How well do you shepherd your flock?

Posted on October 11, 2017 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

Shepherd with Sheep — Copyright: designpics / 123RF Stock Photo

In judgment of the Nation of Israel, God said this through the prophet Zechariah:

“For behold, I am raising up in the land a shepherd who does not care for those being destroyed, or seek the young or heal the maimed or nourish the healthy, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs. ‘Woe to my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock!’” (Zechariah 11:16–17a, ESV)

In this verse-and-a-half, we are giving a list of the qualities of a bad shepherd. This is one who is worthy of judgment because he:

does not care for those being destroyed
does not seek the young
does not heal the maimed
does not nourish the healthy
devours the fat sheep.

Those of us who have been identified as church leaders should take note of this list. We have an opportunity to do things differently. Looking at the list above, some questions come to mind.

Do we care about those in our community that have not yet heard the truth about Jesus Christ?
Do we actively reach out to those who are outside of our fellowship?
Do we encourage young people to engage with us over spiritual matters?
Do we have a vibrant youth ministry or are we just going through the motions?
Do we monitor our track record for young people remaining in the church after they go off to college?
Do we effectively minister to those who come to our church hurt by life’s trials? Or do we heal the wound superficially by pressuring them to cover it up?
Do we nourish the healthy people in our congregation by giving them opportunities to grow in their understanding and ministry?

On the negative side, we must also ask ourselves if we are devouring the fat sheep. Are we using up the strong people in our congregations by giving them more to do without providing a nurturing environment where they can find refreshment? Church burnout is a real thing.

Honesty requires the admission that we don’t do any of these perfectly. Inability to do them perfectly does not relieve us of the responsibility to keep them in mind and humbly seek God for strength and wisdom to improve in these areas.

All of the items in the list above are related to the second great command to love my neighbor. A list like this is helpful because it reminds me that to love my neighbor, I have to get to know him and know what is going on in his life.

To do all of this, I have to get my focus off myself and become increasingly aware of the people around me.

A mediation on Psalm 1

Posted on March 18, 2016 Written by Mark McIntyre Leave a Comment

The book of Psalm opens with these words:

Psalm 1 (ESV)
Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.

I have read this psalm many times, but this morning I came away with a different impression than I have ever had before.

In my past readings, I could sum up what I read by the phrase, “don’t act like the wicked, but be righteous.” As I read it, this psalm was an encouragement toward avoiding wicked influences and an encouragement to read the Bible and do what it says. It also implies that the righteous look on the wicked with disdain at worst or condescension at best.

But I missed one crucial point in my previous readings.

I am not righteous by what I do; I am declared righteous by being in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21). But what I do will be heavily influenced by the fact that I am declared righteous. As a result of being in Christ, I have been given a heart of flesh to replace my heart of stone.

While I agree that I am in the camp of the righteous, I cannot look at anyone else with disdain or condescension. I am not in the camp of the righteous because of anything that I have done for myself. It has all be done for me by Jesus Christ.

With the change of heart, it is then possible for all the things to that are listed in verses 2 and 3 to be true. My new heart allows me to delight in the law of the LORD. Where I previously only saw condemnation, I now see love and blessing. Where I previously saw only duty and burden, I now see opportunity and freedom.

The Psalmist tells us that The LORD knows the way of the righteous. Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).

I am not righteous because of what I do, but what I do is heavily influenced by the fact that I am declared righteous.

I am one of his sheep and he knows me.

On the difference between a hireling and a shepherd

Posted on November 16, 2011 Written by Mark McIntyre 9 Comments

In John 10:12–13 Jesus is quoted as saying the following about the difference between a hired hand and a shepherd:

“The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.” (NIV)

What is the primary difference between a hireling and a shepherd according to Jesus? The primary difference is their motivation for tending the sheep. The hireling does it for his own benefit and the shepherd does it for the benefit of the sheep.

When tending the sheep no longer benefits the hireling, he is nowhere to be found and leaves the sheep scattered and unprotected.

In contrast, the shepherd stands in when things get tough and does what his can to protect and care for the sheep.

I have known of “pastors” who have worked the church job market the way that some seek to climb the “corporate ladder.” A true shepherd doesn’t start with a small congregation and then seek to find an opportunity at a larger church so that he can be more comfortable or improve his lifestyle.

