1The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. (Ac 20:28; 1Ti 1:15)2Therefore an overseer[1] must be above reproach, the husband of one wife,[2] sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, (1Ti 3:11; 1Ti 5:9; 2Ti 2:24; Tit 1:6; Tit 2:2; 1Pe 4:9)3not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. (1Ti 6:10; Tit 3:2; Heb 13:5)4He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, (1Ti 3:12)5for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? (1Ti 3:1)6He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. (1Ti 6:4; 2Ti 3:4)7Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil. (Mr 4:11; 1Ti 6:9; 2Ti 2:26)
Qualifications for Deacons
8Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued,[3] not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. (Php 1:1; 1Ti 5:23; Tit 1:7; Tit 2:3; 1Pe 5:2)9They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. (Ac 23:1; 1Ti 1:19)10And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. (1Ti 5:22)11Their wives likewise[4] must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. (Tit 2:3; Tit 2:10)12Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. (1Ti 3:2; 1Ti 3:4)13For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. (Mt 25:21)
The Mystery of Godliness
14I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that,15if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.16Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He[5] was manifested in the flesh, vindicated[6] by the Spirit,[7] seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (Lu 2:13; Lu 24:4; Joh 1:14; Ac 1:2; Ga 2:2; 2Th 1:10; 1Pe 1:20)