The Church 9

Unfaithful Shepherds in Jeremiah 23

Willing today we'll complete our study of the biblical teaching respecting the Church of Jesus Christ. This is the ninth Lord's Day that we've given to this subject. For the last few weeks we've been addressing the nature of leadership within the local church, and the local Church of Jesus Christ is quite unique in this way.

Although the polity of the New Testament local church is congregational in nature, nevertheless the Lord has established the office and role of elder to shepherd his church. The congregation elects men who will in turn lead the congregation, men to whom the members of the congregation are to submit, and so there's somewhat of a paradox here.

And yet in a sense, of course, it's not the congregation that chooses these men, but rather the Lord calls and confirms these men through the congregation, leading the congregation as it chooses these men to shepherd his people.

And so rather than the people themselves making decisions as to what they want personally, rather the people seek to discern the Lord's will so as to choose men whom the Lord would have lead his people.

And that's an important principle that we all should keep in mind. Today I would like us to consider more fully and clearly the nature of the leadership that the elder is to exercise in the church. And in addition I would like us also to consider the manner in which members of the congregation are to regard and to respond to the church's leaders.

And we want to trace through the scriptures in a measure what the Lord has revealed about these matters, and we want to go into the Old Testament first to do so. There's Old Testament background in which the Old Testament speaks about the shepherds that the Lord had given to Israel, spiritual shepherds, but they had failed to shepherd the people of God rightly.

And then we'll consider the promise of God in the Old Testament that he would, in the days of salvation, call faithful shepherds to lead his people. And then of course in the New Testament we see this promise is fulfilled through the Lord Jesus in calling and equipping pastor-teachers to lead his people.

So that's basically the approach that we're taking. So let's first consider the unfaithful shepherds in Old Testament Israel. Really the faithful shepherds that the Lord has placed in his churches may be contrasted with the shepherds that served Israel during the times of the Old Testament.

And so we want to turn to the prophecy of Jeremiah to read of the failure of Israel's shepherds, as well as the promise of God that he would give faithful shepherds to his people. And this is, we could have gone to any number of passages, but I thought Jeremiah 23 would be fitting.

It's a rather long reading, but I think it is all-encompassing, and so we want to give, we want to read the passage in its entirety. Jeremiah 23, 1 through 24. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord.

Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed my people. You have scattered my flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings, says the Lord.

But I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds, and they shall be fruitful and increase. And here it is, I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking, says the Lord.

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that I will raise to David a branch of righteousness. A king shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely.

Now this is his name by which he will be called the Lord, our righteousness. Therefore behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that they shall no longer say, as the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, but as the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them, and they shall dwell in their own land.

Now this is Jeremiah speaking. My heart within me is broken because of the prophets. All my bones shake. I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine has overcome, because of the Lord and because of his holy words.

For the land is full of adulterers, for because of a curse the land mourns. The pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up. Their course of life is evil, and their might is not right. For both prophet and priest are profane.

Yes, in my house I have found their wickedness, says the Lord, and therefore their way shall be to them like slippery waves. In the darkness they shall be driven on and fall in them, for I will bring disaster on them.

The year of their punishment, says the Lord. And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria, that would be the northern capital of Israel. They prophesied by Baal and caused my people Israel to err.

And also I have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusalem, of course the capital of the southern kingdom of Judah. They committed adultery and walk in lies. They also strengthened the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns back from his wickedness.

All of them are like Sodom to me, and their inhabitants like Gomorrah. And therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets, behold I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of Gaul.

For from the prophets of Jerusalem profaneness has gone out into all the land. Thus says the Lord of hosts. Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They make you worthless. They speak a vision of their own heart, not from the mouth of the Lord.

They continually say to those who despise me, the Lord has said, you shall have peace. And to everyone who walks according to the dictates of his own heart, they say, no evil shall come upon you. For who has stood in the counsel of the Lord, and has perceived and heard his word?

Who has marked his word and heard it? Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord has gone forth in fury, a violent whirlwind, and it will fall violently on the head of the wicked. The anger of the Lord will not turn back until he has executed and performed the thoughts of his heart.

