Jump Start # 1269

1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 “But we request of you, brethren, that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you, and have charge over you in the Lord and give you instruction, and that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work.”

Our verse today reminds us of the importance of expressing our love and appreciation to others. Here, as Paul writes these words, he has a specific target for this godly affection. It wasn’t just to anyone nor to everyone, but, rather towards those who labor among you and have charge over you in the Lord.

The phrase “labor over,” could include apostles, preachers and many spiritual teachers. However, adding the expression “and have charge over you in the Lord,” narrows this list down to the overseers or elders within a congregation. I believe that is the target that Paul wants this affection pointed toward. The shepherds within God’s church. Paul identifies three things that they were doing and ought to be doing today: diligently laboring among you; having charge over you; giving you instruction. They were busy. Busy with the church. Busy with people. They weren’t praised for putting shingles on the church building, nor for paying bills on time, but instead, for working with people. They are laboring AMONG you. They have charge OVER you. They give YOU instruction. There is a “You” with all three of those expressions. That’s what they were doing. They were shepherding God’s people. They were feeding, guiding, leading and helping God’s people get stronger and closer to the Lord.

This work has suffered in too many places. A lack of qualified leaders and more so, a lack of understanding what the leaders are supposed to do has left this important work undone or it falls to the preacher. The work of shepherding takes time. It takes effort. It takes thinking, planning, and being among the brethren. It is not sitting behind closed doors and managing. It’s not being a CEO or worse, a CFO of the church. The work is like parenting. It’s showing. It’s teaching. It’s explaining. It’s motivating. It’s warning. It’s helping. One of my sons called last night. He’s taking college classes. He wanted my input into a homework assignment. It’s been a while since I’ve helped the kids with homework. I was honored. It’s different now. I explained concepts and allowed him to run with it. It was guiding and helping him stand and think on his own. Shepherding is much like that. Of all the creatures and critters that God made, He says Christians are most like sheep. The church is called a flock, a bunch of sheep. Sheep can be a little dense at times. Sheep don’t run fast. They don’t have any attack mechanism that makes them to be feared. You’ll never see a “Beware of sheep” sign in a farmer’s pen. Bulls can be mean. Horses can kick. Dogs bite. Even cats can scratch if you annoy them.  But sheep, not too much going on there. They need help. They get lost easily. They get frightened easily. They can eat the wrong things. As the flock is moved, some don’t pay attention and can be left behind. Sheep need shepherds, especially in the open meadows of the first century world. The role of the shepherd was to protect the sheep. There are so many wonderful “shepherd-sheep” illustrations in our Bibles. Jesus is the “good shepherd.” “The Lord is my shepherd…” In Luke 15, the shepherd left 99 sheep to go look for the one lost sheep. A parable about salvation.

So the role of shepherds today is vital to the health and wellbeing of a congregation. Shepherds pick classes, schedules, guest speakers all with the flock in mind. They look at each person and attend to them and see what can be done to move them to the next level. Always praying. Always busy. Without them, most of us would drift. Without them, the congregation as a whole drifts. There is a sense of direction, assurance and confidence when godly shepherds are around. They can’t be bogged down doing things that others can do. Their work and time is too precious as it is devoted to the souls of that congregation. The preachers are out teaching and converting the lost. The deacons are serving where ever they can. But the shepherds, they are focused upon the people. Godly, righteous, spiritually minded people are want the shepherds are striving for.

Paul’s words are not addressed to the shepherds but to the congregation. It is our response to the work that they are doing. Paul tells the church to appreciate them and to esteem them very highly in love. Honor them. Pray for them. Thank them. Thank God for them. Help them.

Our attitude towards them either makes their work easy or hard. We can complain. We can ignore what they are wanting from us. We can be stubborn. We can fuss with them. We can argue. We can refuse to do anything. When that happens we suffer and the congregation suffers. We refuse to be nourished, strengthened and built up in the Lord. We remain the same. The church remains the same. Such attitudes are not godly and are not right. You won’t find God approving of that spirit in the Bible.

On the other hand, following Paul’s words, when we esteem them, honor them, respect them, it has an affect upon us. We see what they are saying. We become stronger, closer and more tuned in spiritually. The church grows. We grow. We recognize that they are helping us. We recognize what they are doing is right. Their work is hard. They, much too often, have to deal with a crisis, broken vows, broken promises, and broken lives. They have to pick up the pieces of the messes we’ve made. They put out the fires we created. They keep us going. Their work is constant. Their work is hard. Their work is the best in the world. They are changing eternity and influencing generations of families.

God bless the shepherds today. Those that are busy shepherding and not being deacons. Those that are not bogged down with buying sweepers, changing light bulbs and mowing the yard. That is the work for others. These men would do it because they have the heart of a servant. They’ve done those things in the past. But now, today, their work is geared toward spiritual leadership. They are charting a course toward Heaven. They are aware of obstacles. They know what supplies they need. They use all the resources that God allows them to accomplish this destination. With prayer and determination, they help us to keep going until there is no more going. They want Heaven for each of us and will not be satisfied until each of us are safely there. What a blessing it is to work with such leaders. Wise. Godly. Thoughtful. Careful. Visionary. Kind in their words. Generous with their time. Loving. Patient.

Until you’ve seen such in action, it’s hard to realize what you are missing. And once you’ve been around some like this, you never ever want to leave them. Have you prayed for the leaders in your congregation? Has your name been mentioned to be one such leader? Do you grasp what it means and the Biblical model of shepherding?

I have six powerful, spiritual and wonderful shepherds where I am at. They open the barn door and allow me to teach in any way possible. They are wonderful. My thanks and my heart is blessed to shepherded by: Dave, Bill, Larry, Jim, Lee and Brent. Powerful. Godly. Spiritual. Friends. Servants with the heart of Jesus.

Esteem them. Love them. Honor them. Appreciate them. This is the proper response to godly leaders.

Roger