An article entitled, “How to Get Rid of a Pastor” was published a few years ago. The article started by asking, if you want to get rid of your pastor, then you’ll need to: Look the pastor straight in the eye while he’s preaching and say “Amen” every once-in-a-while, and he’ll preach himself to death. Pat him on the back and brag on his good points, and he’ll probably work himself to death. Dedicate your life to Christ, find a ministry to serve with all your heart, and he’ll die of heart failure. Or, if the church united together to do whatever it takes to reach your community, soon the pastor will become so popular that he will be receiving invitations to serve at other churches. (Bible Illustrator #726-761, 10/1988.3)
Now, I hope no one here wants to get rid of me, because I have no plans to go anywhere else, but I think that it is important to know a pastor is part of God’s will on earth. Our passage today reminds believers about their relationships within the church. From these remaining verses there are three God given purposes of a body of believers; Submission to leaders, Prayer and Care for others
Turn with me to Hebrews 13 verse 17.
Hebrews 13:17 Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
While this verse has many important reasons for submitting to spiritual leaders, I want to highlight just one important reason. The believers are told to obey their spiritual leaders because God Himself ordained this for the Church.
The fact is quite clear that the Hebrew believers would need leadership and so does every believer. One reason they needed a spiritual leader is because they were used to a Rabbi. And a second reason is that they needed a spiritual leader who would keep them focused on Jesus Christ and not turn them back to religion.
Verse 17 has three implications; Without spiritual leadership the church would not spiritually mature and more troublesome was that the body of believers would go astray. For the original readers of the book of Hebrews, this struggle to go astray was a strong one, because of the social pressures they were under.
The third implication of verse 17 is that a church can become unprofitable without a spiritual leader because he will encourage you to fight the good fight of faith, by focusing on Jesus Christ. Its grievous for a leader to see people perish and not follow Christ.
A church would be less useful to God’s plan and it is not beneficial for our individual spiritual journey without a spiritual leader. Why? Because we ALL need a leader; we ALL need a coach. Sometimes that’s a hard lesson to learn.
Atul Gawande, a distinguished Harvard surgeon, came to that realization after working many years as a surgeon that his success had reached a plateau. While he was in the middle of a medical conference and had an afternoon free, he tried to track down somewhere to play a game of tennis. He found a local tennis club and they told him the only court available was used for lessons, but if he paid for a lesson, he could hit with the club pro.
Surprised, he discovered that the pro was in his mid-twenties. Yet, he played on, hitting the ball back and forth. Unknown to him, the pro played easy. The doctor served a few points, and then the tennis coach turned his pro on. The pro started running Dr. Gawande around.
“You know,” he said, “you could get more power from your serve.”
Dr. Gawande was a little insulted. He played on the college team and his serve had always been the best part of his game, but he listened to the pro. The pro pointed out how his right leg dragged a few inches behind his body when he served. And with a few minutes of coaching, Dr. Gawande added at least ten miles an hour to his serve.
A few months afterward, Dr. Gawande was watching tennis star Rafael Nadal playing in a tournament on TV. The camera flashed to his coach, and Dr. Gawande was struck by the obvious: even Rafael Nadal has a coach. Nearly every élite tennis player in the world does… But doctors don’t. Dr. Gawande thought, “I paid to have a kid just out of college look at my serve. So, why do I find it inconceivable to pay someone to come into my operating room and coach me on my surgical technique?”
Dr. Gawande went on to write what he learned with his conclusion: “No matter how well-prepared people are in their formative years, few can achieve and maintain their best performance on their own.” (Atul Gawande, “Personal Best,” The New Yorker, 10-3-11; www. PreachingToday.com)
And that’s not only true for athletes and doctors. It’s true for everyone! We ALL can benefit from a coach, and that’s what church leaders are.
They are “spiritual-life” coaches, called to equip you to serve at the top of your “game”, or as Ephesians 4:11-16 puts it, “11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
Since it is the believer’s goal to be Christlike, we all will need some support to get there. A believer will then need to yield to a spiritual leader’s guidance and direction. But don’t forget it’s for your spiritual advantage.
A second activity a church body should do to accomplish God’s will is to pray for one another.
In the next verses we’ll see this and understand that is the reason the author has a personal relationship with the body of believers.
