James T. Meeks: Shepherding the Flock (1 Peter 5:1-5) - Message from the 2024 CGN International Conference

[00:00:00] Welcome to the CGN Podcast. My name is Nick Cady and on this episode we have another message for you from the CGN International Conference which took place this past summer in Southern California.

[00:00:10] The theme of this year's conference was Hope, Suffering and Glory, Studies in the Book of 1 Peter. This next message was taught by Pastor James T. Meeks. Pastor Meeks is the founder and pastor emeritus of Salem Baptist Church of Chicago.

[00:00:27] Over as many years of ministry, Pastor Meeks has sought to serve his community in many ways to bring holistic gospel centered renewal to his city.

[00:00:37] In this message, Pastor Meeks teaches from 1 Peter 5 on the topic of shepherding the flock of God.

[00:00:44] This episode is also available as video for those listening on a podcast app that supports video. We hope you'll be blessed by this message.

[00:00:52] Pastor Meeks, Chief of Chicago, Stafford, The Cable of the Journalist and Public Health Service, The Cable of the College of the University of California.

[00:01:10] First of all, Ed Stetson was fantastic, wasn't he?

[00:01:17] Well, let's put our hands together. He was fantastic.

[00:01:22] So, I was in school with Brian. Brian is a great student. Asked me how do I know. I sat next to him.

[00:01:35] We had great, good grades.

[00:01:39] I was thankful because if his paper was wrong, mine was wrong too.

[00:01:47] And so he was a great student, and I thank God for him being a great student

[00:01:51] because it made me a great student.

[00:01:55] And I am so excited to be here.

[00:01:59] My wife of 45 years come Christmas Day is with me, and I'm excited for her.

[00:02:08] How many of you were at the discussion we had yesterday at 2 o'clock?

[00:02:14] My wife and I had prayer together this morning.

[00:02:19] Just saying, just saying, just saying, just saying, just saying.

[00:02:27] But no, this is a great conference.

[00:02:32] I thank God so much for all of you.

[00:02:34] How many of you are pastors?

[00:02:36] Where are all the pastors?

[00:02:37] Could all the pastors stand?

[00:02:39] Just one moment.

[00:02:40] Could you stand?

[00:02:41] I just want to look at you, see who I'm talking to.

[00:02:44] All right, all right, all right, all right.

[00:02:47] This is our session.

[00:02:49] You may be seated.

[00:02:50] This is our session.

[00:02:52] 1 Peter chapter 5 is about us.

[00:02:55] It's all about pastors.

[00:02:57] Let's pray.

[00:02:58] God, we honor you.

[00:03:00] We love you.

[00:03:01] We lift you.

[00:03:02] We lift you.

[00:03:03] There is none like you.

[00:03:06] Be glorified.

[00:03:08] Be lifted up.

[00:03:10] Honor yourself.

[00:03:12] Thank you for these men of God who serve you.

[00:03:17] Say something.

[00:03:19] Do something.

[00:03:20] Charge us up.

[00:03:21] Let us know what your will is for our lives.

[00:03:24] We're careful to praise you.

[00:03:26] In Jesus' name, amen.

[00:03:29] 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 1, and I am a King James guy.

[00:03:36] So I don't care what Ed Stessie just said.

[00:03:40] I'm a King James guy.

[00:03:42] Chuck Smith built this church on the King James version of the Bible.

[00:03:48] Amen.

[00:03:52] 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 1, the elders which are among you, I exhort who am also an elder

[00:04:02] and a witness of the sufferings of Christ and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed.

[00:04:11] Feed the flock of God which is among you.

[00:04:15] Taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind.

[00:04:26] Neither is being lords over God's heritage, but being examples to the flock.

[00:04:34] And when the chief shepherd shall appear, he shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

[00:04:41] Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder.

[00:04:47] Yea, in all you, be subject one to another.

[00:04:50] Be clothed with humility.

[00:04:52] For God resisteth the proud and giveth grace to the humble.

[00:04:57] Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time,

[00:05:03] casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you.

[00:05:09] I want to talk about enemies of a growing church.

[00:05:16] Enemies of a growing church.

[00:05:17] Pastors, I just want to see the hands of the pastors.

[00:05:19] How many of you pastors want your church to grow?

[00:05:24] If you want your church to grow, raise your hand.

[00:05:26] If you want your church to grow.

[00:05:28] All right, all right, all right.

[00:05:29] Let me hear you say it out loud.

[00:05:30] I want our church to grow.

[00:05:35] All right.

[00:05:35] Number two, how many of you believe your church could grow?

[00:05:39] How many of you believe your church could grow?

[00:05:42] All right, all right, all right.

[00:05:43] Now, growth, as far as I'm concerned, is the model of the New Testament.

[00:05:51] I don't believe churches are supposed to stay the same size.

[00:05:57] It is not supposed to be me, Joe, us, foe, and no more.

[00:06:07] The church is supposed to grow.

[00:06:10] People say stuff like, well, our church is not a growing church, but our church is a healthy church.

[00:06:14] Show me a little child that is not growing after a year.

[00:06:20] And it's five years later, and the child is still the same size.

[00:06:25] Something wrong.

[00:06:27] Something wrong is not supposed to be like that.

[00:06:30] Now, in the New Testament, I am convinced that they counted.

[00:06:34] On the day of Pentecost, after Peter got through preaching, how many souls were added to the church?

[00:06:42] 3,000.

[00:06:43] How do we know that?

[00:06:44] Because somebody counted.

[00:06:47] Jesus took two fish, five loaves of bread, and he fed how many people?

[00:06:54] 5,000.

[00:06:55] We know a number, at least 5,000.

