Transcript

Well, go ahead and turn over to 1 Corinthians chapter 16. Again the Apostle Paul writing this letter, I believe from the city of Ephesus to the church located in a southern province of Greece, the province of Achaia, the city of Corinth, and now he’s giving his concluding thoughts, the benedictory remarks as he concludes this letter. We call it 1 Corinthians, or an epistle, it just means a letter. And he exhorts them about something in these final words that I want us to look at very carefully this morning.

Let’s begin, 1 Corinthians 16:10. Paul talking or writing to the church at Corinth says, “Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid. So that he may come to me for I expect him with the brethren. But concerning Apollos our brother, I encouraged him greatly to come to you with the brethren, and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has opportunity. Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love. Now I urge you brethren, you know the household of Stephanas, that they were the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for ministry to the saints. That you also be in subjection to such men, and to everyone who helps in the work and labors. And I rejoice over the coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus; because they have supplied what was lacking on your part. For they have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore acknowledge such men.”

Now Paul takes five or six verses here in these final remarks to talk about leadership in the Church. And that’s the title of the message. Leadership in the Church. Now it is typical among churches like the church at Corinth to have a problem when it comes to honoring respecting and submitting to the authority of God’s leaders. That’s always a problem with an immature, carnal or back slidden church. Certainly you would have to conclude after what we have learned studying through this book that the church at Corinth is at best back slidden, and at best shallow in the faith. And so once again they need a good clear reminder and exhortation that it is necessary to respect honor and submit to God called leadership.

First of all, roman numeral one, Paul talks about how to treat church leadership. How to treat church leadership. First sub-point A, you respect them. Paul’s going to tell them you ought to respect the man of God who comes to lead you and serve in as overseer of the church. We see this very clearly in the first part of verse 10 and in the first part of verse 11. Look at verse 10. He says, now if Timothy comes. Now whose Timothy. He’s an associate pastor with the Apostle Paul. He will function under Paul’s authority as a leader or overseer of this church. Remember, when these churches were first founded like the church at Corinth, the church at Rome, the church at Thessalonica, or wherever, they did not immediately have elders or pastors. And so the apostle or those associates working with the Apostles would function as the temporary leaders or overseers of the church until God raised someone up out of that congregation to function in the office of overseer.

So Timothy was being commissioned by Paul to go and provide leadership and oversight to the church at Corinth. And Paul has to exhort them in verse 10, “now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid.” Now Paul says see that something for certain happens when Timothy comes. In other words, you see to it that he doesn’t have any reason to be afraid while he is there. Now this word “afraid” do, has no reference to personal violence. It means that when Timothy comes as the commissioned man to oversee and lead the church, make sure he has no fear of not being respected and you not having confidence in him as God’s leader. Make sure of that Paul says. Now, keep your finger in 1 Corinthians 16 and turn back to 1 Corinthians chapter 4. 1 Corinthians chapter 4, we get another little insight on the particular situation with Timothy coming to lead for a season.

1 Corinthians 4 verse 17. Paul says, “For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord.” Now first of all Paul says I want to say something about the criterion or the qualification of Timothy. Paul is saying, I discipled him, I’ve watched him, I’ve helped him grow, I’ve equipped him, now he’s a qualified man. So when he comes what are you going to do. “For this reason I sent you Timothy who is my beloved and faithful child in the Lord and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, just as I teach everywhere in every church”. So Paul says first of all, Timothy is going to come and he’s not going to bring in some new philosophy or some new idea, he’s been discipled by me, God’s Apostle, and he’ll come and just carry out and carry further the leadership I gave you in the church there. So you ought to respect him.

He continues there uh, in verse 18, “Now some have become arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant but their power. For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power. What do you desire? Shall I come to you with a rod, or with love and a spirit of gentleness?” One of the things i think Paul is saying is this. When I send Timothy, if you honor him and you follow him and you submit to him, like you ought to, then I’ll come with love. If not, I’m going to bring a rod and get a hold of you folks. Now I can’t do that, I’m not an Apostle, but now an Apostle evidently could do that, because that’s exactly what he said. But what’s the overarching point that we want to make. That is that Paul instructs the church at Corinth in his final statements, make sure you respect the man of God. Don’t let him come fearing that you’re going to not have confidence in him, don’t let him come fearing that you’re going to have no respect for him, make sure. Now why would Paul have to say that. Because of carnal, shallow, back slidden church often treats the man of God without confidence and without respect.

Now, to show that this is the consistent teaching of Paul and of the New Testament, I want you to turn for just a moment to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Turn over to the right, to 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5. And here Paul instructs another church about this very same principle the church at Thessalonica. And it shows that this is the consistent teaching of Paul and the consistent teaching of the New Testament. Look at verse 12. 1 Thessalonians 5:12. “But we request of you, brethren,” Now the word request there in the New American Standard could also be translated urge or beg. So there’s quite possibly a lot of emotion and a lot of feeling behind what Paul is saying. You can have as easily translated that we urge you or we beg you brethren. To do what? Well, let’s continue, verse 12. “that you appreciate” Now the word appreciate there means to have an appreciation for or to recognize this particular type person. Recognize them, appreciate them. Well, who are they to recognize and appreciate, whose Paul urging and begging them that they recognize and appreciate? Continuing in verse 12. “Those who diligently labor among you”. Now here’s Paul’s point, he said, you’ve had a time to watch your leaders in action. You’ve had a season to watch these men and you know that they are men who diligently labor among you. Here’s his point. They are not just guys who have this interest and that interest and this interest and one of the things that they want to do is be the boss at the church. He says, no you’ve had a time to watch these men and their whole heart and if possible their wheel time is given to this task, of pastoring or overseeing the church. You’ve had time to watch them. And see that they, these men are genuine men.

And then he continues in verse 12, not only does he say they diligently labor among you, he says they “have charge over you in the Lord” Now the Greek lexicons tell us that that phrase have charge over means to put before. Means God has stood somebody before you. It means those who stand in front, having been set before you by God to rule the flock. The word charge means to rule over the flock. He says you ought to respect and appreciate the man or the men that God puts before you to rule over the flock. Now 1 Peter 5:3 tells the pastors of the overseers, on the balancing side of this that you’re to, to lead the flock or have rule over the flock, but not lording it over them. He said, but lead by way of example. His point being, don’t ask the flock or command the flock to do certain things or live certain ways and you contradict that with your own life. If you’re telling the leadership of your church you ought to be going out trying to win souls, then you ought to be going out winning souls. If you teach the church from the word of God that there are biblical standards for leadership, you ought to hold to those biblical standards for leadership. Don’t be a distant lording over them walk the Christian life with them as you lead. Nevertheless, the flock is to view the man of God with respect.

