Bethany Bible Church Sermon Message
April 27, 2025
1 Timothy 5:17-21

Theme: The elders of the church must be held in honor, but also held accountable—and always without partiality.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

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The passage we come to this morning in our study of 1 Timothy—to be perfectly honest—feels like a rather awkward one for a pastor to preach from. It could easily come across as self-focused … or even self-serving.

But this passage must be faithfully preached from because it was given by our Lord, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, to the apostle Paul, for the strengthening of His church in this world. And so, it’s absolutely necessary that we hear from it together.

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Now; before we look at it, let’s first consider the context. The main purpose of this letter—1 Timothy—was to teach the people of God how to conduct themselves in the household of faith. We find that purpose stated clearly in 1 Timothy 3:15, where Paul wrote to Timothy—the pastor of the church in Ephesus—and told him,

… I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15).

As we’ve seen in our study of this letter, Paul was laying out some important and vital principles to Pastor Timothy for proper conduct in the local church. They are timeless principles upon which the health and well-being of the church very much depend. And most recently, we’ve read that Paul taught Timothy how he was, as the pastor of the church, to show respect to each individual member of the church family. Timothy was thus to serve as an example of the kind of mutual respect that church members were to show toward one another. In 1 Timothy 5:1-2, he wrote,

Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity (5:1-2).

He was teaching Timothy that—in God’s household—every believer needs to be treated with the kind of honor and respect that’s appropriate to their position in the church family. In verses 1-2, he set that down for Timothy as a broad principle. But then, he began to apply that principle to specific situations. In the last passage we looked at in our study, in 5:3-16, we saw that he applied that principle to widows within the church. And now, in our passage this morning, we see that he applied that principle to the elders of the church. In verses 17-21, he wrote,

Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer is worthy of his wages.” Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear. I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality (vv. 17-21).

So this word of instruction from Paul to Timothy about the elders of the church is part of the larger instruction; that is, that every believer within the church should be treated with the respect and honor that is fitting to their place in the church family. The church functions in a healthy way when everyone is shown the honor that is due to them.

And this includes the honor due to the elders.

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Now; when we’re talking about the elders, who exactly are we talking about? The word in the original language for ‘elder’ is presbuteros. And that’s the same word that was used in 5:1 when Paul urged Timothy to treat ‘older men’ with the honor due them. But this passage isn’t talking about ‘older men’ who are advanced in years. It’s talking about those who hold the official position of elder in the church.

In 1 Timothy 3:1, Paul used the word ‘bishop’ or ‘overseer’ to describe this role and wrote, “This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work.” The office of the elder is a very important one. It’s part of how God has chosen to provide for the care and nurture of His church on earth. And the apostle Paul then went on to talk about the high spiritual and practical qualifications that are necessary for a man to serve as an elder in the church family.

Our church family has a ‘body of elders’. I—as the pastor and teaching elder—am a member of that body; and I feel privileged to serve together with those godly men as beloved brothers and co-laborers in the oversight of our church. I pray for them often; and I hope you do, too. God has richly blessed us with good, faithful elders.

And dear brothers and sisters in Christ; this morning’s passage has to do with how you—as the people of God—honor and treat the elders of the church. It’s a part of the larger context of how they are to be honored according to their place in the church family.

Now you can understand why—as one of those elders—it might feel a little awkward for me to preach from such a passage. But I do so for some very important reasons. The biggest reason is because of its authority. It is given to us as a part of God’s holy word—and therefore, we must learn from it together. To neglect this passage would be to neglect a vital piece of instruction that was given to us by the Holy Spirit for the good of the church. He preserved it in His word for a reason; and we must pay attention to it.