[00:06:57] One version says, not counting the women and the children.

[00:07:01] The Bible was always counting.

[00:07:03] And I think you all that it should bother us if our church is the same size 10 years later.

[00:07:15] You should pray for growth.

[00:07:17] You should expect growth.

[00:07:19] And you should want growth.

[00:07:21] However, I believe that there are some enemies that we have to watch out for.

[00:07:27] And that's what I'm here to talk about.

[00:07:28] What is it that could keep a church stagnant or keep a church from growing?

[00:07:32] There are some enemies that we have to watch out for.

[00:07:35] First thing that Peter does, chapter 5, verse 1, is he establishes his authority.

[00:07:41] He's getting ready to talk to elders, pastors, leaders.

[00:07:46] So he establishes his authority first.

[00:07:49] Look at the first verse.

[00:07:51] First Peter, chapter 5, verse 1.

[00:07:54] He establishes his authority.

[00:07:56] The elders which are among you, I exhort.

[00:08:01] I'm getting ready to talk to you.

[00:08:02] I exhort.

[00:08:03] Who am also an elder and a witness of the suffering of Christ.

[00:08:09] Peter said, now, before I talk to you, let me tell you, I'm one of you.

[00:08:15] Right?

[00:08:16] He said, I'm one of you.

[00:08:17] To the elders, I exhort.

[00:08:21] Peter, who am also an elder.

[00:08:24] Peter said, now, he says another verse, because I'm getting ready to tell you that I'm one of you also.

[00:08:30] I'm one of you.

[00:08:31] I'm a pastor.

[00:08:31] I'm one of you also.

[00:08:33] Peter adds something.

[00:08:34] He says, who also am a witness of the suffering of Christ.

[00:08:40] Well, I didn't walk with Jesus.

[00:08:43] All right?

[00:08:44] So I can leave that part out.

[00:08:45] I did not personally walk with Jesus like Peter did.

[00:08:49] But Peter is establishing his authority.

[00:08:52] Are you with me so far?

[00:08:57] Before I talk to you, then, I'll do like Peter.

[00:09:00] Let me establish my authority and why I think I know something about this subject.

[00:09:07] I preached my first sermon January the 5th, 1975.

[00:09:13] Who was not born January 5th, 1975?

[00:09:18] All right?

[00:09:19] This January, that would be exactly 50 years.

[00:09:25] And it so happens this year, January 5th, 2025 is on a Sunday.

[00:09:33] That's when I preached my first sermon 50 years ago.

[00:09:37] Of those 50 years, I was a senior pastor 44 of the 50 years.

[00:09:46] Salem started.

[00:09:48] I passed at one church for five years, and then we started Salem.

[00:09:55] January of 1985 with 213 people.

[00:10:02] January 22, the year I retired, we baptized.

[00:10:07] And there's a picture that they're getting ready to put on the board.

[00:10:10] We baptized after 38 years.

[00:10:14] We baptized right there.

[00:10:17] I'm in the pool baptizing.

[00:10:18] That is our 20,000th baptism.

[00:10:23] You can say amen.

[00:10:25] Amen.

[00:10:26] To God be the glory.

[00:10:27] 20,000 baptism.

[00:10:30] The young lady that I'm holding in my hand is my granddaughter.

[00:10:34] So, when I saw that we were real close to 20,000, I just, she was going to get saved.

[00:10:45] Amen.

[00:10:46] I'm not sure she's a believer.

[00:10:47] I don't know.

[00:10:51] All right.

[00:10:52] You can take that picture down.

[00:10:53] So, we started with 213.

[00:10:58] We baptized 38 years later, 20,000 people.

[00:11:03] Our sanctuary seats 10,000 people.

[00:11:08] And yes, the seats are theater seats, and they're comfortable seats.

[00:11:12] And I don't care what Ed Stetson says.

[00:11:18] Our sanctuary seats 10,000 people.

[00:11:21] I've seen God work.

[00:11:24] I've watched God work.

[00:11:26] And I know that growth is possible.

[00:11:31] God is no respecter of persons.

[00:11:35] God does not love Chuck Smith any more than he loves you.

[00:11:40] God does not love Billy Graham any more than he loves you.

[00:11:45] There are some things that happen because there are certain principles that are followed.

[00:11:52] Principles don't know where you're from.

[00:11:56] Principles don't know your ethnicity.

[00:11:59] If a principle is a principle, it'll work.

[00:12:02] If there's a law.

[00:12:04] There's a law.

[00:12:05] Here's another.

[00:12:05] A principle is a law.

[00:12:07] Gravity is a law.

[00:12:12] If I jump off of a building.

[00:12:17] Let's take the most important pastor that we know.

[00:12:23] So you in your head.

[00:12:25] He's also with us.

[00:12:26] And he jumps off the building.

[00:12:29] Gravity is not going to say, oh, that's pastor so-and-so.

[00:12:34] And there is no way that he could fall.

[00:12:38] Yes.

[00:12:38] His evangelical guts are going to be spilled all over the sidewalk.

[00:12:48] I don't want you to have it in your mind that there are certain people that God uses in a big way.

[00:13:01] And that God will use you just like he uses anybody else if you grab on to certain principles.

[00:13:11] Are you with me so far?

[00:13:13] So the first thing that Peter does before he gives any instructions is that he establishes himself.

[00:13:20] And then he gives some instructions.

[00:13:23] Here is the first instruction.

[00:13:25] This is the first enemy of a growing church.

[00:13:28] He said, King James.

[00:13:30] This is why I love King James.

[00:13:32] Feed the flock of God which is among you.

[00:13:37] The first enemy of a growing church is an unfed church.

