Prudent
A leader in the church must also be prudent. John MacArthur offers the following description of a prudent man:
The prudent man is well-disciplined and knows how to correctly order his priorities. He is a person who is serious about spiritual things. That does not mean he is cold and humorless but that he views the world through God’s eyes. The realities that the world is lost, disobedient to God and bound for hell leave little room for frivolity in his ministry. Such a man has a sure and steady mind. He is not rash in judgment, but thoughtful, earnest and cautious.
The prudent pastor follows Paul’s counsel in Philippians 4:8:
Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
Consumer driven churches, however, place no value in prudent leadership. They believe that church growth is achieved by sideshows containing lame stunts and childish antics. They would rather exegete their own illustrations than the biblical text.
In stark contrast, the prudent shepherd is, in the words of John MacArthur, a man whose “mind is controlled by God’s truth, not the whims of the flesh.” His mind dwells on things that are praiseworthy and pure (Philippians 4:8). He understands the immense responsibility of influencing souls for eternity. And he therefore depends on the unshakable foundations of Scripture rather than the shifting sands of culture.
God’s requirements for leaders in His church are exacting and extensive. Temperance and prudence make up two pieces in the far larger picture of what it means to be above reproach. Paul’s first epistle to Timothy profiled several other vital character qualities and standards for godly shepherds. We’ll look at what John MacArthur has to say about two more of them—respectability and hospitality—next time. And we’ll contrast that with modern examples of imposters who clearly fail to meet those requirements.
(All quotations from The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: 1 Timothy unless otherwise noted.)
