As I sat in the service last week watching all that was going on I found myself starting to drift off or back away from that which was going on. I was not so much daydreaming as I was experiencing an out of service experience if you will. After being in ministry for some 25 plus years I now find myself taking a seat and watching. This is an odd experience for any pastor. Sitting in the service is not what you do, you serve. We all know that there will be and are times when you go to visit a service or have someone speak at your church and you sit and listen to that which the Lord has to say. It is when you do so week in and week out that you begin to feel as if something is missing. Then again it is not so much that something is missing as it is a feeling of emptiness. That which you loved, that which has been your passion for so long has been taken away from you and life as you once knew it is slowly passing you by. You feel as if all you can do is just stand there and watch. Much like bystanders in a parade, you “ooh and aah” as the floats pass by but the time between each float you feel empty and emotionless.
The truth is that God does not want us to just sit and watch He wants us to work. He wants us to stay active and stay in the wok of the ministry. What most people do not realize is that preaching is just the cream of the ministry and takes up just a small part of that which they believe is the job of the pastor. Preaching is not the work of the ministry caring for the flock of God, that is the work. An old professor and pastor friend of mine used to say, “You can shake any given tree and 20 or more preachers will fall out of it but you have to look long and hard to find a man of God a man who will pastor the fold.” What he was referring to is that all believers are called in one way or another to preach the word. Many of the young men in churches today can preach a message or two. After all the definition of a preacher is one who proclaims the message of God. Preachers can be found almost anywhere and our churches today are full of them. Their passion is to proclaim the Word and they can do so with fire and passion but very few of them can pastor, very few are called into the part of the ministry.
What is missing in the church today are those who have a heart for the ministry who are called to “Pastor” the flock, to “Shepherd the flock” of God. The word pastor in the Bible is a translation of the Greek word “poimaino.” That is a fair definition but the true definition of “poimaino” means “to shepherd.” Just as literal shepherds care for and protect a flock of sheep, so likewise pastors are to care for and protect the congregation spiritually. We see this in 1 Peter 5:2, “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly;” In other words care for the flock of God, protect them as the precious gift that they are. Today we have it backward, so much concern is given by the flock for the preacher and the preaching of the word that they often overlook the position that they are called to which is to “Shepherd ‘poimaino’” the flock.
All who God has called to minister are to care for His bride of which the church is. Preaching is a part of that ministry but caring, protecting and maturing is the bigger and greater part of that call. It is with this complete understanding of the role of the shepherd that I can continue to pastor the flock of God. This is what God has called me and many others to do, we are to care for and protect His bride. We cannot all be the pastor of the church but we can continue to shepherd and be a part of the whole. We can minister to the flock by caring for them, maturing them, mending and restoring them as God would have us do while the preacher does the more public work of the ministry.
As we counsel and care for individuals and small groups of the church it is with the understanding that we are all a part of the whole. It is a chase bride that we are preparing for the Lord Jesus as mentioned in 2 Corinthians 11:2. In doing so we follow that which was mentioned by the apostle Paul in I Corinthians 3:6-7, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. (7) So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” In other words, some sow, some water but it is God who gives the increase. I was reminded of this thought the other day. It is a truth that we are all in this work together for the fulfillment of the Word and the work of God.
AS I sit here and reflect upon this I am reminded of a cartoon series called the “The Penguins of Madagascar,” In this series we find a group of penguins doing what they can to keep the zoo functioning smoothly. They do so behind the scenes. The “Skipper” (who is the lead penguin) has been know to say to the rest of his team after a task was done but did not want to be recognized, “Smile and wave boys, smile and wave.” We can and should do so as we do the work of the ministry that God has called us to do. As we faithfully fulfill the call of God in our lives and as the church moves forward it is our goal that He is to receive the Glory.
So when the task is done and the accolades are given, we simply and graciously stand at the side and “Smile and wave boys, smile and wave.” It is Jesus who is to get the glory; it is Jesus who deserves the praise.
The truth is that God does not want us to just sit and watch He wants us to work. He wants us to stay active and stay in the wok of the ministry. What most people do not realize is that preaching is just the cream of the ministry and takes up just a small part of that which they believe is the job of the pastor. Preaching is not the work of the ministry caring for the flock of God, that is the work. An old professor and pastor friend of mine used to say, “You can shake any given tree and 20 or more preachers will fall out of it but you have to look long and hard to find a man of God a man who will pastor the fold.” What he was referring to is that all believers are called in one way or another to preach the word. Many of the young men in churches today can preach a message or two. After all the definition of a preacher is one who proclaims the message of God. Preachers can be found almost anywhere and our churches today are full of them. Their passion is to proclaim the Word and they can do so with fire and passion but very few of them can pastor, very few are called into the part of the ministry.
What is missing in the church today are those who have a heart for the ministry who are called to “Pastor” the flock, to “Shepherd the flock” of God. The word pastor in the Bible is a translation of the Greek word “poimaino.” That is a fair definition but the true definition of “poimaino” means “to shepherd.” Just as literal shepherds care for and protect a flock of sheep, so likewise pastors are to care for and protect the congregation spiritually. We see this in 1 Peter 5:2, “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly;” In other words care for the flock of God, protect them as the precious gift that they are. Today we have it backward, so much concern is given by the flock for the preacher and the preaching of the word that they often overlook the position that they are called to which is to “Shepherd ‘poimaino’” the flock.
All who God has called to minister are to care for His bride of which the church is. Preaching is a part of that ministry but caring, protecting and maturing is the bigger and greater part of that call. It is with this complete understanding of the role of the shepherd that I can continue to pastor the flock of God. This is what God has called me and many others to do, we are to care for and protect His bride. We cannot all be the pastor of the church but we can continue to shepherd and be a part of the whole. We can minister to the flock by caring for them, maturing them, mending and restoring them as God would have us do while the preacher does the more public work of the ministry.
As we counsel and care for individuals and small groups of the church it is with the understanding that we are all a part of the whole. It is a chase bride that we are preparing for the Lord Jesus as mentioned in 2 Corinthians 11:2. In doing so we follow that which was mentioned by the apostle Paul in I Corinthians 3:6-7, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. (7) So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase.” In other words, some sow, some water but it is God who gives the increase. I was reminded of this thought the other day. It is a truth that we are all in this work together for the fulfillment of the Word and the work of God.
AS I sit here and reflect upon this I am reminded of a cartoon series called the “The Penguins of Madagascar,” In this series we find a group of penguins doing what they can to keep the zoo functioning smoothly. They do so behind the scenes. The “Skipper” (who is the lead penguin) has been know to say to the rest of his team after a task was done but did not want to be recognized, “Smile and wave boys, smile and wave.” We can and should do so as we do the work of the ministry that God has called us to do. As we faithfully fulfill the call of God in our lives and as the church moves forward it is our goal that He is to receive the Glory.
So when the task is done and the accolades are given, we simply and graciously stand at the side and “Smile and wave boys, smile and wave.” It is Jesus who is to get the glory; it is Jesus who deserves the praise.
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