THE CALL OF THE SHEPHERD

Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on March 13, 2019 under AM Bible Study |

AM Bible Study Group: March 13, 2019 from 1 Peter 5:14

Theme: God’s flock needs for God’s appointed shepherds to faithfully fulfill their call.

(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).

It might seem, at first glance, as if Peter was changing subjects in this morning’s passage. He had been teaching his brothers and sisters the things that they needed to know in order to be able to suffer persecution and hardship faithfully in their relationship with Jesus. And now—in 1 Peter 5:1-4—he talks to the spiritual leaders of the church. He writes;

The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away (1 Peter 5:1-4).

In the original language of this passage, he begins with the word “therefore”. (You’ll find the word “Therefore” in the New American Standard version; and will see this translated “So” in the English Standard Version.) This indicates to us that Peter is not talking about another subject; but rather, is telling the pastoral leaders of the church something that is a consequence of what he had already written. He is stating some things the church needed order to be what it needs to be in times of testing.

This passage is telling us that it’s essential to God’s flock that God’s appointed shepherds faithfully fulfill their call and do their duty; and that God will reward them for doing so.

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We can break Peter’s exhortation into five points. First, notice …

1. THE RECIPIENTS OF THIS EXHORTATION (v. 1a).

Peter writes, “The elders who are among you I exhort …” The word for ‘elder’ in the original language—presbuteros—basically refers to men who are older and more mature in life. Here, it is meant to describe someone within a church assembly who—by virtue of a recognized measure of maturity, reverence, doctrinal understanding, experience and spiritual discernment—was appointed to an office of spiritual leadership within a church. The Presbyterian form of church government draws its name from this word.

Peter gives us a deeper view of these ‘elders’ when he goes on to describe their work in this passage. He urges the elders, for example, to ‘shepherd’ God’s flock. To ‘shepherd’ speaks of their ministry as a ‘pastor’. And then, he also goes on to urge these elders to serve as ‘overseers’; using the Greek word episkopeō (from which the word ‘episcopalian’ comes from); and this is the word from which the English word ‘bishop’ is derived. This speaks of their role as stewards.

Many traditions within the Christian church have divided these three names up into three different offices—pastors, elders and bishops. But biblically, they are three ways of describing only one church leadership office. You also see all three functions being applied to ‘elders’ in Acts 20:28; where we’re told that the apostle Paul called all the elders of the church in Ephesus together (v. 17), and told them, “take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God …” In Titus 1:5, Paul told Titus to “appoint elders in every city” from men within the churches that were of high moral character; telling him in verse 7, “for a bishop must be blameless …”

Peter is speaking, then, of one type of leader in the church with three different and very important roles. When we speak of a man in the church as an “elder”, we’re highlighting the personal dimensions of his calling—his spiritual maturity, his wisdom in life experience, his knowledge of the Scriptures and his understanding of faithful biblical doctrine, and of the honorable example he sets of the Christian life. When we speak of him as “bishop” or “overseer”, we’re highlighting the leadership dimensions of his work—his stewardship, his vision-setting, and his watchfulness over the healthy operations of the church family. And when we speak of him as “pastor” or “shepherd”, we’re highlighting the relational dimensions of his work—his loving care for the needs of the individual church members, his ability to minister healing to those in need, his work as a counselor to those in need, his faithfulness to feed them from the word of truth and to defend them from error.

So; that’s who it is that this exhortation is given to—that is, to elders in the church, who are also shepherds, who are also overseers. Next, consider …

2. THE MANNER IN WHICH THIS EXHORTATION IS GIVEN (v. 1b).

Notice how the great, honorable, esteemed apostle Peter gives this word of exhortation in such a humble way. He writes, ” I who am a fellow elder …” He didn’t present himself as superior to the ones he was exhorting—even though he certainly could have. Instead, he presents himself simply as a fellow elder, a co-presbyter.

But that’s not to say that Peter didn’t have some advantages that made his exhortation particularly significant. As an apostle of the Lord Jesus, he was able to add that he was “a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed …” Those qualifications should have made the elders he wrote to pay careful attention to his words. Peter knew much—firsthand—about the things that the Lord Jesus suffered while He walked on earth. Peter was there with our Lord during His time of agony in the garden, saw Him being arrested, and was there at the tomb. But Peter was also “a partaker of the glory that will be revealed”. Peter saw—with his own eyes, along with the apostles James and John—the glory of the Lord Jesus revealed on the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter spoke of it later on in his second letter; when he wrote,

For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain (2 Peter 1:16-18).