In our often overly individualistic approach to the Christian life we might tend to think we’ve got this. However, as a person grows spiritually and matures in the faith, we realize that praying for one another is one of the core purposes of a church.
James 5:16 says “pray for one another”. The apostle Paul wasn’t ashamed to say in 1 Thessalonians 5:15 “Pray for us.” (see also 2 Thessalonians 3:1)
In Hebrews 13:18-19 the author asks that the believers support him in prayer. That’s what this 1st Century leader asks the believers to do for him!
Hebrews 13:18-19 Pray for us; for we are confident that we have a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably. 19 But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
Notice even a spiritual leader asks the body of believers to pray for him. In verses 18-19, He asks for prayer for his relationships, his reputation, and his integrity.
This is true for any believer that desires to accomplish God’s will. Each of us will need mutual prayer support. The ministry of prayer is a benefit for a believer because without mutual prayer, we could all easily turn our attention away from Christ and His superiority in our life.
Note the prayer request; to keep a clear conscience, to act honorably in all things, and to be restored and be with them.
Praying is a powerful ministry a church can do together. Pray! We can ask God to preserve our relationships, reputation, and our integrity. We can plead with God, to keep us loving, honorable, and pure.
We must pray for one another and especially spiritual leaders because Satan knows that if a spiritual leader in the church falls, a lot of people will fall away also.
There is an older man who refused to even consider being part of any church. He had in fact rejected Christianity altogether, even though he was raised in a Christian home. Why? Well, when he was a young man, his pastor fell into grievous sin, and the whole congregation was devastated. It nearly destroyed the church.
While that man never wanted to go back to church, I do know his departure was avoidable, had his pastor not fallen into sin.
When a church leader falls, it often sends a lot of people astray. So, please, pray! Please, pray for me! Ask God to keep my relationships strong, my reputation honorable, and my conscience clean, so I don’t destroy or distract others.
Here is the ultimate principle that the writer of Hebrews is telling these believers. As a pastor cares for the people and people care for others and their pastor, the body benefits, they continue in God’s will and God is glorified!
As we continue, we must keep in mind the specific recipients of this letter as we move into the benediction prayer.
The Jewish Christians were feeling the full weight of repercussions from following Christ. They had been cut off from their former faith community – the synagogue and their families disowned them.
So, when the author opens the benediction by referring to “the God of peace” in Hebrews 13:20. The audience would have recalled that sweet refreshing breeze of the Hebrew word Shalom.
The word Shalom invokes peace via the concepts of completeness, wholeness, harmony, and fulfillment. And God is able to grant this to the hard-pressed Hebrew Christians.
Hebrews 13:20-21 20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”
Remember that the main theme of the book is the superior person of Jesus. Jesus is the shepherd of the sheep and the image is from Psalms 23 where the Lord provided for, protected and nourished and refreshed His people.
The identity of Jesus Christ as the Great shepherd is a strong affirmation of the deity of Christ. Look with me at what Christ will do in and through the church as a body of believers from these verses:
- He will equip them, and outfit them for His purpose.
- He will enable them, to accomplish His will for His pleasure.
Perhaps the greatest underlying understanding of the Hebrew believers is that God will supply what they need to live as Christians and to carry out His will more effectively and efficiently. As verse 20 states, God cares for us just as He displayed the power to raise the Lord Jesus from the dead.
That is true for us also. We need to be humble and subject to His plan.
Notice the final words of the author of Hebrews;
Hebrews 13:22-25 “And I appeal to you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you in few words. 23 Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I shall see you if he comes shortly.24 Greet all those who rule over you, and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you.25 Grace be with you all. Amen.
The writer of Hebrews wraps up his letter with four main thoughts:
- Bear with the truth of God’s word. This is an interesting word used here. He is urging them to continue their commitment to Christ.
- Have concern for fellow laborers. They should keep up with ministry partners and missionaries as well as the circumstances and situations of those outside their fellowship.
- Have an earnest desire for the good of all believers. The word used here for “greet” means to engage in hospitable recognition of each other. It describes the nature of the fellowship of a body of believers. They should embrace each other, encourage one another, support one another and pray for one another.
- Finally, the letter ends with a powerful key word “grace be with you all.”
And all the people said Amen!