CALLING A PASTOR

CALLING A PASTOR
Jeremiah  3.15
Return, backsliding children, says Yahweh; for I am a husband to you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: nd I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. It shall come to pass, when you are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, says Yahweh, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Yahweh; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more. yim'Y;B k{n'a yiK h'wh.y-mUa.n ~yib'bw{v ~yin'b .Wb.Wv  ryi[em d'x,a ~,k.t,a yiT.x;q'l.w ~,k'b yiT.l;['B !w{Yic ~,k.t,a yitaebeh.w h'x'P.viMim ~Iy;n.v.Wh'[eD ~,k.t,a .W['r.w yiBil.K ~yi[{r ~,k'l yiT;t'n.w lyeK.f;h.w~yim'Y;B #,r'a'B ~,tyir.p.W .WB.rit yiK h'y'h.w !w{r]a dw{[ .Wr.ma{y-a{l h'wh.y-mUa.n h'Meh'h a{l.wbel-l;[ h,l][;y a{l.w h'wh.y-tyir.B dw{[ h,f'[ey a{l.w.Wd{q.pIy a{l.w w{b -.Wr.K.zIy	yi
JEREMIAH 3.15  I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understand h'[eD ~,k.t,a .W['r.w yiBil.K ~yi[{r ~,k'l yiT;t'n.w lyeK.f;h.w kai dwsw umin poimenas kata thn kardian mou poimanousin  umas poimainoutes met  episthmhs "The pastor means either the king or the prophet; and the pastors here promised may be either kings or prophets, or both. These shall be according to God's own heart; they shall be of his own choosing and shall be qualified by himself: and in consequence they shall feed the people with knowledge, deah, that Divine truth concerning the true God and the best interests of man, which was essentially necessary to their salvation; and understanding haskeil, the full interpretation of every point, that in receiving the truth they might become wise, holy, and happy". Keil and Delitsch  Commentaries The word often translated, in Jeremiah 3:15, in the English Bible as "shepherd" is translated from the Hebrew into the Greek Septuagint LXX( THE SCRIPTURE USED MOSTLY BY THE N.T. APOSTLES) is the Greek word poimos.

THE CHURCH BELONGS TO GOD

1CORINTHIANS 1:2

to the assembly of God which is at Corinth; those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, both theirs and ours:

It is God's church even in Corinth, "laetum et ingens paradoxon" (Bengel). This city, destroyed by Mummius B.C. 146, had been restored by Julius Caesar a hundred years later, B.C. 44, and now after another hundred years has become very rich and very corrupt. The very word "to Corinthianize" meant to practise vile immoralities in the worship of Aphrodite (Venus). It was located on the narrow Isthmus of the Peloponnesus with two harbours (Lechaeum and Cenchreae). It had schools of rhetoric and philosophy and made a flashy imitation of the real culture of Athens.

 See Acts 18:1ff. for the story of Paul's work here and now the later developments and divisions in this church will give Paul grave concern as is shown in detail in I and II Corinthians. All the problems of a modern city church come to the front in Corinth. They call for all the wisdom and statesmanship in Paul.

The Church came behind in no spiritual  gifts, but the had no effect on their spiritual maturity as evidenced by Paul's statement in 1 Cor. 3:1-3.

2 to the assembly of God which is at Corinth; those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, both theirs and ours:

th'/ ejkklhsiva/ tou' qeou' th'/ ou~sh/ ejn Korivnqw/, hJgiasmevnoiß ejn Xristw'/ #Ihsou', klhtoi'ß aJgivoiß, su;n pa'sin toi'ß ejpikaloumevnoiß to; o~noma tou' kurivou hJmw'n #Ihsou' Xristou' ejn panti; tovpw/, aujtw'n kai; hJmw'n:

Verse 2 The church of God

(th ekklhsiai tou qeou). Belonging to God, not to any individual or faction, as this genitive case shows.
In 1 Thessalonians 1:1 Paul wrote "the church of the Thessalonians in God" (en qewi), but "the churches of God" in 1 Thessalonians 2:14. See same idiom in 1 Corinthians 10:32; 1 Corinthians 11:16,22; 1 Corinthians 15:9; 2 Corinthians 1:1; Galatians 1:13, etc. Which is in Corinth (th oush en Korinqwi). See on Acts 13:1 for idiom

That are sanctified (hgiasmenoiß). Perfect passive participle of agiazw, late form for agizw, so far found only in the Greek Bible and in ecclesiastical writers. It means to make or to declare agion (from agoß, awe, reverence, and this from azw, to venerate).

