A Model for Spiritual Leadership

The church is the organization that belongs to and was organized by Jesus Christ Himself. All whom He purchased with His blood are His sheep (1 Peter 5:1-4), but some of His sheep He appoints to care for the spiritual needs of the flock (elders; cf. Exodus 18:13-27), and other sheep He appoints to handle the money for physical needs of the ministry (deacons; cf. Acts 6:1-6). 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 record the qualifications for these two offices of Jesus's organization as a list of characteristics that are to define spiritual leadership, but Luke records for us a model for the ministry to which Paul calls those leaders. Paul is no hypocrite; that which he requires of others is that which he himself modeled.