Now he continues in 1 Thessalonians 5:12, let me just read all of it to catch up. “But we request of you” that’s urge or beg you brethren, “that you appreciate those who diligently labor among you and have charge over you in the Lord, and give you instruction”. Once again, the New Testament asserts that the chief job of the pastor is instruction. The chief job of the pastor is not counseling, the chief job of the pastor is not going to the hospital, and even though I’ve done those things thousands of times and they are always a blessing, by the commission and authority of God, that’s not my chief job. The chief job is instruction. And this word instruction is, is a very graphic word in the original Greek. It comes form two other Greek words. And the first Greek word means to put into, or put in, and the other word just means mind. To put in the mind. He’s saying its the pastor’s chief job to keep putting stuff in your head.

You know why the pastor’s chief job and on one occasion Paul tells Timothy, exhort, reprove, rebuke, with great patience? You know why you’ve got to keep putting stuff in the sheep’s minds, you know why the pastor has to keep putting it in the mind? Because your brain leaks. Now say amen. My brain leaks too. All of our brains leak. You see, you can go watch one hour of television, there’s such unbiblical hell on TV that you wash out all the stuff we can put in on Sunday in one hour of television. And so we’ve got to put it back in again. It’s just you say, well, that’s just brain washing. Amen. Its washing your brain with the clear pure water of the word of God. He says, Paul says to the church at Thessalonica, these men have charge over you and their job is to take the authoritative sufficient word of God and keep putting stuff in your brain, because satan, the world and the flesh, they’re constantly deluging your brain with error and with filth and with ungodliness, and the man of God should put truth back in your brain. Well, those are a lot of good reasons to respect the man of God.

Then he goes on there, and he gives a little bit more there on respect. Verse 13 of 1 Thessalonians 5, “and that you esteem them very highly” The phrase very highly means beyond measure or exceedingly. Esteem them, respect them, beyond measure and exceedingly Paul tells the church at Thessalonica. And do it in love and why do you do it? Look at verse 13. Because of their work. Not because they themselves have some specialness. Not because they’re any more of a saint then anyone else who is saved in the church. Not because they are any more godly than other godly people in the church, but because of the work God’s called them to do. Not them, but the role. Not the personality, but the position they hold. Then he says verse 14, something very interesting he says, and we urge, now verse 14 is in context to verses 12 and 13 by the way. And we urge you brethren admonish the unruly. Now the unruly there means those, its a military term and it means those who break rank. Those who break rank. Those who become disorderly and deviate from the prescribed order.

In the church at Thessalonica, they had the same problem that the church at Corinth has, and the same problem that about every Baptist church I know of has, and that is that there are always a few who break rank. There’s always a few instead of esteeming highly and respecting the man of God want to stand on the sideline and critique and criticize and doubt and question and debate the man of God’s leadership. That doesn’t mean the man of God’s perfect, doesn’t mean he doesn’t need accountability, but the general principle I think is well understood here. The great Baptist scholar A. T. Robertson said of this verse, we need wise leadership in the church today, but even more we need wise following. An army of captains and colonels never want to battle.

Do you know the reason why most deacon boards or deacon bodies, why most leadership bodies in the church, deacons or whatever, and why many if not most congregations in general do not view the man of God with high esteem and with respect as they ought to. Let me tell you why. Because when the pulpit committee called or calls most men of God what they’re really doing is hiring a manager of their religion. Not identifying and calling God’s man to lead the church. When you hire a manager to manage your religion how can, how can you submit to him, you’re still in charge. But when you as a pulpit committee get on your face, fast, weep and pray and identify God’s man then its easy to respect him, because you think God gave him to us. But most pulpit committees aren’t doing that, they’re hiring a manager of their religion, not identifying and calling a man of God to lead the congregation.

Well, back to our text, our major text, 1 Corinthians 16, Paul said concerning leadership in the church, first of all, about how to treat them rather, first of all he says respect them. He says, when Timothy comes respect him as a man of God. Timothy was young, he was shy, he was timid, he was intimidated, and Paul said, man, when he comes back to me, I want to hear the report that you respected him as the man of God. Secondly Paul’s going to point out here that you should submit to them. Submit to them. We see this inverses 15 and 16. Now here’s something very interesting, are you listening? At this point Paul is not specifically talking about the pastor or the overseer being submitted to. At this point Paul is referring to key lay leaders in the church that the rest of the congregation should be in submission to. I’ll be honest, I’ve never seen this in the Bible before. And I’m excited to preach it because it is so very important.

Now whose he talking about? Beginning in verse 15 when he begins talking about submission. Verse 15 he says, “now I urge you brethren”, strong word, then he throws in a side note here, “you know the household of Stephanas, that they were the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for the ministry to the saints”. Paul says, now you know all about the household of Stephanas. They were the first people won to Christ in your area, as a matter of fact Paul says, I baptized them myself. In other words, they’ve been saved, their household has been saved longer than anybody else, they’ve had more opportunity to mature spiritually than most of the other believers in your church. And he says something else about these lay folks, the household of Stephanas. Last part of verse 15, “they have devoted themselves for ministry to the saints”. Here’s what he means. Here’s lay people that when they saw a need they just met it. When they saw something was needed and they saw Paul and Paul’s associates leading in the church, and there needed to be help in that, they just dove in and said, we’ll do it. They were devoted to lead.

And Paul says these folks just sort of rose to the top, among the laity, as leaders among the laity. And how did they rise to the top? Are you listening. Because they did all those seasons of unnoticed night shift work. Just willing to dive in and work that needed to get done. Where too many folks today strut into the church and they’re a leader in the community, they’re a businessman, they’re a mover and shaker, they’ve got authority in the world and they think they ought to lead in the church. Wrong. If you’re not willing to spend a long season behind the scenes, laboring for God because you love Jesus, not, wanting any recognition, then you’ll never be God’s leader in the church. Well, these lay folks just kind of rose to the surface here as leaders. And notice what Paul says about then in verse 16. “That you also be in subjection to such men” Now I want you to look at 1 Corinthians 15:27, 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verse 27, there’s another place where this same word for subjection is used. How is the word subjection used in verse 27 of 1 Corinthians 15? “For He has put all things in subjection under His feet.” Pretty strong word, isn’t it. Now obviously the context determines the interpretation of the word. Nevertheless, Paul’s just used this same word, just a few verses earlier, so we know he’s trying to make a strong statement, when he says, be in subjection to these lay leaders.