In the latter days you will understand it perfectly. I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my counsel and caused my people to hear my words, then they would have turned them from their evil way and from the evil of their doings.

Am I a God near at hand, says the Lord, and not a God afar off? Can anyone hide himself in secret places so I shall not see him, says the Lord? Do I not fill heaven and earth, says the Lord? Jeremiah, this prophet, served God's people in Judah in the last days of the national existence of the southern kingdom in the 6th century B .C.

Actually, Jerusalem fell and was destroyed. The temple burned in 586 B .C. by the Babylonians. Jeremiah saw all this. He saw the decay. Yes, he saw times of revival under King Josiah, but he saw the decay and eventually he witnessed the judgment of God on Judah with the overthrow of Jerusalem and destruction.

The Babylonians capturing the people of God, enslaving them and taking them into exile. In fact, Jeremiah saw several deportations of his people as they were taken in chains out of the land at the onset of their 70-year exile in Babylon as a punishment of God.

God's judgment had fallen upon his people after centuries of God patiently waiting and enduring their defections and their rebellions. The Lord had sent his prophets, true prophets like Jeremiah, who repeatedly and continually confronted the people with their sin and their need for repentance and their need to return to the Lord.

But as we read in our passage, one of the great causes of the downgrade of the people was that false prophets had led the people wrongly. And so the true prophets were rather few in number. The false prophets were many in number and they had great influence.

And yet the Lord promised that he would cause a remnant of his people to return from the nations into which he had driven them. He would cause their return and their restoration to their land. It set forth as a second exodus.

He said no longer will they talk about Israel when God brought them out of Egypt, but rather when God brings them out of the north country, that would be Babylon, and all the nations to which they had been scattered.

And so he anticipated the return of a remnant of Jews. And that was realized in the days of Nehemiah and Ezra and Zerubbabel, 70 years after the initial deportation of people from Jerusalem. But he promised this remnant that they would experience his salvation.

The Lord would secure their steadfastness toward him using one of the means that he would appoint. He would even give them faithful shepherds who would lead them and teach them rightly. Now let's work through several important matters of this passage and then we'll move into the New Testament.

Old Testament Shepherds as Kings, Priests, and Prophets

First recognize the pastors of New Testament churches were foretold in the Old Testament scriptures. Not everybody would agree with this. Our dispensational friends would differ, but I would advocate it very strongly.

Again the Lord denounced the shepherds of his people. Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter to the sheep of my pasture, says the Lord. And so the Lord will cause these shepherds to be destroyed.

Nevertheless, he says, I'll set up shepherds over them who will feed them, that is the remnant, once they return. And therefore the people will fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking.

And so the Lord denounced the shepherds of Israel who had not only failed to gather and feed the sheep of the Lord's pasture, but they had actually destroyed and scattered the people. They not only failed to do right, but they did wrong, they did evil in scattering the people.

Yes, it was the Lord himself who was judging his people by bringing the force of Babylon upon them, but the cause of the failure and defection of the people was due to the unfaithful shepherds leading them.

Now please understand, and this is important, we should not equate exactly these Old Testament shepherds with New Testament shepherds, that is New Testament elders in a local church, for they're not exactly identical.

For these Old Testament shepherds were chiefly the kings of Israel. The Lord had called these men to serve his people in a political sense, as kings, in a theocracy, in national Israel. Of course, national Israel in the land in that day was a manifestation of the kingdom of God for many centuries.

And we could enlarge this group of shepherds by also saying that priests and prophets in Israel were regarded as shepherds, and this is reflected in the passage that we read in at least four verses, where prophets and priests are also included in this denunciation of false shepherds, although shepherds precisely and specifically were the kings of Israel and Judah who failed to lead the people properly.

But these prophets and priests also failed in their responsibility. And so in contrast to New Testament shepherds, that is pastors of local churches, who performed spiritual ministry among the Lord's people, these really were political kings of the Old Testament, but also prophets and priests who were to teach the people rightly the Word of God, but had failed to do so, had failed to call the people to repent from their sin.

