1 Peter Bible Study #14: God’s Plan For God’s Church

This evening we enter the homestretch in our study of 1 Peter and have the opportunity to look at one of the best passages in the Bible at describing the responsibilities of a pastor - Biblically, an elder. Can I tell you all a secret? I grew up in two large SBC churches, FBC Springfield and FBC Ozark, and I had never heard of an elder before other than someone being what? Old. I remember as a 4th or 5th grader, I read this passage for the first time that I could remember it and I was confused to say the least because I came across this elder telling other elders to shepherd their church well. I was confused because my pastor, at the time, was a middle aged pastor, not what I would consider an “elderly” person. The older I got, the more I realized that in Baptist life, we have done a massive disservice to our people by not using Biblical names and Biblical labels. In the New Testament, we have 2 offices in the church. What are they?

Overseers

Deacons

Not pastors and deacons, overseers and deacons - 1 Timothy 3. What of these overseers? What do they do? They oversee what is happening in the church. They lead the church. They guide the church. How do they do this? By pastoring or shepherding the sheep. Turn to Acts 20 to see this parsed out about as clearly as possible as we seek to get the best understanding of this as possible. Acts 20:17

Acts 20:17 CSB

17 Now from Miletus, he sent to Ephesus and summoned the elders of the church.

Paul summons the elders (plural) of the church and they come out and Paul gives them this charge

Acts 20:28 CSB

28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.

To the elders, he says, be on guard and for the flock which God appointed you as overseers to do what? Shepherd them. We see all 3 terms of this person in one verse. Pastors, Elders, Overseers = the same person. Some churches call these people elders and they’re not automatically Presbyterian. Some of my best friends are elders at various churches and they don’t “Rule” their churches - they lead them as the Bible commands. Other churches like ours have a pastor. What do these elders or pastors do? How many should there be? Why did God design His church with these leaders? Let’s dive into 1 Peter 5:1-5 to see God’s plan for His Church!

1 Peter 5:1–5 CSB

1 I exhort the elders among you as a fellow elder and witness to the sufferings of Christ, as well as one who shares in the glory about to be revealed: 2 Shepherd God’s flock among you, not overseeing out of compulsion but willingly, as God would have you; not out of greed for money but eagerly; 3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. 5 In the same way, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. All of you clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.

The Elder’s Role: Lead the Flock (1-2a)

Remember what we’ve seen in recent weeks during this study. Peter is addressing Christians who are suffering and persecution is ramping up. Whenever persecution rises and we’re confronted with problems and difficulties, it’s easy to get afraid and fail to do what we know we should do. We’re prone to wander. Following these 2 chapters on Christian suffering, Peter comes to chapter 5 instructing the leaders of the church on how to lead a church that is in the midst of persecution, trials, challenges and how to lead with the End in sight. In light of this context, 1 Peter 5 is incredibly timely for churches and pastors alike in our world as we find ourselves facing trials, challenges, and varying levels of persecution as well. In this strange world, what does the church need? Obviously, we need Jesus! But what is Jesus’ plan for His church? First we see to have elders that lead the flock.

Peter exhorts the elders of these churches in Asia Minor and he calls himself a fellow elder and witness to the sufferings of Christ and one who shares in the glory about to be revealed. Peter is sympathizing with these leaders. He understood the challenges of leading. As one commentator put it, “Peter is not asking them to do anything that he himself is not also doing.” He grounds his hope in the return of Jesus Christ as His glory will be revealed. This is our hope as the Church, isn’t it? That Jesus will come back and all the sufferings that we face in this life will fail to measure up with the glory that is to be revealed to us on that day.

Peter is identifying with these people and his charge in verse 2 is simple: Shepherd God’s flock among you.

Whose flock to elders lead?

God’s!

This is so important! We live in a day and age where people often build their personal kingdoms and ministries around themselves and this is incredibly dangerous for a number of reasons, but chiefly, it’s not about us in the first place. I’ve heard this phrase a number of times: “My ministry”, “My program”, “My this, my that…” - the ministries in this church aren’t ours. They’re God’s! We all play a part in the ministry of this church. The leaders of this church lead in certain areas, but this church is God’s! God invites us into this community of believers to become a part and belong and we can honestly say that FBC Salem is “My Church” but whenever we say that we’re not saying that we own it - we’re saying that we’re apart of it. We know that this church belongs to God. The believers of this church belong to God, not to a particular shepherd. Have you seen the danger whenever people follow a leader alone? I had this conversation with a friend at MBTS last month, the senior pastor of one church in the community left under not the best of terms and went to a church a town away, guess what happened? Hundreds of people left one church to join the other because they were following the leader. The flock belongs to the Lord, not the leader.

What comes to mind when you think of a pastor shepherding his flock?

