God's type of Pastor (Pt 4)

We come now to mark # 5, The faithful pastor strengthens Christ’s church through male discipleship.
This in response to 2 Tim 2:2. “And what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” Wise pastors realize they are NOT immortal; they acknowledge life is but a vapor. Thus, they mentor and disciple other men (note 2 Tim 2). They are not only interested in this generation but the ones to come. Faithful pastors also realize they are NOT omnipresent. They can not be everywhere, all the time. This often is a source of pastoral frustration (I have so many people who need me at once). Thus they raise up other men to help lead and shepherd the flock. They duplicate themselves. In other words, every Paul has a Timothy and a Titus. By God’s design, men are called to lead (in the church & in there homes). The faithful pastor strengthens Christ’s church through male discipleship. I know many of you men could testify of how God has used Pastor Flatt to help strengthen your faith. Faithful pastors pour their time and resources into other faithful men (as SBTS says), “for the truth, for the family, for the church, for the glory of God.”


This 6th Mark is crucial: The Faithful pastor loves his sheep (Phil. 2:20; 1 Pet. 5:2; 1 Thess. 2:7-11).
The faithful pastor is more than a great preacher; that may be his chief task, but it’s certainly not his only task. The faithful pastor is a loving shepherd (1 Peter 5:2). He’s deeply involved in the lives of his people: He marries your children, and buries your loved ones. He rejoices with you when you’re happy, & he counsels you when you’re hurting. He visits you in the hospital before those major surgeries & He calls on you after those newborn babies are delivered. He gently corrects you when you need admonishing & he prays with you when you need some loving. This is why the faithful pastor is likened to a nursing mother (in 1 Thess. 2:7) and a loving father (in 1 Thess. 2:11). Ministers, study the ministry model of Paul while he served the church in Thessalonica. Read Baxter’s “The Reformed Pastor.” The faithful pastor loves his sheep. For this blogs sake I will try and move quickly through these next marks.


The 7th mark of a faithful minister is this: The Faithful pastor is a warrior for the Truth (Phil. 1:16; Jude 3; 1 Tim 6:12).
According to Jude 3 every Christian is suppose to contend earnestly for the faith (Jude 3); clearly pastors must lead the way! 1 Timothy 6:12 calls on ministers to, “Fight the good fight of the faith.” It would be ignorant to not admit the church is under assault and is involved in spiritual warfare. The gospel is constantly coming under fire from outside the church and from within it. There is nothing more precious to the church then the glorious gospel of God. Pastor’s can not go about their entire ministries tip toeing through the tulips in the spirit of Robert Schuller & Joel Osteen. Not when there’s an ongoing war going on against God’s revelation. Sometimes the faithful pastor puts on his battle armor, as he preserves this objective body of nonnegotiable truth.