The Word God Said - “The Care and Life of The Flock of God” - 1 Peter 5

All right, so I'm going to read chapter 5, and

then we're going to dig in, okay? 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, 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, not domineering over

those in your charge, but being examples to the

flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you

will receive the unfading crown of glory. 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. Humble yourselves,

therefore, under the mighty hand of God, so that

at the proper time he may exalt you, casting

all your anxieties on him, for he cares for you.

Be sober -minded, be watchful. Your adversary,

the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion

seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in

the faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering

are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout

the world. And after you have suffered a little

while, the God of all grace, who has called you

to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself

restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you

to him. be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

By Silvanus, a faithful brother, as I regard

him, I have written briefly to you, exhorting

and declaring that this is the true grace of

God. Stand firm in it. She who is at Babylon,

who is likewise chosen, sends you greetings,

and so does Mark, my son. Greet one another with

the kiss of love. Peace to all of you who are

in Christ. May the Lord bless the reading of

his word. There is a lot in this chapter. There's

a lot of doctrine, a lot of stuff we need to

deal with. And I will give you a very good overview

of it. And we'll dig in another time to get even

deeper into some of these things. But I think

for the most part. you'll get a really good understanding

of why this chapter is so important and why he

finishes this letter that way. The principle

number one, the men whom God has ordained have

been called and commanded to the care of the

flock of God. The men whom God has ordained have

been called and commanded to the care of the

flock of God. In Acts 20, 26 through 28, therefore,

I testify to you this day that I am innocent

of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from

declaring to you the whole counsel of God. Pay

careful attention to yourselves and to all the

flock in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers

to care for the church of God, which he obtained

by his own blood. Now, this is important. If

I can, there you go. This is important because

what we're going to read in chapter 5, verse

1 through 4, is almost the same declaration.

That the reality of God's flock, his church,

Paul has made every attempt to proclaim to the

people and the doctrine of God to the people.

that he is innocent of all their blood. In other

words, it is on them if they shrink away. And

then he says, for I did not shrink from declaring

to you the whole counsel of God. So as elders,

and there's only two of us here, I think. As

elders, we are held responsible to teach the

full counsel of God's word, whether you like

it or not. The word is offensive. It is difficult.

And we can't skip things or go over things because

they're too difficult to handle. Or they're going

to be offensive. And the scary part in the day

that we live in, which is thriving in deception,

is men of God do this all the time in the pulpits

today. And we don't have the option. To do that,

we must declare the whole counsel of God, not

part of it. We must not tickle the ears so that

you feel comfortable and happy. Pay careful attention

to yourselves. Are you walking and preaching

the gospel to yourself? Are you walking and teaching

the full counsel of the word of God and studying

the full counsel of the word of God for yourself?

Are you? Paying attention to yourself carefully

as you should also to all the flock that God

has entrusted. And God has entrusted each and

every person that walks in this building to us

as elders. You don't carry the burden. We do.

And that's important to understand. And it is

a heavy burden to carry. But that does not mean

that we don't. Love and enjoy the moment. I love

shepherding the flock of God with all her beauty

and with all her ugliness. There is no greater

calling for any man on the face of the earth

than to be a shepherd of God's people. And that

includes the president of the United States.

There is no greater purpose of any man than to

care for God's people. And it is humbling that

he would call such a man as I or such men as

we. Because we don't deserve it. But he is wise

and good and he knows. And so we do. Because

we love you. And because we love him. Notice

it says, in which the Holy Spirit has made you

overseers. He has made us as overseers to care

for the church of God. Beautiful word. Which

he obtained by his own blood. So what does this

mean? We don't own you. God owns us. And the

cost is a cost that can never be repaid. There

is nothing that is greater value than the blood

of Christ, which he has paid for you. Not gold,

not silver, no precious stones could ever match

the value of the blood of Jesus. And so in 1

Peter 5, 1 through 4, this is what he says. So

I exhort, I plead, I beg the elders. Presbyteros

is Y is typically an U. So he begs, he pleads

the elders among you. Why? As a fellow elder

and a witness, one who testifies. Testifies to

what? To the sufferings of Christ. This is a

term that's used as if someone is being brought

as a witness before a judge. This is an... eyewitness,

one who clearly can testify to the truth of the

reality of the sufferings of Jesus, as well as

a partaker, a participant in the glory that's

going to be revealed. Why? Do you remember when

he ascended and the angel said, do not marvel?

