Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.Take heed, therefore, to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the assembly of the Lord and God which he purchased with his own blood.Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit hath made you bishops, to feed the church of the Lord which he purchased with his own blood.
6 sermons cite this verse
… in the realm of specific spiritual responsibility. And this specific responsibility is, as we discover in Acts chapter 20 and verse 28, to be shepherds of the church of God. And the Greek word for shepherd is simply the word poimein, which if you were to try and anglicize it would be p-o-i-m-e-i-n. So these individuals, set apart by God, acknowledged by the congregation, are called to act not as the representatives of segments of the congregation, taking up the interests of particular groups within the congregation in the way in which a congressman might represent his district. It's very important to point out, because in many churches who are prepared to acknowledge the idea of eldership, they regard the elders as being representatives of little caucuses within the church. So every little group tries to get an elder represented in the hope that this elder will represent their charge and their concern. In point of fact, the representation that the elders bring is the representation of God to the people, not the people to the rest of the elders. …
… and we'll come to the word blood next week in verse 25. Ephesians 1.7, we have redemption through His blood. Acts 20.28, God purchased the church with His blood. 1 Peter 1, we have been redeemed, not through perishable things, but through the precious blood of Christ. So, this is part of Paul's argument, why God is just to justify the ungodly. Because there was a purchase paid for this deliverance. That's what a redemption is. You pay the ransom price. It's paying the bail, posting the bond, so that the captive can be set free. We'll say this over and over again. You need to understand. God's justification of sinners does not take place by the setting aside of justice, but by the fulfilling of justice. God did not say there is a just claim against you, but I'm God and I like you and it's not a big deal. That would be the setting aside of justice. And He would not therefore be just. But redemption and propitiation will explain to us why God did not set aside justice, but in fact a price was paid. …
… Paul agrees. Acts 20, he says to the Ephesians elders, he says, 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. Get that reminder, this is Jesus' flock, but I'm using you. I'm pleased to use you. I'm calling you to do this into this responsibility. Peter, of course, does the same. 1 Peter 5, he says, shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight or overseeing not under compulsion but willingly as god would have you not for shameful gain but eagerly not domineering over those in your charge but being examples to the flock and when the chief shepherd appears you will receive the unfading crown of glory the spirit of god makes men shepherds of the flock it's god's flock and they've been purchased by the blood of christ and you have a calling it makes you a public person you now have two families, to your own family and the family of God's people, and you have to give yourself to both. …
… In fact, he says, be on guard for yourselves, verse 28, and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. saying to the Ephesian elders, you have the responsibility of that stewardship now that I've passed the truth on to you. And I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. And from among your own selves, men will arise speaking perverse things to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I didn't cease to admonish each one with tears. And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I did everything I could. I held back nothing. I gave you the word. You now have the word, and you're responsible to pass it on to those in your charge. So Paul's humility is first expressed in the fact that he was content to be a servant, a third-level galley slave, if you will. There's a second feature in his expression of humility, and it's in verses 3 to 5. He was content to be judged by God. …
… He says, Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock, which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, be shepherds of the church of God. God's church, which he bought with his own blood. Holy Spirit, God, Jesus, all in the same verse. The whole Trinity is involved. The power of God. The unconditional love of God. He says, verse 32, Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace. One translation of grace could be unconditional love. That's God's love for you. He loves you unconditionally, wholeheartedly, continually. This is not our church. This is God's church. and it's been a succession from John Collins, John Collins, Prebenry John Collins, retired as vicar here in 1985. And 37 years later, he's still going strong. So there's hope for all of us. 37 years. He's 97 and very godly. And he handed over to Sandy Miller, who is still going strong. He's 82. It's good to be a vicar of HTB. They live a long time. One lived to 104, I think. …
… DANGER TO TODAY'S CHURCH. IT'S THE INFILTRATION OF FALSE PROPHETS WEARING SHEEP'S CLOTHING. ACTS CHAPTER 20, VERSES 28 AND FOLLOWING, JESUS, EXCUSE ME, THE APOSTLE PAUL SAID TO THE EPHESIAN ELDERS, TO THAT WONDERFUL CHURCH AT EPHESIS, TAKE HEED THEREFORE UNTO YOURSELVES AND TO ALL THE FLOCK, GOD'S SHEEP, TO ALL THE FLOCK OVER WHICH THE HOLY GHOST HATH MADE YOU OVERSEERS, TO FEED THE CHURCH OF GOD WHICH HE HATH PURCHASED WITH HIS OWN BLOOD. FOR I KNOW THIS, THAT AFTER MY DEPARTING SHALL GRIEVOUS WOLVES ENTERING AMONG YOU, NOT SPARING THE FLOCK." THEN THE APOSTLE PAUL SAID TO THOSE FOLKS AT CORINTH IN SECOND CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 11, BEGINNING IN VERSE 13, PUT THIS VERSE IN YOUR MARGIN. SECOND CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 11, VERSES 13, VERSE 15, FOR SUCH FALSE APOSTLES, DECEITFUL WORKERS, TRANSFORMING THEMSELVES INTO THE APOSTLES OF CHRIST. THAT IS, THEY ARE WEARING SHEEP'S CLOTHING. AND NO MARVEL, FOR SATAN HIMSELF IS TRANSFORMED INTO AN ANGEL OF LIGHT. SATAN IS THE CAPTAIN OF CAMOUFLAGE. HE IS THE MASTER OF DECEIT. AND SO AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN THE BIBLE WARNS US OF FALSE PROPHETS. …