On Leaders or Preaching Elders
In 1 Thessalonians 3:1-7, Paul turns to administrative details in the church dealing with bishops. This is also translated as overseers or preaching elders. It is clearly that of a position of influence in the church. To have a desire to preach or lead a congregation is a good thing in Paul's mind. It is beneficial, of course, to have a give of administration if you are going to lead others, and to be full of the Holy Spirit. Neither of these are mentioned here, but were perhaps assumed to be a given.
Nonetheless, Paul gives some general characteristics to look for when seeking to elevate someone to a position of leadership in the church. I won't go into a detailed re-listing of the qualifications, but will make a few notes. He is supposed to rule his own house and do it well. I think the word well is very important.
There are people who may rule their house, but don't do a very good job of it. Some problems are mentioned above, include not given to getting drunk, not abusive, not greedy and other things - I just about listed everything again when I said I wouldn't. But all of these things go into being a good leader in your own house, and if you aren't a good leader there, Paul asks rightly how you can lead a church.
I've never really desired what would be thought of as the office of bishop in the church - even when younger. I'm happy teaching, and I let that be my main focus. Some of the qualifications would be a challenge even if I wanted to do so.
And the qualifications do present an increasing challenge for those who wish to pursue the role for the church today. Unfortunately, the number of divorced people in this country is large. Marriage doesn't seem to be until death do us part any more. While it shouldn't be this way in Christianity, people are still people, and we all change. Divorce is an easy way out for many. The strictures that Paul laid out both for bishops and for deacons are becoming more difficult to meet with each passing year.
The two warnings at the end also take special notice. All too often, people who are new converts are put into positions to teach or preach or put on a board before they are ready. This can give them a sense of pride that ends up being a point with which the devil can attack them. The person should also have a good reputation so that the church isn't put in a bad light for the choices they have made in leadership.
I these, as in all things, let the Holy Spirit be your guide when choosing a candidate for a position in authority. It also wouldn't hurt to let the Holy Spirit be your guide when selecting any person for a position of leadership. Listen to God and don't just pick the most shiny campaign literature!
On Deacons
In 1 Timothy 3:8-13, Paul goes on to talk about the qualifications for deacons. At the time, a deacon was an elder who was selected to handle the business dealings of the church. In many places it is similar today. The qualifications are very similar to those of a bishop, although not quite as strenuously stated as for bishops. They get a pass on being apt to teach, but they are to be full of faith and have a pure conscience.
I won't linger on these points, but I would say that when the church's business is being conducted, you definitely want the people doing the business to be full of the Holy Spirit as well. They need to be practical people who know how to get things done honorably and efficiently. They need to be true to their calling, and not let their position become one where they are personally benefiting from their positions in the church.
I really think that it would be almost better to have a list of people who meet the qualifications out of the complete body of believers in the church and pick them at random each year to take on positions on the boards of churches. Meeting the qualifications along with having the Holy Spirit in fullness is vitally important.
But beyond that, it's good to have a variety of perspectives that come from rotation through the entire body of eligible believers. All too often, pastors will pick people who they know will assume the pastor knows best and will go along with all of the pastor's ideas. All too many congregations just look at the list and vote to approve everyone on it because they likewise assume the pastor knows best (and my be secretly glad their name isn't on the list).
If the pastor is being led of the Holy Spirit, that works out well. But too many pastors, priests, and other higher members in the church have failed God. With a board or other supervisors that looked the other way, they've gotten away with things that should have never happened in a church or been associated with Christianity.
Of course, the problems with our culture plague the search for deacons, just as it does the search for pastors. Again, let the Holy Spirit guide your selection among those who you think might be fit to serve on a board of deacons.
Whether bishop or deacon, the idea of proving that they can handle something is not a bad idea in this day and age. In Paul's time, I suspect that people knew more about people than they do today. In a city the size of Ephesus, which might have had 250,000 people, it was probably hard to know every Christian who came into the church. That hasn't gotten any easier today, with cities that size being considered small, although there are many more Christian churches in a city than there were then.
The Mystery of Godliness
In the last fragment of the chapter (1 Timothy 3:14-16), Paul expresses his hopes that he will be able to visit them shortly, but he makes clear that if that doesn't prove possible, he wants Timothy to know how to establish that church body and how he should behave as a Christian to be the pillar that God needs him to be and to be soundly grounded in the doctrines of the church.
The final thought is the mystery of godliness and the gospel message that both Paul and Timothy taught. God came down and with an immaculate conception, gave Mary the baby Jesus. He lived a life full of the Holy Spirit. He preached to all those around Him, including both Jews and Samaritans. The people flocked to His ministry, believed His words, and after His sacrifice on the cross, He resurrected from the dead and was received back up into heaven in glory. That's the New Testament message in a nutshell.