But another reason why we must spend time in this passage is a practical one. We’re living in a time when the role of an elder in a church is not being honored and respected as it should be. Many churches today are going so far as to redefine the role of elder or pastor in ways that are unbiblical—seeking to reshape the concept of church leadership in ways that are more accommodating to modern cultural values and sensitivities. In some cases, churches are asking the church leadership to be something that the Lord of the church never intended for it to be; and in other cases, the people in the church are questioning whether or not leadership—as God defined it—is even necessary anymore. And when that kind of thing happens, the long-term effect is to change the church from what God designed it to be … and to thus harm the church’s function in God’s hand as the ‘pillar and ground of truth’ in this world.

The health and well-being of the church—and the effectiveness of the church’s mission in this world—depends on doing things in the way God commanded them to be done. And that includes treating the God-appointed church leadership in the way that He has instructed. The salvation of souls—to some degree—depends on it. And so, that’s why we must study this passage together.

In it, we’re taught three basic principles: that the elders of the church must be held in honor, but also held accountable—and always without partiality.

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So; let’s consider the first principle. And that is that the church must …

1. HONOR THOSE WHO SERVE WELL AS ELDERS.

In verses 17-18, Paul wrote, “Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain,’ and, ‘The laborer is worthy of his wages.’”

Dear brothers and sisters; every spiritually qualified believing man who has been appointed by the church family and who serves as an elder in the church ought to be treated with honor and respect. The name that we give to those who hold that office suggests this very strongly to us. They are called ‘elders’; which implies that they have maturity and wisdom and experience in the faith. They may not literally be ‘older men’. In fact, Pastor Timothy himself had to be told not to let anyone despise his youth. But whether old or young in literal years, an elder of a church serves in an ‘older-man’ manner; and he must be treated with the honor and respect due to his office in the church. I hope you do that faithfully. I hope you love and respect the spiritual authority of the elders of our church.

But you’ll notice that Paul said that ‘double honor’ should be shown to elders who ‘rule well’. This serves as a reminder that holding to the mere office alone is not enough. The elders must serve diligently and conscientiously in that role—doing their work faithfully as unto the Lord and not unto men. The apostle Peter spoke of this in 1 Peter 5:1-4. He himself was an elder in the church; and he wrote;

The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away (1 Peter 5:1-4).

Elders who serve in that way are truly ‘ruling well’. They are worthy of ‘double honor’.

But you’ll also notice that Paul went on to say, “especially those who labor in the word and doctrine”. This seems to suggest that, among the body of elders, there are two different functions. One function has to do with that of ‘ruling elders’; and that speaks of those elders who provide oversight to the spiritual condition and practical function of the church family. Another function has to do with laboring in the word and in doctrine. As Paul wrote in 3:2, all of the elders must be ‘able to teach’. But ‘teaching elders’ are those who are appointed by the church to—in addition to providing oversight—devote their labors to the study of the Holy Scriptures and to preaching and teaching the church family in matters of doctrine and practice. They are particularly to be given ‘double honor’.

What is meant by ‘double honor’?—or as it can be translated, ‘twice as much honor’? It would certainly mean that the teaching elder—often, in modern times, referred to as ‘the pastor’—should be treated with the respect that comes with that position. They have been given by God to the church for the edification of the body, so that it can do the work of the ministry. And for that reason, their role ought to be esteemed and their work faithfully prayed for. But the word ‘honor’ also seems to imply financial and material support. That was certainly what the word ‘honor’ meant in the previous passage—where we were told that those who are ‘really widows’ were to be honored. It implied that certain widows were to be given material provision; so that they—who would otherwise be destitute—could live and serve the Lord. And that’s how ‘honor’ is to be understood in reference to the elder who devotes his time and labors to word and doctrine. It’s the provision the church gives him so that he can give his full devotion and attention to the ministry of preaching and teaching.

Look at what the apostle Paul went on to say in verse 18. He quoted two passages. The first is from the Old Testament—in Deuteronomy 25:4. In the law that God gave through Moses, the people of Israel were told, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” As the ox labored along, threshing out the grain on the ground, it shouldn’t be prohibited from sustaining itself by eating some of that grain along the way. To expect the animal to do its work without sustenance would be cruel. And the same principle applies to those who labor in ministry. The apostle Paul quoted this same Old Testament passage in 1 Corinthians 9. He wrote about how he and his co-workers in ministry had a right to expect the people of God to support them in their work, and said,

Do I say these things as a mere man? Or does not the law say the same also? For it is written in the law of Moses, “You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.” Is it oxen God is concerned about? Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope (1 Corinthians 9:8-10).

