1 Peter 5:2

In several places, the Bible says that God is a *shepherd. It says that God’s people are sheep. This describes how God cares for people. Psalms 23 describes this well. A *shepherd leads his sheep. They follow him because they trust him. They recognise his voice when he calls them. He makes sure that the sheep have enough to eat. He searches for any sheep that get lost. If they are hurt or sick, he helps them to get well again. The *shepherd protects his sheep from wild animals that want to kill them.

An elder leads the church as a *shepherd leads the sheep. The elders should care for the people that they lead. Elders feed people when they teach them what the Bible says. Some people turn away from God. The elders can help them to come back to God again. Elders can also pray for sick people and ask God to heal them (James 5:14). They must help to protect Christians from the devil when he attacks them.

It is not easy to be an elder. People must be sure that God wants them to do this work. They should be willing to do it. If someone tries to make them do it, that is wrong. A good elder really wants to serve other people. He wants to help them to know God better.

1 Timothy 5:17-18 says that they deserve pay for the work that they do. But it is wrong to do the work just to get money.