More Than Just a Preacher
January 25th, 2008
(By John MacArthur)
What is the pastor’s responsibility, besides preaching and studying?
The answer to your question lies in the title you used—pastor. That title is rich with meaning and sets out the chief responsibilities of your minister.
One of Jesus’ favorite metaphors for spiritual leadership, one He often used to describe Himself, was that of a shepherd—a person who tends God’s flock. A shepherd leads, feeds, nurtures, comforts, corrects, and protects—responsibilities that belong to every church leader. In fact, the word pastor means shepherd.
Peter wrote these words to elders who would have been familiar with sheep and shepherding:
I exhort the elders among you . . . shepherd the flock of God . . . exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. (1 Peter 5:1-4)
To give you a more complete picture of your pastor’s role, here’s a look at the nature of sheep, the task of shepherds, and how they compare to the pastor’s role among the church. Note the principles of church leadership it contains—they determine what should fill your pastor’s schedule.
Shepherds Are Rescuers
A sheep can be totally lost within a few miles of its home. With no sense of direction and no instinct for finding the fold, a lost sheep usually will walk around in a state of confusion, unrest, and even panic. It needs a shepherd to bring it home.
And so when Jesus saw the crowds, lost, spiritually disoriented, and confused, He likened them to sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36). The prophet Isaiah described lost people as those who, like sheep, have gone astray—each one turning to his own way (Isaiah 53:6).
Like lost sheep, lost people need a rescuer—a shepherd—to lead them to the safety of the fold. A pastor does that by pointing the lost toward Jesus, the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11).
Shepherds Are Feeders
Sheep spend most of their lives eating and drinking, but they are indiscriminate about their diet. They don’t know the difference between poisonous and non-poisonous plants. Therefore the shepherd must carefully guard their diet and provide them with pasture rich with nutrients.
In His encounter with him described in John 21, Jesus drove home to Peter the importance of feeding the sheep. Twice in His command to Peter, Jesus used the Greek term bosko, which means “I feed” (vv. 15, 17).
The pastor’s goal is not to please the sheep, but to feed them—not to tickle their ears, but to nourish their souls. He is not to offer merely light snacks of spiritual milk, but the substantial meat of biblical truth. Those who fail to feed the flock are unfit to be shepherds (cf. Jeremiah 23:1–4; Ezekiel 34:2–10).
Shepherds Are Leaders
Peter challenged his fellow elders to “shepherd the flock of God among you” by “exercising oversight” (1 Peter 5:2). God entrusted them with the authority and responsibility of leading the flock. Pastors are accountable for how they lead, and the flock for how they follow (Hebrews 13:17).
Besides teaching, the pastor exercises oversight of the flock by the example of his life. Being a pastor requires getting in among the sheep. It is not leadership from above so much as leadership from within. An effective pastor does not herd his sheep from the rear but leads them from the front. They see him and imitate his actions.
The most important asset of spiritual leadership is the power of an exemplary life. First Timothy 4:16 instructs a church leader to, “Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.”
Shepherds Are Protectors
Sheep are almost entirely defenseless—they can’t kick, scratch, bite, jump, or run. When attacked by a predator, they huddle together rather than running away. That makes them easy prey. Sheep need a protective shepherd in order to survive.
Christians need similar protection from error and those who spread it. Pastors guard their spiritual sheep from going astray and defend them against the savage wolves that would ravage them. Paul admonished the pastors at Ephesus to stay alert and to protect the churches under their care:
Be on guard for yourselves and for 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. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. (Acts 20:28-30)
Shepherds Are Comforters
Sheep lack a self-preservation instinct. They are so humble and meek that if you mistreat them, they are easily crushed in spirit and can simply give up and die. The shepherd must know his sheep’s individual temperaments and take care not to inflict excessive stress. Accordingly, a faithful pastor adjusts his counsel to fit the need of the person to whom he ministers. He must “admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and be patient with all” (1 Thessalonians 5:14).
The Good Shepherd and His Undershepherds
Jesus is the perfect example of a loving shepherd. He epitomizes everything that a spiritual leader should be. Peter called Him the “Chief Shepherd” (1 Peter 5:4). He is our great Rescuer, Leader, Guardian, Protector, and Comforter.
Church leaders are undershepherds who guard the flock under the Chief Shepherd’s watchful eye (Acts 20:28). Theirs is a full-time responsibility because they minister to people who, like sheep, often are vulnerable, defenseless, undiscerning, and prone to stray.
