"SHEPHERDS or HIRELINGS?"

"SHEPHERDS or HIRELINGS?"  

By: Pastor Walter L. Smith III (WS-3)

"Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!" says the Lord. Therefore thus says the Lord God of Israel against the shepherds who feed My people: "You have scattered My flock, driven them away, and not attended to them. Behold, I will attend to you for the evil of your doings," says the Lord. "But I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. I will set up shepherds over them who will feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, nor shall they be lacking," says the Lord. "Behold, the days are coming," says the Lord, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE Lord OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. "Therefore, behold, the days are coming," says the Lord, "that they shall no longer say, 'As the Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,' but, 'As the Lord lives who brought up and led the descendants of the house of Israel from the north country and from all the countries where I had driven them.' And they shall dwell in their own land." (Jeremiah 23:1-8 NKJV)

In Matthew Henry's Commentary, there is a "refining word" to the shepherds, and a "restorative word" to the sheep:

"Here is a word of terror to the negligent shepherds: The day is at hand when God will reckon with them concerning the trust and charge committed to them: Woe be to the pastors (to the rulers, both in church and state) who should be to those they are set over as pastors to lead them, feed them, protect them, and take care of them. They are not owners of the sheep. God here calls them the sheep of my pasture, whom I am interested in, and have provided good pasture for. Woe be to those therefore who are commanded to feed God's people, and pretend to do it, but who, instead of that, scatter the flock, and drive them away by their violence and oppression, and have not visited them, nor taken any care for their welfare, nor concerned themselves at all to do them good. In not visiting them, and doing their duty to them, they did in effect scatter them and drive them away. The beasts of prey scattered them, and the shepherds are in the fault, who should have kept them together. Woe be to them when God will visit upon them the evil of their doings and deal with them as they deserve. They would not visit the flock in a way of duty, and therefore God will visit them in a way of vengeance."

"Here is a word of comfort to the neglected sheep: Though the under-shepherds take no care of them, no pains with them, but betray them, the chief Shepherd will look after them. When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord taketh me up. Though the interests of God's church in the world are neglected by those who should take care of them, and postponed to their own private secular interests, yet they shall not therefore sink. God will perform his promise, though those he employs do not perform their duty."

PROBLEM STATEMENT:

There is a growing leadership vacuum in the Church of the 21st Century that is becoming quite conspicuous and challenging for seekers, infrequent church attendees, and back-slidden Christians. Once, there seemed to be a genuine and sincere spiritual devotion to God, passion for service, and drive for lost souls that has now turned into the *promotion of books, *the heralding of the next conference, and *the distortion of the gospel message - as never seen before. Perhaps this money-changing spiritual-stronghold, which is tied to the spirit of mammon and "Mystery, Babylon the Great, The Mother of Harlots and of the Abominations of the Earth", is more common than we may think!"  If NOT, why is the current "shaking" deeply affecting the "church"and its "anointed" leadership at large? And, why do so many of the messages sound more like "the accuser of the brethren" than "The Christ"?

Where are the shepherds after God's own heart, which through their devotion to family, to faith, and to their God-ordained function, maintain relevance - without compromising the fundamentals of true biblical "servant leadership" and righteous authority?

RESTORING THE PASTOR'S FUNCTION :

How do we help to restore the integrity of this "pastoral" function in the church, and shift the move of many towards "cultural authenticity" without "kingdom relevance"?  Well, we must first recognize that the role of a pastor is primarily about spiritual leadership and spiritual authority, and NOT "spiritual supremacy" and "spiritual domination".

Spiritual Leadership is about living and leading your family and your local church, through a Christ-like example in character, conduct and in conversation. It starts at home and naturally carries over into the local church. It does NOT sacrifice the family in the name of God, or for so-called "spiritual exploits". Its devotion is sacrificially giving to the family, and secondarily to the church—as seen in God's prescribed order and divine government, which is plainly articulated in the book of Genesis; with a shared-leadership philosophy that encourages accountability, balance and organizational health.

