16. (a) What responsibility do elders have? (b) How did the Bible Students view Jesus’ admonition to ‘shepherd the sheep’?

¹⁶ Back in the early days of the Bible Students, the elders already understood that they had a responsibility to help fellow believers to remain servants of God. (Read Galatians 6:10.) In 1908, an article in the Watch Tower considered Jesus’ admonition: “Shepherd my little sheep.” (John 21:15-17) The article told elders: “It is very important that the Master’s commission in respect to the flock shall have a prominent place in our hearts, that we shall rightly esteem it a great privilege to feed and to tend the Lord’s followers.” In 1925, The Watch Tower again emphasized the importance of serving as shepherds by reminding elders: “The church of God is his own, . . . and he will hold all responsible for their privilege of serving their brethren.”