Shepherding the flock of God is an enormous task, but to faithful pastors it brings the rich reward of the unfading crown of glory, which will be awarded by the Chief Shepherd Himself at His appearing (1 Peter 5:4).
If your pastor is faithfully carrying out the duties required in his job title, remember to follow this admonition of Scripture:
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you. (Hebrews 13:17)
(Today’s post adapted from this article, originally published by Grace to You)
God’s call upon us is in our hearts from the beginning of our ministry. That call seems to be as strong today even when you are not a pastor of a local church. The problem seems to be you are not the pastor of the church that you attend, but the desire is still there.
My father in law is seventy-five and he has the same desire, I am sixty with the same desire. The problem usually becomes a problem for the local church pastor.
Charles
God is praised in the obedient, humble hearts of all those who faithfully preach God’s Word. Thank God for His truth, His Word, for those who do preach it indeed.
How can some think we can do without it?!! Mind boggling.
I think it’s interesting to note all the attributes of a faithful shepherd stem from a deep and abiding love for his sheep. Love for God’s people should be the motivating factor in all a pastor is to do. The shepherd sacrifices his life so that the well-being of the sheep is preserved.
Another issue that arises is the question of how many sheep can a shepherd affectively tend? This is where I feel mega-churches often lose the shepherd/sheep relationship and substitute a more contemporary business-like model. Jesus used a parable of 100 sheep as a reasonable flock. Smaller churches (100 people or less) seem to retain a solid shepherd/sheep distinction. This seems a good figure to go by in preventing a shepherd from trying to gather in too many sheep, and failing to pastor them effectively.
“Love for God’s people should be the motivating factor in all a pastor is to do.”
I would think this is a secondary cause to the primary cause, which is love for Jesus.
Jesus said to Peter, “Do you love Me?” Peter says, “Yes Lord”.
Jesus says, “Then feed and tend My sheep.”
Surely pastors/elders have to have a fervent love for the church, and a tenderness for God’s people, and yet a strength in the soul to contend againstt the ministers of the devil, for they will show up, and they can be quite nasty.
Don,
I see where my words could be construed that way, so allow me to elaborate.
I mean to say that a pastor’s love for God’s people is the result of, or stems from, a love for God and a willingness to serve Him by serving His people. In other words, as far as a pastor’s work is concerning, his ministry should be motivated by a love for God that is manifest in a love for God’s people.
I fear that many “pastors” are motivated for selfish, rather than self-less reasons when entering the ministry. It has been said many men find ministry appealing because it’s an inside job with no heavy lifting. So, yes. A love for God, resulting in a genuine love for His sheep, is what being a shepherd is all about!
Blessings,
David R. McCrory
David,
You bring up a good point about the size of a church and the ability to properly shepherd a large flock (a mega flock!).
I think it’s certainly possible for a Pastor to lead a large church by discipling and commissioning other shepherds (elders) who then take care of several smaller flocks within the larger fold.
This is how MacArthur does it at Grace. The elders of the church shepherd the flock. John certainly is involved in this in a significant way. He also leads the elders by his own example. I think of the massive size of the Jerusalem church and how they led that flock.
Also, an effectively led church is going to grow and soon, it will be larger than 100 if that church is obeying the Great Commission, especially if it is loacted in a large city. So, from a purely practical standpoint, some churches with effective teachers like MacArthur will grow. It’s hard to justify turning people away.
On the other hand, there is a trend in evangelicalism today to use satelite campuses where one man’s messages are broadcast to a larger group. Seems to me that it’s impossible to shepherd people you cannot see.
What do you think?
Steve
Steve,
I think your comment illustrates the complexity of this issue. All I can offer is what I believe to be a sound biblical, as well as practical, opinion. No one really denies that super large churches struggle with discipleship problems. One prominent mega-church as recently & publically expressed their difficulties in this area. I think we can safely say that this lack of discipleship is largely a failure on the part of the leadership to shepherd properly.
The central concern I have is that I believe the pastor/elder should know their sheep intimately. He should be able to know when to rejoice when they rejoice, and when to mourn when they mourn. This personal touch, if you will, is what being a shepherd is all about. I understand the need for a plurailty of elders to share the burden of, not only shepherding, but in ruling the church. There is wisdom in many counselors.
