CHURCH LEADERSHIP SERIES LESSON ONE: PASTORS

 

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP 

CHURCH LEADERSHIP SERIES LESSON ONE:  PASTORS 

When one thinks about leadership in the church the position of pastor usually seems to be first in mind.  It’s because the pastor has the calling to spiritually nurture his flock and lead his sheep in the ways of the Lord.  This image of flock and sheep leads us to the actually meaning of the word pastor.  Did you know the word pastor actually means shepherd?  A pastor then must: 

FEED HIS FLOCK:  (John 21:17)…Jesus said to him (Peter), “Feed My sheep.  This means teaching the Word of God to them.  This includes preparing and delivering messages and which should occupy the main focus of his ministry.  Getting other people to do some of the administration and service of the church then is essential to maintain this emphasis (Acts 6:1-7). 

TEND HIS SHEEP:  (John 21:16)…He (Jesus) said to him (Peter), “Tend My sheep.”  A shepherd must not only feed his flock, he must also tend to them.   This means he must care for their spiritual needs.  He must have a listening ear, a compassionate heart, and be willing to make sacrifices for others. (1 Thes 2:1-12)  He must not seek to build his own empire but to humbly serve the people God has put in his care. (Mark 9:33-35) 

LEAD HIS SHEEP: (Psa 23:2-3) He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. 3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.  A pastor leads his flock both by precept and example.  He also practically leads them in the ways of the Lord and what would be the best for them.  This involves much prayer and wisdom and sometimes making hard (and sometimes unpopular) decisions. 

PROTECT HIS LAMBS: (Acts 20:28-30) Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.  29 For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.  30 Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.  The devil seeks to devour the flock of God.  The pastor therefore must be vigilant against his attack through prayer and discernment (1 Pet 5:8-9).  He must guard his flock against wolves in sheep clothing (Mat 7:15) and from false doctrine (Jude 1:3) and ungodly influences (1 Cor 5:1-8) that would infect the church.  The pastor may need to take the lead in church discipline and sometimes even the excommunication of troubling church members (1 Tim 1:20).    

Pastors are gifts to the body of Christ from Jesus Himself for the spiritual maturity of the flock and the equipping of saints for service. (Eph 4:7-16)  The greatest gift a sheep can give to their shepherd is to pray for him and his family and seek to be supportive in any way possible.  This will lighten his load considerably so he may keep to his task to shepherd his flock as under the Good and Chief Shepherd Himself.  (John 10:11; 1 Pet 5:4) 

Louie

WILL SOME CHRISTIANS MISS THE RAPTURE?

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP 

WILL SOME CHRISTIANS MISS THE RAPTURE? 

(Luke 21:36) Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” 

The Bible teaches that Jesus will return to this earth from the sky to take His bride home (1 Thes 4:16-18; 1 Cor 15:51-52).  This is called the Rapture of the church.  It will happen suddenly and therefore scripture teaches us to be ready (Rev 22:12).  But will some Christians miss the rapture?  Will they not be ready and therefore be left behind? 

The church of Thyatira was a corrupt church that tolerated idolatry and immorality.  Jesus warned the perpetrators as such:  (Rev 2:22) Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds.  Does this mean that some confessed believers will be punished by having to endure the judgment of God that will be coming to this earth?  This is the belief of the Partial Rapture Theory that states only faithful Christians will be taken and unfaithful Christians will left behind.   

The problem with the Partial Rapture Theory is that it is works based.  But the Bible says we are saved by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-9).  Our salvation is not by merit.  It also teaches that our sanctification is the work of the Spirit (1 Thes 5:23-24) and that we can do nothing without Jesus (John 15:5).  If we believed you could not be righteous enough for the Lord’s coming then at what point are we guaranteed that transport to heaven and at what point are we not?  There’s no way a person can know so that would produce constant anxiety in the believer when we are called to Christ’s peace and being rooted in God’s love (Col 3:15; Eph 3:17-19).  

So what do we say about some believers missing the Rapture?  I believe the Lord will take all believers in Christ home to heaven and deal with each one at the Judgment Seat of Christ (Rom 14:10; 2 Cor 5:9-10; 1 Cor 3:11-15).  Some will be rewarded and others will only have the reward of heaven because they had a saving faith but failed to do any works for Christ.  How sad would that be to not have any commendation from our Lord.  How much better to live for Jesus and hear Him say:  (Mat 25:21) His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord. 

Though it seems all believers will be raptured, all make-believers will not!  (Mat 7:21-23) “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.  22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’  23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ 

Louie

PARENTING TIPS FOR DADS

 

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP 

PARENTING TIPS FOR DADS 

(Eph 6:4) And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. 