[00:13:44] An unfed church.

[00:13:48] Or another way to say it.

[00:13:50] I hate to say it this way.

[00:13:52] I really hate to say it this way.

[00:13:53] But a preacher who can't preach.

[00:13:57] A preacher who cannot preach.

[00:14:00] Listen now, guys.

[00:14:01] Our primary role.

[00:14:06] Our primary function.

[00:14:10] Our primary job as preachers is to preach.

[00:14:19] What do painters do?

[00:14:21] Anybody?

[00:14:21] Can anybody tell me what does a painter do?

[00:14:24] Fantastic.

[00:14:25] What does a swimmer do?

[00:14:27] What does a diver do?

[00:14:29] What does a bowler do?

[00:14:31] A driver.

[00:14:33] All right.

[00:14:33] What does a singer do?

[00:14:35] What does a preacher do?

[00:14:38] That's our primary job.

[00:14:40] Our primary job is to preach.

[00:14:44] The primary job is to feed the flock of God.

[00:14:50] People come to church on Sunday.

[00:14:53] And when they come, they want a message.

[00:14:59] And if the message is decent, they'll come back the next week and get a message.

[00:15:05] And they will bring their friends.

[00:15:08] You see, sheep make sheep.

[00:15:11] People really bring, people bring their friends to church.

[00:15:15] But they're not going to bring their friends if the message is unclear or unintelligible or not prepared.

[00:15:22] People come to hear a good sermon.

[00:15:26] Now, why do we go to a restaurant?

[00:15:29] Anybody?

[00:15:30] Good food.

[00:15:31] We go to a restaurant for good food.

[00:15:33] Now, unlike my wife, I care nothing about Abiyans.

[00:15:39] I don't care how dim the lights are.

[00:15:45] I don't care what the waiters and waitresses are wearing.

[00:15:49] I don't care what's going on.

[00:15:53] I don't even care about the wait.

[00:15:54] I will wait in line a long time when I know that when they finally seat me, we're going to have some good food.

[00:16:06] We stay in Miami some of the time.

[00:16:09] My wife and I, we're down there.

[00:16:10] And there's this one restaurant.

[00:16:12] And they have the best presentation in the history of the world.

[00:16:18] I mean, they just have it.

[00:16:20] Every dish that they bring out is elaborate.

[00:16:24] I use my phone.

[00:16:26] I use my phone more than my fork.

[00:16:30] I took so many pictures in this restaurant.

[00:16:34] Everything was under glass, this, and it was fantastic.

[00:16:40] The presentation, I've never seen it like that.

[00:16:43] I'm telling you, I've never seen it on that order.

[00:16:47] But the food was mediocre.

[00:16:51] I've never been back.

[00:16:53] There are other people who come to town that want to go out to a nice restaurant.

[00:16:59] And I think about it.

[00:16:59] The first thing, I think about that place.

[00:17:01] And I say, ah, food ain't good.

[00:17:04] When people go to church, people go to church to hear the Word of God.

[00:17:11] There's nothing that can change a person's life like the Word of God.

[00:17:16] I'll say it.

[00:17:17] You help me.

[00:17:18] Man shall not live by bread alone, but what?

[00:17:23] Every word that proceeded out of the mouth of God.

[00:17:27] People come to church to hear.

[00:17:30] And it's the pastor's job to preach, to feed the flock of God.

[00:17:37] Acts chapter 20, verse 28.

[00:17:40] Acts chapter 20, verse 28.

[00:17:42] I believe they're getting ready to put it on the board.

[00:17:43] Acts chapter 20, verse 28.

[00:17:46] Paul is talking to the leaders at Ephesus, and he says to them,

[00:17:50] Therefore, take heed to yourselves and to all the flock which the Holy Spirit has made you overseer.

[00:18:00] That is not King James.

[00:18:07] Because King James does not say shepherd the flock.

[00:18:12] It says feed the flock of God which the Holy Ghost has made you overseer.

[00:18:20] You are, Paul told, now Peter, in 1 Peter, he's telling the group of, that's in Asia that he's speaking to,

[00:18:29] Feed the church.

[00:18:30] Paul told the leaders at Ephesus, feed the church.

[00:18:34] John chapter 21, verse 15.

[00:18:37] I hope this is the King James Version.

[00:18:39] John chapter 21, verse 15.

[00:18:43] John chapter 21, verse 15.

[00:18:46] Because it's a famous passage of Scripture.

[00:18:48] All right, there it is.

[00:18:50] Let me find the word.

[00:18:55] So, when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said unto Simon,

[00:18:59] Simon, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these?

[00:19:03] He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you.

[00:19:06] He said to him what?

[00:19:10] Feed, feed my lambs.

[00:19:13] He said to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonah.

[00:19:19] First, do you love me?

[00:19:24] He said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you.

[00:19:28] He said to him, feed my sheep.

[00:19:32] He said to him the third time, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me?

[00:19:36] Peter was grieved because he said it to him the third time.

[00:19:40] And I am anxious to see what this word is going to be.

[00:19:45] Do you love me?

[00:19:47] He said to him, Lord, you know I love you.

[00:19:50] And you know all things.

[00:19:51] And you know that they don't have the King James Version on that transmitter back there.

[00:19:59] Jesus said to him what?

[00:20:00] Everybody together.

[00:20:02] Feed my sheep.

[00:20:05] Listen, listen, listen.

[00:20:06] Peter was going to be the pastor of the first church.

[00:20:10] And Jesus told him, you got a job.

[00:20:12] And your job is to feed the sheep.

[00:20:17] Now, in Joshua chapter 1, Moses dies.

