GROUP GUIDE: Acts 20:17-32

In this passage of scripture the apostle Paul, before his departure from Ephesus, calls the elders of the church of Ephesus together and gives them a charge to “shepherd the flock of God.” This passage shows us that the first century church was led or pastored by a plurality of elders. In verse 17 we read that Paul called the “elders” (in the plural) together.

In the New Testament the words elder, pastor, overseer, and bishop are all used to describe the same role or position in the church. The most common word used is elder. The word pastor means to shepherd. In this passage Paul charges all the elders of the church to pastor or shepherd the church, which is the flock of God.

Basically, there are four ways that a shepherd, shepherds the flock. These four ways outline what God expects elders/pastors to undertake among His flock. A shepherd feeds the flock, he protects the flock, he leads the flock and he cares for the flock. In the same way, an elder/pastor of a local church will feed that congregation the word of God, will protect that congregation from false teaching and preverted doctrine, he will lead that congregation to grow in spiritual maturity, and he will care for that congregation in body, mind, and soul. The best way to understand the work of a Pastor is to think of him as a shepherd overseeing God’s flock.

Therefore, as our search committee begins their work of finding a new Lead Pastor, this new elder/pastor will be a shepherd charged with carrying out the four-fold function of a shepherd listed above. It will be essential for him, and any other man who is an elder or pastor of the church, to love God, love God’s word, and love God’s people.All three of those things must be true of a faithful shepherd.

Yet there is something else that will be true of this new shepherd/elder/pastor. He will become an equal among an already existing team of shepherds/elders/pastor. North Side Baptist church is led by, cared for by, protected by, and fed by a plurality of elders. No one elder has more authority or power than any other elder. North Side’s elders are equal in role and responsibility. It is shared leadership, shared responsibility, and shared accountability. If a church only has one shepherd/elder/pastor, then that church gets that man’s strengths and his weaknesses.However, when the church is overseen by a plurality of shepherds, then where one man might be weak, another man will be strong. Strengths and weakness, and different perspectives create a healthy balance. Remember, “two are better than one and a strand of three is not easily broken.” This is the wisdom of God for church leadership and structure.

There is a reason that we are using the title “Lead Pastor.” In so doing, we are designating a specific responsibility to this elder that will be his primary concern. As Lead Pastor, he will be charged with leading the leaders, (elders) to lead or leading the shepherds, to care for the flock of God.

Our elders are a team of shepherds and every team needs a leader. The Lead Pastor is not the CEO of the church and the other elders are not his staff or assistants. Again, he is one among equals. But his charge will be to lead the elders to collectively evaluate the health of the flock, take corrective measures to address any threats to the flock, collectively strategize how to keep the flock healthy, and how to collectively meet the needs of the flock. And when these things have been decided collectively by the elder team, the Lead Pastor will serve as the primary voice of the elder team to the congregation. He will be the primary voice of the elders on Sunday mornings during the preaching of the word and throughout the week in different forms of communication to the charge at large.

In summary, our new Lead Pastor will be an equal shepherd/elder/pastor, on an already existing shepherd/elder/ pastor team. He will lead this team to collectively decide and execute how to lead and care for God’s flock.