But though there are significant differences in the identity and nature of shepherds in Old Testament Israel and shepherds in New Testament Israel or churches, there are some similarities. The kings, priests, and prophets had failed to teach God's people rightly.

God promised, however, that He would raise up faithful shepherds to lead His people in the future. And we would argue that those future shepherds are the elders or pastors of New Testament Israel. Actually, the association of kings with the work of shepherding was not unique to Israel.

I bought a book recently and it sets forth shepherding God's people as a reflection of kingly authority in the ancient world. And I was surprised to read just how extensive this was in the Middle East throughout history.

The fact is that through much of ancient history, the nations of the world were largely pastoral in nature. As one wrote, pastoralism was a widely visible and significant sector of all Near Eastern societies from the very beginning of human civilization.

And so many different peoples associated their kings with being shepherds of their people. This was true not just in Israel, but it was also true in Mesopotamia, Egypt. Pharaoh was viewed as a shepherd of his people, as well as among the ancient Greeks.

And not only did these people regard their kings as shepherds of their people, but they also regarded their deities similar. Their gods were shepherds of their people. In fact, it was written in one ancient source of a god of the Mesopotamians who purportedly said, that God is a shepherd of men seeking good pastures for mankind.

So this is a common theme, a common idea in the ancient world. One ancient Greek writer wrote of both a god and king, he must be a lover of men for it would be strange for a shepherd to be a hater's sheep and ill-disposed toward his own flock.

And that was within the Greek culture. And so we see it was a common idea throughout the ancient world, the Middle East. Of course, we're most familiar with our Lord Jesus who asserted that he was a good shepherd.

He declared this in two places, I am the good shepherd. But in the Old Testament there are statements and numerous allusions to the Lord God, the triune God, being the shepherd of Israel. And so the opening words of Psalm 80, for example, David's prayer to God, give ear, O shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock, you who dwell between the cherubim, shine forth.

And there God is presented as the king of Israel, Israel being his sheep, his flock. But perhaps it's in the prophets in which the Lord denouncing the unfaithful shepherds of Israel, we see the Lord himself set forth as the true and good shepherd of Israel.

For example, consider Ezekiel 34 verse 1 and following. Let's turn there and read Ezekiel 34 verses 1 and following. Ezekiel wrote,. And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, thus says the Lord God to the shepherds, woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves.

Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. The weak you've not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost, but with force and cruelty you have ruled them.

So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains and on every high hill.

Yes, my flock, see there you have God as a shepherd describing his flock, was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them. Therefore you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord.

And this is Ezekiel 34 verse 7 now. Therefore you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. As I live, says the Lord God, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed my flock.

Therefore, oh shepherds, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God, behold, I am against the shepherds. I will require my flock at their hand. I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more.

For I will deliver my flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them. For thus says the Lord God, indeed I myself will search for my sheep and seek them out. See, God himself is the shepherd of Israel.

As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out my sheep and deliver them from all the places where they are scattered on a cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries.

Same idea as Jeremiah 23, God gathering his people as a shepherd, goes out and gets his lost sheep and brings them back to his land, his flock. Bring them back to their own land, and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel and the valleys and all the inhabited places of the country.

And I will feed them in good pasture, and their folds shall be on the high mountains of Israel. And there they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I'll feed my flock.

I'll make them lie down, says the Lord God. I'll seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick. But I will destroy the fat and the strong and feed them in judgment, says Ezekiel 34, 1 -16.

Nevertheless, the Lord, the true shepherd of Israel, called men to shepherd his flock on his behalf. And again, these shepherds were chiefly the kings that were raised up to rule Israel. They were to serve Israel as a shepherd serves his sheep.

The kings were to protect the Lord's flock. They were to feed their people as well. But again, the priests and also the prophets were also regarded as shepherds in their responsibility to teach the people to live rightly before God.

They were to call the people back to the Lord and to the Lord's ways, even as they strayed. They were to care for and tend to the Lord's people on his behalf. This was their duty as shepherds of Israel.