In the same way that he has ascended, he will

descend. And Jesus says, if I go to prepare a

place for you, I will come again to take you

to myself. John, I mean, Peter knows full well

of Christ's return. And he is a participant in

the glory that is going to be revealed. You are

a participant. Get that. We're not just spectators.

We're involved. How are we involved to this day?

Shepherd. So this is to our elders. And this

is also to the men who lead and teach. And for

those who do lead and teach, even the women,

be mindful. Because the principle can apply.

Not the office, but the principle to care for

those who have been put in your care. Shepherd.

Full care. This is important. Because a lot of

times we think shepherding is just this or that.

It's actually to feed, tend, keep, or govern.

And govern, sorry. In other words, the full care

of the flock of God has been placed upon you.

That's a burden that is very heavy. And it's

not easy. And it's not supposed to be easy. But

it is supposed to be a place of joy. And I will

tell you for the men who serve with me, it is

our joy. It is our joy. The flock of God clearly

is implying God is the owner. It's his flock.

Not my flock. My responsibility is to care for

his flock. That is among you. That is a term

that's used to imply a local body. or a local

flock among the flock. This is a group of people

which God has purposed to send to an overseer

or a group of overseers in order to care for

and take, feed and to govern and to tend and

keep. Exercising oversight. This term means to

serve as overseers or to see to or care for.

It's the same idea as it reminds me, as that

we are stewards of what God owns. We are your

stewards. Not under compulsion. That means by

constraint, force, or unwilling. We aren't to

do it because we're forced to. We are to do it

because we're willing. And he says this, and

not under compulsion, willing, which means the

same thing. He gives you the negative and he

gives you the positive, which means the same

thing. But it's really the attitude of the heart

and the mind, isn't it? You ever see men who

all they want to do is just sit in their office?

They don't really want to shepherd because shepherding

is work. And they've taken on the thought from

a misunderstanding concerning what it says in

the book of Acts when the apostles had set aside

deacons to serve the tables and take care of

the needs of the people. So their responsibility

is just to do the Bible. So he'll sit in her

office, do the Bible all day, but not be connected

to the people that they got to care for. Can

you imagine what would have happened with Moses

if that's what he did all day? And he wouldn't

be sitting down and meeting and dealing with

the needs of the people by judging the issues

of the day. If you want to see what a shepherd

looks like, look at Moses. Not only did he deliver

the word and that he also made sure that the

people ate and that they were well taken care

of and that they were governed. But he also had

assigned by God's leading elders to oversee the

tribe so that when they would bring to Moses

issues that they could not resolve, Moses could

take care of those issues. He didn't stop and

say, you know what? You know what? I'll just

sit and write another tablet of stone. Shepherding

is so much more. Look what it says, as God would

have you. It's interesting, the term as God would

have you is not in the scripture itself, but

it's clearly implied under the word willing.

Because it's exactly what God would have you

to do. Do it because you're willing to do it.

Not for shameful gain, greediness for money,

but eagerly, being prompt, ready, cheerful, and

wholehearted. That is something that I think

is missing in many of our brothers. Because they've

let the burden and the weight of people's stuff

keep them from the cheerfulness and the wholeheartedness

of why they're doing it. For the glory and the

edification of the church so that the kingdom

of God is built. That's why we do it. It's not

because I want to be happy. My happiness and

my joy is found in serving the Lord and loving

his people well. What else is there? Not domineering

to be master or exercise lordship over those

in your charge. So what happens in many cases,

and I'll say this, it is dangerous to be in a

church with a single elder -led pastor or a single

pastor. Who runs the church. No man should have

that kind of power. The only one who runs the

church is Jesus Christ himself, the chief shepherd.

