1 Peter 5:1-5 Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us

Introduction: Well, I feel the weight of this passage for myself…preach to yourself first…Peter has given his instructions and as is common letters end with a word to the Leaders before final greetings…

Read: 1 Peter 5:1–5 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: [2] shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; [3] not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. [4] And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. [5] Likewise, you who are younger, be subject to the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

Prayer of Illumination

· Intro: Jesus and disciples “who will be the greatest”

o After Presidential primary – Who is going to be the VP?

o Alexander the Great’s successor? Some have attempted to mitigate with “Co-Ceasers” with a Sr. and Jr.

· The principle of Jesus and the bible is that Jesus is King. Christ is the Head of his Church (Eph. & Col). And that he fulfills the fact that there is a singular king in Israel, he is the Son of David. The only who is sitting on any throne.

· The bible calls leaders to be humble, joyful examples to the flock who, as a “plurality, a group” exercise authority.

o This means the leadership of God’s church is by more than one Elder, he is chosen from among you, and even Peter and apostle humbly calls himself a fellow elder because he knows this is the normal abiding direction the Church government is headed. As the age of apostles closes, he humbly acts in the ordinary way towards them even as he holds an extraordinary office.

o A group having Elders is in many ways a very ordinary thing if you survey the OT; they existed in Israel, they sat in the city gate, they did many things that any town leader would do. And in the synagogues, spiritual leadership involved elders. So a council of mature and godly men giving leadership to the church has continuity in the OT and NT.

#1 The Message of Elders (v.1)

#2 How Elders Lead the Church (“Mechanics of Elders” if you want the alliteration) v. 1-4

#3 Humble Leading and Following v. 5

#1 The Message of Elders

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed

· Being an Elder means continuing to bear witness to Christ by teaching the Bible and by teaching the Gospel.

· Elders are to pass on the Apostolic Message of Peter and the other apostles. The message of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus; that Christ will return again.

· Elders teach and disciple God’s people; gathering the Church around the word of God which equips the church to be mature, godly, and prepared for the return of Christ.

· This is what Paul is saying in Ephesians 4 he gave pastors and he gave the shepherds and teachers. To shepherd the people is to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, [13] until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ

· The job of the elders in shepherding is to ensure that we might know Christ, that we might mature in faith in Christ, and so be equipped to minister to one another, and the gospel will be supported and go forth…Jesus expresses this to Peter as “feed my Sheep” in John 21. Word, Prayer, and Sacraments are the tools of feeding Christ gives.

· So Elders are guardians of the good deposit. Being a pillar and buttress of the truth. Teaching the whole counsel of God.

· Peter the Apostle calls himself a WITNESS. He does not create teaching, he does not invent religion; he WITNESSES to the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the word made flesh, and he writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that the Scriptures might be complete witnesses to the full and final revelation of the Father and the final revelation of God’s plan of salvation.

· And so the apostolic witness does not go to a single pope, or a magisterium.

· No, it is written in the scriptures for the public to see and for many elders to proclaim to people publicly in their own languages.

· So #1 That’s the message of an Elder

#2 How Elders Lead God’s Church

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the