“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep” (Jn 10:11-13)

There are only two types of pastors and leaders in the church: the true and the fake. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, who owns the flock. He died so that He can purchase the flock by His own Blood shed on the Cross. He loves them passionately and intimately. He knows and calls each sheep by name.  He guides them to good places of pasture. He feeds them. He protects them from all attacks from within and without. The Good Shepherd has scars on His Body to prove that He fought against the wolves that attacked the flock. He is the Eternal Overseer of our souls! Praise His Holy Name!

A hireling is a selfish pastor who works just for money. That is his main purpose for doing ministry. When the hireling is the pastor, the picture is tragic. The congregation is starved spiritually. The hireling does not care for the spiritual needs of his congregation. The sermons are watered down. He does not preach the true doctrines of the Bible. He does not rebuke sin. He talks stories and quotes mostly from other books. The sinners feel ‘at ease in Zion’; there is no fear of God, no desire to repent of sin. The hireling does not pay the price for the intimate communion with God, for holiness, for spiritual maturity and character. He does not invest time and energy in the ministry of prayer and the Word. He is interested more in the social status and the bank accounts of his congregation than in their souls. The evil agents of the devil come and go freely among the brethren. They attack the true believers with slander, hurt and scatter them. The hireling pastor just excuses these evil attacks and does not really stop them. The hireling manipulates the congregation emotionally to give more money. There is no unity of the Spirit between the pastor and the people. This invisible division hinders the move of the Holy Spirit and the manifestation of the supernatural. The miracles are absent. The worship team looks confused, lonely, unprotected and isolated spiritually. There is no clear vision of true worship. Nobody wants to join the choir for fear of exposure, mockery and unexpected loss. This is a sad but real picture.

I am so sorry if you attend such a church…

This is the wonderful picture of the ‘ideal’ church. All true pastors are ambassadors of the True Shepherd. They take care of the congregation in His name. They pay the price for godliness and spiritual maturity. They invest time and effort in the ministry of prayer and the Word. They feed the flock by preaching the correct doctrines of the Bible. They pray for their congregation. The people feel covered and safe under the true leader. The congregation grows in faith and in numbers; spiritually and materially. The Word preached from the pulpit comes with the power and the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The worship team is committed and zealous to serve God. Many in the congregation desire to ‘join the choir’. People freely and cheerfully pay their tithes and the offering basket is always full. The evil religious people, the false brethren and the agents of the powers of darkness are always disappointed by their lack of success in such a church. They have just one option: to repent of evil or leave the church. The visitors are in awe at the peace, joy, order and freedom evident during the services. They also observe the unity of the Spirit between God, the pastor, the elders and the congregation.  The Holy Spirit moves unhindered and miracles happen often.

Blessed are you if you attend a church like this!

In Christ I declare:

The Lord Jesus is my Shepherd

I shall not want…

In Jesus name,

Amen!