The Office of the Bishop

The Apostle Paul wrote, what today we call, three pastoral epistles. He wrote two to his protégé, Timothy – 1 and 2 Timothy – and one to Titus, also the title of that epistle. They explain many aspects of the office of the pastor or what Paul calls, the office of the bishop, in 1 Timothy 3:1. Right now in America, pastors are leaving their churches and not coming back, faster than new pastors are replacing them. It somewhat mirrors the employment situation in the United States. Employers find it difficult to get good help. You know this firsthand. The world needs pastors. It also needs new churches or at least revitalized old ones, that do a biblical job in the community. Even though we are witnessing this break down, rather than fret and worry, let's throw ourselves into the work of the Lord. The great need says we have a great opportunity and we need to make the best of it.

What is the office of the “bishop,” a word that reminds more people of the game of chess or the hierarchy of Roman Catholicism perhaps? “Bishop” translates episkopos, which means “overseer.” God ordains men. He assumes we know what a man is. He ordains them to oversee His institution and He gives them authority to do it.