Giants of the Reformation (6)

And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all thingsto the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. Ephesians 1.22, 23

Institutes of the Christian Religion
John Calvin (1509-1564)
“[The Lord] alone should rule and reign in the church as well as have authority or pre-eminence in it, and this authority should be exercised and administered by his Word alone. Nevertheless, because he does not dwell among us in visible presence, we have said that he uses the ministry of men to declare openly his will to us by mouth, as a sort of delegated work.”

Pastors and elders (church leaders, shepherds) have an awesome responsibility. They will be held to greater account who take up this calling (Jms. 3.1). Those who minister the Word are called to represent Christ and His will to His Body. He is the Head of His Body, and He exercises that Headship through the ministry of His Word, which has been entrusted to those in pastoral leadership. Church members have a duty to read, study, and search the Scriptures by themselves and in groups together, to be sure. But shepherds must, by their faithful and wide-ranging ministry, provide the safe and nurturing parameters within which growth in the Lord can occur. How vitally important it is that pastors and church leaders have a deep and growing relationship with Christ and His Word! Otherwise, how can they possibly represent Him and His will to His Body?

How do the leaders of your church encourage and hold one another accountable for growing in their relationships with Christ and His Word?

T. M. Moore

Pastoral Hope Initiative
Pastor, where are you in your walk with and work for the Lord? Are you growing? Covering all the bases? Working fruitfully toward the Kingdom of God? Our Pastoral Hope Initiative can help you establish a framework and baseline for steady, fruitful growth into the Lord Jesus. Men, if you think you might want to work through this 14-week protocol. Watch this brief video, then, if you’re interested, let me hear from you at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

The Fellowship of Ailbe is supported through the generous and faithful gifts of those who benefit from and believe in our work. Does the Lord want to use you in this way? Please look to Him in prayer over this question. You can contribute to The Fellowship of Ailbe by using the Contribute button at our website, or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452. Thank you.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.All quotations from John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, John T. McNeill, ed., Ford Lewis Battles, tr. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1960), Vol. 2, Book IV, pp. 1012ff.