[00:20:22] And when Moses dies, Joshua becomes the leader.

[00:20:28] And hear the instructions that were given to Joshua in Joshua chapter 1, verse 8.

[00:20:37] It says, this book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth,

[00:20:47] that thou mayest observe, that thou may meditate therein day and night,

[00:20:54] that thou mayest observe to do.

[00:20:56] God said to Joshua, okay, you're the new leader now.

[00:21:00] Moses is not on the scene anymore.

[00:21:03] And this is what I want you to do.

[00:21:05] I want you to remember that the book of the law shall not depart from your mouth.

[00:21:12] In other words, what you're supposed to talk about, Joshua, is the book.

[00:21:17] I want you to talk about it.

[00:21:19] I want you to think about it.

[00:21:21] And I want you to encourage people to do it.

[00:21:26] That's, this is all we have.

[00:21:31] When we go in church on Sunday, this is all we have.

[00:21:35] I don't know why we would stoop to speaking or talking about anything else

[00:21:43] when this is the most powerful authority in all the land.

[00:21:53] People can't argue about it.

[00:21:55] People can't.

[00:21:56] Now, they can.

[00:21:57] They can do all of that.

[00:21:58] But they, I'm going to give you my remedy.

[00:22:03] Pastor, I didn't really like what you said.

[00:22:05] I didn't really like this.

[00:22:06] I said, yeah, I don't like all the mail I get.

[00:22:12] But you got to take it up with the mailman.

[00:22:14] You got to take it up with the altar.

[00:22:15] It don't have anything to do with me.

[00:22:17] God stands behind His Word.

[00:22:21] And Paul told Timothy, preach the Word.

[00:22:25] Preach the Word.

[00:22:27] I believe in exposition.

[00:22:29] I believe in preaching this book.

[00:22:31] I preach through the book of Luke, through the book of Revelation, 1 Corinthians.

[00:22:35] I just preach the Bible.

[00:22:36] I just preach the Bible because that's all God has given us.

[00:22:41] And His Word won't come back to him void.

[00:22:44] Listen now, listen, if you don't do anything else, if no more that I say registers today,

[00:22:53] the first job of a pastor is to do what?

[00:22:59] Preach or feed the flock.

[00:23:01] Feed the flock.

[00:23:03] Feed the flock.

[00:23:03] All right, okay, let me sit back and tell it to you like this.

[00:23:06] Feeding the flock.

[00:23:07] A guy goes to a pet store.

[00:23:10] And so while he's in the pet store, he says, you know what?

[00:23:12] I think I'm going to buy one of those parrots.

[00:23:15] He said, I've always wanted a bird that could talk.

[00:23:19] And so he buys the parrot, takes the parrot home.

[00:23:23] At the end of the week, parrot had not said a word.

[00:23:27] He goes back to the pet store.

[00:23:29] He says to the pet store owner, hey, I got this parrot here, but the parrot hadn't spoken.

[00:23:37] Pet store owner said, did you buy a ladder?

[00:23:41] He said, no, what do I need a ladder for?

[00:23:43] He said, the parrot will run up and down the ladder.

[00:23:46] He'll feel good about himself.

[00:23:47] Then he'll talk.

[00:23:49] Guy buys the ladder.

[00:23:52] The next week, the bird still hadn't talked.

[00:23:55] He goes back to the pet store owner.

[00:23:57] He said, hey, birds hadn't talked.

[00:24:01] He said, did you get a mirror?

[00:24:04] He said, no, what do I need a mirror for?

[00:24:06] He said, the bird will run up and down the ladder.

[00:24:10] He'll look in the mirror.

[00:24:12] He'll feel good about himself.

[00:24:14] Then he'll talk.

[00:24:15] So the guy buys the mirror.

[00:24:17] He goes home now going on three weeks.

[00:24:19] Third week, birds still didn't talk.

[00:24:22] He goes back to the pet store.

[00:24:24] He says, hey, the birds still didn't speak.

[00:24:27] He says, hey, okay, did you get a bell?

[00:24:33] He said, a bell?

[00:24:35] What do I need a bell for?

[00:24:36] He said, the bird will walk up and down the ladder.

[00:24:40] He will look in the mirror.

[00:24:42] He'll ring the bell.

[00:24:44] He'll feel good about himself.

[00:24:46] Then he'll talk.

[00:24:48] Guy buys the bell.

[00:24:50] Now, it's a month.

[00:24:52] He goes to the pet store owner.

[00:24:54] He said, my bird died.

[00:24:57] He said, the bird died.

[00:24:59] I did everything you told me.

[00:25:00] He said, the bird died.

[00:25:02] And the man said, that's strange.

[00:25:04] He died?

[00:25:05] He said, he died.

[00:25:06] He said, did he say anything before he died?

[00:25:09] He said, yes.

[00:25:10] He said, one thing.

[00:25:12] He said, don't they have any food at that pet store?

[00:25:19] Ladders.

[00:25:21] Bells.

[00:25:22] Bells.

[00:25:25] Mirrors.

[00:25:26] This is what we're doing in our churches.

[00:25:29] LED walls.

[00:25:32] Smoke.

[00:25:35] Drums.

[00:25:36] Everything that you can think of except for food.

[00:25:43] Feed the sheep.

[00:25:44] Feed the sheep.

[00:25:45] Feed the sheep.

[00:25:46] There were some great churches.

[00:25:49] I mean, great church sprout up in our neighborhood.

[00:25:52] And everybody was concerned that this great church would move not too far from our church.

[00:25:58] And people were afraid and wondering if we were going to lose people to this great church in our neighborhood.

[00:26:05] And they finally asked me.

