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Introduction:
A couple of months ago, the Franklin church faced a very sad day.
Charles Nash, after serving faithfully as an elder for many years,
stepped down. At the same time, it was a day to rejoice in the
great labor he had done in Christ’s kingdom and the great
benefit he has been to the sheep in this flock over the years. I
bring this up because brother Nash made a comment as he read his
letter of resignation. He claimed that the work of an elder is
just that. It is not a position. It is not a title. It is a work.
But what work? Sadly, many have mistaken views regarding what it
means to be an elder, therefore they spend no time preparing to do
the work. I hope many of you, the men in this congregation, are
looking forward to filling that role. However, I want to
disillusion you of many of the fallacies some carry about it.
Being an elder, bishop, pastor or overseer is not just a title.
Nor is it some position of dominant power. It does not mean being
in control. Rather, it is a great role of service to the
congregation. Perhaps no greater term provides the picture for
what the elder or pastor does than the term “shepherd” used in
I
Peter 5:2. Elders are not to run the congregation. They
are not to manage the congregation. They are not to administer the
congregation. They are to shepherd. But what does that entail?
What better place to look than to the Chief Shepherd mentioned in I
Peter 5:4. What better place to look at the Chief Shepherd
than Psalm
23. Within that psalm, I believe we can uncover four great
responsibilities shepherds must fulfill. Certainly, our shepherds
need to measure their present work against this standard. However,
the reason I’m preaching this to you instead of just meeting
with our elders is because each and every man in this congregation
needs to consider this work and plan to grow to be able to do
this. Even if you never become an elder, you will be benefited by
this challenge. Discussion: I.
Shepherds must lead the sheep. A.
Obviously, the number one picture of the shepherd is
leadership. Psalm
23 mentions leadership twice. “He leads me beside still
waters” (Psalm
23:2). “He leads me in paths of righteousness…” (Psalm
23:3). The reason leadership is integral to shepherding is
because sheep, if left in one place too long, will destroy the
land they graze. They become so accustomed to favorite spots that
their grazing grounds become well-worn and infested with
parasites. The sheep become infected with worms, the land is
destroyed, and in the end the sheep will die. The greatest
protection for the sheep is for the shepherd to keep them on the
move. Isn’t that exactly what can happen with a congregation?
Without leadership, without someone challenging us and leading us
ever onward, we become stagnant, stale, lifeless. We walk the same
trails until they are ruts. We graze the same fields until they
are a desert waste. If you want to be an elder someday, you must
learn to lead. B.
David said the good shepherd leads beside still waters. A
sheep’s body is 70% water. Thus while they thrive in dry,
semi-arid cultures, they require water. Sheep drink from three
sources. First, from streams and springs. Though these are
natural, the shepherd must search out the pure streams, sometimes
having to work long hard hours diverting a pure spring to a place
the sheep can drink. Second, they drink from wells. But those
wells don’t get there on their own. Shepherds have to dig them
and bail the water so the sheep can drink. Third, amazingly
enough, they also get a lot of water from the dew off the grass.
However, the shepherd must prepare the fields to be edible.
Leading beside still waters is no small feat. The picture of still
and quiet waters, is a picture of calm, pure, clean water. Jeremiah
2:13 presents the problem. Too many of the sheep hew out
their own cisterns. They forsake the living waters of God’s
spirit and follow their own desires. Our shepherds must lead us by
the still waters of God’s word and not man’s design. This ties
in with leading in paths of righteousness. We are to be a people
who hunger and thirst for righteousness, that is where our
shepherds are to lead. C.
