Shepherding God's Flock

Jay E. Adams

• Publisher: Zondervan
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9780310535454
• Topic: Théologie et religion
• Subtopic: Ministère chrétien

Shepherding God's Flock is both a textbook for students of pastoral ministry and a handbook for pastors. Jay Adams is well-known for his practical and thorough approach to the many issues of Christian counseling. That same practicality and thoroughness is found in this unparalleled handbook on pastoral ministry. Not only does it offer pastors one of the best resources in print, but it also provides church elders with an orientation and practical guide to aspects of ministry for which they have responsibility. It is truly a shepherd's handbook. The book is divided into three parts. Pastoral Life deals with the pastor, his calling, and the general care he provides the flock. Pastoral Counseling provides an overview of the task and a general approach for pastoral counselors. Pastoral Leadership offers a perspective on the ways the pastor can lead the church in its many tasks and responsibilities.

1
THE PASTORAL LIFE

CHAPTER I
THEOLOGY AND PASTORAL WORK

There has been revival of interest in the theology of pastoral activity, particularly among liberal and neo-orthodox writers.¹ While the interest must be welcomed, one cannot refrain from observing that the conclusions reached by beginning with unscriptural views of God and man have been universally unsatisfactory. On the other hand, many conservative writers have all but failed to recognize the implications of theology in writing about pastoral care. Often unwittingly, they have applied themselves to the task with fuzzy or erroneous theological thinking that ends in similarly unacceptable results. Others, attempting to bypass theological and exegetical questions while concentrating upon practical matters, have not fared much better.

The fact of the matter is that it is irresponsible and dangerous to attempt to do practical work apart from a sound theological base. The only proper basis for Christian living and pastoral ministry is biblical and theological. It is incorrect to view any of the theological disciplines totally by itself in an isolated manner; such compartmental thinking often has had very damaging effects upon the church. Ivory towerism on one end of the continuum and activism on the other are equally dangerous. While theological thought must never divorce itself from the questions asked in contemporary society, neither may the practical theologians ignore the biblical and theological answers hammered out by careful exegesis and debate over the centuries.

Because theology and pastoral concerns are frequently indistinguishable in the Scriptures, practical theologians in all that they do must be conscious of the integral relationships between the two.

Where the Scriptures make a distinguishable demarcation (not separation) between theology and practical living (e.g., Ephesians 1-3/4-6), the biblical emphasis clearly shows that the practical is based upon, grows out of and everywhere is conditioned by the theological (cf. the pivotal “therefore” in Ephesians 4:1).²

Practical ministry can never be anything less than the ministry of the Word. That Word, understood exegetically and systematically, must permeate and motivate all practical work. The directions that one’s practical activities take, the norms by which he operates and the motivation behind what he does must emerge from a biblical theological study of the Scriptures.³ The pursuit of Practical Theology, therefore, must be seen as the study and application of the biblical means of expressing one’s theology.

It is important for the reader to understand my viewpoint and stance concerning this matter, since all of the material that is contained in this book is self-consciously predicated upon the assumption that the Reformation (or Reformed) theology is a correct interpretation of the Word of God. Believing that all doctrine has implications in ministry and life, I would consider the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints (for example) vital to mature Christian living and witness. One’s view of the marks and purity of the church will influence the level of relationship that he sustains to ministers in liberal denominations. His understanding of the biblical data on church discipline will control his counseling of persons struggling with problems of divorce. Ministry and life, then, are inseparably intertwined with theology. The pastoral worker, therefore, cannot escape either the need for a theology of pastoral work (ministry) or the implications of theology in all that he does. If the pastor finds that he fails in his everyday dealings with men and women, he should recognize that the source of his problem may not be lack of experience, strategy or skills; in more instances than he may wish to admit, his failures may stem from shoddy or erroneous biblical understanding or theological thinking. Ineffective and harmful approaches to the members of one’s congregation and to the community may be quite simply the result of faulty conceptions of both men and God.

While in pastoral work one synthesizes and applies the truth acquired by exegesis and theology, set into perspective by church history, he also must acquire that wisdom and those skills which are requisite to the ministry of this truth to men.