[00:26:08] They said, aren't you afraid of this great church moving into the community?

[00:26:13] I said, oh, no.

[00:26:15] They said, why aren't you afraid?

[00:26:16] I said, I learned everything I need to learn about this from Mr. Gilmore.

[00:26:21] Mr. Gilmore was a guy I knew down south.

[00:26:25] And Mr. Gilmore had chickens.

[00:26:28] And he would leave the gate open.

[00:26:32] But his chickens never left.

[00:26:34] They like never left.

[00:26:36] And I asked him.

[00:26:37] I was a kid.

[00:26:37] I said, Mr. Gilmore, aren't you afraid of your chickens running off when you leave the gate open?

[00:26:44] He said, no.

[00:26:45] I said, well, why not?

[00:26:47] He said, because I feed them.

[00:26:50] And I feed them better than anybody's going to feed them.

[00:26:52] And they're not going anywhere.

[00:26:55] If a pastor gets into the habit of feeding the sheep,

[00:27:01] you don't have to worry about what other church pops up down the street

[00:27:06] or nobody else's bells and whistles or ladders.

[00:27:10] Food is what people come to church for.

[00:27:14] To eat is the reason people come to church.

[00:27:20] Now, your preparation time is your time.

[00:27:24] I listen to pastors all the time.

[00:27:26] And I'm one of you.

[00:27:27] I know your pain.

[00:27:29] I know your sorrows.

[00:27:31] I've been in it forever.

[00:27:32] So, I'm one of you.

[00:27:34] And I know what pastors say often.

[00:27:36] The people don't follow my vision.

[00:27:38] They're not with me.

[00:27:41] Nobody is controlling your preparation time.

[00:27:46] Nobody, not an elder in your church is there arguing that you can't spend time to put your sermon together.

[00:27:55] Nobody's disputing it.

[00:27:56] Nobody votes on what you talk about or what you don't talk about.

[00:28:00] That's your time.

[00:28:03] And spend the majority of your time studying your text.

[00:28:09] Become the best feeder of sheep that you can become.

[00:28:14] I'm not saying competing with nobody else.

[00:28:17] No, no, no.

[00:28:18] You just become a good feeder of sheep yourself.

[00:28:23] And if you feed the sheep, the sheep will bring other sheep.

[00:28:28] That's how it happens.

[00:28:29] People just automatically bring people.

[00:28:32] I used to tell this story about a dog who a doctor found a dog and took the dog home.

[00:28:39] And he mended the dog.

[00:28:41] And he put stuff around the dog's leg.

[00:28:44] And the dog got better.

[00:28:46] And all of a sudden, the doctor came home one afternoon.

[00:28:49] And the dog was gone.

[00:28:51] And he said, hmm, that's an ungrateful animal.

[00:28:54] I would do everything that I can.

[00:28:56] Mend the dog.

[00:28:57] Heal the dog.

[00:28:58] Put the dog back together again.

[00:28:59] And the dog is gone.

[00:29:01] That afternoon, about 3 o'clock, heard a scratch on the door.

[00:29:04] He opened the door and he looked down.

[00:29:06] And it was the dog.

[00:29:08] But the dog wasn't by himself.

[00:29:09] He had another dog that was lame.

[00:29:12] And he brought him to the doctor.

[00:29:15] What happens in people's lives is when we expose them to the Word of God.

[00:29:20] And we feed them the Word of God.

[00:29:23] And their friends, I got so many stories.

[00:29:27] I've had people come to our church saying, my sister is crazy.

[00:29:31] She's crazy.

[00:29:32] She's just a nut.

[00:29:33] She's just crazy.

[00:29:34] But since she's been coming to this church, she's acting like she got some sense.

[00:29:38] I just want to see.

[00:29:42] I just want to see where it is that she's, how she's changing.

[00:29:47] People will bring people and the church will grow.

[00:29:50] Amen?

[00:29:51] I wish I could stay there longer.

[00:29:53] I wish I could stay there longer.

[00:29:54] But I got, number two, verse two.

[00:29:57] Number two, feed the flock of God, which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint or willingly, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind.

[00:30:08] Number two, enemy of a growing church.

[00:30:11] Pastor's motives.

[00:30:13] Motive.

[00:30:14] That's the next word.

[00:30:15] Motive.

[00:30:17] He said that we cannot be in ministry for money.

[00:30:24] We cannot be in ministry for fame or nowadays this is Facebook and for likes and all of that.

[00:30:33] Why do you want a growing church?

[00:30:37] And why do you want things to be the way that they are?

[00:30:42] It is your motive.

[00:30:44] And man looks at the outside.

[00:30:46] What's the rest?

[00:30:49] God looks at the heart.

[00:30:53] Listen now, listen.

[00:30:55] Your motive, your motive and your motive and your purity before God is what counts.

[00:31:02] It's what counts.

[00:31:03] So many people are in ministry for the wrong reason.

[00:31:08] Amen?

[00:31:09] So many people.

[00:31:10] Do you know that I have preached for 50 years?

[00:31:14] I have preached all over the country.

[00:31:17] I have never asked one person how much was I going to get paid for speaking.

[00:31:25] Never.

[00:31:27] I have never asked for a certain amount of money.

[00:31:31] I've never said, okay, well, if I go to this conference now and speak, you all will have to get me a first class ticket or you all will have to put me in this hotel and the honorarium.

[00:31:42] I have people always ask me, what is your honorarium?

[00:31:45] I don't have an honorarium.

[00:31:47] I have a Bible and I go preach.

[00:31:51] I have preached and people have given me nothing.

[00:31:55] And I have said, hallelujah.