Note God used sheep and shepherds as His picture, not
cattle and driver. Sheep can be led. They hear the voice of their
shepherd and follow (cf. John
10:3-4). Cattle, however, must be driven poked, prodded
and pushed from behind. Sadly, too many shepherds try this
approach with the sheep. That is why Peter pointed out in I
Peter 5:3 that the shepherds must not domineer over the
flock. By the way, this is just as much about the shepherds as it
is the sheep. The sheep follow the shepherd’s lead, knowing the
shepherd’s voice because the shepherd has taken time to get to
know the sheep. The sheep know the shepherds care. The sheep know
the shepherds are looking out for their best interests. Often,
congregations don’t want to follow their shepherds because the
shepherds haven’t prepared their relationships with the sheep
either before or after being appointed as elders. D.
One final note about leadership. Sadly, far too many
shepherds in the Lord’s body are not leading but being led. They
do not look ahead and see where to lead the sheep. They do not
plan. They do not have vision. They do not have foresight. They
react to what happens to them. That is a one way ticket to death
of the flock. If you want to be an elder, learn to lead. II.
Shepherds must feed the sheep. A.
Psalm
23:5
says, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my
enemies…” For sheep and shepherd, this does not present a
picture of a banqueting table in a hall for feasts. Rather, it
speaks of the tablelands in the mountains, the higher feeding
grounds of the summers. The preparing of the tablelands is all
about feeding. The shepherds must go ahead of the sheep and
prepare the table. They take salts and minerals to prepare the
land so they will feed the sheep well. They clear the lands of
predators and remove the poisonous weeds. Feeding the sheep is far
more than simply finding a place with grass. Feeding the sheep
means work. B.
No doubt, evangelists are to proclaim the good news even
teaching the congregation as Paul taught Timothy and Titus.
However, the shepherds are responsible for the feeding. That is
why Titus
1:9 says the elders must be able to hold firm to the
trustworthy word to give instruction in sound doctrine and to
rebuke those who contradict the sound doctrine. It is the sad
plight of many churches that the preacher is the one the church
relies on for guidance and feeding because the shepherds don’t
know how to feed. Too many shepherds simply hire someone to teach
and make decisions about what classes should be taught, but they
do no feeding themselves. The shepherd who leads and teaches well
is worthy of double honor according to I
Timothy 5:17. If you want to be a shepherd someday, do not
learn how to balance budgets and administer businesses. Learn how
to handle the word of God. Learn how to feed the sheep. III.
Shepherds must protect the sheep. A.
Psalm
23:5
said the shepherd prepares the table in the presence of the
enemies. That is, even though the predators look on, the sheep are
able to eat because of the shepherd’s protection. Additionally, Psalm
23:4 says the sheep can walk in the valley of the shadow
of death, but fear no evil. This verse is not talking about the
days preceding death. It is talking about the sheep being led up
the valleys to those tablelands. Those valleys were some of the
most treacherous lands. The fears of avalanche, flash floods, rock
slides, poisonous plants and the predators that could ravage the
flock cast their shadow along those valleys. But with the good
shepherd, the sheep need not fear. B.
This is the role of our elders and our shepherds. They
protect us from the enemies. They lead us in paths of
righteousness that we may avoid Satan’s snare. This is why Paul
warned the Ephesian elders in Acts
20:28-32 to take care of the flock. They must protect from
enemies within and enemies without (cf. Titus
1:10-11). If you want to be a shepherd, you must learn to
recognize the temptations and dangers Satan lays before the sheep
and help them overcome. If you want to be a shepherd, you must
learn and understand the errors that pull sheep away from the
flock. If you want to be a shepherd, you need to learn to
understand the sheep so you may know when they are struggling and
how to help them. C.
There is one aspect of protecting the sheep we don’t like
to discuss very much. But the shepherd protects the sheep by
disciplining the sheep. In Psalm
23:4, David said the rod and staff of the Lord comforted
him. One of the rod’s main uses was discipline. If a wayward
sheep was heading into danger, the shepherd would hurl his rod
through the air to send the sheep scurrying back to the flock.
Sadly, too often today, shepherds are afraid to administer
discipline because they fear being accused of spiritual abuse.
