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EVEN SHEPHERDS NEED A SHEPHERD!
If your week has been like my week, you've had
a busy week. But I suspect none of us have had as busy a week as Pope Benedict
XVI. He flew to Washington D. C. on the Alitalia papal plane called "Shepherd
One" from Rome, celebrated his 81st birthday at the White House, discussed
international affairs with President Bush in the Oval Office, met with the nation's
bishops, prayed with the victims of sexual abuse, celebrated an open-air Mass
at a packed baseball stadium, gave a speech to Roman Catholic college and university
presidents, made a plea for human rights at the United Nations, made a quick
stop at Park East Synagogue to offer greetings as Passover approached, and delivered
a speech to a group of Christian leaders.
In just three days, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
of this past week, he soothed the wounds of those who have been victimized within
the Catholic church, reminded Catholic Bishops of what their role ought to be
within the church, addressed politicians and diplomats in regards to the human-rights
issues facing this world, and encouraged spiritual leaders not only within
within Judaism but within the church as we know it.
In regards to the latter he spoke as a shepherd
to shepherds. Now suppose for a moment that you had that opportunity. Suppose
you were given the chance to address a group of church leaders such as Pope Benedict
did on Friday night. As a shepherd addressing other shepherds, what would
you say to them about shepherding the flock? What are the characteristics
of a good shepherd?
Unfortunately, despite having the internet as
a wonderful resource, I was unable to bring up Pope Benedict's presentation to
those Christian leaders he spoke to on Friday evening. I do know, however,
from a brief statement in Friday's edition of the East Valley Tribune that, in
the course of his presentation, he evidently advocated holding the line on orthodoxy
within denominations.
In general, however, I don't know what Pope Benedict
said to Christian leaders on Friday night. But, I do know what Peter said
to the shepherds of the churches scattered throughout Asia Minor. For his
words are preserved for us in I Peter 5:1 - 4. We read:1
To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow
elder, a witness of Christ's sufferings and one who also will share in the glory
to be revealed: 2 Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care,
serving as overseers-not because you must, but because you are willing, as God
wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; 3 not lording
it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And
when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will
never fade away.
Here Peter is speaking as a fellow elder to other
elders. He is speaking as a shepherd to other shepherds. He is speaking
as someone who has learned, sometimes the hard way, what it means to be a good
shepherd. He is also speaking as someone who has personally witnessed the
suffering of Christ and fully expects to share in the glory that is yet to be
fully revealed.
It needs to be noted that when Peter maintained
that he fully expected to share in the glory that was yet to be fully revealed
he was also saying that he had shared in, and was willing to share in, the suffering
of Christ. That is, he was done with sin and as a result had suffered,
and would suffer, at the hands of the world. So he spoke as a committed
believer with a good deal of experience under his belt.
In addressing these "fellow elders" the
first thing he told them may surprise you and you may miss seeing it. He
told them to "be shepherds." But aren't they already shepherds? Sure! But
even shepherds need shepherding and sometimes, first and foremost, they need
to be reminded that they are to "be shepherds." They need to
be reminded because even shepherds go astray at times.
Here is how Henry Brandt put it in a short little
film called "Follow Through".
It was a sheep and not a lamb that went astray
in the parable that Jesus told. It was a grown up sheep that wandered
astray from the 90 and 9 in the fold. And out on the hilltop and out in
the cold it was a sheep that the Good Shepherd sought. And back to the
flock and the fold it was a sheep that the Good Shepherd brought.
Now why should the sheep be so carefully fed and
cared for today?
Because there is danger that if they go wrong
they will lead the lambs astray for the lambs will follow the sheep you know,
wherever they wander and wherever they go. And if the sheep go wrong it
won't be long before the lambs are as wrong as they.
So still with sheep we must earnestly plea, for
the sake of the lambs, even today. If the lambs are lost what a terrible
cost some sheep will have to pay.
So Peter acted as a shepherd over the shepherds
knowing full well they were but sheep themselves. So the first thing
he told them is to "be shepherds." In practice this means
at least four things.
First, a good shepherd is someone who feeds the
flock. An elder ought to be someone who has the ability to open up the
Word of God and feed others. Obviously, this may mean they have the ability
to fill the pulpit on any given Sunday, or every Sunday, and preach. But
in practice this would hardly be true of most elders. Nevertheless, it
is incumbent upon elders to feed others - whether it is as a teacher, a small
group leader, or as someone who in one-on-one situations simply opens up the
Bible to share insights, to correct, or to even rebuke those under his charge.
Second, a good shepherd protects the flock. An
elder ought to be mature enough to recognize false teaching as such and be courageous
enough to expose it as wrong-headed. In our day this includes Jehovah Witnesses',
Mormonism, the cynicism of postmodernism, the occult, and Islam.
Third, a good shepherd ought to love members of
the flock deeply. After all, you can't export what you don't possess. If
you don't show that you genuinely care for those under your charge you cannot
expect them to care about themselves or others. Loving others deeply, of
course, plays itself out in a hundred different ways. It may mean taking
a meal to someone, dropping them a note, knowing their name, spending time with
them, or taking out your wallet and giving of your financial resources.
Fourth, it means leading the flock through the
good times and the bad times. Obviously, this means leading by example
and being personally involved in the lives of others. But it also means
getting yourself involved in the nuts and bolts of the local church. In
Peter's day, it also meant that when others were inclined to scatter you stayed
put so as to be where you needed to be in times of need.2
After commanding them to be shepherds, Peter turned
his attention to a few intangible qualities that make all the difference in the
world. After all, it is not just what you do but how and/or why you
do what you do for others. Consequently, Peter gave three pearls
of wisdom for anyone considering serving as an elder lest they make life miserable
for those being served as well as themselves.
Pearl # 1: Serve not because you must, but
because you want to please God.
So what difference does it make? That is,
suppose you are visiting someone in the hospital. Does it really make a
difference as to whether you are doing it under compulsion or doing so willingly. In
practice what difference would it make?
Well, halfheartedness doesn't get the job done! Those
who are halfhearted tend to grumble which not only adds stress to their life
but doesn't do the patient any good either. For like it or not, halfheartedness
shows up in our posture, in our attitude, in time given, and in our words. It's
like saying to the one in the hospital, "Look, I don't have time to be here
and don't want to be here. Furthermore, I really don't even know what to
say to you so let me pray with you so I can get on with what I really need to
do today."
I think Saul, as Israel's first king, served halfheartedly. Which
was too bad because it showed up in every facet of his reign. He didn't
give sufficient energy to what really needed to be done in the kingdom. He
was miserable which meant he didn't like himself and he didn't like anyone else
either. But what is worse than the horizontal realities is that he didn't
really pay close attention to God's leading in his life. Sure, he went
through the motions of being a king over God's people but he never fully obeyed
God.
Pearl # 2: Serve not for the sake of any
benefits or perks.
Most of us don't remember Rehoboam - Solomon's
son. He reigned for forty-one years but never set his heart on seeking
God. Instead, he set his heart on the benefits, the perks of being the
king of Israel. As a result, nearly everything within the kingdom was taken
away from him. Of course, very few blamed him for they would have done
the same thing themselves.3
In fact, in the early church this was how the
world tended to see those who served it. Paul, for example, was accused
on more than one occasion of serving simply to benefit himself. As a result,
he was careful to protect himself from such accusations.4
Pearl # 3: Serve not in a dictatorial fashion,
rather serve softheartedly.
Again, see Rehoboam. In the beginning of
his reign he was advised to lessen the burden his father had placed on Israel. He
was advised to be kindhearted to the people of Israel. But he rejected
this advice in favor of making life more miserable for those under his charge. As
a result, the kingdom of Israel was torn apart.
You see, some people knowing they are not leaders
try to act like leaders by making demands of others. This is not leading! It
is simply being bossy and quite frankly anyone can be bossy. But when it
comes to motivating people to move in a particular direction "bossy" doesn't
work well over the long haul. It wears you out and it wears everyone else
out too.
Finally, neither Saul nor Rehoboam were ever crowned
with glory. But those who serve the Great Shepherd well will be crowned
with a glory that will never fade!
1 We also know what Paul said to Timothy. For in
I Timothy 6:1 - 21 it is as if Paul pulled Timothy off to the side and said, "But
as for you flee evil, pursue goodness, take hold of eternal life, command those
who are rich in this present world not to put their hope in wealth, command
them to be rich in good deeds, guard what has been entrusted to you, and turn
away from godless chatter." At least this is the Readers' Digest
version of what Paul said to Timothy.
2 Peter also told them to serve as "overseers." This
is the Greek word from which we get the word "bishop." It is
the word episkopos found also in Acts 20:28 and I Timothy 3:1. It normally
refers to someone who has supervisory or administrative responsibilities. It
includes everything from seeing that the offering is counted and spent in a
proper manner to signing papers as required by the city and/or state. It
is being the umbrella man for the church.
3 See I Kings 12:1 - 24 and II Chronicles 10 - 12.
4 See Acts 20:33, I Corinthians 9:12, II Corinthians 12:14,
and I Thessalonians 2:9.
PETER: THE MAN AND HIS LETTERS 4/20/08 1
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