Requirements for Church Elders
Serve the LORD with gladness;
come into His presence with joyful songs. Psalm 100:2
1 Timothy 3:1–7
1. This is a trustworthy saying: If anyone aspires to be an overseer, he desires a noble task.
2. An overseer, then, must be:
above reproach
the husband of but one wife
temperate
self-controlled
respectable
hospitable
able to teach
3. Not:
dependent on wine
violent
greedy for money
But instead:
gentle
peaceable
free of the love of money
4. He must manage his own household well and keep his children under control, with complete dignity.
5. For if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he care for the church of God?
6. He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same condemnation as the devil.
7. Furthermore, he must have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the snare of the devil.
Titus 1:5-9
5. The reason I left you in Crete was that you would set in order what was unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.
6. An elder must be:
blameless
the husband of but one wife
having children who are believers
having children who are not open to accusation of indiscretion or insubordination
7. As God’s steward, an overseer must be above reproach—
Not:
self-willed
quick-tempered
given to drunkenness
violent
greedy for money
8. Instead, he must be:
hospitable
a lover of good
self-controlled
upright
holy
disciplined
9. He must hold firmly to the faithful word as it was taught, so that he can encourage others by sound teaching and refute those who contradict it.
Does the Bible require to pastors to be
married and have children?
Some churches teach that an elder must be married and have children, but Scripture does not actually require this. When Paul says an elder must be the “husband of one wife,” the Greek phrase literally means “a one-woman man”—a description of moral character, purity, and faithfulness, not a requirement to be married. If Paul meant “must be married,” he would have used different wording in the Greek New Testament. Paul himself was unmarried, yet he planted churches, appointed elders, and modeled godly leadership. Jesus also was single, which shows that marital status is not a prerequisite for spiritual authority or holiness.
Likewise, when Titus 1 mentions “children who believe,” Paul is giving guidance for men who already have children, not commanding that an elder must produce them. The grammar is conditional: if he has children, they must be faithful. The family qualifications simply show how a man manages his household if he has a wife or children. In the end, biblical eldership is about character, integrity, self-control, and the ability to teach—not about being married or having children.