Jer 50:6-7 – The Bad Shepherd
John 10:1-18 – The Good Shepherd
About 6 years ago we all went to Orlando Florida on holiday – Mum and Dad, Stephens family and ours. This is one of those lost children stories – we all have them I suppose but this was a bit different. It wasn’t easy 12 of us trying to go round busy theme parks – keeping track of 6 children, and 6 adults. It was at the end of a long day in a theme park – as it had got dark we started to gather up near the exit of the park to discuss and negotiate where we would go for dinner. It was as we were leaving that Sarah noticed that Gabriel was missing – he was 10 or so and we all frantically started calling and looking and retracing our steps – I don’t need to overemphasise how anxious we were. We came across a member of staff who pointed me to the Lost Children office. When I got there, heart pumping, fraught with worry I told the man in the office my name and gave him Gabriel’s details and he said – your in luck, he’s here, but is the other one not yours too? Gabriel came out of the back followed by Alexander! I was so stressed looking for Gabriel that I hadn’t even noticed that Alexander was missing too!
I remembered that earlier in the month when Clarke was telling his story about Ryan being lost – and as I remembered it, it occurred to me that in a spiritual context sometimes we are so focused on ourselves and those who are lost in our only immediate family, that we miss seeing other lost souls who are searching for meaning in their life. Of course we need to begin by reaching out to those who are closest to us but we need to follow Christ’s example – he came to ‘seek’ and save the lost. That looking, that active, anxious searching for a lost child is such a perfect metaphor – but not just for your own lost child…
We’ve heard a lot this month about the lost sheep – so I’m going to get a bit sheepish this morning. In John 10 Jesus told the story of the good shepherd.
One day, Jesus said, "If a man sneaks over the fence to get into a sheep pen, he probably is a thief. If he calls the sheep, they won't come because he's a stranger. His voice frightens them and they run away. But the real shepherd enters through the gate. And when he calls his sheep, he uses their names, and they know his voice.
"I am the good shepherd. I know each of My sheep by name, and My sheep know Me. And I am the gate. Those who come through Me will be saved. They will have everything they need.
"Sometimes a man is hired to watch over the sheep," continued Jesus. "But this man does not own these sheep and he does not really care about them. He just -works to get paid. If a wolf comes in the middle of the night, the man runs away! And the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters the flock. The man doesn't even care–because they're not his sheep.
"But I am the good shepherd," said. Jesus. "And I lay down My life for My sheep.
"My Father loves Me, and I gladly lay down My life for My sheep. Even though He has told Me to do this, I do it because I want to. No man will take My life from Me. Instead, I give it freely.
"And after I lay down My life, My Father has given Me the power to take it back again."
We could be insulted that the Bible so often compares us to sheep – sheep aren’t smart animals, but they are gentle, they do follow the shepherd, they are obedient and of course in Biblical times were an important part of life. My whole month in Afghanistan I only eat 2 things – sheep or goat…
When Bruce was speaking on Sunday night a few weeks ago I made a note in my bible that said – without a shepherd we are all lost sheep. In Jesus story from John 10 he talks about hired help – when a shepherd is unable to look after his sheep he would need to hire a man to do it. But that shepherd isn’t fully committed to the sheep, he doesn’t know them like their shepherd knows them, he won’t go the extra mile if they are attacked by wolves or if one escapes the pen. If Christ is the good shepherd, the one who loves us, who we belong to, the one who knows our needs and our weaknesses, the one who will protect us with his life against the wolves then any other shepherd is a bad shepherd.
In Jer 50 God talks about bad shepherds when he talks about the nation of Israel – his people:
v6 My people have been lost sheep;
their shepherds have led them astray
and caused them to roam on the mountains.
They wandered over mountain and hill
and forgot their own resting place.
7 Whoever found them devoured them;
their enemies said, ‘We are not guilty,
for they sinned against the LORD, their verdant pasture,
the LORD, the hope of their ancestors.’
The bad shepherd is one that takes no responsibility for the sheep. The hired hand that Jesus used in his illustration in John is really perfect. Here in Jerimiah God uses a similar idea – His people were lost because they had shepherds who led them everywhere except where they should have been going – left them to roam on the mountains where they would be vulnerable to attack – and ultimately where lost. The bad shepherd is the hired hand. Who cares about a rented house like they do one they’ve bought? I have a rental car at the minute – will I wash it and wax it and hoover it out (actually I don’t do that with the one I own so maybe that’s not a good example!) A supply teacher in a classroom – doesn’t know the children, may never see them again – what’s it like having a supply teacher when yours is sick? Not good – they aren’t really as interested they won’t ever hear you exam results, don’t know you as individuals and they find it hard to do any meaningful work with the class.
