Shepherding God’s Flock

I invite you to take your Bibles once again, and we turn to 1 Peter chapter 5. As we resume our studies in this letter, written by the apostle to the scattered and sometime juvenile Christians of his day, the focus of our study this morning is in the first four verses, and the issue before us is God’s pattern for leadership in his church.

I’m excited about the message this morning. I always am, but I’m always excited when I have the opportunity, as Scripture unfolds it to me, to preach about the church and the nature of the church, because the church is on the heart of God. The church is God’s purpose for his world. He has given to his Son, Jesus Christ, the headship over his church, and he has said that his church is going to be formed into a beautiful bride, prepared for the Bridegroom, when the Lord Jesus, the Chief Shepherd, one day appears from glory. Therefore, it is of no small import for us to give our minds carefully to the nature and purpose and function of the church, and not least of all to the very, very important matter of who leads in the church, and how should leadership be exercised in the church? And that is the framework of this morning’s study.

The governments of our world continue to bounce around in between the extremes of democracy and dictatorship—and sadly, so does the average church. If you spend any time at all in a church, you will begin to discover that it will be bouncing somewhere between democracy and dictatorship—the kind of dictatorship that has been most horribly exemplified in recent days, in this particular area, in the Lundgren case; the kind of leadership that was delineated in the Jim Jones cult of some years ago: a tyranny, a horrible, brutal, manipulative, man-centered approach to coercing those who want to be faithful followers of truth. That, on the one hand, stands as an ugly example from which we wish to run. However, on the other hand, there is the equal possibility of churches forming themselves upon the basis of government of the people, for the people, and by the people. And while we all find ourselves recoiling from Jim Jones, some of us are saying, “I don’t see there’s anything particularly wrong with the most recent one you mentioned. We’ve been doing very fine with that as a nation.”

And what we’re going to discover this morning is that God’s purposes for his church are to be found neither in dictatorship, or in autocracy, nor in democracy, but rather, as we’ve seen before, in theocracy—that is, God ruling his people through the means of his Word, entrusting leadership to some who will be responsible for the guidance of others while at the same time all being responsible to the leadership of Jesus though his Word.

And indeed, if I could restate that sentiment, you would have the essence of our study this morning. When God carries out his rule through godly leadership, in practical terms, this is what it means: that God has purposed that some shall be responsible for the leadership of others, and both shall be responsible to the leadership of Jesus through his Word. So it is not democracy. It is theocracy. It is God mediating his rule, as we’re about to discover.

Pattern and Practice

And these leaders are referred to here in 1 Peter 5:1–4 as “elders,” as “shepherds,” and as “overseers.” And what we want to do this morning is simply ask, first of all: What is the biblical basis for elders? And as soon as we come to that, we find ourselves going back into the Old Testament. Because eldership is not a new idea. And when we come to look at the whole question of leadership in the New Testament church, it is impossible for us to do so without realizing that it is grounded in the Old Testament structure of the elders of Israel. And we could turn to many places to consider that, but I invite you to turn for a moment just to Exodus chapter 18, where we have perhaps the classic passage on the establishment of the eldership structure of Israel.

God wanted to organize his people in the Old Testament in a certain way. And while so much of what he did had to do with the ceremonial structure of things, which was concluded in Jesus Christ, still there are patterns which run through and beyond that. And this whole area of a plural form of leadership is grounded in the Old Testament Scriptures.

Exodus chapter 18. We don’t have time to read it all, but the Lord had brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. He had given to Moses, as we know, a strategic place in all of that. Moses’s father-in-law had come to visit him for a wee while. Moses tells Jethro, his father-in-law, how things have been going, and in verse 9, Jethro is really pleased. In fact, we’re told that he “was delighted to hear about all the good things the Lord had done for Israel.” And Jethro observes the nature of Moses’s leadership. And as he spends some time with Moses, he notices, as you will see in verse 13, that “Moses took his seat” regularly “to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning [until] evening.”

And so Jethro looks at this, and he asks his son-in-law, “[Why are you doing this] for the people?” The key question is: “Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning [to] evening?”[1] That’s in verse 14. And Moses basically says, “You know, I’m the key man here. God gave me this job, and I need to do it.”[2] Verse 17: “Moses’ father-in-law replied, ‘What you[’re] doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.’” Let me ask you a question in passing: How much attention do you pay to your father-in-law when he comes in and tells you what you’re doing’s the wrong way round? Okay? Fine.

