Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be…” (1 Peter 5:2). What do you think would happen to babies if no one took care of them? What would happen if the hospitals just put them out in the streets to fend for themselves? They would starve to death. Babies can’t take care of themselves.
The same thing is true concerning spiritual babies. Baby Christians need a pastor to feed them, care for them, and protect them. We need the evangelist to reach the lost, but those new-born Christians are going to starve to death spiritually if they don’t get under the ministry of a pastor.
The pastor is the shepherd of the sheep. What are the responsibilities of a shepherd? First, it’s to feed the sheep. He makes sure they get enough food and water so they can grow. That’s what pastors do, too. They feed their people so they can grow in the Lord.
The next responsibility is to lead the sheep. Sheep need to follow somebody or they will get lost and confused. They Bible says if sheep don’t have a shepherd, they will become scattered. If Christians don’t have a pastor, they will get lost.
Shepherds also protect the sheep from wolves. Wolves try to steal the sheep and scatter them. The shepherd chases wolves out of the flock. He protects his sheep. He doesn’t even let wolves near his flock.
Pastors have to do the same thing. The devil will try to send wolves to scatter people from their churches so they will starve to death. You need the ministry of your pastor. Don’t ever let a wolf pull you away.
Excerpt permission granted by Mark Harper Ministries
Pastor and Leadership Coach, Mark Harper has 35 years of experience in the local church. He is the creator of the Super Church 2.0 Curriculum, which is used in over 5,000 churches worldwide. The focus of Mark's ministry is helping leaders build strong churches and helping parents build strong families. Not only has Mark served in the local church as pastor, associate pastor, and family ministry pastor but he is also a certified coach with the John Maxwell Team. He also recently released the Amazon Best Selling book The Red Book: The Lifeblood of Children's Ministry.