Chapter X (From my notes on Team Leadership!) The Hireling and the Shepherd There is a difference between a hireling and a shepherd. The foundation for this portion of our lesson is what Jesus taught in the tenth chapter of the book of John. In this portion of scripture, Jesus described very beautifully a picture of the sheepfold. Years ago, when I went on my first trip to Pakistan, I saw one of these. It was a large corral area, built of stone and masonry with only one entrance in the wall. The people of the nearby village evidently brought their livestock inside of the walls so that they could be protected from thieves and the elements at night. This compound was most likely just as it was in the days when Jesus walked the earth. In His teaching, Jesus told of how those who entered the sheepfold in any other way but through the door were thieves and robbers. He said that the shepherd enters in by the door. You see, thieves and robbers don’t come in by legitimate means, but the shepherd, having nothing to hide, and because he has the right to do so, just walks right through the front entranceway. He said that the porter opens the door to him, his sheep hear his voice and he calls them by name. Then he leads them out. The sheep follow him because they know his voice. The sheep are used to him and trust him. They know that if they will follow him he will lead them to good pasture. Jesus said that the sheep will not follow a stranger. They will run from him because they do not know his voice. I can remember in the 70s when there was a tremendous emphasis put on the need to be under a spiritual “covering.” This was during the “discipleship/ shepherdship” movement. At the time I was in the Air Force and was living in Homestead, Florida, which just happened to be very close to the geographical center of where most of this teaching was originating. This was a few years after I was saved. Glenda and I had just married and we were attending a home church where these teachings were being taught. By this time, we had become quite personally acquainted with Jesus, and God had begun to teach us from His Word and by His Spirit to live by faith. We had begun to hear the voice of Jesus and could recognize the voices that were not Him speaking to us. We judged what we were hearing by the Word and as we heard these teachings, we began to question their credibility. We thought, “If Jesus was able to save us and to lead us this far, He is able to continue to do so.” Please don’t take what I say wrong; we believe that Jesus has given the five ministry gifts to the church to teach and correct and we believe in partaking of their ministries. But, we recognized that in this whole school of thought, that it was rooted in fear- fear of going into error; fear of getting into trouble with the I.R.S.; fear that you might fall into sin; fear that the devil might get you! Fear, fear, fear! Folks, fear is not of God! Fear has torment, and the Bible says that if we live in fear, we have not yet been perfected in love. We decided that we would just continue to have faith in the Holy Spirit’s ability to lead us and that we would follow His voice. We decided not to put any faith in the devil’s ability to lead us astray or to do us any harm. And do you know what? As of this writing, we have enjoyed over thirty years of walking with Jesus and the devil never did get us! Hallelujah! We have come to know the voice of the Good Shepherd and the voice of a stranger we will not follow! That I know of, we have never been under anyone’s covering except the covering of the shadow of the Most High! Hallelujah! I know that this statement makes some folks see red, but I wonder why? Is it because they are really concerned about our spiritual well-being, or is it because they think that we need to be under their covering (or control)? I believe that we will just continue on as the Lord is leading us. We will go where He leads us to go and do what He wants us to do! In verse eleven, Jesus said that the Good Shepherd gives his life for the sheep. On the other hand, He said that the person who is a hireling (someone hired) will leave the sheep and flee when he sees the wolf coming (verse 12). I believe that this teaching of Jesus establishes a spiritual principle that we can learn something from. A shepherd (and this does not necessarily have to be a pastor, but anyone who is called and anointed of God to minister to His people, will have the spirit or attitude of the person that Jesus describes in this teaching. They will have a caring attitude for God’s people. The people that they serve will be in their heart. They will have God’s concern for them. They will be willing to lay down their own life for the sake of God’s people. On the other hand, I believe that we can also see that there are also those who want to have access to the sheep who only have their own interests at heart! They really don’t care for the well-being of the sheep! They only want to fleece the sheep! When the wolf (trouble, hard work, sacrifice) comes, they will run and not concern themselves with what happens to God’s people. Jesus said, “The hireling flees, because he is a hireling and cares not for the sheep.” In other words, this person was not anointed to do the things that they tried to do. They didn’t have the necessary grace to accomplish their task. When the going got tough, they got going! Ask yourself; are you a hireling, or a shepherd? Do you have God’s anointing to do what you are trying to do for the Lord? If not, it would be better if you find the thing that you do have the grace to do and do that! Then you will have the ability to walk in that calling and stay with it regardless of what comes your way. Some people want to be a pastor, but don’t have the grace to do so. I have met people whose mother wanted them to pastor a church but they did not have the call of God, or the desire. If they had attempted to pastor they would most likely have failed miserably! On the other hand, if God has placed something in your heart, seek God’s direction and timing and go for it! The Bible says that “...whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world!” (I John 5:4). It also says that if our heart does not condemn us, then we will have confidence towards God (I John 3:21). Paul said that “...unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ” (Ephesians 4:7). So whatever God gifts us to do, He also gives us the grace (power, ability, anointing, favor, resources) to fulfill. To walk in any of the five-fold ministry gifts requires the calling and anointing of God. The same is true with any other aspect of ministry. We just need to seek the wisdom of God to know what He would have us to do and take it one step at a time. I like the tree keys to success in the ministry that God gave to Oral Roberts: #1. Find out the will of God. #2. Confer no longer with flesh and blood. #3. Get your job done, whatever the cost!
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 20:28:57 +0000
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