But the shepherds of Israel had failed in their duty. And so rather than gather, they scattered the flock of God. And so God declared to them, he would cast them out and scatter them. For God himself would shepherd his people, which we saw, we read in Jeremiah 23.

Again, 1 -3. Woe to the shepherds who destroyed, scattered the sheep of my pasture. You scattered my flock, driven them away. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doing, says the Lord, but I will gather the remnant of my flock.

He is a good shepherd, you say, out of all the countries where I have driven them and bring them back to their folds, and they shall be fruitful and increase. Again, this theme really is found throughout the prophets, but it may be seen quite clearly in Isaiah 40.

Here we have the promise of salvation, again, couched in terms of the returning exiles to the land to whom the servant of the Lord, of course, being a prophecy of the Lord Jesus Christ. But here God himself reveals himself as a shepherd who would save his sheep.

So Isaiah 40, verse 9 -11. O Zion, you who bring good tidings, get up into the high mountain, O Jerusalem. You who bring good tidings, lift up your voice with strength. Lift it up and be not afraid. Say to the cities of Judah, behold your God.

Behold the Lord God shall come with a strong hand, and his arm shall rule for them. And behold, his reward is with them and his work before him. And here it is, he will feed his flock like a shepherd.

He will gather the lambs with his arm and carry them in his bosom and gently lead those who are with young. And so the Lord denounced these false shepherds, evil shepherds. He declared he himself would be a good shepherd who would gather his sheep.

The Lord also pronounced that he would raise up a king for them, the son of David, the promised Messiah. And this promised Messiah would shepherd his sheep. Again we saw this in Jeremiah 23 that we read, verses 5 -6.

Here again we see clearly God's promise of setting up his flock. And it would be realized through his raising up the promised son of David. And this is how we know that this is realized in this church age, because this describes the person and work of our Lord Jesus.

Behold the days are coming, says the Lord. I will raise to David a branch of righteousness. We didn't have time to go into the birth narratives where Jesus is described as the branch. A king shall reign and prosper and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.

In his day Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely. Now this is his name by which he will be called the Lord our righteousness. And that's not a prophecy of the Lord Jesus in a future thousand-year Jewish millennium on earth.

It's a prophecy of the coming of the Lord Jesus when he came into the world and he was the good shepherd and he became our righteousness through his life and his death upon the cross. And so this has been realized, is being realized through the coming of the Lord Jesus.

Whereas the shepherds of Israel had failed miserably to fulfill their responsibilities, God raised up this promised son of David, Jesus Christ, to save his people. He is the king over his people who saves them from their sin.

He is their righteousness. This speaks of the gift of righteousness that God imputes to his people through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. Whereas they were guilty and under the wrath of God for their sins, having no righteousness of their own, God himself would provide a righteousness for them through their Davidic king, the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ.

And so the salvation that the Lord brings to his people is like into a second exodus. Just as the Lord saved Israel out of Egypt, he led his people through the wilderness to the promised land so the coming Messiah would bring back a remnant of his people from their exile, even the nations into which the Lord scattered them.

He would secure them unto himself and enable them to dwell in peace and safety. And therefore, behold, the days are coming, says the Lord. They'll no longer say, as the Lord lives, who brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, but as the Lord lives, who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I've driven them, and they shall dwell in their own land.

And this is what God has done and is doing and will do in history. He caused the return of exiles throughout the nations, even as he is escorting them back to their own land. And when we work through this book of consolation some time ago, in Isaiah 40, particularly through Isaiah 55, we're able to show that that return from exile was not just simply speaking about physical Jews returning from Babylon to the literal physical land, but rather it's a return from exile throughout all the nations.

And it was taking place back then, and it's still taking place today. God is calling us to salvation from all the nations, and we are returning to Zion. We're returning by the Lord, and he's leading us through the wilderness of this world, even on this pilgrimage, this journey back to our homeland, which is Zion, the new Jerusalem, and a new heavens and a new earth.

