The need for Shepherds

Sunday 11/24/19

Series: Walking the Talk

Message – The need for Shepherds

Podcast: Download (59.5MB)

The need for Shepherds

We are going to begin by comparing two New Testament churches which existed on the polar opposites of the spectrum when it comes to the need for correction & discipline. The Philippian church which was the “model church” of the New Testament to whom Paul gave no warnings or correction in regard to character (save the need to settle a few disputes) and then the Ephesian church which was loaded with difficulty which we spent the majority of our time with.

The reason for this comparison, is to establish the real need for Shepherd leadership in the local expressions of the world wide church. For even in the well established church of loving and mature Christians at Philippi, Paul was concerned that there was no one there who could watch over them and care for them. This passage is found in Philippians 2:19-21,

“(19) But, if the Lord permits it, I hope before long to send Timothy to you, that I, in turn, may be cheered by getting news of you. (20) For I have no one likeminded with him, who will cherish a genuine care for you. (21) Everybody concerns himself about his own interests, not about those of Jesus Christ.”

The Ephesian church however, was a deeply troubled church both on the outside and the inside.

Paul probably first came to Ephesus in 52ad and left 3 years later in 55ad.

Paul’s visit with its elders was about 4 years later in 59ad.

We knew that problems were going to arise due to Paul’s words of warning to these elders.

“Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you bishops, to feed the church of God which he purchased with his own blood. I know that after my departing grievous wolves shall enter in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.“ (Acts 20:28-30).

Paul’s letter to this church was anywhere from 2 to 4 year later still in 61-63 and contained some of the most exalted and profound teachings of Christian doctrine to be found anywhere. He had to encourage them in terms of personal purity and to not be deceived into the lie that one can continue in their former sins and be a citizen of God’s Kingdom.

This church was based in a city which had a history of “women’s lib gone bad or to extremes”, so he addresses gender issues – especially within marriage here and also later in his letter to Timothy when he was among them.

Then he felt the need to send Timothy to them which is where Timothy was when he received the letter we call 1Timothy which was written about 67AD.

So we are going to look at this first letter written to Timothy in order to study the relationship God has established between the sheep and their shepherds. Timothy was NOT a pastor, but rather a apostolic delegate (an ambassador for Paul if you will). However, his mission while among the Ephesian church was to address the corrupt doctrine of some of the elders, re-establish sound doctrine in the elders and the church and appoint more elders who had godly character. To do this, Paul’s instructions to Timothy required him to model “good shepherding qualities” before all of the believers in Ephesus. This gives us a clear insight into that relationship between shepherds and sheep.

Chapter 1 > “(3) As I urged you when I went to Macedonia, remain in Ephesus so that you may command certain people not to teach other doctrine (4) or to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies. These promote empty speculations rather than God’s plan, which operates by faith. (5) Now the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. (6) Some have deviated from these and turned aside to fruitless discussion. (7) They want to be teachers of the law, although they don’t understand what they are saying or what they are insisting on. (8) Now we know that the law is good, provided one uses it legitimately. (9) We know that the law is not meant for a righteous person, but for the lawless and rebellious, for the ungodly and sinful, for the unholy and irreverent, for those who kill their fathers and mothers, for murderers, (10) for the sexually immoral and homosexuals, for kidnappers, liars, perjurers, and for whatever else is contrary to the sound teaching (11) based on the glorious gospel of the blessed God that was entrusted to me…

(18) Timothy, my child, I am giving you this instruction in keeping with the prophecies previously made about you, so that by them you may strongly engage in battle, (19) having faith and a good conscience. Some have rejected these and have suffered the shipwreck of their faith. (20) Hymenaeus and Alexander are among them, and I have delivered them to Satan, so that they may be taught not to blaspheme.”

We see that sound doctrine is PARAMOUNT! By it, churches and leaders are established in terms of genuine love from the heart, a clear conscience and sincere, non-hypocritical faith!

Timothy (and therefore by extension Pastors) are to:

Address false doctrines.
Address sin in the congregation and in the leadership
Understand the use of the law under the New Covenant
Pay attention to any words of prophecy spoken over them.
Do spiritual warfare on behalf of the flock.
Be careful to maintain a good conscience!

Chapter 2 > This chapter addresses the need for prayer and clearly established and God ordained gender roles both inside the church, in greater society and in the home. Shepherds needed to be able to address what the teachings of Jesus were in regard to these things and so, Timothy, modeling what shepherds should know and teach, set the precedence for this standard.

Chapter 3 > Seems like he is starting all over with elders (shepherds) by explaining their qualifications – perhaps they had lost most or all of those Paul spoke with just a few years earlier. Regardless, THESE are the ONLY qualifications given for a Pastor. All of the modern lists of qualifications which differ from church to church in our modern age are wrong and extra biblical to the degree that they either add to or take away from the requirements in this list.

God Bless!

I hope this message will bless you richly…not because I taught it, but because it reveals Christ. He alone is our blessing and if in any way – whether big or small, 100% accurate or even just partially so – I have revealed our great God and Savior to you in a relationally knowable way, then this was time well spent on both our parts.

We at Living Grace Fellowship encourage you to place your trust in Jesus Christ, deliberately choosing Him and bowing the knee to Him as your Master and Lord, so as to come to realize Him as your Savior.

You have a special place in God’s family & kingdom. The fact that you exist… that you are His creation, says you were in His heart, you are His delight!

If you do not know Him, please reach out to us. Give us a call at the number located on every page of this website or use our ‘Contact Us‘ page. We would be deeply honored, if you gave us the privilege of introducing you to the Lord. Neither money nor attendance at our church will EVER be mentioned.

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Blessings!

Pastor Mark

View posts by Pastor Mark

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!