“we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you” (1 Thess. 5:12, NKJV)
In the American church today there exists a strain of virile independency. I’m not talking about autonomous rule by congregational church government. I’m referring to the rejection of our Lord’s design for the visible church.
Professing Christians insist that they do not need to be part of a local congregation. Some have had bad experiences in the local church and so they have not only fled that congregation but any local church. Others by principle hold to a relationship with Jesus apart from any ecclesiastical authority.
But by whatever rationale or rationalization, those who forsake the local church forego the wisdom of their Lord for their spiritual development, protection, and direction. Why do they think Paul appoints elders for each the congregations formed in the book of Acts? Why are we told about the shepherding responsibilities of elders to care for the sheep entrusted to them? Why does Paul write to Timothy and Titus laying out qualifications for church officers and instructing them in their responsibilities to the flock?
The local congregation is integral to Christ’s design for making disciples and mobilizing them for the work of the kingdom. The mutual exercise of spiritual gifts, the dynamic of community to build one another up in the Lord, and gathering for corporate worship all belong to the visible church.
All this serves as background to Paul’s plea. “And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves” (1 Thess. 5:12–13).
Paul has addressed his letter to “the church of the Thessalonians.” As a church they are not their own. They are Christ’s church, gaining their identity in Him and their mandate from Him. The encouraging and comforting we have seen in his epistle take place in the community, in the name of Jesus, for the welfare of the body.
But for them to function properly according to their Lord’s design, they must do two things. One, they must recognize those who labor among them. At its most basic level this recognition involves an awareness of whom the Lord has brought to lead and care for them, as well as their relationship to those leaders. Paul says these leaders are over them. That means the people are under their authority and care. So that when leaders carry out their role of teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, the people are to be receptive and cooperative.
The second thing Paul emphasizes is to esteem those who lead and labor among them. Not only are the Thessalonians to value their leaders, they are to value them “very highly in love.” They respect them not only so the leaders can do their job but also for the welfare of the local church. The writer of Hebrews puts it that they are to “obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you” (Heb. 13:17).
Paul’s bottom line in his calling the brethren to recognize and respect Christ’s authority through His leaders is that they would know peace among themselves. The tensions that can roil a church can be dealt with giving credence and compliance to those in authority who bring the word of God to bear. That’s how Paul brought peace. He taught them God’s word and invited them to find peace in Him and His work.
After calling on the shepherds to tend the sheep in their charge and on those sheep to follow the shepherds over them, the writer of Hebrews also showcases the resulting peace in the Lord. “Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen” (Heb. 13:20–21).
Why is being part of a local church so important?
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
