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Originally Posted by Amanda S.
No, but a shepherd is called a pastor.
Jer 10:21 For the pastors are become brutish, and have not sought the LORD: therefore they shall not prosper, and all their flocks shall be scattered.
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Help me out here. Where does that verse call a shepherd a pastor?
I'm being sarcastic -- I know what your point is. But you are
reading into the passage.
The Shepherd owns his flock. The elders/bishops/etc are to lead the flock by example (not lording, as you noted).
Quote:
Is 40:11 He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.
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Did you look at verse 10? Who is "He?"
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Psalm 1-2 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
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Again, this verse is about the Lord. In my mind you have only strengthened the case against calling pastors "shepherds" with these verses -- they are about God and his flock!
I believe very strongly in the preeminence of Christ. The King James Bible calls Christ the "Cheif Shepherd" and never once applies the title of "shepherd" to a church office. Usurping that title may seem like a small issue to some, but to me, it is robbing Christ of something that is rightfully his and his alone.