Knowledge of the truth is the starting point, but these additional qualities, so essential to pastoral work, can be acquired only by careful guidance in the discovery, development and exercise of one’s gifts. This book serves mainly as an aid in pointing the student and the pastor to some of the ways and means by which to make such acquisitions.⁴ The art of pastoral work, therefore, involves dedicated ministry to believers in which theologically correct concepts are applied to the conduct of congregational and individual living. One of John’s striking phrases that captures this concept in a memorable manner is “walking in the truth” (II John 4; III John 3).

EXERCISES

For the Student

1. Make a biblical study of the relationship of truth to pastoral ministry. Limit your study to the Pastoral Epistles. Submit a two-page paper on any one aspect of the question that intrigues you.

2. Interview four or five pastors of differing theological persuasions, asking each one to tell you how his theological belief concerning any two doctrines (of your own choosing) affects his pastoral activities. If he does not know, probe deeply enough to discover. Perhaps his professed beliefs and his practice are inconsistent. Report to the class on the results of your study.

For the Pastor

1. Examine two or three of your present pastoral practices to see if you could articulate a clear relationship between these and your Scriptural and theological understanding.

2. Answer specifically: What influence does one’s doctrine of the church exert upon his everyday ministerial activities? List the implications of your own beliefs.

¹Cf. William Oglesby (ed.), The New Shape of Pastoral Theology (Abingdon Press, Nashville and New York: 1969); Josef Goldbrunner, Realization Anthropology of Pastoral Care (University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame: 1966); Stewart Lawton, Pastoral Implications of Biblical Theology (The Seabury Press, New York: 1968); Edward Thurneysen, A Theology of Pastoral Care (John Knox Press, Richmond: 1962); Seward Hiltner, Theological Dynamics.

²For a very helpful discussion of the relation that systematic theology bears to practical work, see Benjamin B. Warfield, The Savior of the World (Mack Publishing Company, Cherry Hill: 1972), pp. 221-230. Here Warfield is considering “The Indispensableness of Systematic Theology to the Preacher,” but the concepts clearly are transferable to pastoral work.

³Warfield defines Systematic Theology as “nothing other than the saving truth of God presented in systematic form.” Ibid., p. 222.

⁴Much (if not all) of the work in this area must be accompanied by observation and participation. Exercises aimed at facilitating both have been included at points to help both pastors and students. For the latter, there are exercises to be assigned in class. For the former, there are others in which he can engage on his own.

CHAPTER II
PASTORAL THEOLOGY

The name “pastoral” is a uniquely Christian term that expresses a fundamental concept that is deeply embedded in every biblical portrayal of Christian ministry. The term refers to a rich scriptural figure that finds its beginning and end in God. He, who is the “Shepherd of Israel” (Psalm 80:1), ultimately demonstrated the meaning of His covenantal love as the Great Shepherd of the sheep by giving His life for them (John 10:11).¹ The figure virtually bursts with significance, far more than didactic statements ever could express. Let us, therefore, try only to capture something of what it meant for David (as a former shepherd) to write:

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1),

for in that great declaration lies all that is meant by “Pastoral Work.” To help to understand this, reread the sentence this way:

“The Lord is my Pastor; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1).

The shepherd is the one who provides full and complete care for all of his sheep. Sheep are helpless (Isaiah 33:7), are followers (John 10:3-5), are likely to wander and stray (Isaiah 53:6), but under his care they do not lack.

Psalm 23:1 is what the Greeks have called an enthymeme. An enthymeme is a loose syllogism in which one of the three terms is missing. When David brings the two ideas of God as Shepherd and His sheep not lacking (“wanting”) into close juxtaposition, he intends to say that the second fact necessarily follows and flows from the first as a consequence thereof. Stated syllogistically, it would read something like this:

The Lord is my Shepherd.
Shepherds meet all of the needs of their flocks.
Therefore: The Lord will meet all of my needs.

