Isaiah 49:10
They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun
smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them,
even by the springs of water shall he guide them.
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THE PASTOR AND HIS PREACHING
II Timothy 4:1-5, I Peter 5:2-3
The Pastor is to be the leader of the local church.
He has several responsibilities:
A- preach the word B- keep up with the flock
C- leads by example D- feed the flock E- protect the flock
F- warn the flock G- pray for the flock H-comfort the flock
I- encourage the flock J- correct the flock K- have a Godly home
The Pastor's Preaching is described as:
A- reprove B- rebuke C- exhort
The Pastor is to preach the whole Bible.
Question: What is the tone of the whole Bible???
Answer: negative
The Old Testament is the story of God raising up a people for His name and their rebellion against Him and His chastening of them and leading them to repentance. Even the Psalms are full of prayers for God to punish David's enemies.
Most of Job is a sad tale and Proverbs is filled with warnings to avoid sin.
The New Testament begins with the 4 gospels-the story of Christ coming into the world and His rejection, ridicule, betrayal, and crucifixion. Only the final portion is positive-the resurrection. Acts is filled with the persecution of the early Christians (Stephen, Paul, etc.) and ends with a shipwreck. One of the major epistles is I Corinthians- the letter of correction sent to the most worldly church in the NT. I Peter is about the persecution of a Christian. Revelation has 22 chapters and 16 of them deal with the horrors of the tribulation.
Church cannot simply be a pep rally or a "feed-good" session.
Jesus spoke more of Hell than Heaven; of Judgment to come than Glory to come.
The Ten Commandments are filled with nots.
CONCLUSION
Because of man's sinfulness, the Pastor must constantly emphasize the demands of a Holy God. He does this by preaching all of a Holy Bible. While he needs to be sensitive to the needs of his people and comforts and encourage them, he must continually call them to a Holy walk with God according to the Scriptures. (Hebrews 4:12)
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