SHEEP NEED SHEPHERDS

God’s flock needs a shepherd. The lost sheep need someone to seek them. The weak sheep need someone to feed them. All sheep need someone to lead them. So, we see COMPASSION FOR THE SHEEP in this text. “But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.” (Matt.9:36). The compassionate Shepherd, Jesus Christ is concerned for His flock.  May God give is the eyes of Jesus to see the need and the heart of Jesus to seek their care!

Yet, notice what He does not do. He focuses first on the need for more shepherds instead of the immediate needs of more sheep. In His humanity, He had accepted the limitations of a body. His Divine omnipresence had been set aside to embrace the restrictions of a physical presence.  While Jesus never ceased to be God, He became man—perfect man.

Now, we are not perfect.  If the flesh confined Jesus to one location at a time, then we certainly have those some limits. What is required is not one shepherd running around in a frenzy, collapsing totally exhausted, depressed with the realization that few needs have been met in comparison to the many who had no ministry.

What Jesus said to do was to take the compassion for the sheep and turn it to INTERCESSION FOR MORE SHEPHERDS. “Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.’” (Matt.9:37-38). 

God’s sheep are everywhere. It is a global field of labor. What we cannot do, God can do, and it is prayer that brings the power of God into human experience. God will use those who shepherd a local congregation to raise up and call to response those He is convicting by His Spirit to answer this call.  We need more preachers, more missionaries, more evangelists, more teachers—spiritual leaders of every kind. Doubtless, many shepherds need to do more and can, but they can never do enough alone.

Those shepherds who excel are not merely concerned about adding more sheep to their flock, but multiplying their ministry by raising up many shepherds. It begins with the burden—compassion to see like Jesus—and brings down the blessing—through intercession as Jesus demanded.

Thank God for every baptism a pastor has performed. Rejoice in it. Yet, how many would have been reached, if you had spent more time praying to the Lord of the Harvest and seeing more respond to the call to Gospel ministry?

May God give us compassion that leads to intercession which ends in multiplication!

EFFECTIVE CHURCH LEADERSHIP

Acts 20 presents a case study of effective church leadership in the manner, ministry, and model of the Apostle Paul. 

His manner was one of ENCOURAGING THE SERVANTS (v.1-6). The key words are “encouraging,” and “encouragement.”  This was a vital partnership, as we see the plurality of leadership, “disciples,’ and the list of names in Paul’s entourage that had become quite extensive. When there is effective leadership, others will be mentored and multiplied  in such an atmosphere of spiritual vitality.  God did not mean for us to minister in isolation, but reproduction. 

His ministry was one of EXPOUNDING THE SCRIPTURES (v.7-16). Paul, “talked with them,” “prolonged his speech,” and “he conversed with them a long while.”  This was a verbal proclamation. There are many duties a church leader must attend to, but at the core of all he does is communication. Early on, the church leadership refused to be diverted from this, “we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word,” (Acts 6:4). God blessed that and the church grew (6:7).

His model was one of EXEMPLIFYING THE STANDARDS (v.17-38). The fundamental phrase is, “You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time.”  This was a visual pattern. Effective leaders consistently model ministry—practicing what they preach. There were tears, mentioned twice, in displaying a passion for ministry—his weeping. Paul did not just go through the motions, but displayed his emotions—a broken heart for hell-bound sinners.  There were trials, “the plots of the Jews,” “imprisonment and afflictions,” “fierce wolves.”  That is demonstrating  the problems in ministry—his warfare. Ministry launches an invasion of enemy territory and Satan will fight fiercely. There was testimony, referenced three times in these verses. That is declaring the proof of ministry—his witness. A witness has one task in court: to provide evidence in testifying the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth by the help of God, “for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God,” (v.27).

This is effective church leadership!