Being a dad is one of the greatest experiences in the world.  You hold in your arms a baby that will grow and become their own person.  Everybody tells you don’t worry and it’s natural and you’ll figure everything out but every dad wonders if they have what it takes to raise a child correctly.  What if I mess up?  How do you know what to do?  How can I give the child the guidance he or she needs?  Let’s encourage dads with advice from the apostle Paul.  

Notice how the apostle Paul addresses the fathers.  Fathers represent the head of the family on whom rests the main responsibility of child rearing and discipline.  (1 Cor 11:3) But I want you to know that the head of woman is man…(Eph 5:23) For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church…  Men, it’s so easy to relegate the authority of the home and children to the wife because moms are so naturally gifted by their nurturing instincts.  But don’t default to this brothers.  If God has called you to fathering then He’ll give you what it takes.  Just pray for wisdom every day (Jms 1:5) and you will be gifted by the Spirit to raise that child and make the decisions you need to make for his or her growth and future. 

Paul then goes on and says to not provoke your children to wrath.  This means to not discipline them too harshly by means of unreasonable demands, petty rules, ridicule, favoritism and the like. (This will also create tension between you and your wife.)  You can also exasperate you children by means of being too lenient with them and never drawing the line or following through with your warnings.  Either way creates anger in the child that will be acted out and will eventually come back to bite you.  Keep on top of your child’s behavior and remember discipline is loving correction and not punishment as an anger outlet. 

Then the apostle says to bring them up.  This means to nourish tenderly.  Children should be objects of tender, loving care and treated in such a way that the children will want to obey.  Men, our wives have that tenderness thing down but we struggle with roughness because we are men.  Therefore we must memorize and exercise the nine fruits of the Spirit beginning with love (Gal 5:22-23).  Next, dads are instructed to train their kids.  This is an overall term that speaks of the time it takes to train children in every area of life taking in the practical, ethical, and educational.  This takes a lot of time but it’s so worth it as you see your child grow and develop and bring you tons of pleasure.  Finally Paul says to admonish.  To admonish means loving verbal correction when called for.    

All this is to be done in the Lord because dads, we can’t do it ourselves!  But we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.  We can do this dads!  Let’s enjoy the children God has given us and watch for the rewards along the way as we raise godly kids for Christ! 

Louie

WHY DOES GOD FEEL FAR AWAY?

SHEPHERD TO SHEEP 

WHY DOES GOD FEEL FAR AWAY? 

(Jer 23:23) “Am I a God near at hand,” says the Lord, “And not a God afar off? 

There are many times when a child of God will feel far away from God.   When God used to be closer than a brother why does He sometimes feel like a stranger?  What causes this feeling and how can a believer get that sense of nearness back?  Let’s examine this important question in the light of scripture so that sense of intimacy with Christ may be reestablished in our lives.   

First of all we must ask ourselves if there is a blockage in our spiritual life that is causing the feeling that God is occupying another universe.  Consider these verses: (Isa 59:1-2)  Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face from you, So that He will not hear.  (Psa 66:18) If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear.  Is there something in our lives that is grieving the Holy Spirit whereby we will sense a distance between the us and the Lord?  (Eph 4:30) And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  If so, let’s fess up and get it right so we can feel right!  Nothing is as important as staying close to God.  Whatever we have to let go let’s do it!!   

Another reason for God feeling far away is perhaps our emotional state has been centering on the negative.  It could be that we have let doubt and fear take over our lives.  Maybe we have been overtaken by the banditos of anxiety or depression that have robbed us of the blessings God has intended for us.  When we are low on faith it seems we are high on that sense of being abandoned and lacking the presence of God.  Faith puts us in touch with the Lord.  Just a small mustard seed of it can make us good-to-go.  When we express faith it turns everything around. We tell God we believe in him and with His help we are going to stop being so full of bad vibrations that kill the sensation of intimacy with Him.  (Mark 5:36)…“Do not be afraid; only believe.” 

Consider also that sometimes we are too attuned to feelings in the Christian life.  The Christian life sometimes boils down to sheer faith.  Maybe it’s just a trial you are going through that deprives you of that Christian bubble you have been in and have started to rely upon.  Pop!  Now you must learn to operate by motion instead of emotion.  (2 Cor 5:7) For we walk by faith, not by sight.  It could just be that the Lord is testing you if you will follow Him without the goose bumps and giddy excitements that keep us on Cloud 7.  When all that blows away will you really follow Jesus?  (Mat 13:21) yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while. For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Our faith is supposed to be deeper than that!   

Here’s a promise for all who desire to come closer: (Jms 4:8) Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.  May the nearness of God be yours today!   

Louie