1 Peter 5:2

Peter’s exhortation to his fellow elders was to take care of those under their charge as a shepherd cares for his sheep (cf. John 21:16; Acts 20:28; Ezekiel 34:1-16). In other words, elders are responsible for the pastoral work of the local church. A pastor is usually an elder who functions as a shepherd. The verb "shepherd" (Gr. poimaino) literally means to tend. Pastoring includes the duties of feeding, leading, guiding, guarding, and providing for the needs of those in the church, as a shepherd does for his sheep (cf. John 21:16).

"If we ever view the flock as ’ours’ or the ministry as ’ours,’ we are in serious trouble, and so is the church." [Note: Cedar, pp. 188-89.]

Three contrasts follow that clarify the proper motivation and manner of an elder’s ministry.

First, he should serve willingly as opposed to grudgingly (cf. 2 Corinthians 9:7). God wants us to perform any service for Him willingly. Elders should not serve because they feel they must do so because of external pressure but because they desire to serve God.

"I have counseled with many pastors who . . . feel that they are imprisoned by their calling to ministry. They would prefer to be somewhere else, they are not enjoying their ministry, or they are in a difficult situation from which they would like to escape. To them, ministry has become mere drudgery.

"It need not be so! Peter reminds us that we should serve the Lord and tend His flock willingly. . . . The Lord does not force us or coerce us to be involved in ministry. He calls us and invites us to ministry, but we have the freedom of saying ’yes’ or ’no’!" [Note: Ibid., p. 190.]

Second, an elder should serve zealously and enthusiastically as opposed to selfishly. He should not serve for what he can get out of his ministry now but for the love of his Lord. The gain one could derive from elder ministry included honor in the church as well as possible financial gain. It seems that elders in the early church often received payment for their ministry (cf. 1 Timothy 5:17 where the "double honor" probably refers to payment; 1 Corinthians 9:7-11). Otherwise there would be no such temptation.

"To enter the ministry simply because it offers a respectable and intellectually stimulating way of gaining a livelihood is to prostitute that sacred work. This warning also includes the temptation to use the work of the ministry to gain personal popularity or social influence." [Note: D. Edmond Hiebert, "Counsel for Christ’s Under-Shepherds: An Exposition of 1 Peter 5:1-4," Bibliotheca Sacra 139:556 (October-December 1982):336-37.]