Spiritual Authority is about God's unique calling for an individual representing His Eternal Kingdom in the earth. Though its endorsement is from above, it is authenticated by other sound and qualified eldership that confirm the will of God, and support the development of the growing leader; while providing consistent accountability, evaluative feedback, intentional prayer, and seasoned counsel.

Spiritual Supremacy waves superior knowledge and hierarchal position as its primary focus, and is the sole reason for demanding loyalty from its "loyal subjects". One of the many problems with this philosophy, is that it does not reflect the ministry of Jesus at all.

Spiritual Domination is the apex of this twisted manipulation, oppression and intimidation that uses fragmented knowledge, hierarchal position, growing notoriety, and undue influence to keep their followers loyal to their doctrine, their opinions and their approval.

In a pursuit to be relevant, pastoral leadership has sadly drifted toward irrelevance and worldliness.  Irrelevance is more than the unconscious state of mind, antiquated philosophical ideals, or cultural acceptance and popularity at the expense of true effectiveness—it is the refusal to implement and activate that which has been revealed by the Holy Spirit for needed change, transformation and eternal impact.

Now, I'm sure some of you must be thinking that I have been wounded or offended by some preacher or something—by the often sharp and serious tone of my writing concerning spiritual leadership. But, my experiences have NOT crippled me with bitterness, but prepared me for destiny, as His uncompromisingly righteous mouthpiece! 

I have also been paying attention through the many unique ministry experiences, and Granny Bertha—my maternal grandmother – who is now deceased, raised me to see beyond the surface and view of leadership issues by the Spirit, without unjust criticism and judgment of others! I could tell you some hilarious stories about Granny Bertha's "leadership-101 training program" that I learned while attending church as a child.  But suffice-it-to-say, she was an absolute trip! Though, no one ever really knew how old Granny Bertha was, her timeless wisdom would be as relevant to our leaders today, especially amidst the complexities and challenges that the church of the 21st century must face head-on.

THE SOLUTION:

I honestly believe that our current leadership vacuum and dilemma can be solved with "developing and accountable leaders" embracing the principles of personhood and empowerment. In a recent exchange I had with a young lady in my apostolic travels, I shared about the distinction between leadership effectiveness and leadership greatness. 

Leadership Effectiveness is consistently influencing people towards a mutual goal or objective, while the team works well together and the value of each member's contribution is both felt and appreciated. It seeks to create an environment where the team grows together, and a spirit of cooperation replaces the spirit of competition – and everyone's unique gift is maximized through proper use.

Leadership Greatness is a life committed to empowering others to "do what they do best!" It looks beyond its own dreams and aspirations, and sees into the future of possibilities, where the contribution the leader makes toward empowering others fulfill worthy goals or an inspiring mission – causes their years of effectiveness to be seen by those served, as greatness unearthed! 

Few people ever reach this state of leadership! The real problem with hirelings that supposedly stand as "representatives of God's vision and purpose" is, if you go just beyond the surface of their rhetoric and results, you can see the self-serving nature of the vision that leads to "personal prosperity" and opportunity, while the spiritual purpose of those serving with these leaders - goes unfulfilled! 

The multitudes, both followed Jesus and were transformed, because He proved that leadership effectiveness and greatness was not fulfilled by "building His own kingdom" or by "using people to satisfy His own ends" - but as He focused on "doing the will of the Father"!

Let's pray for our spiritual leadership as never before! 

They can impact the culture without falling prey to it; but NOT without you or me earnestly praying for them!  WS-3

END.

Walter L. Smith III (WS-3), Apostolic Founder/Lead Facilitator
Pure In Heart Int'l Ministries, Inc. -
The Center For Kingdom Advancement (Hollywood & Ontario)
6767 Sunset Blvd., Ste. 8-407
Hollywood, CA 90028
(323) 524-0654 Ministry Office
www.PIHIM.org 
http://AskPastorWalter-WS3.Blogspot.com

"An Apostolic and Prophetic Ministry Bridging Faith & Culture"

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