Road House

“not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money” (1Tim 3:3) 

I admit it. I like “Road House.” If you’re not familiar with this classic piece of American cinema, shame on you. The late Patrick Swayze plays Dalton, a cooler that Sam Elliot brings in to clean up his biker bar called the Double Deuce. He regularly goes all Billy Jack on the drunken patrons of this rather dubious establishment. 

How nasty is this motion picture honky tonk? Dalton says it has “too many 40-year-old adolescents, felons, power drinkers, and trustees of modern chemistry.” In other words, it’s not the place Paul would have Timothy go looking for overseer candidates in the Ephesian church. Dalton’s list is pretty much the opposite of the apostle’s. “Not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money” (v3). “Road House” might be a motion picture guilty pleasure, but we can cross it off the list of places to visit when looking for leaders in the church.

Maybe just maybe there is a parallel between the Double Deuce and the church in Ephesus. A gang of false teachers came in and started stirring up trouble. Paul has already tossed the despicable duo of Hymenaeus and Alexander out the front door (1Tim 1:20). I’m NOT saying the apostle brings his boy Tim like some first century bouncer (but then again, maybe that’s exactly what’s going down). We do know that Paul’s on the road to Macedonia and has put his protege in the position of Ephesian pastor. His job is simple. Take out the trash (1Tim 1:3-7) and find new godly leaders (1Tim 3:1-13).

Paul calls these leaders “overseers” (1Tim 3:1). They’re to watch over and watch out for God’s people. Here in verse 3, the man from Tarsus makes it very clear that any dude with a rep for being drunk and violent is NOT a candidate for the position. He previously points out a church leader must be “sober-minded, self-controlled” (1Tim 3:2). In other words, an elder needs a clear head and clear eyes to care and guide the followers of Jesus. You can’t be buzzed behind the wheel of God’s church.

So why does Paul seem to repeat himself and tell Tim to eliminate a man who is a drunk? Did he forget what he just wrote about sobriety? Nah, don’t think so. You see, the following phrase works together. “Not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome” (v3). The word “drunkard” is the Greek word paroinos. It literally means someone who is always “near (par-) wine (-oinos).” 

We’re not talking about your buddy the wine snob. You know the guy. He’s always bragging about dropping a couple of hundred bucks on some rare bottle of pinot noir. Really get your nose in there. Can’t you smell the mixture of coffee beans and dirty sweat socks?!? As frustrating as this fella may be, that’s NOT who Paul’s describing. But I digress.

He is talking about a heavy drinker, one who tends to be quarrelsome because they drink too much. As a matter of fact, some translations actually render this as “no brawler” (v3 ASV, ERV) or “not quickly moved to wrath” (v3 BBE). Several Bible scholars and commentaries connect the dots between bars and barroom brawls. Robertson says this is what happens when somebody sits by his wine too long. The Pulpit Commentary makes the point that the word is “common in classical Greek, in the sense of ‘quarrelsome over wine.’” The Three Musketeers of Jameison-Fausset-Brown agree this means “not indulging in the brawling, violent conduct towards others, which proceeds from being given to wine.” Albert Barnes says this is all about being drunk and violent.

Paul links two more “nots” as qualities which eliminate someone from being an overseer. “Not violent” and “not quarrelsome” (v3). The first word here (Gr. plektes) literally means a puncher or striker. A bully with a hair trigger. Someone who’s not just seen his fair share of fights but started most of them. They’re already a hothead. Pour a little liquid courage down their throat and you’ve got trouble in river city. Not exactly the kind of knucklehead setting the tone for your local congregation. Our leaders should have a firm grasp on Scripture, not a tire iron or bike chain.

The other “not” is “not quarrelsome” (v3). A lot of translations turn the Greek word amachos into “peaceable,” but it’s really more than that. The original language here literally means “without battle.” Does it mean someone who is looking to avoid a fight? No question. But it also carries the idea of a dude with whom nobody fights because they are unbeatable. They rarely have to rumble because they’re invincible. They’re not like a hockey thug skating all over the ice looking for a “dance partner.” He may not start it but it can finish it. But an overseer is to be someone strong enough NOT to fight.

Instead a church leader must be “gentle” (v3). We’re talking patient and fair. Paul drops this very same word (Gr. epieikes) over in his letter to Philippi. “Let your reasonableness (Gr. epieikes) be evident to everyone” (Phil 4:5). So this idea of being gentle isn’t limit to just church leaders. Every follower of Jesus is “to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle (Gr. epieikes), and to show perfect courtesy toward all people” (Titus 3:2). It’s also a key indicator of heavenly wisdom which “is first pure, then peaceable, gentle (Gr. epieikes), open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere” (James 3:17). And we’re called not just to be nice to those who are nice to use but “gentle (Gr. epieikes) also to the unjust” (1Pet 2:18).

Dalton may have been just the right guy to straighten things out down at the Double Deuce. But he’s not exactly overseer material according to the Apostle Paul. The Road House isn’t the kind of joint where you’ll find someone who’s “not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money” (v3).