The Great Need For a New Revival
Message Six
Shepherding according to God
THE EXTRACT OF THE OUTLINES
Scripture reading:
1 Pet. 5:2 Shepherd the flock of God among you, overseeing not under compulsion but willingly, according to God; not by seeking gain through base means but eagerly;
I. In the Lord’s recovery today, there is a desperate need of shepherding—John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28; 1 Pet. 5:2. (Monday & Tuesday)
II. Shepherding is the all-inclusive, tender care of the flock and refers to caring for all the needs of the sheep; all the sheep need to be fully provided for and well taken care of—John 21:15-17; Acts 20:28.
III. Christ is the good Shepherd, the great Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd, and the Shepherd of our souls—John 10:9-17; Heb. 13:20-21; 1 Pet. 5:4; 2:25:
A. The Lord Jesus as the good Shepherd came that we might have life and have it abundantly; He laid down His soul-life to accomplish redemption for His sheep that they might share His divine life—John 10:10-11, 15, 17.
B. Christ as the Chief Shepherd shepherds His flock through the elders of the churches; the elders’ shepherding should be Christ’s shepherding through them—1 Pet. 5:4.
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IV. For us to shepherd according to God, we need to become one with God, be constituted with God, live God, express God, represent God, and minister God—John 14:20; 1 Cor. 6:17; Eph. 3:17a; Phil. 1:21a: (Wednesday)
A. Only those who live God can shepherd according to God; God’s eternal purpose is to work Himself into us as our life so that we may express Him—Phil. 1:21a; Gen. 1:26; Eph. 1:11.
B. To shepherd according to God is to minister God to others; if we would minister God to one another, we need to speak words of grace, truth, spirit, and life to minister the processed God who has been worked into us—Eph. 3:16-17a; 4:25, 29; John 6:63.
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V. Peter’s charge to the elders to shepherd the flock of God according to God means to shepherd according to God’s nature, desire, way, and glory—1 Pet. 5:2: (Thursday)
A. To shepherd according to God is to shepherd according to what God is in His attributes; when we are one with God, we become God and are God in the matter of shepherding others—1 Pet. 5:2.
B. For us to shepherd according to God, we must become God in life, nature, expression, and function; we must be filled to the brim with the divine life and become God in His attributes of love, light, righteousness, and holiness—John 4:14; Col. 3:4.
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VI. The shepherding that builds up the Body of Christ is mutual shepherding; we are sheep and also shepherds, mutually shepherding and being shepherded, and through this mutual shepherding, the Body of Christ builds itself up in love—1 Cor. 12:23-26; Eph. 4:16. (Friday & Saturday)
OPENING WORD OF THE PROPHESYING MEETING
Reading the verses in each day.
Reading the main points in the outlines.
Pray-reading the verses:
Shepherd the flock of God among you, overseeing not under compulsion but willingly, according to God… —1 Pet. 5:2
… Lord, You know that I love You. He said to him, Feed My lambs —John 21:15
Out from whom all the Body, being joined together and being knit together through every joint of the rich supply and through the operation in the measure of each one part, causes the growth of the Body unto the building up of itself in love —Eph. 4:16
Word of Appetizer
What is shepherding according to God? How can we shepherd according to God?
Shepherding according to God is shepherding according to God’s nature, heart, way, and glory, rather than according to our preferences, interests, purposes, and personality.
To shepherd according to God, we need to be one with God, be constituted with God, live God, express God, represent God, and dispense God.
To shepherd according to God, we must become God in life, in nature, in expression, and in function.
Spiritual Burden
There is an urgent need for shepherding in the Lord’s recovery today; we all need to be under Christ’s organic shepherding and be one with Him to shepherd others; we are both sheep and shepherds, mutually shepherding one another and being shepherded.
To shepherd according to God, we need to be one with God, be constituted with God, live God, express God, represent God, and dispense God.