Now Thayer, I guess the greatest Greek scholar whose ever lived said this word subjection means this. “To subject oneself, to obey, to submit to one’s control, to yield to one’s admonition or advice”. Now here Paul says, I want the church at large to make sure you work in subjection to the lay leaders that God’s raised up in the congregation. And now here are Paul functioning as God’s elder, because there are no elders in the church yet, says I put my stamp of approval on Stephanas as one of the great lay leaders in the church and you submit to men like this. Now how does that apply for you and I today? Here’s how it applies. In your small group you ought to live in subjection to your small group leader because they’ve devoted themselves to the ministry of the saints. They are overseeing and leading and assuming a responsibility and doing work others may not be doing. You ought to be in subjection to the outreach leader of your small group, because they have risen to leadership.

And Paul would exhort us I believe today in the same principle, along the same principle he exhorts the church at Corinth, there are lay leaders you ought to submit to. You ought to submit to the lay department directors of your church. Because God has allowed them a position of leadership. And not be one of these that’s always over to the side kind of nit picking and critiquing and trying to find something negative, but joyously and gladly submitting. You know here’s the point. You don’t have their responsibility, therefore you cannot have their authority. They have an awesome responsibility to oversee these small groups for the Lord, and they are worthy, Paul says, of being submitted to.

Now once again, to show that this concept of submission is the consistent teaching in the New Testament, I want you to look at Hebrews chapter 13. Would you turn there. Hebrews chapter 13. Now do you want the word of God? Do you want the Bible? Folks, that’s what we’re committed to try to follow, the best we can. In Hebrews 13:17, I believe Paul wrote Hebrews, we don’t know for sure, I believe he did. But the writer says, “Obey your leaders” Now the word obey there means to listen to, to yield to, or to comply with. Now we have another occasion where this same word obey is used in James chapter 3, verse 3. In James 3:3, James uses this same Greek word obey, when he talks about the fact that “use a bit and a bridle to make a horse obey.” Now I’ve ridden horses, have you ridden horses. And I found, when you get that bit and that bridle on that horse, you can’t totally control him, but you’ve got a much better chance of making that horse obey you then if you didn’t have anything on it. And I’ve met more than a few Baptists that a bit and a bridle would have been helpful. Anyway that’s the way James uses the same word obey. To get the idea of what Hebrews 13:17 is saying. He says first of all, “Obey your leaders and submit to them,” That literally means to yield to their authority and to their admonition.

So we’ll stop there and not look at the rest of that because I’d going to use it later, but what is he saying here. Submitting to lay leaders in the church, now here’s the, here’s the connection Paul’s made, making. He says, when you submit to the lay folks that we all have identified that they got there because they’re servants, they’re devoted, they’re workers, they didn’t want glory themselves, they just labored for God because they love God and they’ve slowly risen to leadership. And then Paul further says I’ve given them my stamp of approval as your pastor or as your elder. He says, and when you submit to those lay leaders, you’re submitting to your elders. Which is equal to submission to Christ. You see, in our arrogance, in our pride, in our ego, we’d like to say I submit to Jesus but to no man. Wrong. You submit to no man, you can’t submit to Jesus. Cause Jesus is the one who set up these structures in the church.

Well, the third thing. First of all he says how do you treat church leadership. First of all he says, respect them. Secondly he says, submit to them. Now thirdly he says bless them. Be a blessing to them. Look at verse 10 of our main text, 1 Corinthians chapter 16. And look at verse twelve of that text. He said, “Now if Timothy comes, see that he is with you without cause to be afraid,” Now that means once again, you respect him, you show him you’ve got confidence in him, and then what will that do for Timothy? “..for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I also am.” look at verse 11, “Let no one therefore despise him, but send him on his way in peace” In other words, instead of Timothy leaving Corinth with his stomach in knots, all frustrated and all discouraged because the haughty, shallow, arrogant, believers at Corinth showed him no respect and showed him no confidence in God’s leader. He said, instead of doing that, show him the proper respect. Show him the proper confidence and when he leaves he’ll have a grand and joyous peace in his heart. In other words, you’ll bless him. Send him on his way blessed. Be a blessing to him. Be a blessing to him.

Now look at verse 12. He says, “But concerning Apollos our brother, I encouraged him greatly to come to you with the brethren, and it was not at all his desire to come now, but he will come when he has opportunity.” now here’s an interesting scenario that’s going on here. Here’s Apollos that Paul says, Apollos, I wish you’d go to Corinth too, man, that bunch needs all the help they can get. They need you Apollos to lead them and help them. But do you remember what happened to Apollos earlier as revealed in 1 Corinthians, what was happening? Apollos was a great orator, he was a great preacher, he had style and charisma, and he was dynamic and the people in the flesh would swoon and sway over Apollos. And it made Apollos sick. A man of God is never blessed when all you notice is his human talent and ability. A man of God is never blessed, when all you really notice is his charisma or his style or his personality. Apollos had made Apollos sick, because some of them were rising up in the church and saying, we’re of Apollos, we’re more spiritual because he’s so dynamic, he’s got such style, he’s such a great orator.

So what does Apollos say to Paul as revealed in this text? Apollos said I don’t want to go. because right now Paul, and I… I’m interpolating this in, we don’t’ have the exact text, but I believe the context bears it out well, he said right now if I go, I’ll just help them be in the flesh, and i don’t need to go. Send somebody like Timothy whose not so polished, whose not so flashy, because then they’ll have to see Jesus. So what’s the underlying point. They weren’t a blessing to Apollos their leader when he was there, they were a burden to him. I’m telling you before God the greatest burden I would have is if you look to me and follow me because of some human trait or human ability that you saw in me. That never blesses a man of God. Now I’m not saying when you hear men like Adrian Rodgers and others that you don’t’ say God, thank you for that great voice you gave that man and for that great style. That’s human. But infinitely more you say God thank you for the godliness in that man. And his commitment to the word of God.

Well, Apollos said, I’m not going back, because I don’t think I can help them trust God, they’ll just keep trusting in me. In other words, they were not a blessing. You know I believe what I’m about to say is very true. One good way to lose a good pastor, is to honor him out of respect for human talent and personality instead of his godliness and his commitment to scripture. I believe God’s moved many a pastor, because the church in shallowness fell more in love with him, his personality, his wit, his charisma, then they did the Jesus he preached. And God says, that man’s not helping that church, I’m going to have to get him out. And get another man in. That’s what happened to Apollos, he said, I’m not going back to lead them for a while, because they look too much at me and not to my Lord.

