Shepherding : A Laboring Priest

Romans 15:16

That I might be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, a laboring priest of the gospel of God, in order that the offering of the Gentiles might be acceptable, having been sanctified in the Holy Spirit.

These days the Lord's speaking has always been on the matter of priesthood. The urgency of being recovered to be a normal and proper priest and the importance of serving and functioning as a laboring priest; on the one hand to come before God and being filled with Him as His holy priest and going to the people to express and represent Him as the royal priest. 1 Peter 2:5,9.

Personally, it is always my prayer and burden that I be fully recovered in my being and in my service as priest. With this, the Lord blessed me with three small groups and two local brothers to shepherd. My main service in this regard is with my wife in praying for these new ones daily, interceding for them that they may grow in life and be shepherded into the church life and even become pillars for the local church here in Gurgaon.

This week, one brother came with his whole lot of problem. My main fellowship was the need for him to experience and enjoy the Lord through the word, in prayer and in fellowship with fellow believers. Problems are just an opportunity given by God as blessings in disguise for us to learn to trust and experience Christ and gain Him all the more. Besides, we worked together for some of his professional works, and he himself determined in his heart to give his first priority to the Lord; in reading the Bible every day, in praying everyday, and perhaps with me over the phone, and coming at  least  once a week for fellowship with the fellow members of the Body of Christ and partake of the Lord's table every Lord's day. It was the grace of God that I can experience something of shepherding.

Similarly, with another brother, I fellowship on some basic truth and experiences of a Christian life as he was from a deep rooted religious background. To undo what had been done and now to be reconstituted with Christ is not an easy matter. There will be some struggles, some confusion for a while and ultimately all the mess will be cleaned-up for Christ's complete and pure expression.

I also have been experiencing being a laboring priest in the home meetings where we pursued the word of God together and fellowshipped on the urgent need of the saints. On truths, on life practices, and some personal matters. Through all these, I am learning to be a laboring priest of the gospel and learning to shepherd. This is just few experiences this week.