And he adds this in verse 14, “Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.”

Paul also quoted another passage. And this one seems to be a reference to the teaching of the Lord Jesus Himself as it’s found recorded in the Gospels. In Luke 10, the Lord Jesus was giving instructions to His disciples as He sent them out to preach in the cities and towns ahead of Him. And He told them in verse 7 to stay in whatever home they were welcomed into and to eat whatever was given to them, “for the laborer is worthy of his wages”.

Before going on, let me just say personally, dear church family, that you are very good and faithful in this matter. I am deeply grateful that, over all these years, you have provided the means for me to be able to devote my full time to the work of preaching and teaching—as well as to the other duties that fall on me as one of the elders. But when it comes to whoever it may be that God gives to you to serve as an elder, please always make sure to give him the respect due to his role. And particularly, when it comes to whoever the Lord gives to serve as your teaching elder in the future, always make sure to honor their work with the support that makes it possible to give his full time and energy to it. Don’t let him have to divide his energies—and thus give you less than the kind of preaching and teaching ministry that God wants you to have.

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Now; showing due honor to the elders of the church doesn’t mean that they are somehow to be considered exempt from what is required of the life and devotion of any godly Christian. Sadly, we’ve seen that happen often in our day. A particular leader in the church, and very often a high-profile preaching and teaching elder, falls into gross sin, and causes public shame and dishonor to the cause of Christ—and very often, it’s because the church overlooked things in their lives that shouldn’t have been ignored. So; Paul then went on to tell Timothy that the church must …

2. HOLD ELDERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR HOLY LIVING.

That, too, is a part of honoring the elder’s role in the church. Paul began by instructing that this be done carefully. He says in verse 19, “Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses.” This is important because, very often, a pastor or elder can be accused of something that never actually happened. The gossip that some within the church can spread about their leaders—or even that some within one church can spread about the leadership of another church—is a favorite tool of the devil in destroying the effectiveness of the church in this world.

In giving this piece of instruction, the apostle Paul once again drew from the Old Testament law. In Deuteronomy 17:6, God gave this piece of instruction to Israel through Moses:

“Whoever is deserving of death shall be put to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses; he shall not be put to death on the testimony of one witness” (Deuteronomy 17:6).

One person’s testimony was not enough to settle the matter. Two or three were required in order to bring validity to the charge. And this principle wasn’t to be applied only to matters that concerned a capital crime. It was a principle that was to be applied to all matters in which one person was being accused of wrongdoing by another. Deuteronomy 19:15 says,

“One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two or three witnesses the matter shall be established” (19:15).

This is a principle that’s to be applied in the life of the church. The Lord Jesus Himself said so in Matthew 18. He spoke of what was to be done whenever someone within the church had sinned against another. The offended party was to go to the offender and bring the matter before him. And the Lord said in verse 16,

“But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established’” (Matthew 18:16).

This is meant to be applied to any accusation that might be brought against an elder in the church. If it’s just being brought up by one person—that is, if there aren’t two or three other valid witnesses that can reliably confirm it—then the matter must rest until more evidence is brought forth. This doesn’t mean that the accusation shouldn’t be taken seriously, or even—in certain serious cases—investigated more fully. It simply means that a charge shouldn’t be brought forth and acted upon in an official way until it can be confirmed by more than one witness. I wonder how much harm could be prevented from being done to the witness of the church in this world if this were faithfully followed. And by the way, dear brothers and sisters; be careful not to let such unconfirmed matters be spread in your own home. Be careful what you say at the dinner table with regard to criticisms you might be tempted to spread about church leaders. The attitude of small children—and other easily influenced members of the family—can be turned in a negative way against the church for the rest of their lives because of a failure to follow this principle.

