SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/14/2014 9:07 AM
My Worship Time Focus: The Sheep’s
Responsibility to the Shepherd
Bible Reading & Meditation
Reference: 1 Thessalonians 5:12a-13
Message of the
verses: “that you appreciate those…and
that you esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Live in peace
with one another.”
Now before I begin this portion of my Spiritual Diary
today I want to quote something from John MacArthur’s earlier commentary on 1
Thessalonians that has to do with the subject from yesterday’s SD, and also
today’s SD. “Those called to be elders
in the church, who preach, teach and lead God’s flock, are entrusted with the
unequalled duty of proclaiming the gospel to unbelieving sinners, and bringing
those who believe and are baptized into the fellowship of the local
church. There the Holy Spirit will
sanctify them as they worship God in spirit and truth, submitting to the
exposition and application of Scripture.
Pastors also must intercede for their people through public and private
prayer, oversee the administration of the Lord’s Table so their people will
regularly confess their sins and renew their covenant of obedience, equip other
teachers and workers within the church, superintend and enforce church
discipline, and provide biblical counseling to the congregation. All of this spiritual work is to build up the
saints to maturity—‘to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness
of Christ’ (Eph. 4:13).
“The elder must be a
spiritual physician who can capably apply biblical cures to those vices and
heresies that might afflict members of his church. He also must be a tender shepherd who, while
feeding the flock, also heals their wounds, clams their fears, protects them
from spiritual dangers, and comforts them in their distresses. In short, he is to be a champion for biblical
truth (1 Tim. 4:12), a provider of spiritual resources (1 Peter 5:1-2), a
guardian and protector (Acts 20:28-31), and always a model of spiritual virtue
(1 Tim. 4:12), for all of which he is directly accountable to his Lord Jesus
Christ (Heb. 13:17; James 3:1).
“Even the uniquely gifted
apostle Paul asked the question, ‘And who is adequate for these thing?’ (2 Cor. 2:16). He realized that no man could effectively
discharge the immense obligation of spiritual leadership by human wisdom,
effort, and strength alone. He knew that
only God could provide the power to be an effective leader, although he
struggled with his flesh and found himself not doing the things he wanted to do
and doing the things he did not want to do (Rom. 7:14-25). God graciously gave him suffering and pain to
continually humble him and make him dependent on divine power (2 Cor.
12:7-10).”
“If Paul is the ideal human
model of one with a pastor’s heart, that is only because he carefully patterned
his pastoral ministry after that of Jesus Christ, who perfectly modeled the
pastor’s heart during His earthly ministry.
He was the ultimate example of affection for His sheep (John 10:11-16,
27-28), unselfishness for His disciples (John 13:3-17), compassion for His
people (John 11:33-44; cf. Matt. 23:37-39), protectiveness toward His lambs
(John 10:2-5), delight for His church (Matt. 16:18-19), gratitude for His
followers (Matt. 11:25-30), and intercession for His beloved children (John
17:6-26). That model of the shepherd’s
heart is the divine standard for all pastors today.”
This quote not only gives us some of the responsibilities
of Pastors but is also is a good model to use as a prayer guide for our Pastors
so that God will fulfill in the lives of our Pastors the things that are
written above. We must never neglect to
pray for the Pastor that God has sovereignty put over us.
In our SD from yesterday we went over the responsibility
that we as believers have to our Pastors and so there is no need in going over
it again, however I do want to quote something that was written many, many
years ago from a Puritan man named Richard Baxter and he wrote the following
concerning the importance of the pastor’s being able to teach the truth
effectively: I quote “To preach a sermon, I think, is
not the hardest part; and yet what skill is necessary to make the truth plain;
to convince the hearers, to let irresistible light in to their consciences, and
to keep it there, and drive all home, to screw the truth into their minds, and
work Christ into their affections; to meet every objection, and clearly to
resolve it; to drive sinners to a stand, and make them see that there is no
hope, but that they must unavoidably either be converted or condemned—and to do
all this, as regards language and manner, as beseems our work, and yet as is
most suitable to the capacities of our hearers.
This, and a great deal more that should be done in every sermon, must
surely require a great deal of holy skill.
So great a God, whose message we deliver, should be honoured by our
delivery of it. It is a lamentable
cause, that in a message from the God of heaven, of everlasting moment to the
souls of men, we should behave ourselves to weakly, so unhandsomely , so imprudently, or so slightly, that
the whole business should miscarry in our hands, and God should be dishonoured,
and His work disgraced, and sinners rather hardened than converted; and all
this through our weakness or neglect! How often have carnal hearers gone home
jeering at the palpable and dishonorable failings of the preacher! How many sleep under us, because our hearts
and tongues are sleepy, and we bring not with us so much skill and zeal as to
awake them! (The Reformed Pastor [1656; Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1974 reprint of 1862
abridgement] 70)
As believers in Jesus Christ we have the responsibility
of listening and obeying our leaders and to pray for them. We may not always agree with the minor things
that goes on in our churches, like the color of the drapes or some other thing
that when we think about does not mean a whole lot, but we still have these
responsibilities to do. Like we said
yesterday sin and Satan can bring great problems into our churches, but Christ
has promised that His Church will not fail, so we can hold onto that promise.
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: In my earlier
years as a believer I set under to great Pastors who are now both with the
Lord, and I must say that I did not pray for them as diligently as I should
have. Later we had two splits in the
church that I attended for 32 years and after leaving in the second split and
then going to a very wonderful church I have begun to realize the importance of
praying for our Pastors, and so I do so most every day, and am thankful for all
of them.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Continue to pray for our Pastors and leaders.
Memory verses for the
week: Colossians 3:1-5.
1 Therefore if you have
been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is,
seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set
your mind on things above, not on the things that are on earth. 3 For you died and your life is hidden with
Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is our
life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. 5 Therefore consider the members of your
earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed,
which amounts to idolatry.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “Obtain Mercy” (Matthew 5:7).
Today’s Bible
question: “Who said ‘I am a Hebrew; and
I fear the Lord, the God of Heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land?”
Answer in our next SD.
8/14/2014 9:55 AM
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