Summary
Six Instructions for Shepherds — and for Every Christian with a Flock
On his way to Jerusalem, the Apostle Paul stopped at Miletus and called for the elders of the church at Ephesus to meet him Acts 20:17. The terms used in the New Testament for this office—elder, overseer, bishop, pastor—are interchangeable, all describing the same shepherding work of Christ's church. What followed was a deeply personal charge. Paul declared that he was innocent of the blood of any of them, "for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God" Acts 20:26-27, echoing the watchman's burden laid on Ezekiel Ezekiel 33:8. Then he laid out six instructions that frame the pastoral office and, by extension, the calling of every Christian who has been given people to care for.
1. Watch yourselves. "Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock" Acts 20:28. Paul makes the same point to Timothy: "Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching" 1 Timothy 4:16. Life and doctrine together. The world is watching, and a Christian's witness is made in every moment—what is said, what is done, what is treasured.
2. Shepherd by feeding. The same verse calls pastors to "care for the church of God, which he obtained with the blood of his own Son." Jesus' threefold charge to Peter—"Feed my lambs… tend my sheep… feed my sheep" John 21:15-17—frames the shepherding task with feeding on either side. The flock belongs to Christ, purchased by His blood, and the pastor's primary work is to feed those sheep with the Word and Sacraments.
3. Protect them from false doctrine. "Fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things" Acts 20:29-30. Jesus warned of the same: "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves" Matthew 7:15. Paul's prediction came true—he later urged Timothy to remain in Ephesus precisely to charge certain men "not to teach any different doctrine" 1 Timothy 1:3. Pastors are to be alert, like shepherds in their towers scanning for danger, ready to fend off error and to teach, teach, teach.
4. Study. "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" Acts 20:32. The pastor is commended to the Word—and that means real study. No "Saturday night specials." A man must pour himself into the text, know it thoroughly, and be able to explain it in detail before he ever begins shaping a sermon.
5. Give, and do not expect to get. "I coveted no one's silver or gold or apparel… It is more blessed to give than to receive" Acts 20:33-35—the only saying of Jesus quoted outside the Gospels. The moment a shepherd ministers in order to receive something in return, his focus has shifted away from Christ, who simply gave and gave.
6. Pray. "And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all" Acts 20:36. The charge ends not with a final exhortation but on the shepherd's knees.
This is a fitting text for an ordination or installation, but its reach is wider. Every Christian has flocks—a family, a neighborhood, friendships, coworkers. The Lord has placed each of us where we are and called us to shepherd those He has given. Parents, watch yourselves: your children are watching what you treasure, where you spend your time, what you do on Sunday morning. Feed them—not junk food, but the Word of God. Protect them from the false teaching they will surely encounter. Study, so that the Bible in the bedroom is not the dusty thing on the shelf but a book they have seen open in your hands. Give without expecting to get. And pray for them daily—for their friends, their schooling, even their future spouse.
None of us has done this perfectly. Not one. And Paul wrote these words as a fellow sinner. But it is precisely at the intersection of our failure that God meets us with the grace of the cross, where every shortcoming—every neglected child, every fractured friendship, every neighbor avoided—was borne by Jesus. Satan whispers that it is too late, that the damage is done. The Gospel answers that it is never too late. The same grace that forgives also raises us up and turns us back toward our flocks—because we all have flocks, and we are all called to shepherd them in the name of the Good Shepherd.
Video citations
- "Instructions" — Instructions these days seem to be coming more and more with pictures. And sometimes the pictures don't exactly fit what it is you're putting together. Sometimes you long for words don't you? To go…