisted of a nucleus of converted Jews. In Crete, where the Greek and Jewish elements were about equally powerful, both terms are used. 2. The office in 'luestion is a good work. This was one of the faithful eayinga of the apostle. It was (1) a work, not a sinecure, or title of honour, but a laborious officf, and therefore pastors are called " labourers in the Word and doctrine ; " (2) a good work, being excellent in itself, and in its aims as for the good of men and the glory of God. II. THE PASTORATE IS A WORTHY OBJECT OF AMBITION. "He desireth a good work." It may be laudably desired, not as an office of profit or honour, but with a supreme regard to the glory of God and the welfare of man, and ought not to be undertaken except by those who have a real delight and pleasure in acting upon these great prin- ciples.-T. C. •
Ver. 2.-The positiVfJ qualifications of the Christian pastor. The apostle first sets forth those qualifications which respect the personal life of the pastor, and afterwards those which affect his family life. His personal qualifications are those of a spiritual and moral order presented positively. I. HE OUGHT TO BE BLAMELESS, It may be hard for a faithful man to avoid the censure of a critical society, but he must be irreproachable as being guilty of no scandal, and, above all, free from the vices enumerated under the negative aspect of his qualifi- cations. He must be held in high moral repute by the community around him. JI. HE 18 TO BE THE HUSBAND OF ONE WIFE. 1. This c<mdemns the rule of ct1libacy in the Church of Rome. It is quite absurd to say that the "one wife" is the Church; for the context regards the minister as having relation both to a Church and to a wife (ver. 5). Besides, this Roman idea would make the Church the wife of m:iny husbands. Where the apostle, in the seventh chapter of 1 Corinthians, seems to favour a celibate condition "on account of the present distrees," it is not on account of any superior holiness belonging to the unmarried state, but because it sometimes affords a better opportunity for pursuing Christian work under trying conditions. 2. It does not neces- sarily compel pastO'l's to marry, like the Greek Church, which yet inconsistently reserves its bishoprics for ·unmarried monks. Ilut it clearly gives the preference to a married ministry. 3. It does not =n that a pastO'I' is to avoid a aecond marriage-as the Greek l~athers generally understood it under the growing influence of Eastern asceticism- because the apostle sanctions such marriages (1 Cor. vii. l); and, secondly, because :\ 68 THE FIRST EPISTLE TO TIMOTHY. [ OB. III. 1-18.
remarrying does not make a pastor more than the husband of one wife. 4. It seems, then, to me&n that the pastor was to be " the l,mband of one wife," avoiding the polygamy that was then eo common among the Jews, and the system of divorce still so common in that age, and remaining faithful to the wife of his choice. III. SoBEB. He must be not only so in eating and drinking, but watchful over him- se!f, his work, and his actions. IV. Dr~cREET. With a sound judgment and good understanding, capable of directing himself wisely in the midst of difficult situations. V. ORDERLY. With a due proportion in his life, modest in deportment, courteous to all, of a calm temper and grave demeanour. VI. GrvEN- TO HOSPITALITY. In an age when Christians travelled from place to place, and were exposed to the risks of evil companionship in public inns, it was impor- t.ant that pastors should be able to show hospitality, and assist with their counsel as well as with the necessaries of life. VII. APT TO TEACH. The pastor must have the capacity to impart Christian know- ledge, the ability t.o interpret Scripture, to explain its doctrines, to enforce its precepts, and to defend it against errorists of every class. He must possess the gifts of utterance and knowledge. He must have both "skill and will, ability and dexterity, being neither ignorant of his duty nor negligent in the performance of it. "-T. C. Ver. 3.-The negative quaZ,ficatinn.s of the ahristian pastor. I. NoT VIOLENT OVER WINB. In allusion not so much to drunkenness as to the noisy and quarrelsome temper which is generated by wine-bibbing. The wonl impliedly condemns both cause and effect. II. No STRIKER. In evident allusion to the previous temper. 'l'he pastor must never lift his hand in anger or violence. Ill. FoRBlilllNG. Reasonable and gentle, rather disposed to take wrong than avenge it. IV. NOT cm,"'TENTIOUS. Neither litigious nor quarrelsome, seeking peace with all men. V. No LOVER OF MONEY. He must appear to be perfectly disinterested, not mercenary in his aims, not seeking his own things rather than the things of Jesus Christ; but, on the contrary, he must him.self be generous and hospitable and kind, with a heart and a. hand ever ready to relieve distress.-'!'. C.