Acts 20:29 "For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock."
In the symbolism of the Scriptures, wolves are worldly people that attack God's sheep. Many of them are worldly people attack the church from the outside. These are the ones that Jesus refers to when He told His disciples "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves." This kind of wolf is all around us, and they are blatantly obvious in their attacks on us.
Other wolves, though, are more subtle in their approach. Matthew 7:15 tells us that some wolves like to dress up in sheep clothes and infiltrate our flocks. These are the ones that Paul warns us about in Acts 20:29; they are wolves among us.
I go into great detail explaining these wolves in another post. I wanted to write this post to expose one particular breed of wolf - one that every parent and spiritual leader should be aware of. To get our first glimpse of this creature, let's look at Genesis 49.
Jacob was nearing the end of his life. Before he died, he gathered his twelve sons around him and prophesied over them about things to come. As he spoke about each young man, he pinpointed events in their future and the future of the tribes that would come from them. For example, Jacob declared that "The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes..." This was a prophecy concerning the kings that would come from his son Judah, eventually leading to THE King Himself!
However, when he turned his attention to Benjamin, Jacob's words were less majestic...less promising. Look at what Genesis 49:27 says, "Benjamin is a ravenous wolf; in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil." Yikes! Jacob was prophesying of a time when Benjamin would lie in wait for his prey like a wolf. Do we see such a time in Scripture?
Fast forward to the last chapter of the book of Judges.
Judges chapter 21 is the ending of a tragic story; a story that results in the death of all but 500 men from the entire tribe of Benjamin! Because of their wickedness, all other men, women and children were wiped out. To make matters worse, the rest of Israel angrily vowed to keep their daughters from marrying anyone in the tribe of Benjamin. This vow would've made those five hundred men the last of the entire tribe. When they died out, so would one-twelfth of the nation of Israel.
The other Israelites realized extinction wasn't the best option. In spite of the tribe of Benjamin's sin - it was decided that they should still survive. However, there was no way around the vow they made. No Israelite father was allowed to let their daughter marry an Benjamite - and for a Benjamite to get a wife that wasn't an Israelite was strictly forbidden by God. What could they do? Finally, someone came up with a shrewd way around this oath.
Here was the plan: There was going to be a holy festival at the Tabernacle of God in Shiloh. One of the festivities was a dance procession for all the young, unmarried ladies, where they would leave the city in a large dance of celebration. The elders of Israel told the Benjamites, "Go, lie in wait in the vineyards, and
watch; and just when the daughters of Shiloh come out to perform their
dances, then come out from the vineyards, and every man catch a wife for
himself from the daughters of Shiloh; then go to the land of Benjamin." If any father objected to this kidnapping, the elders would calm them down. This way the tribe of Benjamin would survive, even though no father willingly gave their daughters away in marriage.
Notice three words from what the elders said: "lie in wait". These Benjamites hid in the celebration at God's house, waiting to pounce on the innocent girls there. Tell me, what does this sound like to you? A "wolf in sheep's clothing" perhaps
Among the different types of spiritual wolves, I believe there is one in particular that follow the Benjamite pattern. These men (yes, this is almost always a man who preys on a young woman) work to infiltrate the house of God. They learn the right words. They play the part of godly men. But inwardly, they're panting after our girls. These guys are smooth when they speak to their prey, leading them away and isolating them. And when the time is right they pounce - either taking what they want from them and leaving, or leading these girls away from the flock to follow after themselves.
The end result is destruction. Some girls are hurt when they give part of themselves to someone who seemed to be a righteous man, but who simply ended up using them. Other girls are pulled out of the church and end up following these men into a life that's far less than what God wanted for them.
So how do we stop these spiritual predators? Is there a way to prevent, rather than repair, the damage these wolves cause?
First, to these young sheep: Get to know the voice of your Shepherd. In John 10:4-5, Jesus tells us this,
"And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." You see, once a sheep learns to recognize the voice of her Shepherd, she won't be so vulnerable to the sweet, silky-smooth voices of these strangers. So, it's crucial for you to learn what Jesus sounds like when He speaks to you. Get in the Word! Spend time in prayer. Get close to Him and follow Him only.
