Did Not Respect Him As Their Leader. When They Didn T Have Food

LIVE HONORABLY RESPECT LEADERS :12-13 I Thessalonians 5:12-15 Respect :12 Respect (KJB know, NKJ recognize, NIV acknowledge) – God called Moses to lead the nation of Israel out of slavery in Gk. to cherish or pay attention to because they are significant. Egypt. He did not choose to be the leader, but God appointed him Paul uses the word “know” in a special sense of recognizing even though he did not feel qualified. He confronted Pharaoh as the importance of their leaders, not just knowing who they are. God brought ten plagues upon Egypt and finally out of fear of God destroying the nation Pharaoh allowed the people to leave. Believers are called to recognize the import role their leaders have in the church and to properly appreciate them for what they do. You would have thought that the people would have respected Moses because he led them out of slavery in Egypt, but they He gives us three specific things church leaders do. did not respect him as their leader. When they didn’t have food 1. Labor among you – faithfully meeting your needs. or water to drink they blamed him. When they didn’t like the Labor – Gk. strenuous work that results in weariness. manna they had for food day after day they complained. It is used to describe manual labor (I Cor. 4:12; Eph. 4:28).

Even his own sister Miriam and brother Aaron opposed Moses In a spiritual context it is caring for the needs of God’s people. saying, “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?” (Num. 12:2). It means meeting with them, praying for them and counseling them They didn’t think that he should be the only one that God spoke to. which takes time, energy and commitment. They didn’t respect him as the person God chose to lead the nation. Ministry is not a 9 to 5 job, but continual care for people whenever In the words of Rodney Dangerfield, “I don’t get no respect!” they need it. It takes commitment and sacrifice to care for people. Leaders don’t get the respect they deserve because: A leader must be willing to work hard to meet people’s needs. 1. People don’t accept them because they didn’t get to chose them. 2. People criticize the decisions they make. 2. Over you – guiding and leading the church. 3. People blame them when things go wrong. Over – Gk. to oversee, preside or supervise. I Timothy 3:4 An elder must manage his own household well. Background Paul appointed elders to oversee each of the churches he planted, Our sinful nature causes us to use leadership to control others so beginning with his first missionary journey. The purpose was that Jesus taught that spiritual leadership is to serve the needs of others. each church would have its own leaders to establish the believers. In his kingdom leaders are not to use their position for their own Acts 14:23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for the believers advantage or their authority to lord it over others. Instead, leaders in every church . . . they committed them to the Lord. are to serve fellow believers in humility and love.

1. The leaders were to be men who the people respected. Mathew 20:25-26 After the mother of James and John asked for 2. They were to be mature as they were examples to follow. her sons to get prominent seats in Christ’s kingdom he told the 3. They were to teach the people the truth of God. disciples, “The rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among God sovereignly chooses leaders to oversee his church. you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant. 3. Not everybody will agree on everything. The leaders have the charge of guiding and managing the church. ACCEPT CORRECTION :14-15 They should plan the worship services, lead the prayer meetings, Rebuke the unruly :14 oversee the different ministries of the church such as: missions, Idle (KJB unruly) – Gk. defiant, disorderly or rebellious. music, outreach, Christian education and Bible studies. It was used of soldiers who were out of rank or step. Here it is used a person who is disrespectful or stubborn. 3. Admonish you (8x) – Gk. to firmly or strongly warn (4x). They refuse to follow the leadership of the elders. It is to give a word of correction to challenge wrong behavior or attitudes which is done by instruction through the Scriptures. Robert Thomas – “Since disorderly conduct is so intertwined with II Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and idleness, the latter meaning very quickly associated itself with the profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction for training word.” A few months later Paul wrote a second letter to them in in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent . . . which he stated, “keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness (KJB disorderly) and not in accord with the tradition that Honor :13 you received from us (3:6).” Just a few sentences later he wrote, Esteem – Gk. to consider or recognize. “some are idle, not busy at work, but busybodies (3:11).” Philippians 2:3 Consider others more important than yourself. It is believed that the statement, “Idle hands are the Devil’s Believers are to respect their leaders’ because of their important workshop” probably came from Jerome (d.384) a church scholar ministry of teaching the truth and being examples to follow. who translated the Old and New Testaments into Latin. The respect that is to be given is not because of your personal relationship with them, but in appreciation for their work. Application Leon Morris – “Leaders are to be loved because of their work, Believers are to use their time wisely by being productive instead not necessarily because of their personal qualities.” of lazy which gets people into all different kinds of trouble.