And so the Lord is escorting us onto our own land that he has prepared for us. And so although the language is couched in terms that the Old Testament Israelites would understand and value, as New Testament Christians we understand this promised land to which the Lord is bringing his people is ultimately a new heavens and a new earth, and that city whose maker and builder is God, a city built without hands, that one day will be the dwelling place of all the people of God.

Thank the Lord for that. Well, let's consider next the Lord promised in the Old Testament Scriptures that he would raise up faithful shepherds to lead his people. We've already read some of these. The Lord promised to provide faithful shepherds to lead his people.

It was declared in our passage, I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking, says the Lord. And again this is found elsewhere, back in Jeremiah 3, 14 and 15, where Jeremiah called out, or the Lord through Jeremiah called out, return, O backsliding children, for I am married to you.

I will take you, one, from a city, two, from a family. I will bring you to Zion, and I will give you shepherds according to my heart who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. So there's the promise in the Old Testament that the Lord would give shepherds to his people, who he redeems through the branch, the son of David, who is our righteousness.

Quite clear, isn't it? Beautifully portrayed. You know, the early Christians, for a number of decades, had no New Testament. And those early apostles, and those early churches, and their pastors, they stood and preached the Word of God, which was the Hebrew Scriptures.

And they preached from passages like this, telling Christians that they were experiencing this blessing promised long ago. We have a more clearly set forth for us, of course, in our New Testaments. Well, let's consider next that the Lord gives authority and responsibility to the elders or pastors of New Testament churches.

The Elder's Ministry of Teaching, Ruling, and Protecting

First, the Lord commissions elders to teach the Word of God to the local church of Jesus Christ. Teaching the Word of God to the people of God was a major emphasis of our Lord's earthly ministry. Although he healed many people of their infirmities, delivered many people from oppression, his chief calling during his earthly ministry was to proclaim the Word of God to the people.

This is an emphasis in Mark's Gospel, by the way. Mark 138, Jesus said, Let us go into the next towns that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth. And that's an emphasis, by the way, in Mark's Gospel.

We read our Lord Jesus gave instruction to Peter that he was to feed the people of God with the words of God upon his resurrection. Of course, when he restored Peter, after Peter's defection, after they had eaten breakfast beside the Sea of Galilee, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?

I don't know what the these were. More than these fish? I don't think so. Probably more than these apostles, because earlier Peter said, hey, they might betray you, not me. Basically saying, I love you more than they do.

And now the Lord Jesus is asking Peter, do you love me more than these? Peter said, Lord, you know I love you. And so the response of the Lord, feed my lambs. He said to him a second time, Simon son of Jonah, do you love me?

He said to him, yes, Lord, you know I love you. Tend my sheep. He said to him a third time, Simon son of Jonah, do you love me? Peter was grieved, because he said to him the third time, do you love me?

And he said to him, Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you. Jesus said to him, feed my sheep. And that's what shepherds do, don't they? They feed the sheep, the people of God, with the word of God.

Of course, Paul commissioned Timothy in this way, I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at the appearing in his kingdom, preach the word, be ready in season, out of season, convince, rebuke, exhort with awe, longsuffering, and teaching.

Elders are to teach the word of God to the people. That's their principal responsibility. But it's not their only responsibility. For secondly, the Lord commissioned elders to rule over, that is to govern and lead the local church of Jesus Christ.

Just as the shepherds of the Old Testament ruled the people of God, so their New Testament counterparts are to be the leaders of their people. But whereas the shepherds of Israel failed their charge, the Lord calls redeemed men and commissions them to shepherd his people.

He gives them a heart to know him and a heart to care for the well-being of his people. As the Lord promised, I will set up shepherds over them, who will feed them. They shall fear no one. They shall know no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking, says the Lord.

The Lord calls men to serve in this capacity. Paul gave instruction to the elders of the church at Ephesus regarding their responsibility. Therefore take heed yourselves and to all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.

And then of course it was Peter himself who I think gives the fullest description and explanation of leadership of elders, where he himself identified himself as an elder. 1 Peter 5 verse 1, The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed, shepherd the flock, pastor the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers or bishops, not by compulsion or willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly, nor as being lords over those entrusted to you.