Now to end this thing, look at Hebrews chapter 13 again. Hebrews chapter 13, and here again we have consistency in teaching, Hebrews 13:17. And notice how the writer of Hebrews says the same thing, says that you ought to honor, respect, follow, submit to your leader, so they will be blessed. Its a blessing to them when you do it. He says in Hebrews 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.”

As they lead you, make sure they can lead with joy in their heart and not with grief. Now the word joy there just means delight and gladness. Man you ought to so honor your small group leader, you ought to so honor your department director, you ought to so honor the outreach leader of your class, you ought to so honor the leadership of your church that when they walk down the road there is joy and delight in their heart that they are called to lead in your church. Isn’t that what the word of God says. That they have delight and gladness in their heart. Cause of the way you look to them and honor them. And he said, do it, “let them do it with joy”, notice, and not with grief. You know what the word grief there, it means to groan. It means the pastor that gets up on Monday morning and says ohhhhh God. I got to go preach to that bunch again. The pastors says ohhhh mercy Lord, not another deacons’ meeting. The small group Bible study leader that gets up on Sunday morning and says, oh Lord, I hope she’s not there this Sunday. Have you ever had somebody in your class and they were just a black hole and they just sucked everything, whooo, just sucked everything out of you. They didn’t have to say a word, its just their demeanor and their spirit was just like, mmmmmm. In going to tell you, listen to me, your small group leader leaves that class with grief in his or her heart, and God said, that’s sin on your part. Let them do it with joy and not grief.

Listen to me, are you listening to me. If you hate my guts, if you don’t like anything I say, as long as you’re going to come, would you just smile and do this [nod] occasionally when I preach. That would help me so much. Just smile and nod your head. That will reduce my groaning factor significantly. But as I said, and I have to say this, I’m not saying this to butter you up, you are so far above average, but folks, we’re not looking for average, we’re looking for Bible standards. Amen. And I appreciate you for that.

Now I’m going to say four quick things, sort of as concluding practical things. And this, this applies mostly to the small group setting, okay, not to your pastor. But in the small group setting, and your leader of your small group. Four quick things and, and the fourth one didn’t make the outline, I got it late. Alright. And, and this is how you can be a blessing, how you can bless your leader, your lay leader whose over you in your small group.

First of all, be a giver, not just a taker. In your small group, be a giver, not just a taker. I heard about a person that the small group went and ministered to that person more than once a week, for many, many, many weeks. And then they began to minister to somebody else in that small group, and you know who was grumbling and groaning about not being ministered to, that person in that small group they had been at their house more than once for many, many weeks, trying to minster to them. That’s just a taker. That’s just a leech. Draining everybody and then if you don’t dot every “i”. I heard of a person, that some folks took some food to that person’s house, and after they left, they grumbled and complained that not all of it was home cooked. I’m telling your small group leader went down the hallway of your house and went out the door, grieving and groaning and that’s your sin. Paul said, let them do it with joy, not grief. Be a giver, not a taker. You see, we’ve got a few, not many thank God, but we’ve got a few, you’re just on the small group welfare role. Bless God, we’re takers. Don’t expect us to give nothing, we’re takers. That, that won’t bless your small group leader at all.

Then I heard about, and, and these are, this next group is legion, that’s the folks who are givers, not just takers. Heard about a person that I try to send a card to everybody in this church who has any kind of a need, and that way that card reminds me to breath a word of prayer for that person, we’ve gotten so large now some weeks I’ll send out 50 or 75 cards. But at least it gives me a chance to think about their name and breath a word of prayer for them, and then their small group sent them a card, you know their small group leader told me that when they got the two cards, that they wept out of gratitude that somebody would send a card. That blesses the small group leader. Amen. Just gratitude, just thankful for what does happen to you. Not this old arrogant, proud ego, that’s keeping some kind of record, did I get as much attention as old Joe did when he was sick. You ought to get saved is what you ought to do. Just get born again, get saved. Help you a whole lot.

Number two. How to be a blessing to your small group leader, don’t nit pick the nonessentials. Don’t be a nit picker about nonessentials. You ever had class where you went in there and taught that class and there was two or three great truths that are clear, clear but truths in the Bible, that we ought to be applying to your lives. Our lives. But somebody in the class was always chasing the third toe on the beast or something all the time. Just always finding some phrase, some clause, some sideline thing that will never be settled until we get to heaven and making a big issue out of it, diverting the whole class off, off the main issue. Don’t nit pick, about the nonessentials.

Number three, be a team player. Be a team player. One of our men’s classes shared with us the other day how just some men have come on board and said, we’re going to work for God. Man what a blessing that is for that small group leader. Just joining, we’re joining up on the team, we’re going to serve under you’re leadership and see if we can’t win some lost people and mature one another in Jesus, and, and meet needs as God opens the door.

Number four, be fat. Be fat. FAT. That’s the one that didn’t get on the outline, FAT. Faithful, Available, Teachable. Faithful, available and teachable. You know, God has allowed our church to have an number of men in it who, who are called to the pastorate. And in between churches or for a season, God’s led us some of the greatest men of God, and I want to say this to their commendation, those men of God go into their small groups, and probably without exception, they know more Bible than that small group leader. They know more about ministry than any small group leader, but those men get in there and they humbly support and honor the leader of that small group. They’re just saying, I want to be faithful, available and teachable for God’s glory. And that’s a blessing to a small group leader. So as Paul is concluding his remarks to this church that needed so much help, Paul says, I want to say something about how to teach church leadership. First of all, respect them, secondly, submit to them, and thirdly, bless them. Let’s do that for the glory of God.

[Evening Service 36:33]

Leadership in the church, second major point, the reasons you respect submit to and bless church leaders. Now the reasons to respect, submit to, and bless your church leaders. First sub-point A, you do it for the Lord’s sake. You do it for the Lord’s sake. Not for the sake of the leader, first and foremost. But you submit to the leader, respect the leader and are a blessing to the leader for the Lord’s sake. Paul makes that clear in verse 10 of our text. 1 Corinthians chapter 16, verse 10. The last part, well, let’s just read all of it. He says, “now if Timothy comes”, Timothy is Paul’s associate, “see to you, see to it that he is with you without case to be afraid”, that does not mean personal violence that he was afraid of, but the fear of not being respected and the fear of them not having any confidence in him. And then he gives the key phrase for my point, “for he is doing the Lord’s work, as I also am.”