And we as under shepherds are to care for his

people as stewards, as God has intended. And

that's why we are an eldership. It's never meant

for one man to do the work by himself. It's meant

for us to do it together. And in many cases,

just like Moses, he needs someone on his right

and on his left to hold his arms up. Thank you,

Ben. Over those in your charge, over those assigned

to one's oversight and care. That's what this

means. Oversight and care. How? But being examples,

a type or pattern. How do we live this way? How

do we oversee and shepherd and keep and care?

By being examples, a type or pattern. 1 Corinthians

11 .1, be imitators of me as I am of Christ.

To the flock. It's the same idea here. My type

or my pattern is Christ, and I must be as Christ,

not perfectly, but consistently. And when the

chief shepherd appears, you will receive the

unfading crown of glory. This is our reward.

This is our reward. We receive a crown that no

one else will receive. It's our reward. So let's

be faithful. Don't worry, I spoke to the other

elders too, but they're not here. So it's just

me and you, bro. Second principle, because God

cares for you, he will exalt those who walk humbly

before him. Micah 6 .8, he has told you, oh man,

what is good and what does the Lord require of

you, but to do justice and to love kindness and

to walk humbly with your God. It's really a question.

It's a statement question, nonetheless. But hasn't

he told you, oh man, what is good and what the

Lord requires of you, that you do justice and

love kindness and walk humbly with your God?

Hasn't he told you that already? Yes, he has.

Has he not? This is for every one of us. This

is not just for the elders. 1 Peter 5, 5 -7,

likewise, in the same way. In other words, this

term is being used like this. The elder must

be humble and subject to the Lord. So in the

same way, you also must be humble and subject

to the Lord. That's what he means here. So he

gave you a list of how the shepherd or the overseer,

the elder should live. The only way he can accomplish

those tasks in verses 1 through 4 is to be humble.

We cannot sit on the horse of pride. Now, understanding

that, he says, likewise, you who are younger.

So, got some good news for you guys who are young.

Darrell, has nothing to do with age. Nothing

to do with age. This word younger has nothing

to do with how old you are. This word younger

means recent, new, young in the faith or lacking

experience. I was talking to Karen Koons after

the service. She had shared this with me. She

goes, I really love that. She goes, do you know

what the Hebrew Bible I use says? I said, what?

She goes, lacking experience. Oh, I love that.

I got to use that. So you guys got it. First

service did it. But that's exactly what it means.

Likewise, you who lack experience, be subject.

Place or arrange oneself under the elders. Why?

Because it's our responsibility to care and to

shepherd you, to help you grow, to see what God

has for you. Clothe yourselves. Now, what's interesting,

this word clothe, is a term that's used for slaves.

In Dalton Abbey, you ever notice that all of

the servants that lived in the house did not

dress as those who lived there? They wore servants'

clothes. They put on the servants' clothes so

that when the guests and those who came in would

be able to know who the servant is versus who

isn't. That's what he means here. Because we

are slaves to Christ, put on the servant clothes.

And what is the servant's clothes? Humility.

Clothe yourselves with humility, with a deep

sense of one's littleness. Do you get that? That

we think of ourselves less than we ought. Not

more, but less. This deep sense of one's littleness

toward one another. Philippians 2. Do nothing

from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility

count others more significant than yourselves.

Let each of you look not only to his own interests,

but also to the interests of others. Littleness.

Lowliness. For God opposes. God has set himself

in opposition. to the proud, the arrogant, but

gives grace to the humble, the lowly. Humble

yourselves. It's a different term, actually.

It means to lower oneself. Humble yourselves,

therefore. Lower yourselves, therefore, by any

means, under the strong, powerful hand of God.

So that at the proper time, he will exalt you.

