Ordination of Greg Nichols — "The Pastoral Office"

In this part of the sermon: Martin introduces the ordination of Greg Nichols as an occasion to focus on the biblical understanding of the pastoral office, emphasizing that terms like pastor, elder, bishop…

Martin uses weddings, baptisms, and funerals as examples of special occasions that naturally call for focusing on God's Word concerning those events, setting the stage for the ordination's significance.

There are special occasions in the life of individuals and in the life of churches when it is very natural as well as most appropriate to bring into very sharp focus the testimony of the Word of God concerning those events which touch the lives of those individuals or those groups of individuals. For instance, weddings always provide a wonderful occasion to open up the Word of God and to bring into sharp focus what God says concerning the institution of marriage. The occasion of baptisms is a wonderful occasion to bring into equally sharp focus the whole matter of public confession of Christ, ...

0:01 - 1:23 Read in full sermon

Driving home: We must never, never look upon the origin of this office as the fruit of human ingenuity or mere pragmatic expediency.

He refutes the idea that the pastoral office arises from human pragmatism (like a ship needing a captain), arguing it's an insult to Christ to view it as merely a societal necessity.

In any group of people, if you're to operate efficiently, there must be a chief and lots of Indians who run around and do what the chief says. No, no. We must never regard the origin of the pastoral office as arising out of some common conviction of human societies that without a leader, things just won't go very well. This is an insult to the Lord Jesus Christ. Furthermore, we must never think that any group of individuals can put a man into this office. Now, you may have bishops who have that name in a special sense given to them by ecclesiastical organizations who may lay their hands upon i...

10:20 - 11:28 Read in full sermon

Driving home: It is Jesus Christ who has deposited him as a gift from heaven in the midst of that church. And all the church can do is to recognize what Christ has done.

Martin uses the image of a man miraculously floating down from heaven to a shepherdless church to explain that Christ gives pastors not through miraculous, visible means, but through ordinary providence and the Holy Spirit's work in hearts.

of heaven and then, with the fanfaring trumpets of angels, suddenly deposit him in a blazing cloud of glory so that one day a shepherdless church looks up and there a man floats down from heaven and with it a voice saying, this is your under-shepherd and my gift. No, no, he doesn't do it that way. He does it in the more ordinary way. First of all, by a secret providence and by a mighty operation upon the heart of a self-centered man who by nature could care less about others, he first of all transforms that man by his grace, gives him a love for himself, and then he puts into the heart of that...

12:25 - 13:50 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Countering popular misconceptions, Martin defines the pastor's essential functions from Ephesians 4:11 as a 'pastor' (shepherd) and 'teacher.' He elaborates on the shepherd's role…

He lists common, unbiblical expectations of a pastor (sipping tea, being a 'nice guy,' quick sermons, hospital visits, sweet funeral talks) to contrast them with the true biblical functions.

Now, if you ask many people that, they'd say, well, a reverend ought to be one who can go into your home and sip tea and talk about lovely, nice little non-entities and just make you feel good. So that when he goes, you just feel so good all over. You've had a visit from the reverend. Or others should say, he ought to be someone that can really get a good job.

15:01 - 15:23 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Countering popular misconceptions, Martin defines the pastor's essential functions from Ephesians 4:11 as a 'pastor' (shepherd) and 'teacher.' He elaborates on the shepherd's role…

He references the familiar Christmas story of shepherds to define the word 'pastor' as 'shepherd' and introduce the core function of shepherding.

They believe that to be the function of a pastor. But as surely as we look to the scriptures for the answer to the question, what is the origin of the pastoral office? And we discover it is nothing less than the activity of Christ when we turn to the same Bible and ask the question, what are the essential things? The functions of the pastoral office. This book is not silent. In fact, this very passage that describes the gift gives us the heart of the function of this office. Notice the language. He gave some pastors and teachers. Now, the word for pastor is the common Greek verb for word for s...

16:03 - 16:52 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Countering popular misconceptions, Martin defines the pastor's essential functions from Ephesians 4:11 as a 'pastor' (shepherd) and 'teacher.' He elaborates on the shepherd's role…

He recounts Jesus' parable of the hireling who flees when the wolf comes versus the good shepherd who lays down his life, illustrating the selfless, protective love required of a pastor.

And the great model is Jesus Christ himself. You remember what he said about a true shepherd? He said, that man, you go out and you hire him to watch your sheep. One day the wolf comes and the guy says, five bucks a day ain't worth getting my hide torn.

18:28 - 18:42 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Countering popular misconceptions, Martin defines the pastor's essential functions from Ephesians 4:11 as a 'pastor' (shepherd) and 'teacher.' He elaborates on the shepherd's role…

He uses the image of a shepherd leading sheep to green pastures and quiet waters (from Psalm 23) to illustrate the pastor's role in leading people to nourishing truth and protecting them from false teaching.

And another great responsibility of the sheep as we think of it in terms of the scriptural concept, the shepherd is to lead the sheep into adequate pastures. Jesus said of himself, when he puts forth his sheep, he goes, he goes before them. In the 23rd Psalm, the great shepherd is viewed as leading the sheep into what? Into green pastures.

19:15 - 19:40 Read in full sermon

The point: Rejoice in and draw upon your resources in God, knowing that Christ provides all necessary grace and strength for ministry.

He quotes Paul's question, 'What soldier ever went forth with his own rations?' to argue that God provides all necessary resources and grace for the pastor He calls to ministry.

And one of the greatest encouragements to a servant of God is to know in the language of 1 Corinthians 9-7 Paul said what soldier ever went forth with his own rations in other words when the army conscripts a man and sends him forth to battle. It's the responsibility of the government and the superiors who send him forth to provide his ammunition and his rations and all that is necessary for him to fight. And so likewise the Lord Jesus Christ does not form men into pastor teachers and send them forth and say do the best you can with what you've got. He promises His own presence. Lord I am with...

30:34 - 31:41 Read in full sermon

The point: Become a man who learns what it is to wrestle with God in the secret place, recognizing that prayer is the source of triumph in ministry.

He imagines a 'collage' of what every individual thinks their preacher ought to be, highlighting that no man could meet such a diverse and often unbiblical standard, thus emphasizing adherence to God's priorities.

And so I solemnly charge you Greg whatever else you become in the ministry may you become a man who learns what it is to wrestle with God in the secret place. For in a very real sense any triumphs wrought in the pew under your preaching are simply the mopping up operations of triumphs won in the secret place upon your knees before the living God. And then thirdly Greg I charge you not only to stand in awe of your accountability rejoice and draw upon your resources in God but I call upon you tenaciously to hold to the priorities of life and ministry given by God. Hold tenaciously to the priorit...

32:18 - 33:35 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin uses an extended analogy of a host preparing a meal to illustrate the deep discouragement pastors feel when their arduous spiritual labor goes unacknowledged, urging the…

He uses the extended analogy of a hostess who labors for hours preparing a special meal for guests who never express thanks, to illustrate the discouragement pastors feel when their spiritual labor is unappreciated.

Nothing could be further from the truth. You ladies here tonight, how would you feel if you labored off and on, really, for hours, thinking up a lovely menu you're going to have for some special guest and then you gave a good six or seven hours of specific labor to preparing everything from the way you were going to spread the table to the appetizer to the salad to the soup to the whole whips and your friend came with a smile and you welcomed at the door and they sat down and seemed to enjoy everything. Then they get up and they went home and they never so much, as once even grunted, something...

45:27 - 46:06 Read in full sermon