What’s the point? You’re not to submit to Timothy because he’s some special person or because he has some special value, or because he’s any holier than anybody else, or he’s any better than anybody else. You’re to respect him and to honor him, submit to him and be a blessing to him, because he’s doing the Lord’s work. Its the Lord that put him to this task, its the Lord that called him to this position of work. So one of the things that we like to say is that we respect, submit to, and we bless church leadership because of the position they hold. Not because of their personality, not because even of their performance, and remember the church at Corinth was greatly enamored with the eloquent, dynamic orator, Apollos. And actually that became a big problem and it was a sin in the church. They overwhelmed by Apollos’ personality. And Paul says no, that’s not why you honor a person.

And you certainly can’t honor them either all the time based on performance. There can be seasons when some of God’s key workers, some of God’s greatest men may not perform as well as they did at other times. For example, old Peter. On one occasion Jesus had to look at Peter and say Peter, get behind me satan. Peter had so stumbled at that point that satan was influencing him, not the Holy Spirit. And not certainly the teachings of our Lord. On another occasion at the crucifixion, Peter denied the Lord three times. And so while Peter had a season of ineffective service for the Lord, he never lost his position of being God’s Apostle, and actually became the head, the leader of the church in Jerusalem.

Then there is a man named Elijah, remember the mighty Elijah who, who cleared the landscape of Israel of, of pagan Baal worship. But then after that great performance the Bible says that Jezebel got mad because Elijah killed all the prophets of Baal and Jezebel said in so many words, Elijah, I’m sending my guys after you and they’re going to kill you and the Bible says Elijah runs out into the wilderness and hides under a juniper tree, goes into a fit, of deep depression and says, God, just kill me, I’m through. I’d say he’s not very effective as God’s prophet during that season. But he was still appointed as God’s prophet.

Someone shared with me the other day about a man that I believe is one of the godliest, most genuine pastors in the Southern Baptist Convention. And they told me that that pastor recently told his church that he was not very effective all of last year because he had been going through deep depressing that whole year. Sometimes performance isn’t what it ought to be. There are great men like Moody, and Havner, and Spurgeon who went through seasons of depression, right in the middle of their ministries. And it wasn’t because some disqualifying sin or some journey into heretical doctrine, its just one of those things. Spurgeon, one of the greatest, if not the greatest preacher since Jesus and Paul said that he wished no man would have to journey through the dark nights of depression that he journeyed through. So the point we’re making is, we submit to those men for the Lord’s sake, not their personalities and not necessarily even their performance.

You see the position the man of God holds is not one that he signed up for. His position is not one that he campaigned for. His position is not one that he climbed the ladder to obtain. He was assigned the position by God. So for the Lord’s sake, we ought to respect him, submit to him and be a blessing to him.

Now a sub-point here under a is number one, God appoints his leaders. And I want to hurriedly go through this and this is sort of a deluge of scripture, you’ve probably will not have any time to write these down, but I just want you to get the point about how thoroughly Paul lays out to almost every church me ministered in that he didn’t get this job, he didn’t sign up for this job, by climbing a ladder, or by filling out a form or applying with an application. He says, God appointed me to this job as Apostle. So Romans 1:1 he says, he was called as an Apostle. In essence he’s saying, I didn’t seek this job, it sought me. In 1 Corinthians 1:1 he says, “I was called as an Apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God”. In 2 Corinthians 1:1 he says “I am an Apostle by the will of God”. To the churches of Galitia he writes in Galatia, Galatians 1:1, he says “and I’m an Apostle not sent from men, nor through the agency of man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead”. Ephesians 1:1, his letter to the church at Ephesus he says, “I’m an Apostle by the will of God”. In Colossians 1:1, says the exact same thing, “I’m an Apostle by the will of God”.

In writing to his young understudy Timothy, whom he was disciplining, 1 Timothy 1:1, he says, “Paul an Apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the commandment of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus who is our hope”. In 1 Timothy 2:7, he says, “I’ve been appointed a preacher and an Apostle”. In 2 Timothy 1:1 he says “I’m an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God”. In 2 Timothy 1:11, he says, “I’m appointed a preacher and an apostle, and a teacher”. In [Ephesus] chapter 11:11-13, Paul writing to his church at Ephesus says “God has given to the church apostles, prophets, evangelists and pastor teachers”. They didn’t sign up, they didn’t campaign, they didn’t fill out an application, they didn’t work or strategize or climb a ladder, the key clear convincing, continual teaching of the text is, God appoints his men. So we honor them, we respect them, we submit to them, we bless them for the Lord’s sake, the Lord that appointed them. In 1 Corinthians 12 verse 28, the Bible says, “God has appointed in the church apostles, prophets, and teachers”. So indeed we treat the man God appoints to an office of leadership with respect, with submission and with blessing out of respect for the Lord who appointed him. That’s the key principle here.

Well, not only for the Lord’s sake, because God appoints his leaders, but the second sub-point under A, because you want to be a fellow worker in God’s work. Because you want to be a fellow worker in God’s work. In Romans 16:3, Paul says Prisca and Aquilla are his fellow workers. And I looked that word up in my computer, that phrase fellow workers. And there are many others that Paul says these are my fellow workers. Now they weren’t necessarily Apostles, they were not even necessarily even in any office of leadership, but they worked under and with Paul as fellow workers. He says Urbanus, Timothy, Titus, Epaphroditus, Titicus, Philemon or Archippus, he, he actually calls Archippus a fellow soldier. Then Mark, Aristarchus, Demas and Luke. He said, all these guys are my fellow workers. And here’s an insight on that. In 3 John 1:8, John writing says, “we ought to support such men”, referring to leaders. “That we may be fellow workers with the truth”. That, did you hear that. When you support, i. e., when you respect, submit to and bless God’s workers, God’s leaders, then you become a fellow worker in God’s work. That’s a key principle.

You see, we follow the Lord and work for the Lord by following and working with his ordained appointed leaders. I want to say that again. Its very important that we get very well understood in our minds how this principle works. We follow the Lord, and work for the Lord, when we follow and work with his appointed ordained leaders.

Here’s some additional scriptures that give an insight on this. In 1 Corinthians 4:16, Paul says, I exhort you therefore be imitators of me. Now that’s interesting, isn’t it. Paul says hey, I want you folks in the church that at Corinth to imitate me. And then in 1 Corinthians 11:1, Paul says again, “be imitators of me as I also am of Christ”. In 1 Thessalonians 1:6, he says, “you also become imitators of us and of the Lord”. Then he says something a little different to a church at Ephesus. To the church at Ephesus, Ephesus chapter, or Ephesians rather chapter 5 verse 1, he says, “be imitators of God”. Now wait a minute Paul, which is it. Several times you said, imitate me, imitate me, imitate me. The you turn around and say, hey, imitate God. Now which one is it Paul. Are we to imitate you or are we to imitate, imitate God? Both. His point is, as you imitate or follow, or, or respect and honor and follow under the leadership of God’s ordained leader, you are therefore following God and serving God. That’s the way God has designed his church to function.