But what happens when the facts of the matter are indeed confirmed by more than one witness, and an elder or a teaching pastor has indeed been proven to sin? A position of spiritual leadership doesn’t exempt anyone from the requirements of personal holiness. Paul went on to say in verse 20, “Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear.”

Do you notice that in the translation I’m using, it says to rebuke those who “are sinning”? Paul put this in the form of an ongoing action. In other words, it may be speaking of something that has become a sinful habit or practice—something for which a first or second rebuke wasn’t enough, and about which two or three witnesses could testify was an ongoing problem. In that case—just as is commanded by our Lord in Matthew 18—the matter needs to be brought before the church. A position of leadership in the church is a public position; and so a careful examination followed by a public rebuke would then be necessary. This is so that “the rest may also fear,”—which could mean that the other elders would have a reverential fear of falling into the same sin or that the whole church family would be taught to pursue holiness before the Lord.

When I read this, dear brothers and sisters, I think of two things. First, I think of how holding the office of elder—and particularly the office of teaching and preaching elder—does not exempt a man from the requirements of personal holiness. No church should ever overlook sin on the part of a church leader—even on the part of an otherwise loved, esteemed, popular, and (dare I say it?) profitable church leader. And no church leader should ever expect to be given a pass on sin—no matter how else they may have served well. Because the position of elder is to be treated with honor, the person who holds that position must be held accountable for holiness.

And on a personal level, it causes me to have a holy fear of the awesome responsibility that is upon me—and upon all our elders. As Pastor James once wrote at the beginning of James 3;

My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment (James 3:1).

Please pray for me and for our other leaders; because we must not only be held in honor by the church, but we must also be held accountable to the church for holy lives. ‘Double honor’ goes hand-in-hand with ‘stricter judgment’.

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So; as Paul taught Timothy—and through Timothy also taught us—elders in the church must be held in honor, but must also be held accountable. And that leads us to one more thing that Paul emphasized to Timothy; and that is that the church must …

3. TREAT ELDERS WITHOUT PARTIALITY BEFORE GOD.

Paul used very strong words in verse 21 and said, “I charge you before God and the Lord Jesus Christ and the elect angels that you observe these things without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality.” When it comes either to showing the honor properly due to the office of elder, or to holding an elder accountable for holy living and personal integrity, no one particular elder is to be given a pass, and no one particular elder is to be attacked unfairly. All the elders are to be treated equally in the matters of honor and accountability.

Look at how Paul binds Timothy to this. He charged him to do this before God—who is the great Lawgiver and the One who designed the plan of the redemption of His people. He also charged him before the Lord Jesus Christ—who is the One who shed His blood to purchase the church for Himself, and who is destined to be the Judge of all the earth. And interestingly, Paul even charged Timothy to do this faithfully and equally before “the elect angels”—that is, the angels who did not fall with Satan, but who kept their proper place before God; and who are thus given to be the ministers to the saints, and are destined to administer the judgment of the Lord on the day of judgment.

The angels who serve God in the heavens apparently have a more direct involvement in the functions of a local church than we may realize. In 1 Corinthians 11:10, Paul ordered that certain matters of propriety be maintained in the church “because of the angels”. And in Ephesians 3:10, Paul said that “the manifold wisdom of God” is—in some way—made “known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places”. And so, Paul sets this matter before Timothy in the strongest possible way; that with respect to the elders of the church, these standards are to be maintained and practiced “without prejudice, doing nothing with partiality”.

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So; even though this may seem like an awkward passage for a pastor to preach from, I hope you can see why it’s nevertheless an essential one to preach from. It’s for the good of the whole church family that the elders of the church be held in honor but also held accountable for holy living—and always without partiality.

As people of God who desire to honor His holy call upon us as a church family, I pass on to you the instruction that is found in Hebrews 13:17;

Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you (Hebrews 13:17).

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