Second, to the shepherds: Guard your flock! Listen to the words of Paul to the Ephesian elders.
Acts 20:28-31 "Therefore take heed to
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. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch... "
Paul laid the responsibility of guarding the flock on the leaders. Sheep don't fight off wolves...shepherds do. Let me tell you one thing I've learned about these wolves: In every case I've seen, the leaders in the girl's life (either her pastor, her father, or both) usually suspect something's wrong ahead of time. Every time, the leaders are left scratching their head wondering, "I knew something was wrong! Why didn't I do something?" Leaders, pay attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit! Don't wait to clean up the pieces - take action before the attack!
When we read Paul's words of warning, we can see a few things we can do to protect our sheep:
#1 - Take heed. In other words, pay attention to your flock. Keep your spiritual sense of discernment sharp and listen to what the Chief Shepherd is telling you.
#2 - Feed your sheep. Jeremiah 3:15 tells us that God appoints shepherds to feed the sheep with knowledge and understanding. Acts 20:30 tells us that the wolf's main weapon is twisted words. Put these together and you can see that a shepherd is responsible to feed their sheep the Truth - and that Truth will counteract any lies wolves may tell.
#3 - Watch. This term carries more meaning than simply "pay attention". This term implies "watching to defend." According to John 10:11-13, a good shepherd is one that is willing to confront a wolf to protect the flock if necessary. Hirelings (that is, those who care for the flock without ever really caring about them)won't bother to confront the wolf, being afraid for his own "reputation" and well-being. But listen to me, leader - this can't be us! When we (as fathers or as pastors) see a man leading one of our sheep away, separating her from the flock and isolating her, then we must confront him!
Jesus trusted us with part of His flock. Let's not take this responsibility lightly. Now that this breed of spiritual predator has been exposed, don't close your eyes to the threat!
Showing posts with label pastor. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pastor. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Thursday, May 3, 2012
What's Not In The Bible
Mark 7:13 “... making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down.”
The American church has a lot of pet doctrines. They seem to be teachings that people are adamant about. But sadly, many of them have no scriptural support. They probably began as exaggerated and dramatized story-telling - but many of them have become entrenched dogma in American churches.
Some of these are silly and harmless:
“Paul got knocked off his donkey on the way to Damascus.” - I challenge you to find a donkey in that story!
“For forty years in the wilderness, the Israelites only ate manna! Can you imagine how tired they were of it?” - Well, if you read Exodus through Deuteronomy you’ll find out they were still raising livestock while they were being fed manna. Manna was there to replace the crops they couldn’t grow; but it wasn’t the only thing they ate.
“The walls of Jericho were so thick that they had chariot races at the top!” - Not only will you find the lack of chariot races in the book of Joshua, you’ll also find the glaring lack of any chariot in Jericho when it’s described! Actually, the fact that Jericho spent so much resources on a defensive structure probably meant they lacked any real type of offense. As near as I can tell, this particular teaching started from a Carman song!
These teachings are essentially harmless, as long as you remember that they’re man-made embellishments. If you start pushing them as hard doctrine, you may get into trouble.
But some of the other pet teachings are more serious. They have formed the foundation of several false and flawed doctrines:
“Lucifer rebelled sometime between the first and second verses of Genesis. That’s why the world was covered in water in Genesis 1:2” - I would respond this way: Show me! Show me in scripture where Lucifer led a rebellion from earth into Heaven and the world was flooded before the creation week. If that’s what happened, how do you explain God saying that everything He made was “very good”? How could creation have been good if Lucifer (something He created) was already in rebellion and millions of a “pre-Adam” race were dead and buried? This false teaching is at the heart of “old-earth creation” and it begins to redefine what you think God calls good.
“Jesus went into Hell after He died and fought with the Devil. He beat him and took his keys away.” - An exciting message? Sure. But Jesus did NOT go to Hell! He didn’t have to...the cross was enough! Just read Jesus’ own words. Jesus Himself told the repentant thief, “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise.” Isn’t that enough to convince you that Jesus didn’t go from the cross into Hell? Colossians 2:13-15 makes it very clear that Jesus victory over the devil’s kingdom was on the cross! “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
The one pet doctrine that I hear most often is this: “First and Second Timothy and Titus are the Pastoral Epistles. Paul is teaching these two men how to be pastors.”