Concluding Word of the Prophesying Meeting
The Revelation of the Truth
There is an urgent need for shepherding in the Lord’s recovery today.
Shepherding is the all-inclusive, tender care for the flock.
Christ is the good shepherd, the great shepherd, the Chief Shepherd, and the Shepherd of our souls.
To shepherd according to God, we need to be one with God, be constituted with God, live God, express God, represent God, and dispense God.
Peter exhorted the elders to shepherd the flock of God according to God; shepherding according to God is shepherding according to God’s nature, heart, way, and glory, rather than according to our preferences, interests, purposes, and personality.
The Experience of Life
Christ as the Spirit is the Shepherd of our souls, overseeing our inner condition and caring for the situation of our inner being; because our soul is complex, we need Christ, who is the life-giving Spirit in our spirit, to shepherd us in our soul, caring for our mind, emotion, and will, and taking care of our difficulties, needs, and wounds.
The shepherding that builds up the Body of Christ is mutual shepherding; we all have defects and shortcomings and need others to shepherd us; we are both sheep and shepherds, mutually shepherding one another and being shepherded.
Practice and Application
To shepherd according to God, we must become God in life, in nature, in expression, and in function:
1 We must be filled with the divine life, enjoying the Triune God as the source, the fountain, and the river, to become the sum total of the divine life, even to become the divine life itself.
2 We must become God in His attributes of love, light, righteousness, and holiness.
3 We must become the reproduction of Christ, which is the expression of God, so that we may express God in our shepherding, rather than expressing our self with its personality and peculiarities.
4 We must become God in the function of God, shepherding the flock of God according to what He is and according to the goal in His economy.
PROPHESYING TOPICS—TWELVE TOPICS PER WEEK
Day 1
T1: The Lord Jesus has two lives; the Lord is man and has a human life; He is also God and has a divine life (John 10:10-11).
(Please illustrate that this divine life of the Lord could never be killed; when He was crucified, it was His human life that was put to death.)
T2: The Shepherd, the life of God, and the human life are all for the flock (John 10:10-11, 16).
(Why are the Shepherd, the divine life, and the human life all for the flock?)
Day 2
T1: Christ is the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls (1 Pet. 2:25).
(Please illustrate that Christ caring for our soul includes our mind, emotion, and will.)
T2: Looking at the Lord’s shepherding according to our experience (1 Pet. 2:25; Heb. 13:20).
(Please illustrate through experience whether the Lord’s comfort is in the spirit or in the soul.)
Day 3
T1: In the New Testament, teaching is shepherding (Acts 20:28; Eph. 4:11).
(Please illustrate that if we want to shepherd others, we must know how to teach.)
T2: The greatest need today is shepherding (Eph. 4:11-12).
(Please illustrate that the main matter of shepherding the flock is feeding the flock.)
Day 4
T1: Shepherding according to God means shepherding according to what God is in His attributes (1 Pet. 5:2).
(Please illustrate through experience that the supply of life is shepherding people by visiting them and contacting them.)
T2: Whether we can help the members depends on how much we allow the Lord to touch our personality (1 Pet. 5:2; Eph. 4:29).
(Please illustrate through experience that how much we can help the members depends on how much our own personality has been dealt with.)
Day 5
T1: Shepherding is a gift that every brother or sister has (John 21:15, 17).
(Please illustrate that through spiritual birth, every member in the church has the gift of shepherding.)
T2: To shepherd people fully, our hasty personality needs to be discarded (John 21:15, 17).
(Please illustrate that we should not be too hasty, but we must be active and keep the timing.)
Day 6
T1: To care for others, we need patience (1 Cor. 12:24; Eph. 4:16).
(Please illustrate that we must learn the lessons of life before we will know how to supply others.)
T2: Learning to trust and rely on those who are under our care (1 Cor. 12:24; Eph. 4:16).
(Please illustrate that we should let others see that not only do they rely on us, but we also rely on them.)
