"And as for you, O My flock, thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I shall judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and goats’. . . . Therefore thus says the Lord God to them: ‘Behold, I myself will judge between the fat and the lean sheep. Because you have pushed with side and shoulder, butted all the weak ones with your horns, and scattered them abroad, therefore I will save My flock, and they shall no longer be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep (v. 17, 20-22).’"

Notably, all of God’s people qualify as sheep—even those appointed to the task of under-shepherding. Problems begin when leaders forget this fact. Those who leverage titles or positions to take advantage of other members of the flock have become "fat" and have sprouted "horns." The "pushing with side and shoulder" and the "butting of the weak ones with horns" is the quintessence of "controlling" behavior, and usurps God’s rightful place of lordship in the lives of others. While the Chief Shepherd directs His sheep with His rod and staff, His guidance is far different in both motivation and in execution than the driving tactics exhibited by the horned and obese who call themselves "shepherds."

Shortly before Jesus physically departed from this earth, he made three equivalent charges to Peter that involved his pastoral calling to feed and tend the sheep (John 21:15-17). Peter captured the essence of this ministry in his first epistle:

"The elders who are among you I exhort, I who am a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that will be revealed: Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by constraint but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly, nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away (1 Peter 5: 1-4)."

Peter continued, noting that "submission" is a two-way street:

"Likewise you younger people, submit yourselves to your elders. Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for ‘God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (v. 5).’"

A false shepherd, while he might be adept at feigning humility, will find it nearly impossible to receive any kind of correction from one whom he leads. While he will demand submission from others right down to the strictest point, he is utterly incapable of submitting himself in heart to those whom he counts to be of less spiritual maturity than himself. Unlike in the Messianic kingdom, where it is said that . . . "a little child shall lead them," those pinned under a false shepherd’s governmental framework readily know their places in the "pecking order," and dare not step outside their organizational boxes.

Such a mentality is the very thing that Jesus came to annihilate. His challenge to the hierarchical religious system of His day ultimately cost Him His life, though not without a greater sovereign purpose. Inevitably, all the kingdoms of this world (including all religious ones) will come under His rightful dominion, and He will reign forever and ever (Rev. 11:15-19). En route to the full manifestation of His authority His judgment will be great upon those who have stood before others as leaders, claiming allegiance to Him, while abusing those under their charge. He declares, "I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment (v. 16b)."

" ‘As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. . . . I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,’ says the Lord God. ‘I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick. . . .(v. 12, 15, 16a)’ "

Concurrent with His judgment on the false shepherds, God exercises care for His own. He performs the true pastoring, which the imposters before Him neglected, and which they distorted in the eyes of His people.

"‘I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them—My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among, them; I, the Lord, have spoken. I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause the wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing. Then the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase. They shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them from the hand of those who enslaved them. And they shall no longer be a prey for the nations, nor shall beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and no one shall make them afraid. I will raise up for them a garden of renown, and they shall no longer be consumed with hunger in the land, nor bear the shame of the Gentiles anymore. Thus they shall know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people,’ says the Lord God. ‘You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,’ says the Lord God (v. 23-31)."

The establishment of David as the single shepherd over God’s people is fulfilled in Jesus Christ, the Seed of David. Contrary to popular vernacular, He is the only head of the church! In many local assemblies where a senior pastor exists, this leader may be referred to as "the head of the church." Yet, such terminology is heretical. While human leadership is essential for proper guidance within any local expression of the Body of Christ and ought to be properly acknowledged, the headship of Christ must always be held in clear view. Understandably, when people speak of their pastor as "the head," it is usually done in ignorance, with no usurpation of Christ’s headship intended. Still, ambiguity on this critically important point has led to much more than misspeaking. It has actually served to forge the present governmental structure, which has permitted false shepherds an occasion to breed and thrive.

Delicately balancing this aspect of Christ’s headship is the recognition of the servant-leaders that He uses for the purpose of under-shepherding—providing younger members of His body with needed counsel and direction. In healthy expression, this function in no wise usurps the authority of Christ in His church, but instead reinforces and amplifies it. In a prophetic word which closely paralleled Ezekiel’s warning, Jeremiah spoke of the role of these under-shepherds in contrast with the false shepherds:

"‘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 (Jere. 23: 1-4)."

It is a curious thing that of the five ministry giftings addressed in Ephesians 4:11, only one—the pastor—is never connected to a single specific man (except for Jesus Christ, the Chief Shepherd). Individuals are recognized throughout the book of Acts as apostles, prophets, evangelists, and teachers. However, though pastors obviously existed, no person was specifically tagged as one in the biblical account. Yet ironically, the vast majority of those in ministry today are identified as "pastors!" This suggests a lot about the inflated prominence and also the distortion that the pastoral function has acquired in the contemporary church setting relative to other ministry giftings.

In conclusion, it is helpful to develop the outline of the true under-shepherd. It is noteworthy that pastoring is first and foremost a ministry function, and is only governmental in certain instances. In other words, while all elders have to possess a measure of pastoral gifting in order to perform their governmental responsibilities, it does not follow that all who excel pastorally will necessarily serve as elders in church leadership. Any number of people may be more strongly gifted at counseling, exhorting, encouraging, warning, etc. than those who stand as their elders. These folks are natural human touch-points for others within the body. They are exceptionally warm, sociable people who readily gather others to themselves like magnets. These qualities are consistent with the pastoral role. Yet these same abilities in and of themselves do not automatically qualify one for eldership, just as the elders need not to be the ones with the strongest measure of gifting in these pastoral areas. Put another way, "pastor" and "elder" are not equivalent terms, strictly speaking, though they have become almost interchangeable in modern-day usage. In actuality, elders form only a subset of the full pastoral ministry, which extends throughout the body of Christ--not to merely a select few who are in leadership in any particular local assembly.

The upshot of this is that all the saints should be about the work of the ministry as the Lord enables them to do so, not just the church leadership. Central to this work is discipleship, through the building of healthy relationships within the body. All of God’s people are free to function to a greater or lesser degree as under-shepherds, in this sense of discipling others. In the next chapter I will more fully address this discipleship process.

DON’T DRINK THE KOOL AID! Teaching Series - Read [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6 ]