PONDERING... Don’t Vote For Me (Acts 20:28-32)

Don’t Vote For Me

GIST: Churches don’t need charismatic, human heroes to lead them; they need Jesus. Period.

SCRIPTURE: Acts 20:28-32

28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

I have struggled this week with what to say. I know at the end of this message you’re voting on me as pastor. I didn’t want to pretend like that wasn’t happening and just try to preach “extra good”. Nor did I want to preach a message that was essentially all about me and somehow make this a campaign speech; that wouldn’t be helpful to any of you today, nor Biblical. All of these concerns got in the way of me just letting God speak. As I prayed through what Scripture to address this morning, Acts 20 came to mind first. Then, I considered about 5 other passages, but Acts 20 kept coming back. Which means I probably could have saved myself some time if I just would have listened to God the first time.

Now, even though this isn’t a campaign speech, before we look at the GIST statement, I thought it would be fun to look at a few presidential campaign slogans… (and there is a connection :D).

A few slogans from Presidential Campaigns:

• "Grant Us Another Term" – Ulysses S. Grant (See what he did there? :D)

• "I like Ike" – Dwight D. Eisenhower."
• “All the way with LBJ" – Lyndon B. Johnson (Gotta love a clever rhyme!)
• "In Your Heart, You Know He's Right" – Barry Goldwater
• "In Your Guts, You Know He's Nuts" – Johnson’s response to Goldwater (That’s just funny.)

• "A Safer World and a More Hopeful America" – George W. Bush
• "Change." – Barack Obama
• "Make America Great Again!" – Donald Trump (The last three were situationally driven.)

These all have something in common: self-promotion. That’s what a campaign is about. So, politicians are going try and gain votes based on their personal merits or the difference they plan on making in the country. Sadly, sometimes that’s how we approach choosing a pastor, too. Regardless of who God calls to this position, if you place your faith in a man, he will let you down. His sermons might be boring. His jokes might be cheesy. He might not always be available when you want him, or do things the way you wish he would. (And all this and more would undoubtedly apply to me.) In fact, if I were to come up with a campaign slogan, mine would be “Don’t Vote For Me”. In fact, that is my sermon title, but we didn’t put it in the bulletin because people wiser than me thought that might send mixed messages :D. Since, I do in fact feel called to this position, I guess it would be better to put it like this: “If You’re Looking For Someone To Fix All Your Problems And Fulfill All Your Expectations, Don’t Vote For Me.” But see, that’s just a really long title :).

But here’s the deal: Churches don’t need charismatic, human heroes to lead them; they need Jesus. Period. It’s not about me. I never want it to be about me. It has to be all about Jesus all the time. Let’s look at this passage.

I. THE CHURCH IS JESUS’

28b...the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

We are His people bought at the highest price. We’ve covered this several times lately, but I don’t want to just skip over this vital point. The Church belongs to God. The only reason we are even gathering together in the first place is to proclaim and be changed by that message. Apart from Jesus’ sacrificial death in our place, we would just be a group of people destined for Hell trying to make each other feel better about ourselves. We are so much more than that only because He is our hope. He obtained us with His own blood. This is no small matter. The Church does not belong to the pastors or deacons or trustees or even the most active members. We belong to Jesus. This is the central truth that brings us all together and fuels everything we do. Remember last week? All things are from, through, and to Him. That includes this church.

II. THE PASTOR NEEDS JESUS

28a Pay careful attention to yourselves

The requirements for a pastor are...Christian. I have been reading alot about the qualifications for pastors as outlined in Scripture, and, frankly, it has terrified me. Paul’s statement here at the very beginning of our Scripture for today summarizes most of the criteria very concisely. A pastor must pay careful attention to himself. In what way? Well, let’s just look at the criteria for pastors laid out in the three big passages, 1 Tim 3, Titus 1, and 1 Peter 5. Here’s a combined list:

• Above Reproach
• The Husband of One Wife
• Sober-Minded
• Self-Controlled
• Respectable
• Hospitable
• Humble
• Not a Drunkard
• Not Violent, but Gentle
• Not Quarrelsome
• Not a Lover of Money
• Manages His Own Household Well
• Well Thought of by Outsiders
• Loves Good
• Holds Firm to the Word of God
• He Must Not be a Recent Convert
• He Must be Able to Teach and Defend Sound Doctrine
• He Must Willingly Shepherd the Flock

This is what a pastor is supposed to be paying attention to; this is who he should be. No pressure, right? :)

Now, let me ask you this: which of these don’t apply to you? If you’re a Christian but not a pastor, are you somehow exempt from being humble, or above reproach, or hospitable? Even the women of the church are not left out in the husband of one wife clause because it implies faithfulness in marriage. And every parent is meant to manage their household well, not just the pastor and his wife. You’re not supposed to be a violent drunk either. The only three that would not directly apply to the entire congregation would be those last three: He Must Not be a Recent Convert, He Must be Able to Teach and Defend Sound Doctrine, He Must Willingly Shepherd the Flock. The first one is a given in any leadership position. Hopefully, you wouldn’t ask someone who just started their education degree to be the principal at your school. We can follow the spiritual application here. And that last one, willingly shepherding the flock, is a unique role, as well. But the middle one, teaching and defending sound doctrine, one has overlaps in all of our lives. You might not be required to teach and defend sound doctrine in the same way as a pastor, but aren’t you meant to know what the Bible teaches, and aren’t we all to share that with the world and, more especially, with our children?

