Marks of a Good Pastor – Part II
From The HeartPublish date: 04/28/2013
But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. John 10:2 AMP
3. A person called by God to be a pastor/minister must have pure and consecrated motives.
a. A pastor/minister must desire God's will and glory; not their own. Jesus is the Good Shepherd and He calls certain people as under-shepherds. Pastoring is a call. Pastors represent Jesus on earth and should care for the Church – the Body of Christ - as much as Jesus does. A pastor cannot have selfish motives – they cannot pastor because of a natural reward; whether money or fame or any other selfish reason. In God’s Kingdom, ministry is about serving, not being served. It’s about giving your life: caring for the sheep and protecting them from the wolves – not running away. A pastor/minister must love people like Jesus loves them.
John 10:9-13 AMP - I am the Door; anyone who enters in through Me will be saved (will live). He will come in and he will go out [freely], and will find pasture. 10 The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). 11 I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd risks and lays down His [own] life for the sheep. 12 But the hired servant (he who merely serves for wages) who is neither the shepherd nor the owner of the sheep, when he sees the wolf coming, deserts the flock and runs away. And the wolf chases and snatches them and scatters [the flock]. 13 Now the hireling flees because he merely serves for wages and is not himself concerned about the sheep [cares nothing for them].
b. A pastor/minister must make salvation of lost souls a priority.
Luke 19:10 AMP - For the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.
Acts 10:28 AMP - And he said to them, You yourselves are aware how it is not lawful or permissible for a Jew to keep company with or to visit or [even] to come near or to speak first to anyone of another nationality, but God has shown and taught me by words that I should not call any human being common or unhallowed or [ceremonially] unclean.
c. Like Jesus, a pastor/minister must do good, heal and deliver people by the power of God.
Acts 10:38 AMP - How God anointed and consecrated Jesus of Nazareth with the [Holy] Spirit and with strength and ability and power; how He went about doing good and, in particular, curing all who were harassed and oppressed by [the power of] the devil, for God was with Him.
d. A pastor/minister must have the best interests of the church, and all men, at heart. The purpose of the ministry gifts is to equip the saints (believers) for ministry work, to spiritually build up the Body of Christ, to accurately communicate the truths of God’s word, resulting in unity among, and maturity in, God’s people.
Ephesians 4:11-13 NKJV - And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ;
e. A pastor/minister must see people as God sees them – through eyes of love and faith - as a new creation, growing in righteousness. His/her responsibility is to teach the Body of Christ who and what they are in Christ and to encourage them in their walk with God.
2 Corinthians 5:14-21 AMP - For the love of Christ controls and urges and impels us, because we are of the opinion and conviction that [if] One died for all, then all died; 15 And He died for all, so that all those who live might live no longer to and for themselves, but to and for Him Who died and was raised again for their sake. 16 Consequently, from now on we estimate and regard no one from a [purely] human point of view [in terms of natural standards of value]. [No] even though we once did estimate Christ from a human viewpoint and as a man, yet now [we have such knowledge of Him that] we know Him no longer [in terms of the flesh]. 17 Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come! 18 But all things are from God, Who through Jesus Christ reconciled us to Himself [received us into favor, brought us into harmony with Himself] and gave to us the ministry of reconciliation [that by word and deed we might aim to bring others into harmony with Him]. 19 It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself, not counting up and holding against [men] their trespasses [but cancelling them], and committing to us the message of reconciliation (of the restoration to favor). 20 So we are Christ's ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us. We [as Christ's personal representatives] beg you for His sake to lay hold of the divine favor [now offered you] and be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake He made Christ [virtually] to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in and through Him we might become [endued with, viewed as being in, and examples of] the righteousness of God [what we ought to be, approved and acceptable and in right relationship with Him, by His goodness].