In the words of the song, only slightly out of context, I think, they can “trust and obey” (Heb. 13:17) Why? As vs. 7 in the same chapter says, “because they speak the word of God to you …and because they must give an account before God for each of the sheep…It’s taken awhile for this to dawn on me, but that means that if the Lord were to return tonight, Smitty, Bill, David, and I would have to answer for each of you…As I Pet. 5:4 tells us, if the shepherds carry out their responsibilities properly, the Chief Shepherd will reward them with crowns of glory, but if not, will be judged accordingly…This does not mean that sheep blindly follow, because they have the same guide as the shepherds, the Word, and therefore should only follow their local shepherds as they in turn follow the Chief Shepherd…
Because of the first reason we just mentioned, the sheep can meet and greet their elders. Getting to know each of them personally, should not just be responsibility of elders and their wives, it is a two-way street. How can shepherds who are called to account for their sheep do so if they don’t know the sheep? And how can the shepherds know the sheep if they immediately run out of the fold after services or are not often there? John 10: 1-18 tells us that sheep know and respond to their master’s voice—and to no other voice…As Jesus says in vs. 14, “I know my sheep and my sheep know me…” specific things you can do to help us:
Building on the second reason, above, the sheep can attend all scheduled worship services and get involved. This benefits sheep and shepherd alike. It is much better to be known to your shepherds for positive than negative reasons…To be perfectly frank but also speak the truth in love, when you’re not here, you make our job that much more difficult (Heb. 13:17).
Pray for your shepherds! Again, to state the obvious, we’re only men, still sinners…Unfortunately, being appointed as a shepherd no more instills holiness than sitting in a hen house makes one a hen! As Jas. 5:16 tells us, the effective and fervent prayer of the righteous avails much…Speaking for my fellow pastors, we truly appreciate the prayers offered for us, both public and private—please continue to pray for us!
Finally, the sheep can bring to the attention of their shepherds issues that are truly theirs, i.e., spiritual issues…As most congregations do, we have deacons to handle other issues and, in general, they are empowered to do whatever is right within their respective areas…Just as the apostles beseeched brethren in the 1st Century to appoint others to serve tables so that they could focus on spiritual matters, so it is today. Before you personally bring an issue to your shepherds, consider carefully if it is really an issue for a deacon and, if so, take it to them directly and if they have questions or concerns, they will bring them to us.