[00:31:57] Thank you.

[00:31:57] It's good.

[00:31:58] I have preached and people have given me thousands of dollars.

[00:32:01] And I say, thank you.

[00:32:02] Because it's not about money.

[00:32:04] It's not about money.

[00:32:06] It's not about fame.

[00:32:07] It's not about Facebook.

[00:32:09] It's not about life.

[00:32:10] It's about giving glory to God.

[00:32:14] Now, let me ask you something.

[00:32:16] David.

[00:32:18] David.

[00:32:19] David is known for something as a teenager.

[00:32:22] What did David do as a teenager?

[00:32:25] Kill Goliath.

[00:32:27] Very good.

[00:32:27] David killed Goliath.

[00:32:30] Why did David kill Goliath?

[00:32:33] Why did David kill Goliath?

[00:32:35] Now, Saul said that the person who kills Goliath, Saul was king.

[00:32:41] He's going to do three things for him.

[00:32:43] He was going to pay.

[00:32:46] Now, look, look.

[00:32:47] This was enough to make me strap on a slingshot or a sword or something.

[00:32:54] He said the person who killed Goliath, their household would never pay taxes again.

[00:32:59] Amen.

[00:33:00] Amen.

[00:33:01] I've been looking for that giant ever since.

[00:33:06] He said that he would make the family wealthy.

[00:33:11] So not only wouldn't they have to pay taxes, he'd give them money.

[00:33:15] They wouldn't have to pay taxes on the money that he gave them.

[00:33:18] And then he said the third thing that Saul's daughter, Saul said, I'll give the man my daughter in marriage.

[00:33:26] That ain't why David killed Goliath.

[00:33:29] All of those things were looming out there.

[00:33:32] But David, 1 Samuel chapter 17, verse 46, says to Goliath, he said, hey, this day I'm going to take your head off.

[00:33:42] And that's why we know David for killing Goliath.

[00:33:48] Saul is slain this thousand.

[00:33:50] David slain.

[00:33:51] That ain't why he killed Goliath.

[00:33:54] He said, this day I'm going to take your head off so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

[00:34:04] His motive.

[00:34:05] His heart was right.

[00:34:07] His heart was toward pleasing God.

[00:34:10] Your heart, pastor, has to be toward the glory of God.

[00:34:16] Everything that we do, we have to do it so that God can be honored.

[00:34:22] We have to do it for the glory of God.

[00:34:25] Now, let me tell you now, say it again.

[00:34:27] God knows our hearts.

[00:34:28] A boy, a violin, a boy had a recital, playing the violin.

[00:34:35] And at the end of the recital, everybody jumped up and applauded.

[00:34:41] As a matter of fact, they asked for an encore.

[00:34:44] Everybody was applauding.

[00:34:46] Man in the third row was sitting there with his arms folded.

[00:34:49] The boy saw the man in the third row.

[00:34:52] He runs off the stage, Cheryl.

[00:34:54] He burst into tears.

[00:34:56] His friends come back and say, why are you crying?

[00:35:00] Everybody's applauding.

[00:35:01] Everybody's asking you to come back for more.

[00:35:04] He said, did you see the man in the third row?

[00:35:06] His friend said, look, that's just one guy.

[00:35:09] Everybody else is applauding and clapping.

[00:35:12] That's just one guy.

[00:35:13] He looked and said, that one guy is my teacher.

[00:35:17] He's the one who knows how many notes I missed.

[00:35:21] And I don't care.

[00:35:22] I don't care how many applause we get when we're preaching.

[00:35:25] I don't care how many people say that's great and how many likes we get on Facebook.

[00:35:30] God knows our heart.

[00:35:32] And our motives before God, they have to be pure.

[00:35:36] Is that good?

[00:35:37] Is that good or not?

[00:35:38] Is that right?

[00:35:39] Our motives have to be pure.

[00:35:41] Number three.

[00:35:42] Number three.

[00:35:43] Let me give them to you.

[00:35:43] Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but examples to the flocks.

[00:35:51] Number three.

[00:35:53] I believe that a pastor has to be a servant.

[00:35:59] Amen.

[00:36:01] A pastor has to be a servant.

[00:36:04] A servant is a person that all he wants to do is make the master happy.

[00:36:12] That's all he wants to do is make the master happy.

[00:36:17] We are not in ministry so that people can serve us.

[00:36:23] We are in ministry to serve other people.

[00:36:28] People should not be able to walk in a room and pick you out as the pastor.

[00:36:36] They shouldn't be able to do it because usually we can do it though because the pastor is the person with the air about himself.

[00:36:46] I am the leader.

[00:36:49] Bow down to me, you know.

[00:36:54] Moses.

[00:36:55] Moses.

[00:36:57] Joshua chapter 1 starts like this.

[00:37:02] Moses, my servant, is dead.

[00:37:06] Moses was a servant.

[00:37:09] Moses led Israel across the Red Sea.

[00:37:14] Moses had a rod that he just stick out snakes and stuff would happen and plagues and stuff would come.

[00:37:24] Moses went up on the mountain and got the Ten Commandments.

[00:37:30] But when God spoke to him, God didn't say anything about Moses' accolades.

[00:37:36] He called Moses a servant.

[00:37:39] Are you with me so far?

[00:37:41] Moses was a servant.

[00:37:42] Man, Philippians chapter 1 verse 1 starts like this.

[00:37:47] Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ.

[00:37:53] Paul was a servant.

[00:37:55] Man, Paul wrote the Bible.

[00:37:58] He's a pretty cool dude.

[00:38:00] Paul wrote the Bible.

[00:38:02] Half the books of the Bible were written by Paul.