I know, Jody and I had a conversation about the

word may. But I don't do Old English. And everyone

else thinks may is may, kind of, sort of. At

least I think so. And so the reality is, it's

not that he might. He will exalt you. God will.

You see, if God might, then God is not a... A

God who keeps his promises. Because if I'm obedient

and I do what he commands me to do, then he says,

I will do this for you. Not maybe. And what will

he do? He will lift me up and elevate. He will

lift you up and elevate you. And so as a result,

if he is lifting you up and elevating you, what

should you do? Cast and throw upon. Means to

throw all your anxieties on him. Why? Because

he cares for you. Matthew 11, 28 through 30.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden,

and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you

and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly

in heart, and you will find rest for your souls,

for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. He's

saying, listen, take all your junk and just put

it on me. I can carry that. Then what I have

to give you to carry is nothing in comparison.

Here, you take my yoke, I take your yoke. My

yoke doesn't have all the junk. He carries our

junk. Third principle, we must be willing to

suffer for his glory, knowing he is faithful

to do as he's promised. In Ephesians 5, 15 through

17, look carefully then how you walk, not as

unwise, but as wise, making the best use of the

time because the days are evil. Therefore, do

not be foolish, but understand what the will

of the Lord is. Now, I'm going to deal with some

controversial issue right now. Now, I want you

to understand something very important. When

he says, be sober -minded, 1 Peter 5, 8 -11,

be vigilant, clear -headed, be watchful for your

adversary, the enemy, the devil, the culminator,

the accuser, the slanderer, prowls around, roves,

roams, and accompanies or follows like a roaring

lion. There is not a day, I think, in all of

world history When deception has not been the

greatest we have ever seen. And I do pray that

one day the president will hear what I'm about

to say. The president of the United States must

be a man of integrity and keep his word. When

he says he's going to do something, he needs

to do what he says. If he says he's going to

do a ceasefire, then do a ceasefire. Stop playing

games. It is wrong, it is sin, and it is a mockery

to the responsibility of the office of the President

of the United States. We must understand this.

Regardless of his pride and regardless of the

man he is, he has a woman in his office who tickles

his ear. And deception is at the greatest I've

ever seen. And it's from every side. We are,

as believers, being attacked from every side.

Why do I say that? Because we must be sober -minded,

vigilant and clear -headed and be watchful. All

of us. And not only are we dealing with the reality

of deception. In everything that we're dealing

with, we're also dealing with in the church.

How do we know what truth is? The word of God.

All scripture is God -breathed. It is the final

authority in all things. It is his word, period.

So your adversary, the enemy, The devil, the

culminator, the accuser, the slanderer, prowls

around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may

devour. What's interesting here is it's the pictures

that Peter is painting here. It's not about the

devil. It's about suffering. There are enemies

around about us. And I will tell you, this term

to roam, accompany, follow is exactly what aligned

us. Just waiting for that moment. And there are

those who are devilish who continue to do the

same thing. I will tell you this, and I have

been praying and thinking about this quite a

bit. And I'm more convinced now than I've ever

been that the evil one has been released and

is at. and is out deceiving the nations. Revelation

20 and Revelation 13. Every nation is in this

moment of deception and the people of God, unless

they know the word of God, will be deceived so

much so that some of them will believe it. And

Jesus makes this claim that even the elect, if

it were possible, would be deceived. But it's

not possible for the elect to be deceived because

the Spirit of God lives in us. We have something

the world would never have. God living in us.

Emmanuel. This word devour means to swallow greedily.

Isn't that exactly what it's like, isn't it?

Resist, oppose, withstand, firm. steadfast, strong

in your faith. I don't know why they put the

word him here. Resist him because it's really

a list that Peter is placing here that we must

resist firm in the faith, knowing the same kinds

of sufferings or afflictions are being experienced

by your brotherhood. It's really a list. It's

not resist him. It's resist anything that's antithetical

to God. Firm in the faith. Firm in the gospel.

