Grace Through Humility in the Family of God

The 24 hour news cycle doesn’t even seem to last 24 hours anymore, does it? News flies by at such a rapid pace that I can’t keep up. The best I can do right now is subscribe to a couple email newsletters that summarize headline news into bite-sized articles that try to present news in an unbiased fashion. But the problem with news and social media is that people want reactions right away. People want to either take a stance or want you to take a stance on an issue often with very little information.

How many times have you ever said something or known someone who said something only to later have to backtrack what they said as new information came to light? This is why I prefer to keep my mouth shut in the heat of things. There is an idiom called “eating crow” we use to describe the humiliation one might feel when his position is proven to be wrong. The idea is that eating crow would be about as repulsive as having to admit you were wrong. Both are hard to swallow.

Humility and grace are a cornerstone of the church. We can’t function without them. But often times we find that like those who take strong stances only to have to accept correction later, we have to accept a bit of humiliation, but in the process find grace in the family of God. The church functions like no other institution in the world, and grace and humility ought to be experienced in the family of God and serve as a model for everyone else.

We move into the final chapter of 1 Peter and he begins by providing some instruction to the elders of the church. We often use the terms elder or overseer as synonymous with Pastor. Peter is addressing specifically the leaders of the church, however that structure may have been set up. So for us, he is talking to someone like me.

1 Peter 5:1–5 NASB95

Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders; and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

Whether a Christian carries the title of Pastor or not, the Bible makes it clear that our lives are to be marked by humility. This passage helps us see how that should be played out in the life of the church. We are told in Scripture that a slave is no greater than his master, so we ought not think we are any greater than Christ. We are called not to think too highly of ourselves in Romans 12:3. But can humility be measured? How do we know whether genuine humility is being expressed? I think Peter gives us a glimpse in this passage.

Peter starts by exhorting the elders or pastors. To exhort means to strongly encourage someone to take an action. But before Peter tells them what to do, he lists some credentials. Now Peter doesn’t have to do this. He could just tell them what he is encouraging them to do. So why does he take the time to list these things about himself? I want to ask a question I want you to consider:

Who gets a vote in your life?

As you go about making decisions and contemplating courses of action, who are the people who are allowed to speak into that? Peter is listing out some things in verse one that serve as a reminder of his credibility. He is a fellow elder. This adds a level of relatability. He is one of them. He is doing the job they are doing. He knows what it is like. I don’t take advice from many people who don’t know what it is like to walk in my shoes. I get most of my pastoral advice from those who have been there before. He is also a witness to the sufferings of Christ. This whole letter has been about living the Christian life in spite of suffering. Peter has experienced this before. He watched Jesus go through it. He’s not just an outside observer. He’s a partaker of the glory to be revealed. He is also looking with anticipation to the future resurrection and the second coming of Christ. These things lend him a level of credibility and authority that allows him to speak into their lives.

Who gets a vote in your life? Who are the people who get to speak into your life? On what criteria is that based? You want people to speak into your life, but you need to be selective about who those people are. Not everybody gets to speak into your life and give you advice on the same level.

When I chose to move here away from my hometown for the first time in my life there was some nervousness. I could not know if it was going to work out. But nobody in my immediate family was consulted in the decision to move here. They don’t get a vote. They didn’t get to decide how far away I was allowed to live. They didn’t get a vote on when I could move. These decisions didn’t need their approval. You want to decide what the criteria are for people who get the privilege of speaking into your life.

Peter had all the credentials to instruct the elders of these churches. His instructions: Shepherd the flock of God.

The leader as shepherd motif is not uncommon in scripture. But surprisingly the Bible is more concerned with who a shepherd is over what a shepherd does. The usual qualifications of a pastor and shepherd found in 1 Tim. 3:1-7 and Tt. 1:5-9 are more about character than the work of a shepherd. One of the most clearest pictures of what a shepherd/pastor does is found in Ezekiel 34, but interestingly enough, Ezekiel is chastising priests for not following the standard laid out in the chapter. for our purposes today, we want to talk about the kind of pastor every church needs.

The church needs humble leadership.

Of all the other character qualities a pastor must have, he must be humble. Humility is a tricky thing. It requires that we constantly keep ego in check. It requires acknowledging who is really in charge of our lives. God gets the ultimate credit, but as we are partners in his work of reconciliation, it is difficult not to be proud of accomplishments we play a part in. But the church always wants to be on the lookout for humility in their leaders. Peter offers three characteristics of humble pastors.

First, A humble pastor serves willingly. Peter says the role of a pastor is that of an overseer. He is in charge of overseeing the ministry of the church as carried out by others in the church. The pastor is called out from among the sheep to then lead the sheep. This comes in the form of directing the sheep, feeding the sheep, protecting the sheep, and rescuing the sheep from trouble. This calling is one done from a willing heart, not under compulsion from another. The call to serve as a pastor should come from God alone but confirmed by others close to the called, then to the rest of the church. Anyone who has to be talked into serving in this capacity by others should be extremely careful. No one should do this job because people in his life told him that he should.