There is spiritual abuse. Some churches and shepherds are guilty
of it. However, just as there is a difference between disciplining
and abusing a child, there is a difference between spiritual
discipline and spiritual abuse. I
Corinthians 5:4-13 demonstrates we must discipline those
who would leaven the congregation with their sin for two reasons.
One, that the one disciplined may learn and scurry back to the
flock. Two, that the flock will not be turned aside by the
straying sheep. This is not a matter of abuse, but protecting the
flock. Shepherds must step up and be ready to administer this
discipline for the good of the sheep. D.
If you want to be shepherd, you must build up your courage.
You must build up your knowledge. You must learn how to protect
the sheep. The devil is a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour
(I
Peter 5:8). Being a shepherd doesn’t mean trying to keep
everyone in line with your will. It means serving others that they
may be saved. IV.
Shepherds must restore the sheep. A.
Psalm
23:3
says the shepherd restores the sheep. For the shepherd, this is a
huge word picture. It is the picture of Matthew
9:36. The word translated “helpless” is actually the
word meaning “cast down.” Sheep easily become cast down. The
sheep may find a nice soft spot and stretch out to lay down, but
its center of gravity shifts and it rolls over, unable to get its
feet back on the ground. It lays there struggling to get back up,
but is unable. Or, a sheep trying to get to a bit of grass pushes
into some brush. It’s wool hangs in the brush and it can’t get
away. The more it thrashes, the more embedded it gets. If the
shepherd doesn’t find the sheep, it will die from exhaustion.
Sometimes the sheep may offer weak bleats for help, but usually
the shepherd must keep watch and find this sheep. Jesus also used
this same kind of picture when he told the parable of the lost
sheep in Luke
15:4-5. The good shepherd will leave the 99 in the open
country to find the one lost sheep in order to restore him. B.
This is so integrally part of the shepherds’ role it was
the center of God’s rebuke against the shepherds of Israel in Ezekiel
34:4. They were supposed to strengthen the weak, heal the
sick, bind up the injured, bring back the straying and seek the
lost. Instead, they had self-centeredly led the sheep, using the
sheep for their own good. Restoring the sheep demonstrates the
true selflessness of the shepherd who will keep ever vigilant and
even travel the wilderness to restore the sheep. This is the great
demonstration of service. You see, the elders’ job is not that
of commanding the sheep. The elders’ job is that of serving the
sheep. Putting their needs first, being there when the sheep are
distressed and downcast, restoring their souls, placing them on
good footing. C.
Alongside this restoration is the comfort the shepherd
provides the sheep. In Psalm
23:2, David said his shepherd made him lie down in green
pastures. Phillip Keller, in his book A
Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, explains four conditions for a
sheep to be willing to lie down. 1) Freedom from fear of outside
attack. 2) Freedom from tension and friction within the fold. 3)
Freedom from hunger. But the fourth is the big thing we want to
note here. 4) Freedom from pests. The sheep would be attacked by
flies, gnats, worms, parasites. In Psalm
23:5, David spoke of his head being anointed with oil. He
was talking about the oils and salves the shepherd applied to ward
off the annoying little pests. The shepherd works hard to protect
his flock from those pests that will take away his serenity. He
restores the sheep and provides comfort for them. D.
This takes work. It takes time. It takes sacrifice. It is
no wonder when the Hebrew writer spoke of our leaders in Hebrews
13:17, it said they “keep watch.” The word there
literally means “without sleep.” The job of the shepherd is
sleepless, ever watchful. Here is the point. If you want to be an
elder someday, you must learn to sacrifice yourself to restore and
comfort the sheep. Conclusion: So, you want to be an elder someday. I hope you understand becoming an elder does not provide you with rights. It provides you with responsibilities. You do not become the served. You become the greatest of servants. If you wish to be an elder, you must prepare to give yourself up in service to the sheep. You must prepare to devote your life to leading, feeding, protecting and restoring the sheep. You won’t learn how to do that overnight just because a congregation calls you an elder. You must start right now working to that end.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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