When the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, his son in the faith, he offered words about how to honor the elders that God has entrusted to serve his church. In 1 Timothy 5:17-18, he writes:
Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,’ and ‘The laborer deserves his wages.’
Paul recognizes that being an elder is hard work, so Christians would do well to show them honor for their service. On Sunday, we had the privilege of calling a new elder to serve here at Grace by calling Rev. Jon Anderson to be our Senior Pastor and “labor in preaching and teaching.”
With a new pastor on the way, how can we take Paul’s words seriously? What can we do to honor him well? Here are just a few thoughts that I have on the subject:
1. Be Prayerful – The vote is over, but the transition isn’t. The Andersons still need to pack up their life in Texas and move half-way across the country to Charlottesville, Virginia. Even once they get here, there are the challenges of life in a new place and there will be even more challenges for Jon as he carries out a new role in a new church. As a pastor, he’ll get to witness some wonderful works of God’s grace and redemption, but he’ll also wade into the messiness and depravity of this sinful world. He’ll often be carrying burdens that you won’t see. One of the biggest ways you can honor Jon will be to pray fervently for him and his family.
2. Be Gracious – Jon has a lot of names to learn and a lot of life stories to catch up on. Growing pains are a real thing! He’ll make mistakes. He’ll get your name wrong. He’ll say things without knowing your sense of humor. Brothers and sisters, honor him by being understanding. Proverbs 17:9 reminds us to love one another by covering offenses and avoiding dissention. Don’t get offended by little things. Don’t hold grudges or ferment bitterness in your heart. Jon will faithfully preach God’s grace to us, but he needs it for himself too. Be gracious when he trips, just as Jesus is gracious with you.
3. Be Generous – In these verses, Paul makes two Old Testament references. The first is a quote from Deuteronomy 25:4: an ox who works to produce food deserves to eat too. The second is an allusion to Leviticus 19:13: workers deserve to be paid for their labor. What’s his point? Elders who labor in the ministry deserve to have their needs met too. At the very least, it means fair financial compensation for his work – but it goes beyond that. Just as we will no doubt benefit from Jon’s life among us, let’s be sure he benefits from it too. Yes, be generous with your giving that supports his ministry, but don’t stop there. Be just as generous with your words of encouragement and your offers of support to him and his family. Be generous with his wife and children, who will pay their own price for Jon’s ministry here. If there’s a way you can be of service to him and his family, honor him by caring and providing generously.
This is an exciting time in the life of our church! I’m looking forward to August when, Lord willing, the Andersons will be here and ready to join us in our life together. But if we want that time to be fruitful – for the Andersons and for us – we need to honor our new pastor well.