So, he’s listening to this. He says, “You’re not doing good here, Moses”: “The work[’s] too heavy for you …. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you.” And so he goes on—verse 21—and he says, “I want you to select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and put them in positions of responsibility so that, in essence, the work may be shared, and the purposes of God may go forward.”[3] And what we find there in Exodus 18, you can research throughout the rest of the [Old] Testament and discover that it is a pattern for God’s organization of his people in the Old Testament.

It is not a man who makes himself an elder. It is God who makes an elder or a shepherd.

Now, if we have a pattern in the Old Testament, we certainly have a practice in the New. And for this you need to turn quickly to Acts, and let me just identify one or two verses for you. And again, you need to follow this up in your own study. Is the New Testament practice this leadership/eldership rule that we’re suggesting? That’s the question. And that’s where our Bibles need to come into play.

In Acts 11:30, you find that elders are already in place in some of the congregations, which is why they were able to send “their gift”—monetary gift—“to the elders [via] Barnabas and Saul.” In Acts 14:23, we discover that “Paul and Barnabas appointed elders … in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord.” So the evangelism took place, people were converted, congregations were established, and the apostles said, “We’re not going to be here forever. Therefore, we will appoint men who will be responsible to God, to his Word, and for you to lead you.” And this will be the abiding pattern of leadership, grounded in the Old Testament, reaching a fruition in the New. And so in Acts chapter 15, at the Council of Jerusalem, you will find the phrase “the apostles and [the] elders” mentioned five times.[4]

In Acts chapter 20, Paul addresses the Ephesian elders as he leaves them with these words in verse 28: “[Guard] yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.” It is not a man who makes himself an elder. It is God who makes an elder or a shepherd. And people, congregations, do not make elders. Congregations identify elders, see them exercising this kind of giftedness, find confidence in the ministry that they’re exercising, and then acknowledge what God has done in those individuals’ lives. It is the Holy Spirit who made them overseers, who made them shepherds of the church of God—a church which Luke says Christ had purchased “with his own blood.”

And when you move from the Acts of the Apostles, the history book of the church ,into the New Testament epistles, you discover that very clear delineation is given to the nature of this eldership. First Timothy chapter 3: “Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer”—or “a bishop,” depending on your language—“he desires a noble task.”[5] Then follow the characteristics that should be marking such individuals. In 5:17, the elders are mentioned once again. They’re mentioned as those who “direct the affairs of the church.” And those who “direct the affairs of the church well,” says Paul, “are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.” It’s not my purpose this morning to delve into this—we’ve covered it many times—but I want you to notice the distinction in 1 Timothy 5:17 which provides the Presbyterian church with the distinction between the ruling elders and the teaching elders. And there certainly is a distinction between those who have simply the task of directing the affairs of the church and those who not only direct the affairs of the church but have also the responsibility of preaching and teaching the Scriptures.

Now, that is a cursory glance at a tremendous amount of material. The biblical basis for elders is grounded in an Old Testament pattern and is then followed through in a New Testament practice.

The Responsibility of Eldership

Coming back to 1 Peter 5, which we are duty-bound to consider this morning, we then ask ourselves the question: What is the responsibility of eldership? The responsibility of eldership.

The appeal which Peter makes in verse 1 is very interesting. He appeals to them on the basis of his experience as “a witness of Christ’s sufferings”—perhaps, in his mind, specifically thinking of the garden of Gethsemane—and of “one who [will also] share in the glory to be revealed,” a glory which he has already had a taste of on the Mount of Transfiguration; one who has been uniquely appointed by God; one who had the opportunity to order, if you like, or mandate the response of the people to whom he wrote. And yet, perhaps because he’s just about to write about humility, he identifies himself, you will notice, as “a fellow elder.” He puts himself where these are to whom he writes. He says, “I share with you in the responsibilities of eldership. And I want you to understand what it means to be just that.” And he reminds them in verse 2 that their oversight, their being presbyters (which is the word in the opening phrase; “the elders” is the word presbuteroi, from which we get presbyter or Presbyterian)—they are also to be shepherds. Poimainō: they are to exercise care for people because these people are under their care.

