the complex role of a shepherd

The Pastoralized blog has an interesting post entitled, "Why Pastoral Work Is So Complex (And Why You Shouldn’t Try to Simplify It)"

(Caveat: only Jesus is the true Prophet, Priest and King, though I agree that pastors are called to share in his ministry in all three areas.)

Pastoral work is inherently complex because it’s three jobs, not one. We are a prophet (teaching and preaching), a priest (ministering relationally and in prayer), and a king (providing leadership and vision). True shepherding takes place when these three roles overlap in a minister of the gospel. There is no other job in the world that requires so much from one person. Trying to remove one of these roles is like removing a component from an atom. If you take away the electron, you no longer have an atom. If you stop preaching, you no longer are a shepherd. Shepherds feed their sheep. ...

Read the entire article here.

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