 It is significant that Paul uses this word concerning the called saints or called to be saints (klhtoiß agioiß) in Corinth. Cf. klhtoß apostoloß in Acts 1:1. It is because they are sanctified in Christ Jesus (en Cristwi Ihsou). He is the sphere in which this act of consecration takes place. Note plural, construction according to sense, because ekklhsia is a collective substantive. With all that call upon (sun pasin toiß epikaloumenoiß).

Associative instrumental case with sun rather than kai (and), making a close connection with "saints" just before and so giving the Corinthian Christians a picture of their close unity with the brotherhood everywhere through the common bond of faith. This phrase occurs in the LXX (Genesis 12:8; Zechariah 13:9) and is applied to Christ as to Jehovah (2 Thessalonians 1:7,9,12; Philippians 2:9,10). Paul heard Stephen pray to Christ as Lord (Acts 7:59). Here "with a plain and direct reference to the Divinity of our Lord" (Ellicott). Their Lord and ours (autwn kai hmwn). This is the interpretation of the Greek commentators and is the correct one, an afterthought and expansion (epanorqwsiß) of the previous "our," showing the universality of Christ.

I AM THE GOOD PASTOR

"Truly truly I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way. He is a thief and a robber.
But who enters by the door is a Shepherd(pastor) of the Sheep.

... the sheep hear his voice and he calls his own by name, leads them out.... when he puts forth own, he goes before them, and the Sheep follow him because they Knowles voice."  John 10;1-4

So what does Jesus mean in all this?

THE GREEK WORD TRANSLATED "SHEPHERD" IS SAME GREEK WORD TRANSLATED "PASTOR"..  ACTUALLY THE WORD PASTOR MEANS THE SAME AS THE WORD SHEPHERD IN ENGLISH. 

Verse 11 I am the good shepherd (egw eimi o poimhn o kaloß). Note repetition of the article, "the shepherd the good one." Takes up the metaphor of verses Romans 2. Vulgate pastor bonus. Philo calls his good shepherd agaqoß, but kaloß calls attention to the beauty in character and service like "good stewards" (1 Peter 4:10), "a good minister of Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy

Jesus tells us in the following verses in John 10: "Truly truly.. I am the door of the Sheep... (Verse 11)I am the Good Shepherd(pastor).  
(Verse14) I am the Good Shepherd (pastor), and I know My own and My own know Me. ..(16)and I have other sheep, which are not of this fold. I bring them also , and they shall hear my voice and they shall become one flock, and shall have one shepherd(pastor)."

Who is the Leader?

Obviously, it must be Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd.  There is another obvious thing--He DOES LEAD the flock..

But here the shepherd leads in a different way.
  In the western world, the shepherd is actually a sheep herder. This means he is he is behind the flock and drives the Sheep, and  usually with a sheep dog.
The flock hear the voice of Jesus Christ,  This means that they recognize Jesus Christ in The Voice.  If Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd,

"THE ONE SHEPHERD"(pastor),
 this is extremely important.  If "His own  know-recognize His voice", than it identifies "His own".  "They(His own) flee from strangers"--not the good shepherd's voice.
The Good Shepherd leads the Flock from the front--not from behind, and (4)"the sheep follow him because they know his voice." Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd--"the one shepherd".

Another very important point to be made here

Jesus Christ's or God's voice was or is not always a popular one. God's prophets were not always popular or what you want to hear--usually they were not.