Its either rebellious or completely ignorant when a person says I don’t have to follow the leadership of the church, I can go to God by myself and I’ll do what God wants me to do on my own, I don’t need any of that, listen my friend, you’ve just violated a whole, whole truckload of scripture.

In 2 Thessalonians chapter 3, twice, twice to the church at Thessalonica, Paul says, “follow my example”. And then Peter, in 1 Peter 2:21 Peter says, “follow Christ’s steps”. Now which is it? Are we to follow Paul’s example, or are we to follow Christ’s steps. Its both. Its both. It was a great day in my life, years ago when I realized that its God ordained plan that I follow Christ by following a man of God. God’s always had a man. When God wanted to start a nation, he called a man, Abraham. When God wanted to lead them out of Egyptian bondage he called a man, Moses. When God, God wanted to lead them into the conquest of the promised land, he had a man, Joshua. When God began his great work of establishing the local church in Jerusalem, he had a man, Peter. When God advanced the work out into the Gentile regions of the world, he had a man, Paul. And when God is going to restore the kingdom unto himself, he’s got a man, the man Christ Jesus. Every time God does something, he uses a man to lead it. No disrespect to you ladies, and we don’t need to go into that. But that’s the way God works.

Now you may say, well now I’ve never really thought of it that way, well, its a very common principle. How do you teach your son men, how do you teach your son to be a man of God? You want him to follow your example. How do you teach your daughters ladies, to be a woman of God? By following you, by imitating you and following your example. So it is as in Christianity in general, how do we become fellow workers for God’s glory? Working under, in honor of and respect of God’s called leader.

Well, first of all we ought to respect, submit to and bless church leadership, for the Lord’s sake. He’s called them, and if we want to advance his cause and his name and be a fellow worker, we need to work under them. But B, we need to do it because of their responsibility. Their responsibility. I want you to turn to Hebrews chapter 13, verse 17. And let’s look at this cross reference again, Hebrews 13:17, he says, “obey your leaders, and submit to them for they keep watch over your souls”. So, he says, notice the responsibility the man of God has. He is one commissioned and appointed by God to watch over your souls. In other words, its the man of God’s job to help you become holy. So you should cooperate with him. He watches over your souls. And then he continues in Hebrews 13:17 and says, well, let me just read the whole verse again. “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account.” The writer of Hebrews says, you ought to respect and submit to and bless the man of God because he will give an account for his oversight of that church, that no deacon will have to give. No small group leader will have to give, no department director will have to give that account, no staff member will have to give that account. That person in that position deserves respect, submission and blessing from you because of the awesome responsibility he has.

And every now and then in the typical Baptist church some deacon will raise his shoulders back and raise his head up and say, I tell you, I don’t know about that. Let me ask you something mister deacon. If you want to take the authority away form God’s pastor, are you assume, willing to assume the responsibility of accounting to God. The reason there is pastoral authority is because there is awesome pastoral responsibility. And I’m going to tell you something, its enough to keep a man awake at night. Its enough to make a man pace the floor during the day. Because its an awesome responsibility. 1 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 1-5 talks about the man of God being a steward of God. Now a steward in this day was someone who had management over the household of affairs of another man. In other words, he didn’t own the household, or the servants or the cattle or the things of the household, but he oversaw it. And he says, that’s the way God called the preacher is, he don’t own the church, its not his. He’s God’s steward to oversee it, and the Bible says it is required that a steward be found faithful. He’ll be held responsible to God. In 1 Peter 5:4, the Bible says that pastors will be evaluated, concerning their oversight of the church. At the judgement seat of Christ. So one of the clear reasons you should respect, submit to and bless the man of God is because of his responsibility to account to God for the flock God’s called him to be an overseer of.

C, a third reason you should respect, submit to and bless the man of God is for your own sake. For your own sake. Look at our text again. Hebrews 13:17, and I’ll just read it all again. he says, “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.” I looked that word up unprofitable, and it means hurtful, highly injurious or destructive. So the writer of Hebrews says you can, you can greatly injure or even destroy yourself if you don’t live under the authority of your God called pastor. You see, God has designed Christians to need and to depend upon his appointed pastors and God is not going to change the structure for you. Its his system.

That’s why I often caution people to be careful about their commitment to ministries like the Gideons,or Campus Crusade for Christ. Or community Bible study, or many, many other good and worthwhile ministries. While these can be good, much too often they take the place of a person’s commitment to God’s local church. And God has not ordained you to do his work out there on your own with lay people, God’s designed Christians to do his work in a local church under the oversight of his God called pastor. And when those type ministries become the centerpiece of your Christianity, and the main thrust of your work for the Lord, I’d just like to ask you, whose your elder, whose your overseer, whose your pastor. Why am I so cautious. Because the Bible teaches that I’m to grow and mature and to minister under a God appointed pastor in a local church. My friend, I want you to know something very clearly from me. I Still believe that sin is the problem. I still believe that, that the gospel is the solution and i still believe the local church is the front line for God. I’ll always will believe that because its so clear in scripture.

You see, first stand foremost I want to learn and serve under a man’s oversight who is appointed by God and will have to give an account for me at the judgement seat. Are you listening. I mean, when you go to some parachurch meeting as good as it may be and I’m not telling you to get out of it, but think through this. As you go to some parachruch meeting, you’re putting yourself under somebody’s authority, somebody wrote the curriculum, somebody wrote the rules, somebody wrote the guidelines for that ministry, did they not? Well let me ask you, would you rather be under some lay person that’s started a ministry or would you rather grow and learn under someone appointed by God to oversee you and will have to give an account to God for you at the judgement seat. Which one is safer. So I’m just saying, be careful about those kinds of commitments, its for your own sake to live respectfully, submissively, and in a way to bless, the church leadership.

Now I want you to look at a text of scripture that just blew me away this afternoon. 1 Peter chapter 5, verses 5 and 6. Now young people, I want all of ya’ll to look over there with me if you’ve got your Bibles with you, I may call on one of you to read it for me. 1 Peter 5:5-6, because this exhortation is chiefly addressed to young men, or young people in general. And its interesting what he says here. 1 Peter 5:5, he says, “You younger men, likewise, be subject to your elders;” He says, now I, Peter says, I want to tell the younger men of the church that you ought to be submissive to the elders of the church. Now why does he says that. I believe that this is the reason why. Because typically if there’s going to be a season of rebellion of Christians during those young years. During those young years.