I would be more inclined to believe this teaching if the word pastor was mentioned once, in any of the three books. But it’s not. You may be surprised to hear this, but nowhere in the New Testament is the office of pastor mentioned! This whole “good little pastor” teaching is entirely man-made!
However, in all three epistles, you do see the office of apostle mentioned. All three start with, “Paul, an apostle” - and then are addressed to Timothy or Titus “a true (or beloved) son.” Do you see it? Paul (an apostle) took these men under his wing to mentor them in his office! It wasn’t Pastor Timothy or Pastor Titus, it was the apostle Timothy and the apostle Titus!
Look at what Paul told Timothy in chapter 3 of his first letter. He instructed him in how to appoint deacons and bishops (in today’s terminology, that would be senior pastors). Who did Paul think Timothy was? In 1 Timothy 5, Paul went on to instruct this young church leader how to distribute payment to the church leaders and how to handle correcting them. Surely Timothy was more than what we call a pastor!
Titus was also following in the apostle Paul’s footsteps. Paul left this young apostle in the island nation of Crete to set the new churches in order. Paul started these churches and then Titus was responsible for setting up the leadership. Let me repeat that. Titus went from church to church, in each Cretan city to appoint people into leadership positions. Does that sound like he was a “good little pastor” to you?
Clearly, Timothy and Titus were more than what we’ve made them into. These were young men who had an apostolic call on their lives. Paul had seen that calling and took them with him to train them in their gift. As they served with Paul, they were faithful to work in his ministry. Paul brags on Timothy’s faithfulness in Philippians 2:22: “But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel.” Because of Timothy and Titus’ faithfulness to his ministry, Paul helped them into their own place. Timothy was placed in a position of authority in Ephesus and Titus in Crete.
We need to be diligent when we read and study God’s Word. We cannot allow our traditions to interpret what we see in its pages! Instead, we should be letting what we see in God’s Word change our man-made traditions!
The American church has a lot of pet doctrines. They seem to be teachings that people are adamant about. But sadly, many of them have no scriptural support. They probably began as exaggerated and dramatized story-telling - but many of them have become entrenched dogma in American churches.
Some of these are silly and harmless:
“Paul got knocked off his donkey on the way to Damascus.” - I challenge you to find a donkey in that story!
“For forty years in the wilderness, the Israelites only ate manna! Can you imagine how tired they were of it?” - Well, if you read Exodus through Deuteronomy you’ll find out they were still raising livestock while they were being fed manna. Manna was there to replace the crops they couldn’t grow; but it wasn’t the only thing they ate.
“The walls of Jericho were so thick that they had chariot races at the top!” - Not only will you find the lack of chariot races in the book of Joshua, you’ll also find the glaring lack of any chariot in Jericho when it’s described! Actually, the fact that Jericho spent so much resources on a defensive structure probably meant they lacked any real type of offense. As near as I can tell, this particular teaching started from a Carman song!
These teachings are essentially harmless, as long as you remember that they’re man-made embellishments. If you start pushing them as hard doctrine, you may get into trouble.
But some of the other pet teachings are more serious. They have formed the foundation of several false and flawed doctrines:
“Lucifer rebelled sometime between the first and second verses of Genesis. That’s why the world was covered in water in Genesis 1:2” - I would respond this way: Show me! Show me in scripture where Lucifer led a rebellion from earth into Heaven and the world was flooded before the creation week. If that’s what happened, how do you explain God saying that everything He made was “very good”? How could creation have been good if Lucifer (something He created) was already in rebellion and millions of a “pre-Adam” race were dead and buried? This false teaching is at the heart of “old-earth creation” and it begins to redefine what you think God calls good.
