READING: 1 Kings 12, 2 Chronicles 10-11, Titus 1
The responsibility of a pastor is a heavy one. Teaching the Word. Loving the people. Sharing the gospel. Making disciples. Providing counsel. Officiating weddings and funerals. Guiding his own family. I could continue to list responsibilities, but you likely already have some sense of the pastor’s role. In today’s New Testament reading, though, Paul directs us to one specific responsibility: a pastor/elder must be “holding to the faithful message as taught, so that he will be able both to encourage with sound teaching and to refute those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9).
A pastor/elder must be able to teach. He must hold tightly to the trustworthy gospel message, always following it and never turning from it. That message is life-giving and transforming. It is freeing and forgiving. Thus, the pastor must speak it to encourage others through sound teaching.
At the same time, the pastor must also cling to the gospel and be prepared to refute those who deny it. He must be an apologist for the truth, ever ready to rebut false teachings while also directing to the truth. In the words of one commentator, the pastor/elder “must be steeped in the Scriptures, must be schooled in the church’s teaching, and must possess the ability to teach the Good News in truth and correct error.”*
So, pray for your pastor today as he serves the Lord. If you are a pastor, commit yourself to these tasks.
PRAYER: “God, guard and guide my pastor today. Help him to encourage with the gospel and stand against those who deny it.”
TOMORROW’S READING: 1 Kings 13-14, 2 Chronicles 12, Psalm 47, Titus 2
* J. C. Laansma (2009). Commentary on 2 Timothy. In Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, and Hebrews (Vol. 17, p. 241). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers.