An image of the church
The Flock of God
Peter, an old shepherd of souls, tells the elders to feed the flock of God among them. The church is a flock, sheep who need pasture and protection and a voice they know. It is a humble picture, because sheep are not impressive animals. But it carries a promise, that above every under-shepherd stands the chief Shepherd, who is coming.
“And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.”1 Peter 5:4
The image
A flock is a fragile thing. Sheep wander, they cannot defend themselves, they need to be led to water and grass and kept from the cliff and the wolf. So the picture is honest about us. We are not self-sufficient, we are prone to stray, and we live by being cared for. Peter tells the elders to feed this flock, not to drive it, tending it willingly and not for gain, leading by example and not by force. That is the difference between a shepherd and a hireling. The flock belongs to God, not to the men who tend it, so it is never handled as property. And the flock is a single company, not scattered individuals, kept as one under the care of those who watch over them.
What it teaches us
This picture teaches us to receive care without shame. There is nothing weak about being a sheep in God's flock, it is simply the truth of what we are, creatures who need a shepherd. It teaches those who lead to lead like shepherds, gently, at cost to themselves, for the good of the sheep and never for what they can get. It warns against the hireling who serves himself and flees when danger comes. And it teaches the flock to stay together, because a sheep alone is a sheep in danger. We are kept not by our own strength but by staying near the shepherd and near the flock, moving with the others toward the pasture he provides.
How it centers on Christ
Peter calls him the chief Shepherd, and every other shepherd is only under him. The elders tend a flock that is not theirs, it is his, bought and owned and beloved. He is the one Peter heard say he would lay down his life for the sheep, and he did. So the care the church receives, even through human leaders, is finally his care reaching us through them. He knows his sheep by name, he goes after the one that strays, he leads them out and they follow because they know his voice. And he is coming. Peter points past every present hardship to the day the chief Shepherd appears, when the under-shepherds who served faithfully receive a crown that never fades. The flock's whole safety is that the true Shepherd is alive and returning.
Questions people ask
Why is the church called the flock of God?
Because believers are like sheep who belong to God and depend on his care. The image is honest about human weakness, we wander and cannot protect ourselves, so we live by being shepherded. Peter uses it to remind leaders that the flock is God's, not theirs, and to point every sheep to the chief Shepherd who watches over them all.
Who is the chief Shepherd in 1 Peter 5?
The chief Shepherd is Jesus Christ. Peter names him to make clear that human elders are only under-shepherds, serving a flock that belongs to Christ. He is the one who laid down his life for the sheep and who is coming again. When he appears, faithful shepherds receive a crown of glory that will never fade away.