“Jesus went into Hell after He died and fought with the Devil. He beat him and took his keys away.” - An exciting message? Sure. But Jesus did NOT go to Hell! He didn’t have to...the cross was enough! Just read Jesus’ own words. Jesus Himself told the repentant thief, “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise.” Isn’t that enough to convince you that Jesus didn’t go from the cross into Hell? Colossians 2:13-15 makes it very clear that Jesus victory over the devil’s kingdom was on the cross! “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”
The one pet doctrine that I hear most often is this: “First and Second Timothy and Titus are the Pastoral Epistles. Paul is teaching these two men how to be pastors.”
I would be more inclined to believe this teaching if the word pastor was mentioned once, in any of the three books. But it’s not. You may be surprised to hear this, but nowhere in the New Testament is the office of pastor mentioned! This whole “good little pastor” teaching is entirely man-made!
However, in all three epistles, you do see the office of apostle mentioned. All three start with, “Paul, an apostle” - and then are addressed to Timothy or Titus “a true (or beloved) son.” Do you see it? Paul (an apostle) took these men under his wing to mentor them in his office! It wasn’t Pastor Timothy or Pastor Titus, it was the apostle Timothy and the apostle Titus!
Look at what Paul told Timothy in chapter 3 of his first letter. He instructed him in how to appoint deacons and bishops (in today’s terminology, that would be senior pastors). Who did Paul think Timothy was? In 1 Timothy 5, Paul went on to instruct this young church leader how to distribute payment to the church leaders and how to handle correcting them. Surely Timothy was more than what we call a pastor!
Titus was also following in the apostle Paul’s footsteps. Paul left this young apostle in the island nation of Crete to set the new churches in order. Paul started these churches and then Titus was responsible for setting up the leadership. Let me repeat that. Titus went from church to church, in each Cretan city to appoint people into leadership positions. Does that sound like he was a “good little pastor” to you?
Clearly, Timothy and Titus were more than what we’ve made them into. These were young men who had an apostolic call on their lives. Paul had seen that calling and took them with him to train them in their gift. As they served with Paul, they were faithful to work in his ministry. Paul brags on Timothy’s faithfulness in Philippians 2:22: “But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel.” Because of Timothy and Titus’ faithfulness to his ministry, Paul helped them into their own place. Timothy was placed in a position of authority in Ephesus and Titus in Crete.
We need to be diligent when we read and study God’s Word. We cannot allow our traditions to interpret what we see in its pages! Instead, we should be letting what we see in God’s Word change our man-made traditions!
Friday, April 6, 2012
Barnyard Basics 5 - Under-shepherds
John 10:14-16 “ I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.”
Jesus is the Shepherd of the church. When we follow Him and submit to His voice, then Psalm 23 applies to us. If we want our life to be centered in His will (with all the benefits that come with His will), we must learn to hear and follow His voice.
Here’s where so many miss out: Jesus, according to 1 Peter 5:4, is the Chief Shepherd. There are other shepherds under His supervision. He has delegated the care and the direction of the flock to “under-shepherds.” These are men that are called to lead the flock as they follow Jesus. Paul said it this way in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Be a follower of me as I am a follower of Christ.”
There are many believers in the church who claim to follow the Chief Shepherd but have no relationship with the shepherds that He delegates. How can you follow Him and refuse to follow the one He put in front of you? How we submit to the under-shepherd who God set in front of us displays how we submit to the Chief Shepherd. Do you realize this? Do you understand that God has made another person accountable for you?
Hebrews 13:7 says exactly that: “ Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.” Evidently, while we follow the Good Shepherd - He’s going to give us an under-shepherd to follow.
In Peter’s first letter, he wrote to the people who were called to this position. His instruction can be found in 1 Peter 5:2-3, “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.” God gave some people the responsibility to oversee His flock. Their responsibility is to set an example for the sheep to follow. Going back to Hebrews 13:7, we recognize that their example should be in faith.
Now we have a complication. These leaders are given the responsibility and accountability of leading the flock - but they are never told to dominate their sheep. In other words, they’re called to set the example and preach right and wrong, but it’s up to the sheep to submit themselves to their leadership. That’s why, after writing to the shepherds, Peter immediately says “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders.” The responsibility to lead rests on the shepherds - the responsibility to follow rests on the sheep. God will hold both of them accountable for what He’s called them to do.
That’s why Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” This isn’t about someone forcing their way on your life, it’s about submitting yourself to their doctrine and their example. In fact, the Greek word for “obey” (peitho) literally means to be convinced and to trust. So God’s command is for His sheep to actually trust their shepherds!
We can also see the reward of following an under-shepherd in Hebrews 13:17. It will be profitable on the day of accounting. I absolutely believe that God will bring to account how we treat the men and women He set in authority. The flipside is that it won’t be profitable for you to wander off or rebel. Can you see the encouragement together with the warning in this verse?
This isn’t a light matter. The people that are called to shepherd God’s flock have an enormous responsibility on their shoulder. Listen to this admonishment to them out of Acts 20:28-30: “Therefore take heed to 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. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.”
These are sheep that Jesus died for! He loves every one of those precious people. And it’s important to realise that He’s entrusted them to the care of these under-shepherds...so can you see how important their job is? Do you see that it’s the shepherd’s responsibility to drive away wolfish people? Can you imagine that these under-shepherds would ever have problems with goats and pigs mingling with and upsetting the sheep? These people have an incredibly tough assignment and have to rely completely on the grace of God...why would any sheep want to make their job harder?
Jesus is the Shepherd of the church. When we follow Him and submit to His voice, then Psalm 23 applies to us. If we want our life to be centered in His will (with all the benefits that come with His will), we must learn to hear and follow His voice.
Here’s where so many miss out: Jesus, according to 1 Peter 5:4, is the Chief Shepherd. There are other shepherds under His supervision. He has delegated the care and the direction of the flock to “under-shepherds.” These are men that are called to lead the flock as they follow Jesus. Paul said it this way in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Be a follower of me as I am a follower of Christ.”
There are many believers in the church who claim to follow the Chief Shepherd but have no relationship with the shepherds that He delegates. How can you follow Him and refuse to follow the one He put in front of you? How we submit to the under-shepherd who God set in front of us displays how we submit to the Chief Shepherd. Do you realize this? Do you understand that God has made another person accountable for you?
Hebrews 13:7 says exactly that: “ Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of their conduct.” Evidently, while we follow the Good Shepherd - He’s going to give us an under-shepherd to follow.
In Peter’s first letter, he wrote to the people who were called to this position. His instruction can be found in 1 Peter 5:2-3, “Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.” God gave some people the responsibility to oversee His flock. Their responsibility is to set an example for the sheep to follow. Going back to Hebrews 13:7, we recognize that their example should be in faith.
Now we have a complication. These leaders are given the responsibility and accountability of leading the flock - but they are never told to dominate their sheep. In other words, they’re called to set the example and preach right and wrong, but it’s up to the sheep to submit themselves to their leadership. That’s why, after writing to the shepherds, Peter immediately says “Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders.” The responsibility to lead rests on the shepherds - the responsibility to follow rests on the sheep. God will hold both of them accountable for what He’s called them to do.
That’s why Hebrews 13:17 says, “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” This isn’t about someone forcing their way on your life, it’s about submitting yourself to their doctrine and their example. In fact, the Greek word for “obey” (peitho) literally means to be convinced and to trust. So God’s command is for His sheep to actually trust their shepherds!
We can also see the reward of following an under-shepherd in Hebrews 13:17. It will be profitable on the day of accounting. I absolutely believe that God will bring to account how we treat the men and women He set in authority. The flipside is that it won’t be profitable for you to wander off or rebel. Can you see the encouragement together with the warning in this verse?
This isn’t a light matter. The people that are called to shepherd God’s flock have an enormous responsibility on their shoulder. Listen to this admonishment to them out of Acts 20:28-30: “Therefore take heed to 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. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves.”
These are sheep that Jesus died for! He loves every one of those precious people. And it’s important to realise that He’s entrusted them to the care of these under-shepherds...so can you see how important their job is? Do you see that it’s the shepherd’s responsibility to drive away wolfish people? Can you imagine that these under-shepherds would ever have problems with goats and pigs mingling with and upsetting the sheep? These people have an incredibly tough assignment and have to rely completely on the grace of God...why would any sheep want to make their job harder?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)