Now, I want you to notice that little phrase: “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care.” Elders are people who have people under their care. They did not go and put them there. God put them with the responsibility for these others. And it is for that reason that the writer of the Hebrews, in Hebrews 13:7, says, “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” And in verse 17: “Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.” So the two things coalesce at this point: a man is set to the task of eldership, and he realizes that God has put people under his care. And those who are under his care recognize that if that individual is to function effectively, there is going to have to be a mutual submission to the headship of Christ, a shared submission to the truth of Scripture, and then a recognition of the place that God gives to eldership in exercising its responsibilities.

The issue, however, in leadership in the local church, and expressly in eldership, is not about prestige, it’s not about position, it’s not about privilege, it’s not about distinction, and it’s not ultimately about honor. It’s not about “Oh, there’s old George. What a fine fellow he is! He’s been around for a while. Let’s give him a little position of distinction. Let’s make him an elder.” If you want to give him a position of distinction, send him somewhere else—you know, give him a holiday, or do something. But what you’re giving to that man is merely a recognizing that God has put his hand upon his life, and you’re giving to him an added burden as he makes his way towards eternity. For on the day that he stands before Christ, he will answer for those under his care. And that is as truly so of the lay elders in our church this morning as it is of any of the rest of us who receive remuneration in order that we might give ourselves full-time to the task. The responsibility of eldership is to watch out for those whom God has put under our care.

And in Bible times as well as in contemporary times in different parts of our world today, to become a leader of the church of Jesus Christ meant danger, it meant hardship, it meant contempt, it meant social disadvantage, it meant rejection, and it meant persecution. When we were in Beijing in February of this year, we met men—elders in the underground church—who had never seen the light of day for eighteen years as a result of the Cultural Revolution and the impact on their lives. And so you can imagine what it was for them on the day that hands were laid upon them and they were set apart to the task of eldership. They weren’t thinking prestige. They were thinking potential prison. They weren’t thinking, “Whoopy-doo!” They were thinking, “Man, oh man, what a responsibility under God!” So we need to ground our understanding of leadership in the church right where the Bible puts it, not in the spurious notions which have come to us from all different airts and pairts, all over the place.

The responsibility is a clear one: it is to act as a shepherd. It is the responsibility of provision. It is the responsibility of protection, of supervision, of discipline, of instruction, and of direction—and all by the Scriptures. Or, as we’ve summarized it before out of Acts chapter 20 and as I put it here, “to watch and to warn.” That’s why you ought never to be concerned if the elders come alongside you and say, “You know, we were watching for you. We’re watching out for you. We see something here, we see something there, we’re concerned for your family. We’re concerned that you may be overburdened. We’re concerned that maybe you’ve lost your joy. We’re concerned that perhaps you’re not in a place of usefulness. We’re concerned that you’re running out of line. We know you’re zealous. We know you want to go here. We know you want to evangelize the world. Together, we want to ask you to pray with us, that we might read the Scriptures together, that we might discern God’s purposes for you and for our fellowship.”

And the shepherding responsibility must always take place—and we’ve said this many times before, and we can never say it enough—must always take place with the crook of God’s Word. This is the tool of our shepherding: the crook of God’s Word. I have an old crook that I’ve brought around here before to show to the children. It was my grandfather’s crook in the northeast of Scotland as he was a shepherd away up there in Caithness, and it hangs in our front-hall closet. And each time I go in and I look at that, and all weather-beaten and worn and chipped and bruised, and I wonder at all that it did, and all the places that it went, and the times that it was used for a sharp belt on the snout in rebuke, and the times that it reached down on the cliffside and cradled up a small lamb and pulled it to safety and rescued it.

In the same way, the elders ought to have well-worn Bibles. They ought to be well-leafed. They ought to be well-read. They ought to have names in them. They ought to have underlinings in them. They ought to have all the evidences of the exercising of the responsibility of pastoral care with the crook of God’s Word. The word of an elder in and of himself, no matter what his name is, is irrelevant. It is the Word of God that goes, not man’s word. It’s very important. See, it was the word of Jeffrey Lundgren which led to that horrible disaster. It’s the Word of God which carries all the authority. Any authority that attaches to the words of an individual can only be insofar as they express the powerful, Holy Spirit–driven truth which is contained right here.

