The solemn duty of all pastors (and elders) is to proclaim the gospel incessantly, firmly, patiently, and urgently to protect the sheep from losing it and their souls.

To fulfill their ministry amid hardship, church leaders must not forget apostolic suffering and must hold firmly to sacred Scripture which equips them for service.

Immoral and deceptive false teachers are characteristic of this present age, so the church must avoid these people as we await the end when their wickedness will be exposed.

As soldiers of Christ Jesus, church leaders are called to be faithful to the gospel itself and to be holy as befits that gospel.

Our willingness to suffer hardship for the gospel is helped considerably by gaining a better grasp of suffering’s outcomes.

Faithfulness to the gospel of Jesus Christ inevitably brings hardship upon believers, but a faithful God guards what we have entrusted to Him as we suffer to guard what God has entrusted to us.

From start to finish, the call of Jesus Christ is a call to endure hardship and suffering because of the gospel, but God promises to reward all those who answer that call ultimately with eternal safety in His heavenly kingdom.