What Is A Biblical Pastor?
Notes
Transcript
Candidate For Pastor
Candidate For Pastor
I’m not sure what you are supposed to preach at a time like this
so I am going to tell you what a pastor should look like
What does the Bible say one looks like
we are looking at 1 Peter 5 1-4.
Here we are finding some instructions from Peter
Who recieved his commissioning from Jesus as they walked on the beach
And Jesus asked him do you love me? 3 times
and 3 times Jesus said to Peter feed my sheep, feed my lambs, tend my sheep
Read passage
Pray
Fellow Elder
Fellow Elder
V 1
Peter calls himself a fellow elder
The Apostle Peter, the one who was taught by Jesus
one that Jesus took up on the Mount of transfiguration
one that healed the cripple
the famous one who said “you are the Christ”
the only one besides Jesus to walk on water
the author of 2 books of the Bible
we have here a very famous christian who could be held in high regard
But he calls himself a fellow elder
What is an elder?
The word Presbuteros in the Greek
in the congregation could mean someone mature in the faith
someone who is elderly
also means Pastor/ Shepherd
some churches have a elder board
This church has the same called a deacon board
Other names for elder is overseer or bishop
The pastor is considered an elder of the church
1 Timothy 3 1-7 gives the qualifications of an Elder
And an Elder needs to..
Make every effort to present yourself approved to God, a worker having no need to be ashamed, guiding the word of truth along a straight path.
soo Peter has considered himself a fellow elder
thus a pastor of a church should not consider himself above others
the pastor is not better than anybody else either
So the Shepherd of a congregation is one of them
not above not below just a different role
Ephesians 4:11–13 (LEB)
And he himself gave some as apostles and some as prophets and some as evangelists and some as pastors and teachers for the equipping of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all reach the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to a measure of the maturity of the fullness of Christ,
Shepherd The Flock
Shepherd The Flock
V 2
A Shepherd has to shepherd his flock
Go to psalm 23
The shepherd needs to know his flock
what food to feed to make healthy
what do you know, what do you need to know
You will surely know the condition of your flock; your heart attends to the herds.
Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God which he obtained through the blood of his own Son.
sometimes a shepherd has discipline a young sheep by breaking the leg because it tries to run away to much
then he will tenderly set the leg and then carry the sheep until it heals
there is a bond that happens when the shepherd and the sheep is in close contact
so Church discipline is sometimes called for to be administered by the Elders
V 2 not by compulsion
it should not be drudgery, a off to the salt mines mentality
A pastor should never feel like he has to get another sermon ready, because its my job
this is something done out of love for the flock
V 2 KJV not for filthy lucre
no pastor should be rich, needs met but not rich
A pastor should not be doing it for the money
V 3 Be an example to the congregation
V 3 not lording over the people
again Peter is telling the Elders/ pastor not to be bossy
not to throw your weight around
but to be an example, be in the trenches digging along with them
a pastor is special but not special
V 5 says to show humility to the Elders
Study and Prayer
Study and Prayer
Clothe yourselves with humility/ Grace to the humble
A pastor cannot be a proud man
everything he has is given to him by God
His salvation, his desires, his life, his flock,
God owns everything
the only thing we bring into this life is our sin nature
we inherit our sin nature from our Ancestor Adam
we are born alienated from God, and fall short of the glory of God
but God has provided a way of salvation, it is through the blood of Jesus
if we repent and put our faith in the finished work of Jesus then we will be saved
from our sins
For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast.
anything that is good, comes from Gods grace
we are saved by God’s grace, but we need to also live by God’s grace
grace is given to the humble
a Pastors position requires a lot of grace
to be a Godly/Biblical pastor a person cannot be,
unless God gives him the grace and ability to do
this brings me to my last verse
Turn to Acts 6 1-4.
The apostles who were the first pastors in the church
saw that it was needful to select helpers to minister to the congregation
V 4 The apostles time should be devoted to prayer
and the study of the word
Gods word is the only source of authority in the Church
you have a good constitution and it should reflect what is in God’s word
the pastors life and the flocks life should be governed by what the scriptures say
if the Apostles thought this was important to study and pray
how much more important is it for an Elder
You are looking for a pastor.
keep these things in mind as you choose one for yourselves
I am here as a candidate to fill that position
can I always be this man that I described? no
not in my own power
I will have to stay humble , and rely on the grace of God