[00:38:05] Paul took the gospel to the Gentiles.

[00:38:10] Paul, in my estimation, after Jesus and John the Baptist, Paul's the greatest guy in the New Testament.

[00:38:18] Paul didn't say, Paul, the writer of the Bible.

[00:38:23] Paul, the greatest guy in the New Testament.

[00:38:26] Paul called himself a servant.

[00:38:29] John chapter 13.

[00:38:31] John chapter 13.

[00:38:32] Jesus takes a towel.

[00:38:35] Gets down on his knees.

[00:38:37] Washes the disciples' feet.

[00:38:40] Washes the disciples' feet.

[00:38:41] And he said, now if I, being your Lord, can serve you, can be your servant, you ought to serve one another.

[00:38:52] The Bible calls Moses a servant.

[00:38:56] The Bible calls Paul a servant.

[00:38:59] The Bible calls Jesus a servant.

[00:39:01] And here you are.

[00:39:03] You passed the Calvary Chapel, Yuma, Arizona.

[00:39:10] And everybody got to bow down to you.

[00:39:13] That ain't the way it goes.

[00:39:15] That ain't the way it goes.

[00:39:17] We have to see ourselves as servants.

[00:39:20] We have to see ourselves as a person.

[00:39:24] You're just a guy that God decided to use.

[00:39:30] And then if God is imparting or giving you impartations or using you to teach His Word,

[00:39:37] you have to know.

[00:39:38] Let me tell you this.

[00:39:39] You got to know how no good you are.

[00:39:43] You have to know.

[00:39:44] You have to know.

[00:39:46] One time in the book of Acts, they were trying to call Paul and Barnabas God.

[00:39:52] Paul said, oh, whoa, slow down, slow down.

[00:39:55] We are men of like passion, just as you.

[00:39:58] Please, whatever you do, make sure that you are a servant.

[00:40:03] And make sure that everybody around you, that they can tell that you are doing the best you can to serve.

[00:40:10] Humility is like a watchword in this text.

[00:40:15] Humility is a watchword.

[00:40:17] Number four, 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 5.

[00:40:20] Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elders.

[00:40:25] Yea, and all be subject one to another.

[00:40:29] Number four, I believe every church, every pastor needs to put in front of you a model.

[00:40:37] Let me hear you say model.

[00:40:39] A model.

[00:40:40] A model.

[00:40:40] Get you a model.

[00:40:41] Get you a model.

[00:40:44] Moses, in the book of Genesis, Abraham was getting ready to have a whole lot of descendants.

[00:40:49] He couldn't even conceive of that.

[00:40:50] He couldn't even conceive of how many it was.

[00:40:52] God sent him to the seashore.

[00:40:55] And he said, look at the sand.

[00:40:58] As many grains of sand that you see, that's how many descendants you're going to have.

[00:41:05] What do I mean by a model?

[00:41:07] You have to have something in front of you.

[00:41:09] Find a church that's bigger than yours.

[00:41:14] Find a church that's doing better than yours and study what they're doing.

[00:41:21] Study.

[00:41:22] I didn't say copy.

[00:41:23] Study.

[00:41:24] Study.

[00:41:24] I said study.

[00:41:26] Because if they're doing, if you have 100 people and they got 10,000, they doing something you ain't doing.

[00:41:37] Something going on there.

[00:41:39] Look at the model.

[00:41:41] There's nothing wrong.

[00:41:42] Our church, when we started our church, we had 200 people.

[00:41:46] I used to visit First Baptist Church of Hammond.

[00:41:49] There's a guy by the name of Jack Howells.

[00:41:51] God bless his soul.

[00:41:53] And they had a pastor school every year.

[00:41:55] But on Sundays, they had 6,000 people in their worship service.

[00:42:00] We had 200.

[00:42:03] I'm studying this church with 6,000.

[00:42:06] But you know what?

[00:42:08] We got the 6,000.

[00:42:10] We got the 6,000.

[00:42:11] But the only way you get there is I discovered they were doing some things that we were not doing.

[00:42:17] I studied Disney World.

[00:42:19] I flew out here to California.

[00:42:21] And I studied Disney World.

[00:42:23] We had three services, three morning services.

[00:42:25] And I flew out here and I studied Disney World.

[00:42:27] And I saw some stuff.

[00:42:30] Disney World, as people were standing there waiting, they had tinsel barriers.

[00:42:34] And people were waiting.

[00:42:36] And I took the tinsel barriers back home.

[00:42:39] The tinsel barriers.

[00:42:43] We had three services.

[00:42:44] But after service, it was like nuts getting out.

[00:42:48] And it was chaos.

[00:42:49] And I watched the way Disney World was moving people.

[00:42:52] And I went back home and started moving people in the same way.

[00:42:55] You got to have a model.

[00:42:57] You got to have something in front of you that you're studying.

[00:43:00] You just can't cry about the fact that our church isn't doing the way it ought to be in our church.

[00:43:05] Find the church that's doing it right or the business that's doing it right and put a model in front of you.

[00:43:12] Here's the last thing that I'll give you.

[00:43:13] Because I'm one of you.

[00:43:15] That's what Peter was saying.

[00:43:17] Peter said, I'm one of you.

[00:43:18] He said, I'm a brother.

[00:43:20] And I'm a brother just like you all are.

[00:43:22] The last thing he says in verse 7 is casting all your cares upon him.

[00:43:29] For he careth for you.

[00:43:33] Pastors, my life changed.

[00:43:37] The ministry blew up when I started praying.

[00:43:44] When I started praying.

[00:43:46] The whole thing changed.

[00:43:49] So I have a friend who asked me to come.

