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Honoring Our Shepherds
In the Word
Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages” (1 Timothy 5:17 ̶ 18).
Of the Word
When I was a child, I thought that my pastor had a very easy job because he only worked on Sundays. Although pastors may have a day or two a week scheduled to spend with family and may take vacation time throughout the year, their responsibility for and service to their flock and to the Good Shepherd is a 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 52 weeks a year commitment.
Pastors visit the sick, comfort the dying, and counsel the troubled. Many also attend numerous meetings, activities, and events within the congregation and surrounding community. Some supervise large staffs of called, lay, and volunteer workers while others are the sole pastor tasked with meeting a wide variety of needs within a congregation or congregations, including reaching out to the unchurched community members with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. All pastors — regardless of the congregation’s size, type, and expectations of their pastor — carry out the most important vocations of preaching, teaching, and administering the Sacraments. Christ uses pastors in His Church to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19b ̶ 20a). Thanks be to God for blessing us with pastors!
Walking with my Lord
Thank You, Lord, for faithful shepherds who preach and teach Your Word and administer Your Sacraments. Forgive us for our failure to give them the honor they are due and help us to support them as they carry out Your Great Commission. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Mustard Seed: Honoring Our Shepherds by Ruth Badciong, Winona, Minnesota. Copyright © 2024 Lutheran Women’s Missionary League. All rights reserved. lwml.org
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible unless otherwise noted. (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