Sure, God can call men to change and grow in their responsibilities, but it must be God directed and God focused for this to be a true calling. If God is behind the change, it will be good for both the former church and the new church. If the change is prompted by the desires of a hireling, the former church will feel as though it has been left in the lurch.

Speaking as a sheep, I want a pastor who has a sense of calling, who ministers because he cannot do anything else without violating who he is, and who is in ministry for the long haul, no matter how difficult it gets.

How can you identify the hirelings? It is not always easy since the hirelings are often very good at appearing spiritual and self effacing.

I think that Ephesians 4:11-12 provides some insight to help distinguish between hirelings and shepherds. These verses tell us that the goal of church leadership should be the “equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.”

If a pastor is seeking to control the congregation, if he is the center of all the activity, if he maintains his place in the spot light, you might find that he is a hireling and not a shepherd.

On the other hand, a shepherd will be seeking to develop the gifts in his congregation, he will be feeding them from Scripture, he will focus on equipping the congregation to fulfill the mission of the church. He will then turn them loose to do the work of ministry. His focus is on the sheep and their development, not on his own position as leader.

In the end, it comes down to motivation. If you are a sheep, ask yourself is your pastor is working for the benefit of the congregation. If the answer is no, then move on and find a true shepherd. Staying under the leadership of a hireling will not be to your benefit.

If you are a pastor, ask yourself the same question. If you are pastoring primarily because you need a job, save all of us a lot of grief and go get a job outside the church. You’ll probably make more money and the collateral spiritual damage will be greatly reduced.

Going Out as Wolf Food – Baaaaaaaa!

Posted on June 6, 2011 Written by Mark McIntyre 2 Comments

Sent Out As Wolf Food

In Matthew 10:16, Jesus commissioned his disciples by sending them out as sheep among wolves. Those of us who have grown up in the church have heard this many times, so the phrase may not impact us the way it would have impacted the disciples when they first heard it.

I have had little exposure to sheep, but my few encounters have given me the idea that sheep are not particularly aggressive. I also am under the impression that they are not very capable in the self defense department. The disciples would have understood this better than an American suburbanite; they would have understood that Jesus was informing them that they were being sent out as wolf food.

This is a curious motivational strategy, one not often used today. We prefer to send people out with thoughts of victory and success rather than thoughts of defeat and perhaps death. Can you envision this as the next great church growth program? “Come and learn to be wolf food!”

Defenseless But Not Undefended

Was Jesus sending them out to certain defeat? 2,000 years of Church history prove otherwise. The same disciples that Jesus first sent out began the spiritual revolution that turned the world upside down (Acts 17:6).

If defeat was not what he had in mind, what then is Jesus saying? I think that Jesus is letting his disciples (of all times and all places) know that we are to go out with the understanding that we are defenseless on our own. Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:12 that our battle is not a normal human battle. It is a spiritual one, one that we cannot fight with normal human wisdom and power. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, has promised to be with us the whole way. We are not left unprotected. I need only to follow the Shepherd, Jesus will take charge of the results.

Another aspect of being sheep among wolves is that we are to be gentle. Sheep will not deal harshly with wolves. Jesus also tells his disciples to be as innocent as doves, another not-so-fearsome animal. Along this line, Peter tells is in 1 Peter 3:15 that we are to give an answer to those who question us, but do it with gentleness and respect.

Implications For Today

The point I take from this is that Jesus sent the disciples out with the knowledge that the they were not responsible for the success of the venture. Sheep cannot intimidate wolves into changing their behavior. Sheep by themselves will have no impact on the wolves. In the same way, we are not called to harangue, argue or bribe anyone into the Kingdom of Heaven. We are to give testimony to the truth of the Gospel with both our speech and our actions.

Can we, as the church, learn to be OK with being sheep and let the wolves be wolves? Can we give up the apparent need to label everything and everyone with whom we don’t agree? Can we not feel pressured to mount a crusade against every company that implements policies which we find offensive? Can we learn to display God’s love for those who are not yet in relationship with him?

I know that even if we lived out Jesus’ teaching perfectly, there would still be people offended by us. But then, the offense would be the gospel itself, not the way we demonstrate it by our words and actions.

Can we make a run at living in such a way as to invite people into relationship with Jesus? What do you think?