Sunday Devotional: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13

And we ask you, brethren, to honor those laboring among you and caring for you in the Lord, and instructing you. Consider them beyond all measure in love on account of their work. Live peaceably with one another.

Among Paul’s final exhortations to the Thessalonian church is this little, and yet significant reminder about the importance of those who devote their lives to the care and feeding of Christ’s flock. I ask that you spend a few minutes considering these words, especially if you are a Christian.

First, I want to point out an assumption Paul makes here: these Christians in Thessalonica have people in their midst that pastor them. Church leadership is not an option in the New Testament. It is the assumed norm that every church has people that are appointed to preach the Scriptures and tend to the spiritual, emotional, and sometimes physical needs of the church. Furthermore, every Christian ought to be able to point to someone, or a body of people, to whom they are accountable for their spiritual lives. Every believer needs to have overseers who will encourage them, exhort them, and, when necessary, impose biblical discipline when there is unrepentant sin. There isn’t a single church in the New Testament that doesn’t have some form of church leadership; the same should be true today. Are you a part of a church? Do you know your pastor(s)? Do they know you?

Paul mentions three ways in which the church leadership operate in the lives of the church. First, they labor. While Christians are free from the dominion of sin, Christians still sin. And as long as Christians sin, pastoral work will always be tough. Politics, squabbles, back-biting–the church is not immune from these, and it falls to the pastoral leadership to quell dissension and restore peace. Pastoral labor also involves discipleship, visitation, and any number of other means necessary for the spiritual health of God’s people.

Second, they care for God’s people; that is, they are devoted to and deeply concerned for each person in their charge. Pastoral ministry demands a deep love for the sheep, just as the Good Shepherd loves his sheep enough to lay down his life for them. That’s the kind of love the pastor has for the sheep Christ has put in his midst. Pastors pour themselves out for their people daily. And while it is often a joy, it can also be wearying, and even a cause of much grief, especially when dealing with Christians who are stuck in sin and unreceptive to their pastor’s concern.

Finally, Paul mentions the fact that pastors are responsible for instructing God’s people. Laboring in the Word is the primary responsibility of a pastor. Good pastors spend hours preparing sermons, and many have trained for years at seminaries and Bible schools to be equipped to handle the Scriptures correctly. Not everyone takes on the task of learning Greek, Hebrew, exegesis, church history, systematic theology, and the host of other disciplines that are a part of pastoral training. But all this is for the purpose of making sure God’s people know His Word and are able to apply it to their lives.

In light of this, pastors should be honored and loved “beyond all measure,” to the highest extent. The Christian should never be caught bad-mouthing his or her pastor, or treating him with contempt or derision. Biblically speaking, the office of pastor is the highest office of any institution on earth that anyone can hold. Because of the high honor of their position, they are held to a higher standard. They must be above reproach (1 Timothy 3:2), and, like all teachers, will be judged with greater strictness (James 3:1). Therefore, they deserve our loyalty and respect. When they sin, this respect extends to the way they are approached (i.e., not on the basis of gossip, but on the basis of two or three witnesses, according to 1 Timothy 5:19).

So, I encourage you today, and this week, to pray for your church leadership. Perhaps send an e-mail to encourage them, or even find way you can minister to them (fixing a meal, washing a car, babysitting, etc.). Honor them as Christ’s undershepherds devoted to your spiritual well-being.

Have a good week!