I point all that out not to imply being a pastor isn’t that big of a deal, but rather to show how big of a deal being a Christian is in the first place. These are some expectations for all our lives--and it’s hard; it’s weighty; it’s a big deal to be the ambassadors of Christ to this world so desperately in need of Him. It is no easier for the pastor. We are cut from the same cloth. I am just as much of a sinner as you. I need Jesus just as much as you do. The difference? People tend to forget that. James 3:1, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” Pastors are meant to be examples of what it means to be a Christian, but they are not Christ. Pray for them.

If I’m your pastor, I’ll probably let you down sometimes, maybe a lot of times. I might stick my foot in my mouth. I will never be a perfect example of Christlikeness. But I will strive to draw closer to Him with you, because I need Him, too.

III. THE PEOPLE NEED JESUS

29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.

The Church’s needs are spiritual...and dire. Look at what is said here. There is urgency in the message. Paul knew that once he left, the church would be under attack. And look at the nature of this attack. It’s described as fierce wolves coming into a flock of sheep. You don’t even have to know anything about sheep to understand this, you just need to have read any classic folktale or seen a few episodes of Looney Tunes as a child. When a wolf gets into a flock of sheep, it has one motive: it wants to eat sheep. Here we have fierce wolves. So, it’s not just a wolf, but wolves...and they’re fierce. Actually, the word translated fierce here means heavy and grievous, or detrimental, or malignant. So… it actually says these are big, bad wolves :D. They are coming into the church seeking to destroy it. That’s the message.

And he is not talking about outside physical threats. That’s a reality too, the church will be persecuted in physical ways. Throughout history, however, we’ve seen that this always strengthens the church. The wolves here are spiritual. They are false teachers or teachings, some of which are coming up from within the church itself, seeking to turn the people of God away from the truth of God and make them just as ineffectual in the ministry of God’s truth as the lost world around them. That’s how you destroy the church--make them take their eyes off Jesus. That’s why everyone in this room needs Him and His Word more than anything else.

One man cannot meet them. The need is great, and one man cannot meet that. In fact, the word overseers here is plural. We could dive into that more deeply, but the fact of the matter is just what we’ve been talking about the past few weeks: this is a team effort. We’re meant to grow together. One body. One purpose: Helping each other and the world be transformed by Jesus. He makes the difference.

IV. SO, A PASTOR MUST POINT ONLY TO JESUS

28 Pay careful attention… to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God....31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish everyone with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

The duty of a pastor is for God’s people and through God’s grace. In light of all of this (the church belonging to Jesus and the pastor and congregational being equally in need of Him), the pastor’s role then becomes one of pointing people to Jesus. As mentioned before, this is largely through conduct. This is also through love driven preaching of God’s Word. If I care for you, it will be in tears that I try to just bring you God’s Word. That’s why I preach mostly through books of the Bible. Just before the verses we read today, Paul told his readers, “26b I am innocent of the blood of all, 27 for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” The implication is that it’s the solemn responsibility of a pastor to preach the whole counsel. I cannot just harp on pet doctrines or favorite themes. I want to see all of Jesus, so I’ll study all of Scripture. I want you to see all of Jesus, so I’ll teach through the Bible systematically.

And I guess here’s as good of a time as any to make an aside to clarify this too, because it’s always so heavy upon my heart. The pastor’s responsibility to the church must be third on his lists of priorities. First must be his personal relationship with God. If he is not drawing near to God in his personal walk, he is of no use to anyone. Second is his family. I have read too many tragic stories of great preachers who neglected their home. How can I strive to be innocent of the blood of the congregation and pay no heed to those under my special care? In any setting, I am a Christian husband and daddy before I am a pastor. I can drop many things to serve the needs of this church, but I will never drop them. They are my first flock, my little lambs. So, if I’m not living this for them, again, I’m of absolutely no use to you.

So, how does this work practically? And this isn’t just for pastors; remember this is the expectation for all of us. Oh, how I love verse 32.  32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. It is by the grace of God, through the Word of that grace, the Bible. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). It is His Word that saves you; and His Word that sustains you.

TAKEAWAYS

1. More than anything or anyone, the church needs Jesus.

• From Him, and Through Him, and To Him are all things. He is our everything.  Until we become a people passionate about Him, there will be no significant differences made.

2. Don’t vote for me; long for Jesus.

• I’m not withdrawing my application :). I’m just clarifying my purpose.

3. Pay attention to your life.

• There will be big bad wolves. Cling to the Word of God.

4. Pray that I do the same.