Now notice what else he says there in 1 Peter 5:5. “and all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, for God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Now here’s what he says, young people listen, here’s what he says. He says, when God’s elder takes the word of God and he teaches you some truth, he teaches you things from the word of God maybe about your dating life, he teaches you something from the word of God about honoring parental authority. He teaches you something from the word of God about your morals or your standards in your life. Here’s what he says, You be submissive to that elder. Not because its him, but because he’s teaching the word. And, notice, then he adds a proverb, and he says, because “God is opposed to the proud”, what’s a proud person. A proud person is a person that swells up and says, I don’t think that Bible is right, I don’t think that pastor is right, and I don’t think God is right, I’m wiser than God and in essence you’re saying God, you’re a fool. Your proud. And what does he say? He says, God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.

Here’s what he’s saying. When your pastor the man of God teaches you the word of God about dating standards, about morality, about your attitude, about submissiveness to authority, then you stand up in your spirit and say, I’m not going to obey that, I’m not going to honor that, I’m going to do what I’m going to do. You know what you’re doing. You’ve taken your self out of the grace of God that blesses you and you’ve turned your face toward God as his enemy. You’re saying, God, I’ll take you on, I’m smarter than you, God, you’re a fool, the man of God’s a fool and the word of God’s a fool. I’m wiser than all of those. Now young people, you listen to me. When you take on God, you lose. When you take on God, you lose.

Now you know not only young people need this exhortation, a lot of us moms and dads need it, amen. Because you can do the same thing as a 60 year old men in the church. And I’m telling you, God will bring you down. You take yourself out of the blessing and the flow of God’s grace and you turn around and you take God on and says, I know better than you know God. I’m going to tell you, you’ll come down. God never lost a fight. Now you can reject me, when you start rejecting the clear teachings of this book and the Lord, man you are standing on thin ice.

Well, he says the reason why we ought to respect, submit to and bless the man of God is for the Lord’s sake, he appoints his leaders, and then when we submit to them that way that makes us fellow workers in the Lord’s work, he says, secondly because they have the responsibility to account to God for our souls. And thirdly he says, its for our own sake, it will be profitable to us if we do that.

Now I want to go to Roman III and go a little different direction here. Third major point under leadership in the church. Number three, a special word about lay leadership. I want to give you from the apostle Paul, a special word to you about lay leadership in the church. Now you know what I mean by lay leadership, I mean of the laity, of the congregation, those who rise up to be leaders, and they’re not elders, they’re not on the ministerial staff, we refer to them as lay leaders. Now go back to 1 Corinthians 16, to our major text, and let’s look at this. First subpoint A, “some will rise”. Some are going to rise. What, what do I man. Out of the lay leadership in the church, God will inevitably raise some of them up to ministerial leadership positions. Even to elder in the church. You can expect some to rise.

I believe we see this in 1 Corinthians 16, verse 17. Paul says and “I rejoice over the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have supplied what was lacking on your part.” Now here’s Paul in Ephesus, and these three men have come from Corinth all the way to Ephesus and Paul says, man I rejoiced when these guys came, and I believe what Paul is saying is, man, these are special men, they are godly men, they are unique men, they are raising up out of the congregation, and the church at Corinth at this point did not have any elders appointed, they just had Paul and the other Apostles and the associates of the Apostles, overseeing the church. Now I’ve seen what Paul, I believe rather what Paul is eluding to here is these lay people are being raised up by God and they are going to become the elders at the church at Corinth. I’m convinced that that’s what God is doing. You see, this is the typical pattern that God follows when he raises up overseers for the local church.

Now I want to do a little brief doctrinal study on ecclesiology here for just a moment and talk about how you get the elders of the overseers of the church and follow it chronologically from the New Testament. You may want to jot these things down. In the beginning at the very first, the Apostles and their associates oversaw all the churches. The earliest chronological record in the New Testament text is that the Apostles like Peter and like Paul and the others and their associates like Timothy or Barnabas or Silas, Titus, whomever, they were the men who in an itinerant type ministry oversaw all the New Testament churches. Now your scripture reference is Ephesians 2:20 and Ephesians 4:11. Ephesians 2:20 and Ephesians 4:11 tell us that the original leader of the church was men in the office of Apostle. And you know if you’ve heard me preach very long I believe the office of Apostle passed away with the first generation. These men had special authority, special abilities, special power, special gifting for the founding and establishment of the church. And they did that, they went everywhere founding the local New Testament church.

Chronologically a little bit further along we find the Apostles then begin to appoint elders out of the congregations of each local church. In Acts 14:23 we have Paul appointing elders of the churches that he had started. And then in Titus 1 :5 we have Paul telling Titus, Titus, working as Paul’s associate, I want you to point elders in all the churches. And again the clear indication of the text is, a plurality of elders in a singular church. Its not non-baptist to have elders in a church. Because its biblical, if its biblical, its Baptist. So now the Apostles are appointing elders in the church.

Now chronologically things move a little further along, and then you begin having the elders in the church appointing new elders for that local church. Ephesians 4:14 talks about Timothy and how Timothy was initiated into his ministry of overseeing when the body of elders, its called the presbytery, it just means the body of elders of that local church, laid their hands on him and prayed for him.

So we see the significant, consistent teaching of scripture is the appointment of men in leadership by other men who are in leadership. And I believe God has given us the best most biblical method for doing that that I’ve ever seen or heard of. For example, if there was a vacancy in the office of senior pastor of this church, which is the office that i hold by the grace of God. Our policy manual states that our present lay elders would immediately become the pulpit committee. There are men who you’ve nominated and we’ve affirmed, are to work with the senior pastor in overseeing the church. And these men will become the pulpit committee. And their job would be to fast and pray and seek God, receive input from the congregation and advice from the congregation and seek God and find out and identify who the new overseer of the church ought to be. And then they’re to bring that man before the congregation, give you time to question and ask and inspect, do anything you want to do and after that season is over, and there is a confirmation in the body, the spirit filled body, and a confirmation among the spirit filled elders, then they present that man and the church affirms that man as the new leader.