Leading, Protecting, Providing. Rightly dividing the Word

This picture shows up in the New Testament only a few times, but it’s powerful as we know that shepherds in this culture protected their sheep with their lives. This means that the shepherd had to lead and direct the sheep to keep them out of danger and to take them where they need to go in order to grow and eat and thrive. Think of what Jesus told Peter in John 21: Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep. How are sheep fed? Through the Word of God. This is why our first church value is Christ-Centered Preaching. This is the thing that Jesus expects from His pastors and this is what churches need from their pastors. Pastoring is more than preaching, but preaching is a vital part for every single God-called pastor because it is how we shepherd.

If the elder is to shepherd the flock, what does that mean about non-elders in the church? The illustration is that they are sheep. Now, that doesn’t always go over very well, but God does this to show us how He is ultimately our shepherd and how His church operates in line with the way that He leads His Church.

Why do some resist the leading of pastors?

Stories of abuse, corruption, and incompetence scar people

In the last 20 years, trust in US Pastors has hit an all-time low, going from nearly 70% to 32% in 2023. We are hardwired to trust in self and resist authority and instruction - yet this is what God has designed in His Church. One of the questions I asked the search team in the interview process was this: Who Leads FBC Salem? Some churches say that deacons lead. Some say that the congregation leads. I have friends in churches like that and those churches restrict the pastor from shepherding. Both of those are completely wrong according to the New Testament. I was thankful when I heard that FBC Salem was Pastor Led. God has designed His church to be led by pastors/elders/overseers, served by deacons, and approved on by the congregation. Elders who know they are not Christ are better shepherds. Congregations that know their pastor is not the Head of the church are thankful for and eager to be led by this leader who faithfully teaches the Word.

The Elder’s Responsibility: Love the Flock (2b-3)

Peter takes time to dive into these leaders and what God calls on them to do - he shares 3 things about these leaders who the flock can trust and follow.

Pastors Lead, Protect, and Provide - not under compulsion but willingly

In one of the main texts concerning the Biblical qualifications of a pastor, 1 Timothy 3, we see that to be an elder there is an aspiration factor. In other words, there are some people who fit the criteria of being able to preach and teach the Word and they fit the character qualifications but they lack the aspiration. That person cannot be an elder because they would serve under compulsion. As a church, we must align ourselves with God’s Word and God’s Will - this means that the pastor must lead, protect, and provide oversight not because other people are begging for this, but because the pastor is accountable to God for this action.

Pastors Lead, Protect, and Provide - not shamefully but eagerly

This isn’t saying that pastors should not get compensated or paid, 1 Timothy 5:17-18 argues strongly the opposite! The issue is regarding “shameful gain” and we can think of examples where this takes place as pastors are in ministry to make a buck. This doesn’t always start out this way, but over time greed can rear its head and the focus can shift from eagerness to preach the Word and to use what God provides to further His Kingdom to instead using what God provides to build one’s own kingdom.

Pastors Lead, Protect, and Provide - not domineeringly but through Christ-like example

The final responsibility is to love and not abuse the flock. We see power corrupt left and right. We see it in politics, in business, but we must not see it in the church! The elder is to model Christlike behavior to the flock - not to domineer or dictate over the flock.

Biblically, pastors don’t lord over their people, they lovingly lead their people. This is a weighty task which is why in the New Testament we see over and over that churches have multiple pastors/elders/overseers because one person can’t do everything. The idea of there being a CEO who leads the church is a business idea but not necessarily a New Testament one. This mindset can lead to burnout or abuse real quick. This is why we see these reminders in the Scripture regarding the qualifications of an elder and what the church should expect of their pastor. You should expect someone to love you enough to tell you what the Bible says and to seek, though imperfectly, to live it out.

What are some horror stories you’ve heard whenever Pastors fail to lead, protect, and provide?

Abuse

Splits

Think Mars Hill style

I’ve met some pastors and I’ve read about pastors who got into ministry because they love to preach. I’ve met others who got into pastoral ministry just because they love power. But Biblically, the pastor is to love those to whom he preaches - He is to love his people! FBC - this must be your expectation and I pray that you know that you are loved.

The Elder’s Reward: 2 Words from the Lord (4)

In a world where people dislike authority, have the spiritual gift of criticism, and backbite like non-other, who on earth would want to be an elder? Spurgeon once shared it like this, “If you can imagine yourself doing anything other than ministry, you must do it. But, if you can’t imagine yourself doing anything other than pastoring the church God entrusts to you, you must do it.” The elder looks ahead to the end of all whenever the Chief Shepherd returns and gives to him a crown and says, “Well Done.” This is the reward! Encouragement from your sheep is a blessing. But the ultimate reward is heavenward. This is the motivation in difficult days. Do you believe that we’re living in some difficult days? This is the context Peter is writing to in 1 Peter. In difficult days, we need encouragement.

How does this promise from Jesus in Matthew 25:23 (Well Done Good and Faithful Servant) encourage us during this life?