The Manner of Eldership

Well, we could say much about that, but we must move on to the manner of eldership. If the responsibility is to shepherd and to guard, and to watch and to warn, and to care for, how is this to be exercised? Because God is not simply interested in what we do; he’s very interested in how we do it.

And I’ve tried to summarize these next verses. And what a wealth of truth is contained in them! He says, “[I want you to] be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers.” In other words, the leadership that we exercise can only be a serving relationship. We only lead insofar as we serve the people. And whatever our gifting is… If our gifting is to give administrative guidance, then we serve in making our time available in that way. If our gift is in being able to come alongside and pray with and nurture and help, then it is that. If it’s in teaching, then it is in the giving of our time and our talents and our efforts so that we might serve the people of God in teaching them the Word of God.

And when you do, he says, make sure that you do it “not because you must, but because you[’re] willing”—or, if you like, that the manner of eldership should be glad, not grudging; that the way in which Paul says money should be given is probably the right approach to our service being given. Two Corinthians 9:7: “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” So when we exercise leadership in the local church, it is not to be grudging leadership. It’s to be glad leadership! Sure, there will be times when it’s a little happier and cheerier than others. There will be times when it’s more daunting than others. But ultimately, at the bottom line, it should be that we are happy to be about the task. We’re under the constraint of the Spirit, not the constraint of circumstance. We have a willing heart. We’re not doing it because we must; we’re doing it because God wants us to do it.

And it is a willing spirit that God looks for in his servants. He looks for us to be glad, not grudging. He looks for us to be sacrificial, not selfish. God wants you to be willing. He doesn’t want you to be “greedy for money, but eager to serve.” Despite the fact that some teach that there is no thought of remuneration in pastoral ministry in the New Testament, it seems clear to me that this word is posited upon the notion that there was remuneration, in part, at the level of eldership in the church. Otherwise, why would he mention it in this way? If there was the possibility of making money doing the task, then there would be the possibility of wanting to do it so you could make money! And so he says, “Don’t do it so that you can become a rich person, but do it so that you can become a serving person.”

The leadership that we exercise can only be a serving relationship. We only lead insofar as we serve the people.

And some people would say, “Well, if you wanted to be rich, why would you want to be in the church in any case? There are other ways to do that.” But the fact of the matter is, as we’ve seen in our generation and in our day, it is possible to become extremely rich, it would seem, in certain areas of church life. And once that becomes a taste for us, then perhaps we could be driven by it. And so he issues a word of warning. He says, “Don’t get greedy for money, but make sure you’re eager to serve.” That’s why I’ve always said, you know, that you don’t pay people to preach; you pay people so that they’re free to preach for free. A big difference! It’s not so much a message.

The whole notion of eldership is this: that there are elders who are going about their daily routine, serving God, sacrificially going to work. God has purposed that some should be set free from the responsibility of that daily routine in order that they might give themselves expressly—full-time, if you like, in this way—to the task. And in order that that might take place, there needs to be financial remuneration. Otherwise, how would they be able to feed their families? But it is not that some are paid for being elders and some are not paid for being elders. It is that some are given remuneration in order that they might function with a freedom that their brethren are unable to enjoy because of the tasks that face them. And there are peculiar dangers that attach to this—not only the dangers of TV evangelism but the dangers at every level along the way. To a certain degree, all of us face this. And you can be poor and mercenary as well as rich and mercenary.

Sacrificial lives, not selfish lives. What a challenge! Glad lives, not grudging lives. And thirdly, exemplary lives, not domineering lives.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” the teacher asks the school class.

“I want to be a teacher,” says somebody.

“Why do you want to be that?”

Answer: “So that I can give people assignments. So that I can give homework. So that I can put people like you in the corner.”

“Why do you want to be a teacher, Jillian?”

“I want to be a teacher because I’d like to help people learn. I’d like to be a teacher so that I can share the discoveries I’ve found.”

Both want to be a teacher, two different motivations: one so that they can dominate the situation, one so that they can serve the situation.