I believe that’s a beautiful picture of the present leader appointing the new leader, but yet giving the church input and accountability to the local church. I believe this full blown congregational rule thing that Baptists have come to admire and cherish is at best, very mildly biblical. I know there’s one verse that may indicate that the church raise their hands in a vote, but I”m going to tell you, you almost have to take that verse of scripture on July 4 at 12:30 when there’s a solar eclipse, stand on one leg, close one eye and look through the bottom of a coke bottle to see that. Its just almost isn’t there. Now I don’t mean that that means that these churches are evil or in rebellion, but no wonder they seem to be in a mess all the time. You got Baptist churches, full of people that ought to have been disciplined and kicked out of the church if you were biblical. Voting on the man of God.

Well, anyway, if you want to more, know more about that, we can help you with that. But what are we saying. Where should you expect elders of the church to come from? Typically from scriptural record you would expect God would raise them up out of the congregation. They would just be godly, devoted, unassuming lay leaders, and God will take some of those lay leaders and raise them up to become elders for his church.

By the way, that’s where I came from here. I would have never figured it, you would have never figured it, but God did. As a matter of fact, if God moved me somewhere tomorrow, God killed me or something like that, God has established so much in this church that’s so solid, it would be foolish and unwise to go outside of this church and find somebody who knows nothing about what we are and where we’re going and just turn it all over to him. Now God may do that. But based on scripture, that wouldn’t be a very logical approach to take. Now God may in fact do that though, I cannot rule that out. But from scripture, they usually came up from within, like this Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus did in the church at Corinth.

William Barclay says this about how, how leadership rose in, in the early church. He says, “n the early church willing and spontaneous service was the beginning of an official office. A man became a leader of the church not so much by any manmade appointment, as because his life and work marked him out as one whom all men must respect”. In other words, when the elders of the church are looking for a new senior pastor, and the church body is praying and the elders are praying, the holy spirit of God I believe will bring them into a unison and an agreement that yes that’s the man that God’s laid his hand onto lead us. It will just come up, I believe God will do that. He’ll take care of it. He says, “all those who share the work and toil of the gospel command respect. Not because they’ve been appointed by a man to an office, but because they are doing the work of Christ”.

Well, the first special word about lay leadership in the church is some will rise. You can expect God to raise some up to positions of overseers in the local church. And B, the last point, all will refresh. All will refresh. What do I mean by this. Well, you have to look at theverse 18 of 1 Corinthians 16. Paul says “for they”, whose the they of verse 18? Well, its Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, these lay leaders who’ve come from Corinth over to Ephesus, to visit with Paul, and to minister to him and be a courier for him. He says, “For they have refreshed my spirit and yours; therefore acknowledge such men.” Here’s what Paul is saying, Paul is saying, man, when I met Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, and I saw their godliness and I saw their commitment, I saw they honored me as God’s Apostle, I saw they were genuine and sincere and pure, and I realized God had raised them up in the church at Corinth, he says, I want you to know that refreshed me to know God was taking care of his church. Paul says, it refreshes to see those lay guys coming up and taking charge and leading the ministry for God’s glory.

The word refresh here, where Paul says, man, these lay leaders refresh my spirit. That word refresh means rest or intermission from labor. Paul is saying, man, I’m over in Ephesus, but he said, I want you to know every day I’m concerned, every day I’m burdened, every day It’s on my heart, its on my mind, its weighing heavy on me about all the needs there in the church at Corinth, and he says, then comes Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, and when I saw these guys and I saw how able and how godly and how committed and how genuine, how sincere, he said, I want you now, it just whooo, gave me rest in my spirit.

And you, hey have you, have you ever been leading a small group in our church. And for about six or eight months you just drive yourself crazy because if a visit is made, you made it. If there’s a phone call, you made it, if there’s a visit made, you made it. If there’s any ministering done at all you did it, and then all of a sudden you’ve been praying and asking God to raise up leadership and all of a sudden two or three people come out of the woodwork and say, God’s worked on our hearts, God’s broken us, we want you to know we’re going to be your coworkers, what do you need done, we’ll do it. What happens, a rest comes to your spirit. A refreshing comes to your spirit. And in the context there, Paul is saying, the pastor of a local church, when God begins to raise up faithful, serving, sincere, genuine committed godly lay people, it brings refreshing to the heart of the pastor. I’m going to tell you lay leaders refresh the spirit of the pastor.

The way these three lay leaders from Corinth refresh the spirit of Paul reminds me of David and David’s mighty men. You see, King David was commissioned by God to reign as king of Israel, after the death of Saul, and to secure the kingdom for God. In like parallel manner I believe God has commissioned First Baptist Church of Muscle Shoals in this generation to secure a portion of the kingdom. For our Lord. Now David in order to do this had a large army of loyal soldiers. But over those many thousands of soldiers he had a royal guard of valent men who whole heart was to serve God by serving God’s king, David. This group of men were called David’s mighty men. These men were stronger and more agile in combat than ordinary soldiers. Their physical strength was combined with an inner strength and courage that made them stand out above the rest. These mighty men, the Bible teaches, were essential to David securing the kingdom for God.

Also in like parallel manner, I believe God has set apart in this congregation a garrison of mighty men. Lay leaders, who are loyal to their pastor out of their loyalty to God. Due to the valiant work of the mighty men of this congregation, the conquest of enemy territory is well under way and the kingdom is being secured for Christ’s sake.

Paul states in our text, 1 Corinthians 16, verse 18, that Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus brought refreshing to him. The Bible also teaches in 2 Samuel 23:14, that David’s mighty men brought great refreshing to him. After the Philistines had captured Bethlehem and David was run out of Bethlehem 12 miles and he was hiding out in the Adonlum cave, the Bible says in anguish and in discouragement, David was just talking out loud, and David made the expression, “oh that i had a drink from the spring of Bethlehem”.

Three of David’s key might men heard David’s request and those three men took off, journeyed the 12 miles, all the way to Bethlehem, courageously and valiantly penetrated the Philistine line and grabbed a vessel and scooped water out of the spring of Bethlehem, charged back through the Philistine line, traveled the 12 miles, came back to David and said, David, we overheard you wanted a drink of water from the spring of Bethlehem. Bringing refreshing to their leader. In like and parallel manner God bless the mighty men of this congregation. And the mighty men of this congregation deserve a great commendation.

God bless the lay elders, the staff, the deacons, the small group leaders, and many others, valiantly you have marched forward, evangelizing, equipping and encouraging one another, holding unswervingly to the word of God. You unapologetically hold to the high standards of scripture, you will not tolerate divisive or factious men, you discerningly spot the shallow and the carnal man and give him no advance in the church. And I want to say to you mighty men, you are bringing great glory to God and you are bringing great refreshing to your pastor. God bless, God bless you, God bless the mighty men of God in this congregation. Some will rise, but all lay leaders refresh their pastor.