But poetry and syllogisms clash. Most beautifully (and cogently) David, the shepherd, says to readers who knew all about the ways of shepherds and sheep:

“The Lord is my Shepherd; [therefore] I shall not lack.” The rest of this remarkable Psalm shows something of the ways in which the heavenly Shepherd cares for the needs of His sheep. We may note some of these in passing, for they correspond to the work of the undershepherd in his pastoral ministry.

The Twenty-third Psalm speaks of:

1. Concern for each individual sheep: “The Lord is my Shepherd.” The Good Shepherd “calls them by name“ (John 10:3), He “knows them” (10:27), and goes out to seek the “one which is lost” (Luke 15:4).

2. Rest: “he makes me to lie down.” He knows our frame, how much we can handle and what is too much for us and treats us accordingly.

3. Provision for daily sustenance: “green pastures . . . still waters” (food and drink).

4. Refreshment and encouragement when tired, worn or discouraged: “he restores my soul [poetic for ‘me’].”

5. Guidance and leadership: “he leads [not drives] me.” Cf. John 10:3, 4: “he . . . leads them out . . . he goes before them.” Cf. also Revelation 7:17, and further back. Psalm 80:1, “Shepherd of Israel . . . who leads Joseph as a flock.”

6. Instruction, training and discipline: “ . . . leads in the paths of righteousness.” Cf. II Timothy 3:16: “for training in righteousness.”

7. Provision for goals and motivation: “for his Name’s sake.”

8. Security and protection: “I will fear no evil . . . your rod and staff protect me.” Protection from falling, from attack by wolves without and within. Cf. I Peter 2:25: “The Shepherd and Guardian of your souls,” Hebrews 13:17: “your leaders . . . watch over your souls,” Acts 20:28-30: “Be on guard . . . for all the flock . . . to shepherd the church of God . . . after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock, and from among your own selves,” and John 10:11, when the wolf comes, he “lays down his life for the sheep.”

9. Personal fellowship and loving friendship: “you are with me.” Cf. John 10:14, 15: “ . . . I know my own, and my own know me even as the Father knows me and I know the Father.” The loving care and concern of the shepherd/sheep relationship reaches its epitome, perhaps in Revelation 7:17, where in comforting words of reassurance God says of potential martyrs that “the Lamb [note how the shepherd and the redemptive covenantal themes here merge to form the otherwise strange concept of a lamb as Shepherd] . . . shall be their shepherd and shall guide them to springs of the water of life.”

From the wealth of this biblical ore, and much more, the Christian minister defines his work as a pastor. It is his task, in following the Chief and Great Shepherd of the sheep (I Peter 5:4; Hebrews 13:20), to shepherd God’s flock so that they do not lack. That is to say, he must meet their every need.²

The important list of church office bearers in Ephesians 4:11 describes the Christian minister as a “pastor and teacher” (or perhaps, to convey the Greek text most clearly, a “pastor-teacher”).³

In this verse the minister’s teaching is viewed as distinct (but not separate) from his pastoral duties. That is to say, the two works are distinguished by the use of two terms but not in such a way that two offices composed of different personnel are in view. Rather they are viewed as two distinct but inseparable functions of one man who occupies one office. Elsewhere the two functions appear as distinguishable works that together constitute the complete task of one man:

Him we proclaim, nouthetically confronting every man (pastoral work) and teaching every man . . . (Colossians 1:28).⁴

Because the work of teaching (a word that is not sharply differentiated from preaching in the New Testament) is distinguishable (although not separable) from pastoral work, it is proper to study pastoral work as a distinct discipline, though not in isolation. While always remembering the important relationships that pastoral work and preaching sustain to one another, in this book the former has been given full consideration, while the latter has not. Preaching and teaching, to be sure, constitute a part of the feeding, training and leading ministry of the shepherd and, therefore, in one sense may be viewed as a vital part of pastoral activity. Yet, even Paul sees some distinction between ministry as a pastor and ministry as a teacher. Following his lead, therefore, for purposes of study we have distinguished, though not separated, the two.

The Scriptures disclose that in the thinking of the apostles there was the closest possible relationship b...