Peace 1. Work to support yourself and your family. Peace – Gk. to be in harmony or unity. 2. Look for ways to help others who have needs. In the context the peace probably refers to right relationships 3. Witness to unbelievers who need to be saved. between church leaders and believers under their leadership. The relationship between a congregation and its leaders can Encourage the discouraged involve tension that can lead to division or bad feelings. Fainthearted (KJB feebleminded) – Gk. weak spirit (only here). Proverbs 18:14 crushed spirit. Isaiah 57:15 lowly spirit. Acts 6:1 As the early church grew there were complaints by the Greek-speaking Jews that their widows were not being They are discouraged or weary because life has been hard and they given food like the Aramic-speaking widows. The result was are struggling emotionally so they need to be encouraged knowing the apostles appointed deacons to oversee the ministry. that people are praying for them and care about them.

It is not easy to live in peace with fellow believers because: I Samuel 20 When Jonathan knew that Saul was determined to 1. Satan will do anything he can to create division. kill David he when out into a field to with his friend to warn him. 2. People often seek their own interest first. They kissed one another and wept with one another (:41). as God works in their lives to make them like Christ. Application We can encourage those who are discouraged by giving them DON’T RETALIATE :15 words of comfort, listening to them, visiting them or showing Patience is shown by not getting back at someone who hurt us. them in some practical way that you care about them. Our natural reaction when someone has hurt us is to retaliate. We want to hurt them the way in which they have hurt us. Help the weak Our sinful nature is expressed in the bumper sticker: Help (KJB support) – Gk. to hold firmly to. I don’t get mad, I get even Matthew 6:24 No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other or hold to one and despise the The problem with retaliation is that when you have gotten the other other. person back, they then want to retaliate against you for what you have done to them so the hurtful responses continue over again. Weak – Gk. without physical strength or deficient in some way. A believer will lose their strength because of: on going sickness, Christians are never to retaliate, but instead are to do good. continual family problems, emotional issue or stress at work. Romans 12:17,19 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought They need someone to come alongside them to help them to to do what is honorable in the sight of all. Never avenge do what they need to do to overcome the problem they face. yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” They may not be able to physically take care of themselves. They may lack the education, opportunity or finances they need Retaliation will destroy relationships between believers. to be able to overcome the problems they currently face. John 13:34-35 Love one another. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. Application Some people have never had someone support them in their time Seek to do good – to be compassionate, gentile, kind and helpful. of need. Instead, they have been criticized, deserted or neglected. Our attitude should be what good can I do for someone, They need a friend that says, “I will stand with you no matter what rather than how do I get back at them for what they have done. happens. We will go through this together and I will help you.” Application Show patience 1. Be honest and let the other person know they hurt you. Patient – Gk. long-suffering, slow to anger or to punish. 2. Be willing to talk about the issue that caused the hurtful feelings. It conveys the idea of being tough and durable in the face of 3. Determine to do something good to the one who hurt you. intense pressure instead of being quick to becoming angry. CONCLUSION The result of not being patient is becoming angry with the person John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church in the 1700’s, because they did not change or do what we wanted them to do. most famous statement challenged believers to do good to others: “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, The reason we need to show patience is that we are all sinful and in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, therefore do things that we should not and that irritate others. at all the times you can, to all the people you can, No one is perfect and therefore we need to be patient with others as long as you can.”