June 19, 2008

• Encourage Your Pastor

  I've been finishing up another one of Jonathan Edwards sermons and I was struck hard that it is our responsibility to be willing and usable vessels in their ministry.  We must do what we can to make the pastor's job easy; to heed the teaching he brings and the example he beckons us to follow as he follows Christ.  As we all have shepherds to lead us in this life, we also have Christ who is our Chief Shepherd.  Christ laid down the example that our pastor's should follow in their ministry to us; but we are also told that we must follow His example as well.

  "And you, my brethren, as all of you have immortal souls to save, if you have considered the things that have been spoken, cannot but be sensible, that it not only greatly concerns your elect pastor to take heed how he behaves himself in his great work, wherein he is to act as a coworker with Christ for your salvation; but that it infinitely concerns you how you receive him, and behave towards him.  Seeing that it is for your eternal salvation that he is appointed to watch and labor; and seeing his business is to do the work of Christ for you, it is natural and easy to infer, that your reception and entertainment of him should in some respect imitate the church's reception of Jesus Christ.  Galatians 4:14, "My temptation which was in my flesh, ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus."  Christ, in the text (Jn. 13:15, 16), commands those whom He sends to follow His example, and then in the 20th verse following, He directs those to whom He sends them, how to treat them.  "Verily, verily, I say unto you.  'He that receiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me; and he that receiveth me, receiveth Him that sent me.'"  Seeing the work of your minister is in some respects the same with the work of Christ, and He is to be appointed and devoted to do this work for your souls in particular, surely you should esteem him very highly in love for his work's sake and do all that is in your power to help him, and put him under the best advantages to imitate his great Master in this work, to give himself wholly to his work, as Christ did during the time of His ministry, and to be successful in his work.  And as it was observed before, that it is impossible that ministers should in any tolerable degree imitate the example of Christ in their work, if their minds are overcharged with worldly cares and concerns, you ought so provide for him and support him, that he shall have no need to entangle himself with these things; otherwise you will not only bring a great temptation upon him, which will vastly tend to hinder him in the work of Christ among you, but will, for the sake of sparing a little of your worldly substance to yourselves, foolishly and miserably starve your own souls and the souls of your children, and will but cheat yourselves.  For you will not be in the way to prosper either in your spiritual or temporal concerns.  The way to have your houses filled with plenty, is to "honor the Lord with your substance, and with the first-fruits of all your increase." Prov. 3:9."
            "And as it is your duty and interest well to support your minister, so it concerns you to pray earnestly for him, and each one to do what in him lies in all respects to encourage and help him, and each one to do what in him lies in all respects to encourage and help him, and strengthen his hands, by attending diligently to his ministry, receiving the truth in love, treating him with the honor due to a messenger of Christ, carefully avoiding all contention with him, and one with another.  And take heed in particular, that you do not forsake him to follow those, who under pretense of extraordinary purity, are doubtless doing the devil's work, in separating themselves, and endeavoring to draw off others from the ministers and churches in the land in general."  --Jonathan Edwards

  I pray that all of us who read this and are under the ministry of a local church that you will do everything in your power to help your pastor in anyway possible.  To encourage, support, and pray for him as he perseveres through leading you, feeding you spiritually, and helping to shape you into the life God wants you to have.  Ultimately, it is the Spirit and yourself who is responsible for growth; but our pastors is one of the stronger sources of teaching and leading into maturity.  We need to be doing anything for him that will help him in leading the flock into strength and vitality.  Do what you can because it is the right thing to do.

  • 8:45 pm
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