But that willingness is not just about in accepting the call. A pastor should continue in that attitude of willingness throughout his ministry. Speaking from experience, there are times where pastoral ministry can feel more like a burden than a joy. But what I can honestly say is that the thing that has kept me going is not a paycheck or the approval of other people. It is the desire to continue to minister to people regardless of the circumstances. This job is too hard to do it for any other reason. Every person who comes to me and says they think they are being called to ministry gets the same advice. If you think you can do anything else with your life and be satisfied, do it. Bit if you can’t escape it, then run to it with everything you have. The church needs to look for a pastor who has a willing heart for the job.

Secondly, a humble pastor serves selflessly. At the end of verse two, Peter says not for sordid gain, but with eagerness. In short, Peter is saying that the pastor of the church does not do what he does for himself, his own status, or his own glory. He does not use his position to make a name for himself, for greed, or any sort of motive that can be taken as self serving. Along with a willingness to serve, he must do so eagerly. An eager pastor is a selfless pastor. It does not mean he serves to the detriment of his own health and his own family, but an eagerness to serve without consideration for what he can gain is the goal.

The church ought to be able to evaluate whether the pastor(s) of a church are serving in the best interest of the flock or for themselves. There is a component of this that touches on greed. This has been a problem in the public sphere for a very long time. There are some who believe the pastor should be a pauper, and there are those who lead large affluent churches who live lives of luxury. But it doesn’t matter the size of a church or its budget. I have seen large church pastors live very modest lifestyles and I have seen pastors of small churches live like kings. The point of the text is that eagerness to serve should not be measured in what the leaders can gain from said service. A key question to ask is would the pastor continue to serve with the same kind of eagerness if the financial situation of the church changed?

Thirdly, a humble pastor serves as an example. In verse three, Peter says a pastor does not lord his position or God-given authority over the people, but serves as an example to the rest of the flock. The pastor of the church should serve as an example of Christlikeness for those he serves.

At the beginning of 1 Corinthians, Paul was writing about reports he had received of division among the church about leadership. They were divided along lines of who they followed as leaders. Some followed Peter, some Apollos, and some Peter, and the extra spiritual among them followed Christ. Paul wrote to remind them that it was Christ all those other men followed. This could be summed up well by what Paul said later in chapter 11:

1 Corinthians 11:1 NASB95

Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

Church leadership, whether good or bad, will paint a picture of Christlikeness for everyone else to follow. Yet the leader is not the center of the church. Christ is. For all the things I do well and the things that cause me to fall flat on my face, I am not the essence of godly leadership. Christ is. My hope is that I have provided an example of godliness worth following, but I echo the words of Paul. Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

How many of you have ever seen an image like the one where someone is sitting in a cart giving orders to the people pulling the cart and the are labeled “Boss?” hen there is another where the person in charge is at the front of the line helping the others pull the cart and they are labeled “Leader?” This is what it is like to live out godly leadership. A godly leader joins the church in the work of ministry, not dictating how ministry is to operate from a position of superiority. The church should evaluate as to whether the leadership operates as those who dictate ministry or lock arms with those they serve to help do ministry.

There is an attitude of many churches that says you can never question the pastor God has placed in charge. It may not be that we can question one’s calling, but my friends, the pastor needs accountability. If the pastor is not called to be accountable, he may fall out of one of these criteria at any moment, which will breed an unhealthy relationship between the pastor and church. So the pastor needs people who will humbly and graciously address things in his life, and the pastor needs to humbly and graciously receive that which is being called out. We all play for the same team and I want to be the best leader I can be. But sometimes that means I need people to lovingly address what they see as hindrances in my life. I can’t speak for other pastors, but I ask of you to have the courage to confront your pastor on things you think are a hindrance to the ministry.

So the church should look for humble leaders who serve willingly, selflessly, and as an example for them, which brings us to our last point:

The church humbly submits to its leaders.

The words “you younger men” that begin verse five can arguably be expanded to mean others in the church. While Peter certainly meant to shift his speaking to a particular audience of a particular age, it is not to communicate the idea that only those who are younger are in need of submission to church leadership. Unless the elders of the church are indeed the oldest people in the church, then it is inevitable that the elders serve those who are physically older, and the physically older are also responsible for submission to pastoral authority. Timothy was a young elder and Paul would have expected that men older than Timothy submit to his leadership in Ephesus.

The broader application of this verse is that when the church does have godly leadership, their duty to him is to humbly submit to the authority given to him by God. It might also be that you as the sheep in the metaphor also willingly and eagerly place yourself under the authority of the pastor. It is through this exchange that we carry out the idea of not thinking too highly of ourselves, and that in this dynamic of submission to godly leadership we experience the oneness God intended for his church and we experience what it is like when we love one another like Christ demonstrated.

Humility and grace go hand in hand. If we are going to live in unity with one another, we are going to have to learn how to give grace to one another as God has given grace to us. We are to humbly accept our assignment of either leading the flock or submitting to the leadership God has placed over the church. But in your case it is not blind submission. The pastor should be evaluated and held accountable for his actions. He needs loving followers to challenge him and help him grow as a leader. Together, we experience the grace of God as we lead and submit to authority humbly. God opposes the proud and gives grace to the humble.

Have you experienced the grace of God through humility? Has pride crept in and kept you from experiencing the grace of God? The bad news is that in the seemingly upside down kingdom of God if anyone exalts himself, he will be humbled. The good news is that if anyone humbles himself, he will be exalted. God draws near to the humble, but he resists the proud. Do you feel far from God today? Could it be that you need a dose of humility? Do you need to come to God and acknowledge he was right all along?