You know we're not popes, that's sinful to have that kind of exercise, that kind of unquestioned authority, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not feed away.

And likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another and be clothed with humility for God is with you. God resists the proud but he gives grace to the humble.

And so here Peter set forth the nature of pastoral leadership in this exhortation to elders. Elders are to lead primarily through example, even as they teach the people the word of God. They are to oversee the flock, watching over and watching out for the well-being of the people of God on behalf of the Lord, the chief shepherd, as he is described here in this passage.

These elders are commissioned by him to serve his people on his behalf and they are accountable to him. And one day they must give an account to him of their service to his people. And in this way, of course, you have the shepherds of the New Testament era decidedly different than the unfaithful shepherds of the Old Testament.

The Lord Jesus told his disciples very clearly, and we've emphasized this, this is so important, the kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them and those who exercise authority over them are called benefactors.

That's sarcasm there on the part of the Lord Jesus. But not so among you. On the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger he who governs as he who serves. For who is greater, he who sits at the table or he who serves?

Is it not he who sits at the table? And yet I, but I, am among you as the one who serves. Here we see that the Christian view of authority is decidedly different than how the fallen world views human authority.

Jesus said, he who is greatest among you, let him be as the younger he who governs as he serves. All authority which we have as Christians, whether you be a husband, an employer, a father, or an elder, is to be employed in serving others.

Authority is never to be used to gain dominance or control over others. That is self-serving, self-exalting. That's sin. We are to be servants, using the authority with which we have been entrusted to serve others, ministering to their practical needs, needs as well as their spiritual needs, providing instruction, exhortation, encouragement, sometimes rebuke and correction if needed.

Again we see our Lord's example of exercising authority. Who is greater, he who sits at the table or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the one who serves. And the Lord Jesus has all authority in heaven and earth even now.

And what is he using all that authority to do? He's serving you and me. And he's serving his Father. He has never once acted to serve himself. And that is the model for spiritual authority. Again, whether you be the head of your home, your family, or the head of your business, or the leader in the church, we're servants.

Well, not only are we to govern or to lead the church, but thirdly the Lord commissions elders to protect the local church of Jesus Christ. Teach, govern, protect. Paul gathered the elders at the church at Ephesus.

He was kind of in a hurry to get to Jerusalem. Ephesus used to be a port city, but the bay had filled in. The ship couldn't really come in right to the dock that was there from ancient Ephesus. So they sailed into the port of Miletus, which is about 20 miles south of Ephesus, which itself now is far from the seaside.

But there Paul met with the elders from Ephesus, and he spoke to them, and he instructed them very clearly on how to watch over the people of God. And so we read of this in Acts 20. I won't read the entire passage because of the time.

But he told them to take heed to yourselves and to all the flock. See, they're to protect the flock and watching for themselves. Among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.

And then he gave the reason for this. For I know this, after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock, and also among yourselves men will rise up. That's in the church.

Elders become corrupted, speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after themselves. And therefore watch and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn every one night and day with tears.

That's what the shepherds of Israel had failed to do. Shepherds of the New Testament church are to do this. It's the elders' responsibility to teach the church, govern the church, protect the church. They are to be on constant watch as a shepherd constantly watches out over his flock, guarding his charge from any and all that would harm them.

The elders are to guard the people of God from forces outside the church and from dangerous men within the church who may arise within the church. And the Lord charged them with this responsibility. What does protecting the church entail?

Here's a good summary. Protecting the flock includes seeking the lost, straying sheep, a critical aspect of shepherding that many church shepherds totally neglect. Moreover, protecting the flock involves disciplining sin, admonishing improper behavior and attitudes, and stopping bitter infighting.

Although the New Testament emphasizes the elders' role in protecting against doctrinal error, the elders cannot neglect seeking the lost and correcting sinful behavior. Amen. And that's difficult. But the Lord calls and equips these men in his churches to protect his people in a manner in which they are, for the most part, the people it is, are unable to protect themselves.