Have you ever read a familiar verse
or chapter of scripture and suddenly see it in a new way? You know the words are familiar but all of a
sudden the meaning, the principles, the application is completely revolutionary
and incredible and you think, “WOW, this is amazing, now I really understand this passage?”
That recently happened to me. The
verse of the day popped up on my phone, 1 Peter 5:10 and I thought “this is
comforting and applicable, thanks God!” Then I read the whole chapter of 1
Peter 5 and I was amazed by what I found.
It was what I imagine it must be like for people who need glasses. Before, they see the world all blurry and
fuzzy, they can still appreciate the beauty, but there’s so much they’re
missing that they don’t even know! Then
when you get the right prescription of glasses you realize there’s so much more
detail, vibrancy, intricacy in the world around you. There are textures and designs and patterns that
you never knew existed and it’s like you’re experiencing the world for the
first time. Of course, this is just what
I imagine it to be like, since I have 20/20 vision ;) But this is what my
experience was like reading 1 Peter 5.
As I read I heard many verses that I’ve heard quoted time and again and
I know I’ve read through the chapter before, but it felt like new. Here is what I found.
1 Peter 5 is about leadership. I encourage you to read the chapter or maybe
even the book in its entirety, because I’m not going to type it all out here,
but this is what I learned about leadership from this passage. First, leadership is not something you gain
from being really successful, working really hard, or being really good at
telling people what to do. Leadership is
something that you do willingly because you care for the sheep. It is not some high status that gives you
authority over others; you actually shouldn’t expect to get anything for yourself as a leader.
This leads to the second thing I learned from
this passage, leadership isn’t that high status of authority, but it is a
position of humility. Verse 2 says, “shepherd the flock of God that is among you.” That means that you are not “on top” of them
or standing outside of them, this means you are with them, beside them, next to
them, not on any different level. This
small verse also says to “shepherd the
flock” or “tend to the flock.” Not
order or tell the flock. This phrase
gives us a picture of caring for the needs of those among us. Tending to them, helping them, protecting,
caring for hurts, feeding … Leadership is doing everything we can to meet the
needs of those God has placed around us.
That one point is loaded in and of itself with so many possible
illustrations and implications, but I’ll move on and let you come up with your
own.
Verse 3 tells us not to be bossy
leaders, giving instructions and telling people they’re doing it all wrong, but
it says we also must be examples to the flock, showing those around us to the
best of our abilities what it is to follow Jesus. This calls for integrity in and outside of
where you consider yourself the leader.
Leadership is a lifestyle, not just confined to a specific work space or
volunteer area. You might even be a
leader for people you’ve never met. If
you have younger siblings, you know how hard this can be after getting multiple
lectures about how your younger siblings are always watching you, looking up to
you, and following your example. As a
Christ follower, you represent Christ wherever you go. People are watching and listening and there
are many who LOVE when Christians slip up.
This is not to say that we need to pretend to be perfect and have our
lives completely together, that’s impossible and it’s important for others to
know that Christians are human, but we should also take our role of
representing our savior seriously and constantly ask Him for strength and the
ability to resist temptations and represent Him well.
Another thing I learned from this chapter is
that leaders are not the ones who save people.
Verse 6 tells us to be humble and then to cast all our anxieties on Him,
because he cares for us. These anxieties
and worries are the ones you have for yourself and your own life, but in this
context I see it more as the anxieties and worries a leader might have for
those they are leading. Many times as I’m
working in ministry I worry about if I’m doing things good enough or I take on
the burdens of those I’m serving and if I see no evidence of change or healing
or improvement I feel like I’ve failed, because I’m worried about trying to
save them, but this is not my job! Like
I said earlier, my job as a leader is to be among the sheep, to care for them
as best I know how, and to be an example to them of a Christ follower. Everything beyond that, the life change and
transformation and the healing, this is all God’s piece to worry about. As a leader I need to stop worrying and
agonizing over the change and healing I’m not seeing and humbly surrender “my”
ministry back to God, trusting Him to take care of that part, and continuing to
serve faithfully and tending to my flock and being an example event when things
aren’t perfect and even when it doesn’t seem like it’s doing any good.
Lastly, this chapter tells me that
all leaders suffer as targets of the devil.
Verses 8-9 tell us that the devil “prowls
around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.” And the devil knows exactly what eats
away at each and every one of us. He
knows how to push our buttons, make us doubt, and how to take that willingness
and desire to lead others to Christ away from us. Whether he’s filling your mind with lies
about your own self-worth, distracting you with the business of life so you think
you don’t have time to spend with God, causing petty arguments between you and
your loved ones, or just wreaking havoc in your life with car problems bug
infestations and sickness, he knows what he’s doing and what will really get to
you. So,
the scripture says to be watchful, to resist the devil, and to stay firm
in your faith and then the encouragement of verse 10 comes and it states that “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.” Leadership is challenging and hard, but we don’t
do it on our own or out of our own strength.
We do it willingly because we love God and desire to serve Him, and
although we don’t deserve anything from Him, God promises that He cares for us,
that he will strengthen us, and confirm us in Him. He even promises the “unfading crown of glory” when he returns and finds his faithful shepherds.
These are a short and simple summary
of the things I learned, the things I found revolutionary, the things that
clicked for me and encouraged me. There’s
so much more I could say, but I hope this was helpful for you. I’d love to hear your thoughts and your take
on this chapter, as this is only my perspective as I am just barely starting to
process this passage. Thanks for reading
and letting me process with you!
“To Him be the dominion forever and
ever. Amen” – 1 Peter 5:11
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