Proverbs 31 describes an excellent wife as worth more than rubies. I would have to say that it shouldn’t be a stretch to you, my dear Christian brethren, to consider a pastor who faithfully shepherds his flock as worth more than any earthly treasure as well.
I’m not going to give you a deeply scriptural argument. But I am going to share some of what has happened to me in the 5 and a half years at Berean Baptist Church. Clicking the links below will open in new tabs to the various sermons I’m speaking of.
Honestly, what I wanted to highlight was that in the 66 months I’ve been attending my local body, my pastor has taught the following books verse-by-verse:
- Hebrews
- Titus
- Ephesians
- 1 Kings
- 2 Kings (in process)
- Matthew (in process)
This is IN ADDITION TO the fact that he has taught about as many topical sermons which were nonetheless expositional during that same time period. Topics ranging from The Holy Spirit, “Christian Character,” to “The Millennial Kingdom” as well as having a healthy focus on Christmas, Easter, Mother’s and Father’s Day and other events like Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. News to note: Pastor Cuenin is not a “preaching pastor.” He’s daily active in the business of the church, does dirty jobs that we wish he wouldn’t do :), and spends time in counseling, prayer and encouragement of his people. I believe this is out of dear love for us, not simply an abject desire to be obedient to God in this position.
One advantage is that my pastor preaches 3 sermons a week most of the year. This is in addition to the Sunday School classes my local church offers and smaller groups. I am truly grateful to the Lord for this. I have a lot of friends on the internet and they like to send me “great sermons” all the time. I’m sure many of them are. But like average food after you’re starving, anyone preaching the Word faithfully will be regarded as pretty great regardless of quality if you are spiritually hungry. In my case, I can honestly say I consider myself well-fed. I don’t mean this to brag; only to say that my pastor gives us more than I can remember!
May God bless pastors in this world who faithfully bring the Word to their flocks.