[00:43:54] As a matter of fact, he's a Caucasian guy.

[00:43:56] He asked me to come to lunch one day.

[00:43:58] And he said, this was about 34 years ago now.

[00:44:03] He said, Pastor Meeks, and he was a pastor of a church too.

[00:44:07] He said, and this was during the time when everybody was finding accountability partners.

[00:44:13] You know, we had a time where everybody was accountability partners and talked to other people about.

[00:44:18] So we were supposed to be accountability buddies this particular lunch day.

[00:44:22] That's all.

[00:44:23] We just knew it was going to last just for lunch.

[00:44:27] And so he was going to be accountable to me.

[00:44:29] I was going to be accountable to you.

[00:44:30] And he said, Pastor, do you have any area that you're not telling the church but you're ashamed of as a believer?

[00:44:38] I said, man, I got one area.

[00:44:41] I don't pray like I should as a pastor.

[00:44:44] I'm so busy.

[00:44:45] I got so many things going on.

[00:44:46] I don't pray.

[00:44:47] He said that was going to be because he knew he had to go next.

[00:44:50] Like, you be accountability and you just can't let the guy tell you his stuff.

[00:44:57] You got to hear what area you're dealing with.

[00:45:00] Don't put me out here by myself.

[00:45:02] So he said, that's exactly what I was going to say.

[00:45:06] I am not praying like I should pray.

[00:45:09] And I said, okay, this is what we're going to do.

[00:45:12] Every morning at 6 o'clock, I'm going to call you on the phone and say,

[00:45:16] it's prayer time.

[00:45:18] And then we're going to hang up and we're going to pray the next at 7 o'clock, an hour later,

[00:45:24] after we've prayed, just us and God, then you call me back and we'll pray together.

[00:45:30] That was 34 years ago.

[00:45:33] Well, we prayed this morning.

[00:45:36] We have not missed a morning in prayer for 34 years.

[00:45:50] I do not miss mornings without talking to God.

[00:45:54] After I get through talking to God, I feel like I've talked to the most important person that I'm going to talk to that whole day.

[00:46:01] Most of the ideas that I receive, I receive them during my prayer time.

[00:46:06] Most of the unlocking of scripture, it comes during prayer time.

[00:46:12] You have to pray.

[00:46:16] Nobody else is there.

[00:46:18] Your elders are not there.

[00:46:20] The praise team ain't there.

[00:46:22] The band's not there.

[00:46:23] But you have to have a soft heart before God.

[00:46:27] I know my time is up, but I'll close with this.

[00:46:31] My wife and children and I, we went to Disneyland World, one of them.

[00:46:36] It was either here or Florida.

[00:46:38] And we became separated.

[00:46:40] I have four kids and a wife.

[00:46:42] We became separated.

[00:46:43] Okay, I was hiding.

[00:46:48] And after a while, we were separated.

[00:46:51] And this is the days we didn't have cell phones.

[00:46:53] And all of a sudden, I heard this voice saying,

[00:46:57] Honey!

[00:46:59] Honey!

[00:47:01] Honey!

[00:47:02] Honey!

[00:47:02] Now, a lot was going on out there.

[00:47:04] You know, little kids were screaming because their parents wanted them to take pictures with Mickey Mouse and stuff.

[00:47:08] And the little kids were screaming.

[00:47:10] The kids don't want that.

[00:47:11] That's all for parents, you know.

[00:47:12] And the Ferris wheel was going around and around and a lot of noise.

[00:47:16] But I heard this, Honey!

[00:47:19] Honey!

[00:47:20] And first of all, I noticed no other man moved.

[00:47:27] No man moved.

[00:47:29] No man moved.

[00:47:30] But all of a sudden, I said to myself,

[00:47:31] They found me.

[00:47:32] You know.

[00:47:34] So, let me come out of hiding.

[00:47:35] So, I go up to my wife.

[00:47:38] Oh, there they are.

[00:47:39] I go up to my wife.

[00:47:40] And my oldest daughter said,

[00:47:42] Dad, how did you know that that was Mommy's voice?

[00:47:47] All of this noise and commotion.

[00:47:49] How do you know that that was Mommy's voice?

[00:47:51] And I turned around and answered like this.

[00:47:54] I hear your mother's voice so much in private until I know what it sounds like in public.

[00:48:02] And if you would develop a prayer time with God and you would discover his voice so much in private until when you're in public and God is speaking to you, you'll always know his voice.

[00:48:16] Those things are enemies of a growing church.

[00:48:18] I guarantee you that if you would practice any of them next time we see each other, you're going to say, Pastor Meeks, you'll be surprised how much our church is growing.

[00:48:30] Can we pray?

[00:48:32] Our Father and our God, thank you now for our time together.

[00:48:35] Thank you for these brothers and sisters who come from literally all over the world.

[00:48:41] Thank you so much for Brian and Cheryl and how you have blessed them to shepherd and to love your people, even to love this conference.

[00:48:51] I pray now, Holy Spirit of God, that something was said today, Ed Stetzer, or maybe the few words that I said.

[00:48:59] Something was said today that will encourage the elders of your flock to feed the flock which you have purchased with your own blood.

[00:49:09] We give you honor, glory, and praise in Jesus' name.

[00:49:14] Amen.

[00:49:15] God bless you, everybody.

[00:49:33] That way you'll be notified when those new episodes come out.

[00:49:36] In upcoming episodes, we'll have more messages from this summer's conference, as well as interviews to encourage you and equip you.

[00:49:44] We'd love to hear your feedback on these episodes.

[00:49:46] You can email us at cgn at calvarychapel.com.

[00:49:50] Until next time, God bless you.