Sheep Need Leadership

SHEEP NEED LEADERSHIP

Acts 6:1-7, I Peter 5.1-6

S: Church Structure

C: Pastors

Th: A People with Purpose

Pr: THE ROLE OF PASTOR IS A MINISTRY OF SHEPHERDING AND LEADERSHIP.

?: How? How do we come to that conclusion?

KW: Matters

TS: We will find in our study of Scripture three matters that direct us in our understanding of the role of pastor.

Type: Propositional

The ____ matter is…

I. DEFINITION

II. ROLE

III. CONCERNS

PA: How is the change to be observed?

• Let pastors be shepherds.

• Let pastors be equippers.

• Be careful not to distract pastors from these matters.

• Get on board spiritually.

Version: ESV

RMBC 05 March 06 AM

INTRODUCTION:

ILL Pastor: sheep dog

On one particular Sunday, a certain pastor was giving a children’s message on the Twenty-third Psalm.

He told the children about sheep, that they weren’t smart and needed lots of guidance, and that a shepherd’s job was to stay close to the sheep, protect them from wild animals and keep them from wandering off and doing dumb things that would get them hurt or killed.

He pointed to the little children in the room and said that they were like sheep and needed to be guided and directed in their lives.

Then the pastor put his hands out to the side, palms up in a dramatic gesture, and with raised eyebrows said to the children, "If you are the sheep then who is the shepherd?" He was pretty obviously indicating himself.

A silence of a few seconds followed. Then a young boy said, "Jesus… Jesus is the shepherd."

The pastor, obviously caught by surprise, said to the boy, "Well, then, who am I?"

The little boy frowned thoughtfully and then said with a shrug, “I guess you must be a sheep dog.”

Well…

What is a pastor to do?

Have you ever wondered that?

I mean, after all…

Do they really work on more than Sunday?

This is a message about pastors.

And it is hard to write a sermon about pastoring without there being some kind of personal agenda, because this is really personal.

TRANSITION:

Today we are finishing a three-part series.

And…

1. We have been studying church structure.

We began this series because, this year, we had returned to the book of Acts.

As we came to chapter six, we found that the church was growing so much, it required some revamping structurally.

Needs were not being adequately met under the old system.

The apostles, in particular, needed help.

So, the development of deacons occurred.

In the first part of our series…

2. We have discovered that deacons have the ministry of service.

The apostles suggested that the church body find spiritual men that would be able to meet the needs of the poor.

But this was not the only need the apostles were going to have.

They could not be everywhere.

As the church grew, leaders were needed for each of these communities of new believers.

So, in the second part of our series…

3. We have discovered that elders have the ministry of leadership.

Wherever the church spread, the apostles appointed elders.

But it was not just the elders that did the appointing, but those that were also appointed, like Timothy and Titus.

The giving of these responsibilities assured the church of continuing leadership in successive generations.

We have studied the roles of deacon and elder.

Now we come to the third part of our series and the position that I fill before you – the role of pastor.

First, let me set the proposition for you, that…

4. THE ROLE OF PASTOR IS A MINISTRY OF SHEPHERDING AND LEADERSHIP.

The role of pastor is one of leadership.

But it does have an additional component to it.

It carries the responsibility of oversight and care of a specific people.

The pastor is a shepherd taking care of his sheep.

In regard to our series, though, a question is raised.

It is this.

5. QUESTION: Is the pastor an elder?

My answer to that is unequivocally – yes.

One of the points we made last week is that elders come in plural, and it is my understanding that pastors serve as members of that plurality.

Before we follow that line of thinking any further, let us understand where we are going in our study this morning.

For…

6. We will find in our study of Scripture three matters that direct us in our understanding of the role of pastor.

OUR STUDY:

I. The first matter is DEFINITION.

I have already alluded to this statement, but it is so important it bears repeating.

It is…

1. The pastor is a shepherd.

The Greek word for pastor is poimen.

Its meaning is simple.

It means shepherd.

And when it is used in reference to the leadership role, the metaphor continues for the church body.