Here's a question: do you get credit for someone changing their practices for the better bc they read your material? Quick answer: YES! You know what precedent we have to say that and be confident? Why... the entire Bible, of course. God inspired the authors of Scripture, and their works have been inspiring countless millions to understand their dispensation in God's redemptive program and properly live for it. So if you have written a book, an article, an online post (yes, the internet counts, too!!), and that text makes someone more productive or becomes edified on any level, you have treasure in heaven, my friend! Remember the original church in the centuries before Constantine (ca 30-300 AD)--they inundated the entire Mediterranean with theological works, letters, speeches, and symbols (like the fish symbol, see our Rumble channel, 5 Crowns Outreach) in order to bring everyone to the truth of Christ. It is your same job to do likewise. You may never get credit in this life, but remember that Jesus Christ sees all, and He is coming with His reward, the 5 Crowns of Reward.

Check out our latest X article connecting the Bema Seat of Christ, the judgment of the Church at the rapture, with the 5 Crowns of Reward. The Bema Seat

Like the G1 Transformers I loved to play with as a child, the answer is both simpler and deeper than meets the eye. First Peter 5 outlines the many attitudes to avoid as a leader: not for greedy gain, not by compulsion, etc., but what is the active content that we as shepherds are supposed to track in people? That's easy: the content of each of the 5 Crowns of Reward, summarized in our "5S Cleanup" of the Church--Study, Serve, Suffer, Share, Shepherd. So as you inspire them to live out their stories in the real world, so too, you also enhance learning by comparing and contrasting your own stories as they bring theirs to the table. Lets take an example of my own in the course of Bible study. While I was studying the many countries that will invade Israel in the end times according to Ezek 38-39, I noticed one that sounded familiar from earlier Bible study: Sheba. Hold on... could this be the same country that existed in Solomon's day who sent "the queen of Sheba" to inquire of Solomon with "hard questions"? In fact, ... YES! It is. It wil have different name in the end times, but it's the same descendants. Now if I share that story of serendipity in the Scripture, how many will seek it out or be inspired in their own studies to find other off-hand connections? As the author of Hebrews exhorted us to "provoke each other to good works" (Heb 10:24).

The picture below illustrates the fruit of shepherding the 5 Crowns of Reward: duplication. The problem with so many churches in today's world is that they know the goal, make disciples, but they have no vision to know when they have accomplished that goal. The 5 Crowns of Reward supply the definitive set of activities for which Jesus promises rewards to perform. For too many years, and over too many generations, the cross of Christ has been the only dimension of the faith that was sold to Christians. Their followers converted and were left to twiddle their thumbs for years in the pews. That generation lost everything as they got older in the Church--the so-called "children's" church grew up and vacated the churches they grew up in, leaving the leaders to grow old and fit the bill of the church alone. The fruit of the 5 Crowns of Reward is duplication. Each of these crowns is summarized by STUDY, SERVE, SUFFER, SHARE, SHEPHERD; we call it the "5S Cleanup" of the Church (<--see the link). Any toddler can learn the model. This set of activities gives the Christian church a means to duplicate its results. As soon as the Christian knows the 5 Crowns of Reward, they communicate what they're doing and duplication happens organically. One Christian becomes a church fellowship quickly.

When the Bible uses the term "shepherd," it can sound intimidating and complicated, and without a model of ministry to lean on, it can be, for sure. That's why the 5 Crowns of Reward model of ministry makes such a difference: you earn your own crowns, and then help others with theirs; that's shepherding, plain and simple. Your stories in each of these crowns will fuel another believer to avoid the pitfalls you fell to along the way, while taking full advantage of the wisdom you gained along the way to produce better fruit than you could. That's the ministry. That's fulfilling the law of Christ in our lives until Jesus calls us to himself in heaven. For the full message of Shepherding in Scripture, see our book, Crowns of Valor. This book is Dr. Justin R. Woods's way of shepherding others where he cannot be in person.