We remember what matters most of all

We remember that Jesus see’s what no one else does

We remember that His reward is eternal

The image of a crown is common in the 1st century world but this isn’t a crown studded with jewels and diamonds, this is an unfading crown - literally a wreath. This is the only time this expression of crown is linked with glory in the whole New Testament, even though we see crown language often. The faithful pastor who fulfills these responsibilities receives this crown from the Great Shepherd. Faithfulness is not measured in clicks, likes, subscriptions, book contracts, building campaigns, or pats on the back - faithfulness in ministry is measured in obedience to Christ and submission to His Word.

The Member’s Response: Follow Godly Leaders (5)

Now we conclude with verse 5, the end of this passage on God’s plan for His Church and we see that God wants to see His Church be healthy. He wants His Church to function and operate a certain way. He has ordained this. He deserves this. He does this for our good! The last few weeks we’ve been looking at values that Jesus has for His Church - what is important about seeing what Jesus expects of His Church in the Bible?

Jesus determines what we do and what we value

Jesus’ expectations are not always what other people thing

The Bible values things that our world does not value

We’ve seen the last few weeks that a healthy church has Christ-Centered Preaching, Congregational Praise, Consistent Prayer, this Sunday we’ll see how we must have Collective Gospel Proclamation, and finally Community Passion. These are marks or values of a healthy church. In verse 5, we see a mark of a healthy church and that mark is that the church will follow its followable leaders. Immediately, we have issues because we prefer to lead and not to follow. Yet, what we have to realize is this: Whenever we follow our leaders who are faithfully following Christ, who are we really following? We’re following Christ. In other words, Christ has all authority, He ordained and planned for His church to have leaders and He gave those leaders pastoral authority over their respective flocks for a period of time. To follow God’s plan and be subject to our leaders and to obey and submit to them is one way that we honor Christ because obeying our God-given leaders is to obey our Christ.

Remember back in Hebrews 13 we saw this reality?

Hebrews 13:17 CSB

17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.

Again, this isn’t easy and some automatically jump to what the preacher of Hebrews didn’t take the time to include: Exceptions where we don’t have to obey or submit. Yet, this is there for our good and God’s glory. This is the response of the Christian to what God has done. God has provided elders/pastors/overseers to keep watch over our souls. These people exercise spiritual oversight and the natural response is for those who are being watched over to submit to these leaders.

Why is this a struggle at times within the church?

The phrasing of the text isn’t entirely clear as Peter shares, you who are younger be subject to the elders. Can we be honest with one another? 90% of y’all are older than this guy. If Peter is using the word elder to mean an older person then we’re in trouble with the Word of God here - but that’s not the wording. The word is Presbutros - the office of elder. The point he is making is that pastors follow their chief shepherd and the under shepherds that Christ calls to lead his church are to lead people who subject themselves to their pastors. Sometimes there are decisions that are made that we don’t like. I’ll be the first to tell you that I’d much rather be liked than disliked if those are the only 2 options - and if there’s something that happens that you don’t like - my door is open about 98% of the time and you are always welcome to come and talk. My ultimate desire as an elder/pastor/overseer is to be faithful to Jesus. Sometimes being faithful doesn’t mean that you get to make everyone happy. So what do we need as a church, what do I need as a leader? Humility towards one another. You know who makes mistakes? Your pastor. We all do. This is why we all need humility. We are prone to wander and prone to be prideful. The antidote to this is to clothe ourselves with humility and to consider others as more important than ourselves

Philippians 2:3–4 CSB

3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others.

This is so important, especially as we live in days that are hard. There is so much division. Hatred. Persecution. Meanness. Sinfulness. Outside the church these things fester - we must squash them in this church. How do we do this? By getting really really really low. Through humility. By considering others as more important than ourselves. Not just on Sunday or not just once a month. Daily. This starts with your pastor. Leading with conviction and boldness, but also with humility. We all need this because this is what God’s plan is for His Church! When we do this, God gives grace to those who are humble.

As we continue in difficult times, let’s do so with humility and expectancy. God is at work. He hasn’t abandoned us. We’ll talk about this on Sunday - we’re among the top 5% of SBC churches in regards to baptisms right now. We’re seeing new members and spiritual growth left and right. Do you know what the worst possible thing to happen right now would be? For us to get comfortable, complacent, or criticizing. We need to pray for one another. We need to pray that God would continue to work as He has been and pray that He would continue to work and we would be ready for what He has in store for His glory and our good!

God is graciously adding to our church and building His Church as He promises to do. He is adding people that meet these qualifications of Elders/Shepherds, He is adding people that desire to serve in this church. He is adding people that desire to teach and minister in all sorts of areas in this church for His glory. This is God’s plan. You are a part of it! Your church family needs you to do your part and minister to the rest of the body for God’s glory and the good of this community. Let’s do things God’s Way, everyday! Let’s let the Word do the Work and let’s trust in God’s authority to do exceedingly above and beyond anything that we could imagine.

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