In 1 Timothy 5:19-25, Paul gives instructions for dealing with elders who sin. This unit focuses on verse 20 and the meaning of the phrase “those who persist in sin.”
Lecture Outline Detailed Outline Remember ItIt is sin, not merely a leadership blunder or minor shortcoming or misjudgment. This sin requires witnesses and public rebuke. Thus, it is a serious matter, not a minor offense.
Some commentators stress the present continuous action of sin in an elder’s life. Others do not stress the present continuous tense but simply the description of an elder who sins.
- Why does an elder’s sin require public exposure and rebuke? We do not do this with everyone in the church. Why is it necessary in the case of elders?
- In light of our passage, consider the story the speaker told at the end of this message. When the elders discovered that a fellow elder had embezzled money from the church, what procedures should they have taken in dealing with his sin?
- In applying this passage to your own life, take seriously how God views the sin of a church leader. See the constant need for repentance and confession of sin on a daily basis.