“Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be burdensome to you: for I seek not yours but you: for the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.”
2nd Corinthians 12:14

It is very sad that these days, many pastors are not after souls, but rather, what is in the possession of the souls. Jesus’ instructions is “Feed my sheep” not “Get fed off my sheep.” We should all learn from the example of Apostle Paul. He was a man who was willing to spend and be spent for the sake of the flock. Even when they didn’t seem to be reciprocating his love for them, he loved them even more. As a pastor, Head of department or leader in whatever capacity, you need to check your motivations from time to time. Are you more interested in what the people have or in the prosperity of their souls? When you are more interested in what they have, you will find yourself excusing the sin of one fellow because he is rich while you condemn the same when committed by someone poor. You would find yourself visiting only the rich members of the Church or your department/unit as the case may be, while you hardly check on the poorer ones. Indeed, the Church needs money to do a lot of things, but are we supposed to look to human warned against this prudential treatment in the house of God in James 2:2-4 which says:
“For If there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here unto my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?”

God sent us out to bring souls into His kingdom, not money. Don’t leave the most important for the least important.



This charge is to every Christian and not just pastors and leaders in the Church alone. Ensure you bring the word of God to the fore in every situation or gathering you find yourself in. God is relying on you to feed His sheep and bring the lost ones into the fold.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

“Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be burdensome to you: for I seek not yours but you: for the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.”
2nd Corinthians 12:14
It is very sad that these days, many pastors are not after souls, but rather, what is in the possession of the souls. Jesus’ instructions is “Feed my sheep” not “Get fed off my sheep.”

Jesus Christ's instructions to Feed and Take Care of His Sheep were literal as He expressed the details of the same in Matthew 25 vs 31 - 40.

Matthew 25 vs 31-40 (ESV)
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31. “The Son of Man will come again with divine greatness, and all his angels will come with him. He will sit as king on his great and glorious throne.
32. All the people of the world will be gathered before him. Then he will separate everyone into two groups. It will be like a shepherd separating his sheep from his goats.
33. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34. “Then the king will say to the godly people on his right, ‘Come, my Father has great blessings for you. The kingdom he promised is now yours. It has been prepared for you since the world was made.
35. It is yours because when I was hungry, you gave me food to eat. When I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I had no place to stay, you welcomed me into your home.
36. When I was without clothes, you gave me something to wear. When I was sick, you cared for me. When I was in prison, you came to visit me.’
37. “Then the godly people will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and give you food? When did we see you thirsty and give you something to drink?
38. When did we see you with no place to stay and welcome you into our home? When did we see you without clothes and give you something to wear?
39. When did we see you sick or in prison and care for you?’
40. “Then the king will answer, ‘The truth is, anything you did for any of my people here, you also did for me.’

Anyone who has seriously sought after the Kingdom of God and His righteousness would know that this is the righteousness that Jesus Christ spoke of and called His disciples to.

In the book of Acts, it is revealed that this act of Feeding and Caring for Christ's Sheep was a daily chore for the followers of Jesus Christ, and it meant literally feeling and caring for those who were followers and those poor.

Acts 6 vs 1-4 (ESV)
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1. More and more people were becoming followers of Jesus. But during this same time, the Greek-speaking followers began to complain against the other Jewish followers. They said that their widows were not getting their share of what the followers received every day.
2. The twelve apostles called the whole group of followers together.
The apostles said to them, “It would not be right for us to give up our work of teaching God’s word in order to be in charge of getting food to people.
3. So, brothers and sisters, choose seven of your men who have a good reputation. They must be full of wisdom and the Spirit. We will give them this work to do.
4. Then we can use all our time to pray and to teach the word of God.”

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In fact, the first Christians are credited with having helped create the very first food pantry and welfare system that helped feed many in Rome during the great famine. Today, similar welfare programs, include food pantries have aided in helping the poor survive and continue to thrive in advanced countries.

We should all learn from the example of Apostle Paul. He was a man who was willing to spend and be spent for the sake of the flock. Even when they didn’t seem to be reciprocating his love for them, he loved them even more. As a pastor, Head of department or leader in whatever capacity, you need to check your motivations from time to time.

Jesus Christ never instructed His followers to perceive themselves as leaders of business organizations or masters over departments of any sort.\

Matthew 20 vs 24-28 (ESV)
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24. The other ten followers heard this and were angry with the two brothers.
25. So Jesus called the followers together. He said, “You know that the rulers of the non-Jewish people love to show their power over the people. And their important leaders love to use all their authority over the people.
26. But it should not be that way with you. Whoever wants to be your leader must be your servant.
27. Whoever wants to be first must serve the rest of you like a slave.
28. Do as I did: The Son of Man did not come for people to serve him. He came to serve others and to give his life to save many people.”

In order to feed his sheep and preach His gospel per His instructions, He required us to become servants to all and to daily "Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all other things will be added".

Are you more interested in what the people have or in the prosperity of their souls?

The prosperity of whose soul? The prosperity of each follower's "soul" depends solely on that follower and His chosen relationship to the father.

Matthew 11 vs 27-30 (ESV)
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27. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
28. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Every person has to carry the same yoke and the same burden as the other as far as the New Covenant that is Jesus Christ. And so it is not the job of any Preacher/Pastor/GO/Father/Pope/Primate/Bishop/Priest to pretend to carry the responsibility of caring for the "soul" of another. No, that responsibility rests solely on the soul in question. Jesus Christ did not preach to the souls of men, He preached to the men. It was up to those men who decide for themselves if they were then willing to serve God with all their mind, body, heart, and soul.

Jesus Christ did not call His disciples to become fishers of "soul" ... He called them to be fishers of men, and though He sent them out, to preach the very message He taught them and nothing more. He, Jesus Christ, preached to men as well... not to the "souls" of men. He left it up to each person to decide if his soul was worth worshiping/serving God with.

When you are more interested in what they have, you will find yourself excusing the sin of one fellow because he is rich while you condemn the same when committed by someone poor. You would find yourself visiting only the rich members of the Church or your department/unit as the case may be, while you hardly check on the poorer ones. Indeed, the Church needs money to do a lot of things, but are we supposed to look to human warned against this prudential treatment in the house of God in James 2:2-4 which says:“For If there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here unto my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts?”

Should you even have an interest in what they have?
Jesus Christ preached that His followers carry out works of righteousness (Feed my sheep, take care of my sheep according to Matthew 25 vs 31 -40), yet you ignore His teaching so you can engage instead in your own interpretation which allows you to take what you want and not do what Jesus Christ wants you to do. What is the difference between your person and those you castigate?
Does your "church" have at least a food pantry system that provides for the regular feeding of His, Jesus Christ's followers, and the poor in the community of believers?
Does your church kingdom, on a regular basis, clothe the naked, care for the sick, house the homeless, and visit those in prison?
Why do you think you are any different from those you castigate?

God sent us out to bring souls into His kingdom, not money. Don’t leave the most important for the least important.
This charge is to every Christian and not just pastors and leaders in the Church alone. Ensure you bring the word of God to the fore in every situation or gathering you find yourself in. God is relying on you to feed His sheep and bring the lost ones into the fold.
Written by Pastor E.A. Adeboye.

God sent His followers out to preach His gospel to the world, not bring souls into His Kingdom. That job belongs to God and God alone.
Please remember that Jesus Christ said that if you love Him, you will obey His commandments, not make up your own rules aside and apart from His rules, pretending that you are justified in doing so.
Remember that your own righteousness is nothing but filthy rags as far as God is concerned. That which He commands is what He expects from even you and nothing else or less will do.