WEEK 14- Help Wanted: Shepherds

MONDAY — Read the passage with your team.

   14 And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.

1 Thessalonians 5:14

   1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? 3 You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. 6 My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them.

   7 " 'Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord : 8 As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, because my flock lacks a shepherd and so has been plundered and has become food for all the wild animals, and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, 9 therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord : 10 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them.

   11 " 'For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.

Ezekiel 34:1-11, 15-16

What does this passage have to say about accountability?

Why is that important?

TUESDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

1) 1 Thessalonians 5:14 provides a job description for the “shepherds” of the church in Thessalonica — the people called by God to tend to the needs of others.  What four groups of people does the apostle Paul identify, and what type of accountability (relationship) is necessary to meets the needs of each?

2) Are only the leaders of the church expected to provide accountability and work to meet the peoples’ needs?  Are only the seniors or most experienced members of your team qualified for the tasks of accountability and service?  What are you waiting for, then?

WEDNESDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

3) Who are the “shepherds of Israel” (Ezekiel 34:2)?  What did God expect the leaders to do for the people (v. 4)?  What did they do instead (esp. v. 2, 4)?  What happened to the people as a result (v. 5-6)?  What is the impact of a neglecting and harsh leader?

4) What is God’s judgment upon leaders who do not care for their people (v. 10, 16)?  Who are the “sleek and strong,” and why do you suppose they are so well-fed and hungry, when the rest of the flock is weak, sick, and injured?  When God destroys and removes selfish and unfaithful leaders, who does He institute as the new shepherd — the one who will care for the people justly (v. 11, 15-16)?

THURSDAY — Discuss the passage with your team.

5) (Coaches, ask your players to consider the answers to these questions silently, as you read them.  No need to answer aloud.)  Who are the weak people in your life, and what are you doing to help and strengthen them?  Who are the sick people in your life, and how are you contributing to their healing?  Who are the injured people in your life, and how are you binding up their wounds?  Who are the wandering people in your life, and in what ways can you call them back to God?  Who are the lost people in your life, and how are you searching for them?  Who are the idle people in your life, and are you gently spurring them to action?  Who are the timid people in your life, and how are you encouraging them?

6) Identify one or two such people on your team (and in other areas of your life), and commit to a regular habit of meeting their needs.

FRIDAY — Discuss sport applications of accountability, and pray together.

· Ask your athletes to briefly reflect on what they’ve learned about accountability this week, and to repeat some of those things.  (Remind them of some of the Biblical truths about accountability you’ve discussed, if necessary.)

· Ask your team, “Based on what we learned about accountability this week...What does an accountable athlete do?”  Do not settle for vague answers; challenge your athletes to go beyond general qualities of accountability, and to determine what those qualities look like in action.

· Add the results to your team’s list of descriptions of the “accountable athlete”, and be sure the list is displayed somewhere that is constantly visible, as a reminder to the team.

· Pray together as a team.  Encourage your athletes to pray for your team’s growth in regard to the discipline of accountability — especially in relation to some of the issues and challenges that you discussed together this week.  Challenge them to also ask for forgiveness, when applicable.  Give time for athletes to request prayer (regarding accountability or anything else), and pray together.