So; Peter’s manner of issuing this exhortation to pastors was a humble one—not as someone superior, but simply as a fellow-elder. But it was also given with a sense of the majesty of the calling and of the seriousness of the task. It is a serious exhortation indeed!

And note …

3. THE TASK THAT IS TO BE DONE (v. 2a).

Peter goes on to say, “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you …” When Peter wrote those words, he may have been thinking of the last words that the Lord Jesus spoke to him. After Jesus’ resurrection—when he and the other disciples met Him on the shores of the Sea of Galilee—Jesus turned to Peter and said,

“Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.” He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Tend My sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:15-17).

This must have been a painful conversation. Peter had denied the Lord three times. And yet, the Lord gave him three chances to reaffirm his love for Him. And in each case, Jesus’ call to Peter was, “Feed My sheep.” Peter felt the importance of this; and so, he urged this as a very big part of what it means for the elder of the church to shepherd God’s flock. He must faithfully pass on to them the pure milk of the word with all his energies; and—during a time of persecution—perhaps even at the cost of his own life. The Lord Jesus Himself said;

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep” (John 10:11).

And what’s more, Peter says that elders are to fulfill their call with true leadership; “serving as overseers” as he puts it This means that a pastor should be feeding the word to God’s people in an up-close and personal way; being present and involved—not merely locked away in a study. He should have a sanctified awareness of what’s going on with God’s people.

And note then that he tells us …

4. THE MOTIVES THAT PASTORS ARE TO HAVE (vv. 2b-3).

He tells us that pastors are to shepherd God’s flock and serve as overseers, “not by compulsion but willingly …” When a man approaches the work of the ministry as a ‘grudging duty’—something that he feels he must do, but doesn’t really want to do—he should not be serving as a pastor. Some became pastors because their father was a pastor and it was expected of them also. (Some translations of this passage add that he is to serve “according to the will of God.” He shouldn’t do so “according to the will of family”!) Some men became pastors under compulsion because the church was small and no one else was stepping up to take that role. Some started off with excitement—perhaps being drawn to the honor and prestige that accompanies the ministry; but later found the work to be very hard and felt disenchanted, and start looking around for ‘another calling’ somewhere else. One of the vital qualifications of an elder is that he truly ‘desires’ to serve in this role. As Paul put it, “This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work” (1 Timothy 3:1). Great harm is done to God’s people when they’re under the ‘shepherding’ ministry of someone who doesn’t really want to be their shepherd. But what a delight it is when a good pastor serves willingly.

Peter goes on to also say that a pastor should shepherd the flock, “not for dishonest gain but eagerly …” Now biblically, a church should never expect a man to serve as their pastor without also paying him for his labors. “The laborer is worthy of his wages”, as it says in 1 Timothy 5:18. As much as possible, the church family should make it possible for their pastor to do his work without the distraction of having to seek a living elsewhere. But this should never become the motivation for the pastor’s work. He ought to be willing to serve “eagerly” or “cheerfully”—never as a mere ‘hireling’ in the work of God.

And finally, Peter says, “nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock …” A pastoral must, of course, exercise ‘oversight’. But a spiritual leader who is a high-controller, who loves to exercise power over people, and who demands that everything be done his way, is a terrible burden to a church. We find an example of such a high-controller in the Bible in a man named Diotrephes. The apostle John wrote;

I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, does not receive us. Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does, prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to, putting them out of the church. Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God (3 John 9-11).

An ‘overseer’ in God’s house should never minister in a harsh manner; but rather by example. He should be a shepherd who leads the sheep, not a cowboy who drives the herd.

And finally, note how Peter closes with …

5. THE REWARD FOR FAITHFULNESS (v. 4).

To those who serve faithfully as our Lord’s ‘under-shepherds’, Peter writes, “and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.” The crown that Peter speaks of is a wreath—much like the wreaths that champion athletes in the ancient games won at the end of their race. It’s a symbol of honor. But the wreath that Peter speaks of is not one that fades away, as those ancient wreaths did. This is a symbol of honor that will never wilt or grow old. The apostle Paul hinted at this reward when he wrote to his beloved brothers and sisters in Thessalonica (Christians, by the way, who were also suffering for their faith). He told them,

For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? For you are our glory and joy (1 Thessalonians 2:19-20).

For the true shepherd of God’s flock, the unfading crown of reward and honor is that glorious blessing of seeing the dear saints he served standing in heavenly glory—pleasing to the Lord Jesus throughout eternally!

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That means that we’re all in this together—elders and congregation—shepherd and flock. No wonder Peter included this exhortation in his discussion of how the church should function in a time of persecution.

Let’s pray that the leaders of the church will fulfill their calling in a way that pleases the Lord—and that meets the needs of the church body.

EA