They Are Watching Over Your Soul
Hebrews 13:17 (ESV) says: “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account.”
There may be no more sobering description of the work of an elder than the words, “they are keeping watch over your souls.”
A shepherd watches because something precious has been entrusted to him. In Acts 20:28, Paul told the Ephesian elders, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock.” Peter likewise instructed elders to “shepherd the flock of God that is among you” (1 Peter 5:2). The church belongs to Christ. He purchased it with His blood. Yet Christ entrusts local congregations to men who serve as shepherds, watching carefully over His people. That means biblical leadership is much more than occupying an office.
An elder notices when someone who was once faithful begins disappearing. He recognizes when a Christian seems discouraged. He worries about the young person being pulled toward the world. He prays for the marriage that is struggling. He reaches out to the member whose faith appears to be weakening.
Sometimes watching over souls means encouraging. Sometimes it means comforting. Sometimes it means warning. And sometimes it means saying something a person may not want to hear. Why would an elder do that? Because souls are at stake.
Hebrews 13:17 adds an even more solemn thought. Those who watch over the congregation do so “as those who will have to give an account.” One day every elder will stand before the Chief Shepherd. He will answer not for whether everyone liked him or whether every decision was popular, but for how faithfully he cared for the flock entrusted to him. That should cause every elder to tremble—and every congregation to pray. Pray that your elders will love Scripture more than popularity. Pray that they will possess courage when difficult decisions must be made. Pray that they will have wisdom when situations are complicated. Pray that they will remain humble, compassionate, faithful, and focused upon eternity.
And when faithful shepherds come to us with biblical counsel, let us remember why they do it. They are not simply watching attendance numbers. They are not merely watching an organization. They are watching over souls. And one of those souls is yours. Someday earthly shepherds will finish their work. Until then, may they faithfully watch over the flock, and may we willingly follow godly leadership as together we follow Jesus Christ, “the Great Shepherd of the sheep” (Hebrews 13:20). May the Lord help us to grow spiritually as do our best to remember to be holy for God is holy.