So let me share this with you. There is only

one thing that has been given to you that's your

responsibility. To contend for the faith. The

gospel. So let me give you the gospel very plainly.

Okay? This is a gospel that has justified you

in the work of Jesus Christ. Okay? Very important.

What is the gospel? That Christ came and died

on the cross, was buried and rose again on the

third day. He came and put on flesh to be in

the image of the creation in which he is created.

And as a result, sinful man. Because of one man,

Adam, all sinned and all have died. But through

one man, the second Adam, all will live. Very

important. Second, without the shedding of blood,

there is no forgiveness of sin. That means to

be justified before God. Nothing can justify

anyone except for the blood of Christ itself

and the work that he has done on the cross. For

the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God

is eternal life in Christ Jesus. And why is that

important? Because there's no one who is righteous,

no, not one. No one does good. No one seeks God.

Now, understanding this reality, the condition

of the total depravity of man has brought man

to one position before God, and that is under

his wrath. That means all people born are under

the wrath of God. And the only way one comes

out from underneath the wrath of God, erkomai,

is to be born again in Christ, washed by the

blood of Jesus, and placed from death to life.

There is no greater work in all of creation than

the crucified, buried, and risen Savior. There

is no greater work. No one has the power to do

so except for him. Now understanding this, how

should we live? The willingness to suffer. knowing

that the same kinds of suffering, affliction

are being experienced, fully undergone or endured

by the brotherhood throughout the world. Now

this is important. The reason why this is important

is because of this statement right here. Your

adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring

lion seeking someone to devour. We can't take

it out of context. We know what the context is

here. Exactly what it says, knowing that the

same kinds of suffering or affliction are being

experienced and endured by the brotherhood throughout

the world. What does this mean? That the very

works of the enemy are at work against every

believer. People that live in the world that

are under the curse are still under the curse.

There is no need for that. They live in deception.

Now, this also implies one very important characteristic

that Satan does not have. Omnipresence. Because

he can't be fully... He can't be... And afflicting

all the believers around the world at the same

time. Just want to throw that out there. And

after you suffered. Now this term after you have

is not present. Nor in the tense. But I can see

why they put it there. Because it makes sense.

At least from an English perspective. And suffering

a little while. Not a really good sentence. But

I get it. So after you've endured a little while,

briefly, the God of all grace, do you hear that?

Where sin increases, grace increases all the

more. Suffering for the cause of Christ is a

result of persecution under the sin of someone

else or something else. And where sin increases,

grace increases all the more. Why? Because the

God of all grace. Who will give you all that

you need to endure and suffer under it for his

glory. And he will fill your life full of grace.

Has called you, has summoned you to his eternal

glory in Christ. Do you get that? Eternal security.

Isn't it a beautiful thing? To know that in Christ,

I'm eternally secure in him. Will himself. Restore,

complete, prepare, equip, and train. Philippians

1 .6, and I am sure of this, that he who began

a good work in you will bring it to completion

at the day of Jesus Christ. What is God's purpose

for our suffering? What is God's purpose for

our life on earth? What is your purpose for being

on earth to be conformed into the image of his

son, which he has predestined you to be? There

is no greater calling nor greater privilege that

God would bestow upon a creature rebellious and

evil to be like his son. What an amazing grace.

Now, if God has restored us or is restoring us,

he will confirm, he will establish, strengthen,

be resolute. Do you hear that? You need to be

established, strengthened, and be resolute. Resolute

in what? In the truth of the word of God. In

the truth of the gospel. In the truth of the

person of the divine Jesus Christ. Be strengthened

and established. This word established is a foundation.