But ultimately, if it is the calling of one man to pastor a flock, though some things can be delegated and/or handled by other elders, I don’t believe the church should be so large he has to try to pastor via a proxy.
As I have not been to Pastor John’s church, I cannot speak directly to their arrangement. But, as a rule, I’d prefer to see 10 churches with 100 people in them being intimately and personally ministered to by a shepherd who, knows their name, knows where they work, knows their uncle is dying of cancer, etc. than a church with 10 elders and 1000 people. I feel it is simply a fact, with numbers that large (and in many cases larger), people will invariably fall through the cracks.
This is because, no matter how many elders a church may have, the people always look towards that “first among equals”. It is this man, above all others, who is their shepherd. He needs to be accessable. He needs to be able to visit each and every one of his congregants in their homes frequently if needed, and certainly regularly. And maybe most importantly, as their shepherd, as the one who stands before them week in and week out administering the Word of God to them, and as the one who is accountable before God for the entire church, he needs to be able to pray intimately & passionately by name, for each and every one his sheep.
It is because of these principles, I believe no man is capable of affectively pastoring these large churches. And, likewise I understand not everyone will agree with this. But I do pray we take these things under consideration.
Great question, Steve. I hope this helps.
Some good points David, and some that every pastor worth his salt would struggle with. But is it the pastor’s responsibility to meet every need personally or to be sure (oversee) that the needs are taken care? We see an example of this in Acts 6:1-7 when the twelve could not meet the needs of the widows, which were being overlooked, and pray and minister the word. So deacons were chosen for the task. The Lord gave Moses an incredibly large flock to shepherd, and we see in Exodus 18 where Moses divided them to be overseen by groups thousands, hundred, fifties, and tens because there were too many for him to do it alone. In Ephesians 4:11-17 we see the saints being equipped for the work of service (ministry) for the building up of the body of Christ, and that it is the proper working of each individual part that causes the growth of the body. We see a similiar pattern in the gospels with the Lord and his apostles and how He trained and prepared them to take His place.
I think the key here is in I Peter 5:3 where Peter tells the elders not to lord over those “alloted to your charge.” It seems that God is sovereign even in the allotment of sheep to the shepherd. So some will have smaller flocks and some larger. It is then up to the pastor to faithfully shepherd those that the Lord has given to him, but in each case he is responsible for the oversight of his flock no matter the size; and if it is larger than he can handle personally, then he must select and train those who would be his undershepherds for he is still ultimately responsible for the welfare of the flock he has been given. We even see the parrallel principle for this in the parable of the talents, and we see this fleshed out in the gifting and talents of pastors.
Morris
Morris, those are some great points. Pulpit Mag. has some really sharp readers! Allow me to try to repond to some of what your wrote.
I think what you find in Acts 6 is the origination of the office of deacon for the expressed purpose of preventing the disciples (“elders”) from being distracted from their work in ministry. In other words, Yes. The Church is to divide up the responsibilies of ministry & service so that each servant can be given over to that which he is called to do.
It isn’t that the diaconate’s work is not under the authority of the church, but that by delegating those matters to spiritual men qualified to fulfill them, it continues to free up the time and effort of those called to other forms of ministry.
I am not opposed to a pluarity of leadership. If fact, it is the only biblical model there is, in the Old or New Testaments.
On the other hand, if we look to the ministry of Jesus here on earth, we see Him preaching and evangelizing to the multitudes, but shepherding and pastoring the twelve. He poured His life into the few, equipping them for greater and more fulfilling service, so that they themselves could minister to the many.
As undershepherds, I view this as our model as well. Our responsiblity is to preach the Gospel, bring them in, build them up and the send them out. But it is the willingness and ability of a shepherd to know his sheep both personally and intimately that allows for both mutual edification and accountability within the body of believers.
In summary then, a man who believes himself called to be a shepherd is to look to Christ, our Great Shepherd, as his example. The lives of Jesus and His disciples were closely & intimately interwined together. He ate, slept and prayed with those whom He expected to send out into the harvest fields. He loved them deeply and committed His life to teaching and serving them. So that, like the personal and intimate devotion to His disciples Jesus showed us, I believe pastors should, in turn, imitate Him.
Thanks Morris. I hope this helps.
Blessings,
David R. McCrory
We know that when the Bible says things two times in a row, it is for added emphasis.
You have most likely heard the story told of God talking to someone and saying…
Do you love Me?
Do you love Me?
Do you love Me?
If as a pastor, we truly do not love God, then it will unfortunately be seen in our preaching. We will not preach the Truth. The hard Truths that need to be preached. If we truly love God and His Word, to the best of our abilities, we will not tend the sheep, we will not feed them, we will not protect them, we will only be concerned about how large of a flock we can create. We will only be concerned about how much money we are pulling in. We will only be concerned about telling people that God loves them so they will not be offended. We will avoid, at all cost, the mention of sin and repentance. Do we love God? Did He die on the cross in vain?
thank you for the post. Let’s get the pastor’s back to biblical preaching.
A very fine article on the role of pastors as shepherds. On the other hand the most extensive passages dealing with pastors was completely ignored (1 Timothy 3; Titus 1). Could it be because it deals with qualifications. Qualifications which most who call themselves “pastors” do not meet?
Rick,
This was a blog adapted from the article. Actually, it was a response to a question from a GTY listener.
I can assure you that John MacArthur pulls no punches when it comes to the biblical qualifications of church leaders listed in I Timothy 3 and Titus 1.
You can’t cover everything in a single blog post.
Rick,
Wouldn’t you agree that in reality, if we are honest enough, no one meets the requrements set out for pastors?
You know, in seminary they really emphasize the preaching part, which is understandable. Stewardship of the Word is crucial and preaching skills can be developed in a lab.
However, where graduates are often lacking is in pastoral duties apart from the Word. This is where it’s crucial to learn from a mentor in seminary or at least get involved greatly in the local church.
Sadly, many of the smaller, “training ground” churches suffer through these guys and (perhaps inadvertently) give them their OJT education in these areas.
Often these smaller churches where these guys live & learn after making many mistakes are the unsung heroes of some who are great pastors (who can preach as well).
Dear Dr. MacArthur and/or Mr. Johnson, do you ever make personal visits to someone to counsel, console, confront,cheer? Do you ever make hospital, convelescent home visits? I really am not speaking of random,non-personal visitation, but of those from your church, those you know or family or friends of those in your circles?
I know it would be impossible to reach out to everyone who is suffering or needed a personal pastoral touch, but there must be times you feel led to care for the sheep in a personal way as a pastor.
K. Hays,
Thanks for your question. Yes, Pastor MacArthur makes hospital visits, as do our other staff pastors.
NB
Are there people called “pastors” without a wife or children? A domestic qualification yes, but a qualification nonetheless. Some may even answer why must he have a family? God replies… “(For if a man no know how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)”
Why would God give a qualification that cannot be met? A qualification is “a condition or circumstance that must be met or complied with.” If God puts a “must” on something, must it be met?
Not just to be contrary, I assure you.
Here is a random question. Are all pastors called to be the same? Just wondering. As I studied about Jonathan Edwards, he had actually stopped visiting his congregation. As he spent so much time in the Word and study/exposition. Is that acceptable now? As I am studying and finishing up my bachelor’s degree, and looking at seminary possibly. I question myself sometimes in the fact I more driven and prone to study than sometimes fellowship. I wonder if it will be I will be driven to be a teacher more than a pastor.
Rick,
I think that’s a fair question and I love to see people taking the Word seriously. But, did the apostle Paul have a wife or children? Isn’t it possible that the qualification that the man be husband of one wife is a qualification of his character and not of his marital status? Could a widower be an elder?
As for his household and unruly children, would you limit elders to those with children in the home? Certainly we should look at a man’s family, if he has one, and determine his fitness for being elder. But if he does not have children should that preclude him from being elder?
Michael,
The qualification of being the husband of one wife is a command for an elder not to be divorced and remarried etc., but it seems as if this qualification is assuming the fact that the man already has one wife. Paul was not married, but was he an elder in a local church? It seems that for Paul, marriage would have hindered his ministry, rather than complete it.
You asked, “As for his household and unruly children, would you limit elders to those with children in the home?”
The qualification of having ruled his household well/has his children in subjection seems to imply that the man indeed has children AND has kept them. If a man does not even HAVE children, he cannot have ruled well his own house, and cannot possibly handle the church. This qualification does not require that the man have children living at home, it requires that his household be in order. In other words, his children cannot be in rebelion whether in or out of his house.
In Christ,
Daniel Chaney