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Monono Emilia Chinyere posted an update 1 month ago
GENERAL WORK OF PASTORING
THE GIFT OF A SHEPHERDPastors have other duties apart from preaching and one thing we must understand is that becoming a pastor is a spiritual gift from God.
The New Testament which speaks of this gift—Ephesians 4:11. The surrounding context has to do with the unity and diversity of the body of Christ. Ephesians 4:1-6 stresses the grounds for unity. Ephesians 4:7-16 stresses the diversity within that unity. Paul is talking about how the individual parts of the body work together for the good of the whole. In verse 11 he mentions various gifted men given to the church by the risen Christ: “It was he (the risen Christ) who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers.”
The gift of pastoring is the special ability which God gives to certain members of the body of Christ which enables them to assume a long-term personal relationship for spiritually guiding, feeding, protecting and caring for a group of believers effectively. And it involves taking personal responsibility for the sheep. A good shepherd understands that he must give an account for the sheep under his care. That will mean long hours in the pasture and many sleepless nights.
Indeed sis. Pastoral duty, i believe, is not limited to preaching. A good pastor must also be a good administrator. To maintain unity in a church with Christians of different characters and background, their administrative skills is very essential. This will ensure that some Christians are not neglected while others given royal treatment. As bible institutes train pastors to rightly divide the word of truth, the administrative part in their calling should not be overlooked.