Re:Verse passage – 1 Peter 5:1-6 (day three)
“Shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily.”
When pastors are hearing the Lord’s invitation – “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” – they will invite, not demand. When pastors are watching the way Jesus builds fellowship – “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer” – they’ll turn toward, not away. When pastors and leaders are following Jesus’s concern for self-care – “Come away with me by yourselves and get some rest” – they will release, not control. Pastors will discharge their duties in the way that they experience Christ’s shepherding nearness in their own lives. An increasing knowledge of Christ’s character is necessary not so pastors can have a lot of information about Jesus, but so they can live with people like Jesus did.