Verse 4 When he hath put forth all his own (otan ta idia panta ekbalh). Indefinite temporal clause with otan and the second aorist (effective) active subjunctive of ekballw. No need of the futurum exactum idea, simply, "when he leads out all his own sheep." They are all out of the fold. He overlooks none. Ekballw does mean "thrust out" if a reluctant sheep wishes to linger too long. He goeth before them (emprosqen autwn poreuetai). Staff in hand he leads the way in front of the flock and they follow (akolouqei) him. What a lesson for pastors who seek to drive the church like cattle and fail. The true pastor leads in love, in words, in deeds. Verse 5 A stranger(allotriwi).  Literally, "One belonging to another" (from alloß, opposed to idioß).  A shepherd of another flock, it may be, not necessarily the thief and robber of verse John 1. Note associative instrumental case after akolouqhsousin (future active indicative of akolouqew, verse John 4).  Note the strong double negative ou mh here with the future indicative, though usually with the aorist subjunctive (Aleph L W have it here). They simply will not follow such a man or woman, these well-trained sheep will not.  But will flee from him (alla peuxontai ap autou). Future middle of peugw and ablative case with apo. They will flee as if from a wolf or from the plague.  Alas and alas, if only our modern pastors had the sheep (old and young) so trained that they would run away from and not run after the strange voices that call them to false philosophy, false psychology, false ethics, false religion, false life. Verse 9 The door (h qura).  Repeated from verse Matthew 7. By me if any man enter in (di emou ean tiß eiselqh). Condition of third class with ean and second aorist active subjunctive of eisercomai. Note proleptic and emphatic position of di emou. One can call this narrow intolerance, if he will, but it is the narrowness of truth.  If Jesus is the Son of God sent to earth for our salvation, he is the only way. He had already said it in Matthew 5:23. He will say it again more sharply in Matthew 14:6. It is unpalatable to the religious dogmatists before him as it is to the liberal dogmatists today.  Jesus offers the open door to "any one" (tiß) who is willing (qelei) to do God's will (Matthew 7:17). He shall be saved (swqhsetai). Future passive of swzw, the great word for salvation, from swß, safe and sound.  The sheep that comes into the fold through Jesus as the door will be safe from thieves and robbers for one thing. He will have entrance (eisleusetai) and outgo (exeleusetai), he will be at home in the daily routine (cf. Acts 1:21) of the sheltered flock. And shall find pasture (kai nomhn eurhsei). Future (linear future) indicative of euriskw, old word from nemw, to pasture.  In N.T. only here and 2 Timothy 2:17 (in sense of growth). This same phrase occurs in 1 Chronicles 4:40. The shepherd leads the sheep to pasture, but this phrase pictures the joy of the sheep in the pasture provided by the shepherd. Verse 10 But that he may steal, and kill, and destroy (ei mh ina klepsh kai qush kai apolesh).  Literally, "except that" (ei mh) common without (Matthew 12:4) and with verb (Galatians 1:7), "if not" (literally), followed here by final ina and three aorist active subjunctives as sometimes by otan (Mark 9:9) or oti (2 Corinthians 12:13).  Note the order of the verbs. Stealing is the purpose of the thief, but he will kill and destroy if necessary just like the modern bandit or gangster.  I came that they may have life (egw hlqon ina zwhn ecwsin).  In sharp contrast (egw) as the good shepherd with the thieves and robbers of verse 2 Corinthians 1 came Jesus.  Note present active subjunctive (ecwsin), "that they (people) may keep on having life (eternal, he means)" as he shows in 2 Corinthians 10:28. He is "the life" (2 Corinthians 14:6). And may have it abundantly (kai perisson ecwsin). Repetition of ecwsin (may keep on having) abundance (perisson, neuter singular of perissoß).  Xenophon (Anab. VII. vi. 31) uses perisson ecein, "to have a surplus," true to the meaning of overflow from peri (around) seen in Paul's picture of the overplus (upereperisseusen in Romans 5:20) of grace. Abundance of life and all that sustains life, Jesus gives. Verse 11 I am the good shepherd (egw eimi o poimhn o kaloß). Note repetition of the article, "the shepherd the good one." Takes up the metaphor of verses Romans 2. Vulgate pastor bonus. Philo calls his good shepherd agaqoß, but kaloß calls attention to the beauty in character and service like "good stewards" (1 Peter 4:10), "a good minister of Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 4:6). Often both adjectives appear together in the ancient Greek as once in the New Testament (Luke 8:15). "Beauty is as beauty does." That is kaloß. Layeth down his life for his sheep (thn psuchn autou tiqhsin uper twn probatwn).  For illustration see 1 Samuel 17:35 (David's experience) and Isaiah 31:4. Dods quotes Xenophon (Mem. ii. 7, 14) who pictures even the sheep dog as saying to the sheep: "For I am the one that saves you also so that you are neither stolen by men nor seized by wolves." Hippocrates has psuchn kateqeto (he laid down his life, i.e. died). In Judges 12:3 eqhka thn psuchn means "I risked my life." The true physician does this for his patient as the shepherd for his sheep. The use of uper here (over, in behalf of, instead of), but in the papyri uper is the usual preposition for substitution rather than anti. This shepherd gives his life for the sin of the world (Judges 1:29; 1 John 2:2). Verse 14 I am the good-shepherd (egw eimi o poimhn o kaloß).  Effective repetition. And mine own know me (kai ginwskousin me ta ema). Jesus as the Good Shepherd knows his sheep by name as he had already said (verse 1 Peter 3) and now repeats. Yes, and they know his voice (verse 1 Peter 4), they have experimental knowledge (ginwskw) of Jesus as their own Shepherd.  Here (in this mutually reciprocal knowledge) lies the secret of their love and loyalty.