Why do you want to be an elder? Why do you want to be in leadership in the church of Jesus Christ? That’s the $64,000 question. “Why do you want to stay an elder in the church, Mr. X?” What’s the answer? Is the answer “So that I may dominate people and control programs”? “So that I may gain control over areas of church life”? “So that I may get in there and sort things out”? Or do you want to become an elder and stay an elder so that you might be an example in the way you wield the Word, in the way you live in purity with your wife, in the way you bring up your children, in the way you personally pray in your private devotional life and thereby become a burden bearer for others, in the way you express compassion to those who are weary and worn, in the way that you run after opportunities for service? The pattern for shepherdology is the pattern of the one who, despite being from the realms of glory, gave himself the title: “I am the good shepherd. [And] the good shepherd [gives] his life for the sheep.”[6]

So, the manner in which it’s exercised is to be glad not grudging, sacrificial not selfish, and exemplary not domineering.

The Prospect of the Elder

What is the prospect of the elder? Well, you’re told in verse 4: the prospect of the appearance of the Shepherd.

Notice the one who is coming is “the Chief Shepherd,” to remind the elders that we are only undershepherds, to remind us that the authority is only in Christ’s Word as it is wielded faithfully and carefully. The approach of the Chief Shepherd is a reminder to those of us in leadership of accountability. And there are times when we’ve said no to people who dreadfully wanted us to say yes. There are times when we’ve said yes when they wanted us to say no. And here is the ultimate truth, loved ones: that the prospect of the return of the Chief Shepherd and giving an account to him for the last seven years of ministry here at the Chapel, for me along with my fellow elders, is a far more chilling reminder of accountability than being coerced and manipulated by the various wishes and wants of all kinds of individuals and groups within the family. The Chief Shepherd is coming back. Therefore, the undershepherds better be about the business.

The prospect of his appearance, and the prospect of receiving a crown. What kind of crown? A “crown of glory.” James refers to it as a “crown of life.”[7] It’s referred to in Revelation 2 also.[8] And it’s “a crown … that will never fade away.” The word which is used here is the word of a flower—the amaranth flower, which had an everlasting quality to it. And it was used to give as a garland to someone who’d won a race. And Peter picks up on this, and he says, “You’re going to receive a crown, and the crown you receive will be amaranth-like in its quality. It’ll never fade away. It’ll never tarnish.”

The approach of the Chief Shepherd is a reminder to those of us in leadership of accountability.

You read that section in the Plain Dealer about all those things that are bust in your house, you know, on Saturdays: “This is what to do with your swing set. This is what to do with your porch furniture. This is what to do with your chairs that are rotting. This is what to do with this.” You’re horribly depressed before you’ve even finished your breakfast. There’s so many things falling apart, you know? “Do I have anything that…” Let me ask you: What do you have that will last forever? What are you looking for? A degree on the wall? An accolade by a man? What will last forever? Let me tell you what’ll last forever: the crown which Jesus gives to faithful servants. And that’s the prospect of all who faithfully serve, not simply the elders. Although, when you read in Revelation, you discover that the elders, having received their crowns, cast them down before the throne of Jesus, recognizing that all the glory and all the honor and all the praise must always be his—Christ, who is the head of the church.[9]

To those who aspire to the task of leadership in the local church, this is what it’s about. To those of us who exercise leadership in the local church, let us examine our lives against these standards. And to each of us as we respond to leadership in the local church, let us seek to do so in such a way that recognizes God’s purposes, so that the work of those who lead may be a joy and not a burden.

Let us pray:

Jesus Christ, head of the church, we ask that you will rule supreme over all the affairs of our lives. And the instruction that your Word gives concerning leadership humbles us; holds us accountable; brings us, Lord, to the place where we have to bow and say, “My Master and my Lord.” Lead us as your people today, we pray, so that we may not be bound to the dictates of any man but that we may be submissive, always gladly, to the purposes and the principles of your Holy Word. For we ask it in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] Exodus 18:14 (NIV 1984). Emphasis added.

[2] Exodus 18:15–16 (paraphrased).

[3] Exodus 18:21 (paraphrased).

[4] Acts 15:2, 4, 6, 22, 23 (NIV 1984).

[5] 1 Timothy 3:1 (NIV 1984).

[6] John 10:11 (NIV 1984).

[7] James 1:12 (NIV 1984).

[8] See Revelation 2:10.

[9] See Revelation 4:4, 9–11.