So for us who are being restored and confirmed

and strengthened, he has established us on a

foundation. Psalm 40 verse 2, he drew me up from

Psalms 40:2

the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog,

and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps

secure. Who is my rock? Jesus Christ. And he's

done that through the gospel. What an amazing

thing. Christ is our foundation. The foundation

is the gospel. The words that the prophets and

the apostles have taught us. Christ being the

chief cornerstone. To him be dominion forever

and ever. Amen. Lastly, God's word is given to

exhort us and for us to stand firm in it. Deuteronomy

624. And the Lord commands us to do all these

statutes to fear the Lord our God for our good

always. Do you hear that? So I will tell you

again, obedience. I will tell you every single

day of your life, obedience. You want to be firm

and established in the fear of God? Obedience.

Do all these statutes. Why? Because in Christ,

I can do them now. It is my freedom and my joy

to obey because I want to please him, not because

I am obligated to. And if it's difficult to hear,

then maybe you should check yourself. For our

good always. Isn't that beautiful? The word of

God and the fear of God and the obedience to

God by the work of Christ in and through us is

for our good always. He causes all things to

turn to the good of those who love him and be

called according to his purpose. We don't get

the fringe benefits of salvation without the

responsibility of living it. That he might preserve

us alive. Remember I told you the word that the

law of God is not just the school teacher and

it's not the revealer that we are dead in our

trespasses and sins, but for us who are alive

in Christ, it is life and freedom. There it is.

Notice what he says, as we are to this day. Isn't

that beautiful? Man does not live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of

God. 1 Peter 5, 12 through 14, by Silvanus. In

other words, by this brother, a faithful brother

as I regard him. I am sending this letter by

Silvanus. I have written briefly this letter

to you, exhorting and declaring that this is

the true grace of God. Stand firm in it. In other

words, what he's saying is this letter I'm writing

to you. is the doctrine of God for your life.

Stand firm in it. It is the true grace of God

for you. During this great time of dispersion.

And she, who is in Babylon, who is likewise chosen.

Now what's this mean? Well, come to do a little

study on this issue of Babylon. There was like

a little city called Babylon, but it's not that

type of Babylon. What's he talking about here?

Well, almost all of the commentaries refer to

Babylon as the environment they were living in,

Rome. The Babylonian system. And I want to make

this very clear for you. We live in Babylon.

Every church on the planet lives in Babylon today.

That's correct. She who is at Babylon or in Babylon,

who is likewise chosen, do you understand that?

You are a chosen people, a people for his own

possession. You are to reflect him in every way,

especially in these very deceitful days. And

your responsibility is to know the word. So this

church, whom John is speaking of, the chosen

in Babylon, sends you greetings. And so does

Mark, my son. Greet one another with the kiss

of love. You guys do that very well. You guys

do. Some are huggers. Some are kissers. Some

are handshakers. But you guys do this so well.

That's how you know the love of God is present

in the brotherhood. Isn't it exciting to see

someone who hasn't been here in a while and you

see them, you're like, oh! Peace to all of you.

who are in Christ. We live in some very tough,

tough days. So here's my challenge to you, which

we will be talking about over the next several

weeks, which is going to be 2 Peter. I'm going

to be dealing with this issue of the devil that

prowls around like a roaring lion. During 2 Peter,

he deals with a particular issue about false

teachers. So as we go through 2 Peter, we're

going to address the doctrine of truth so that

you can discern and expose the false doctrine.

So we will be exposing other denominations, churches,

who deal or teach false doctrine and who have...

Clearly faded away from the full gospel of Jesus

Christ. It's our responsibility to do so. So

just letting you know that's going to be coming

over these next several weeks. And you're going

to learn a lot. So I pray that you would not

only walk in the grace, but pray for those brothers

and sisters who are in those situations that

God would draw them out. It just happens to be

in 2 Peter, he deals with it. So we got to deal

with it. So it's okay. All right? Anyway. So

please stand as I give you the benediction. Now

may the God of peace who brought again from the

dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the

sheep by the blood of eternal covenant, equip

you for everything good that you may do his will.

working in us that which is pleasing in his sight

through Jesus Christ. To him be glory forever

and ever. May the Lord bless you and keep you

and shine his face upon you and give you peace.

And may the Holy Spirit guide you in all truth.

In Jesus' name.