Jesus was saying so many things in the first half of John 10 – he was saying – look, without me – the true shepherd you will be lost. If you look to another shepherd, you will be lost, if I am not here to care for you will succumb to the enemy, sin, and be lost. He tells us that he is the ultimate shepherd because he literally lay down his life to protect us – to save us. Other pretenders will promise much – wealth, happiness, fulfilment – but ultimately all that is on offer will be shallow and ultimately following another shepherd, we will be lost.
John 10 and Jer 50 highlight something else for me – bear in mind this idea of sheep, lost without a shepherd or sheep lost with the wrong shepherd. So the obvious lesson is that we need to make sure that we choose the right shepherd and it is our duty as Christians, no maybe more than that, if we know we are safe, saved then – it is our natural anxious reaction to the realisation that other people around us are lost – that moves us to bring them into the fold under the protection of the right shepherd. To link that with my story about Gabriel and Alexander – we need to be alert and to notice who the lost sheep are! We can’t get so focused on our own that we fail to see those wandering on the hillside that have been laid astray! We need to wake up and we need to see beyond the fence that encircles our pen – to see that there are others who are lost and want to be found! Don’t we often think that a certain person is lost for sure, that they really don’t want to be found…
But there is another thought still that came out of studying this and its what we might take from this illustration in relation to ownership and responsibility. Jesus gave us the classic example of what it means to be an owner – spiritually. If we are to emulate Jesus, we could take from the parable that we too should care for others in the flock. In this example, Jesus says that He was the good shepherd and not a hireling or a stand in. A hireling in this Scripture can be compared to a renter or even a visitor and Jesus explains the difference between being the owner versus a hired hand. Jesus said that the owner would give his life for the sheep – meaning that he would do any and everything to protect what was his. If a wolf came and snatched one of his sheep, the owner would run out and fight with the wolf, even if it killed him, in order to save the life of his sheep. The owner recognized that the life of his sheep rests in his hands and it was no one else responsibility but his to take care of the sheep.
Now consider what He said about the hireling. Jesus said the one who was just “hired” to care for the sheep, and had no ownership in them, would not risk anything for the sheep. If a wolf came the hireling would bolt to save his own life. He wouldn’t fight for the sheep because they didn’t belong to him. He was not vested in them – he was just hired to watch over them. Because he was being paid to do a job and did not have a vested interest in them, it was not his responsibility to risk his life to save them for the few pounds he was receiving to care for them. Does this make sense? So considering what Jesus said, let’s go back to the owner of a house as opposed to a renter.
The owner of the house ensures to the best of their ability that what is needed for the house is done. When repairs are needed, they find a way to get it done. They anticipate the need and budget accordingly. They take care of the house and ensure that everything is working the way it is supposed to. They do it because they are the owners. Spiritually we too as members of Christ’s body, as partakers, as ones who have been purchased, bought with Christ’s blood we are like owners, not renters or hired hands. We have a vested interest in making sure that the family to which we belong is looked after. It is not just the physical things for the Church that a member should take care of, but the spiritual things as well. Someone with an owner’s mentality does not wait to be called upon, they anticipate and volunteer. Someone with an owner’s mentality does not see a task as someone else’ responsibility, but something that needs to be done and they do it. Someone with an owner’s mentality seeks to fulfil, to not just wait to be filled.
Paul wrote in Romans 9:2-3 I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my people, those of my own race, the people of Israel.
The depth of Paul’s concern is expressed in his words " unceasing anguish, great sorrow, other translations – great heaviness and continual sorrow" or "bitter grief and continual anguish" for Israel who he recognised as being lost. That anguish, that great heaviness and sorrow that he expressed for the lost is something we all should be thinking about. Maybe first for those who at one time belonged to Christ, those we knew, who once loved the Lord and were part of the flock. Should we give up searching for them on the hillside? No of course not. Do we honestly care about the lost brother of sister with the same level of anxiety and determination that we do when one of our own children is physically lost? Christ told us through the parable we’ve read this month in Luke 15 that he cares about one single lost sheep in a flock of hundreds, thousands… If we are owners, if we are invested in this thing the church then we should share His concern for the one.
One final sheep thought: Matthew 25:31-46
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
"Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?' "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
This can be one of the most disconcerting texts in scripture. It leaves us thinking, “Which am I?” Am I one of the sheep or one of the goats? Jesus speaks about what will happen when the world as we know it, ends. He speaks about a coming judgment – a judgment where the eternity of all people will be determined. He speaks about a time when all that we value won’t mean anything. The only thing that will matter is: will I be on Jesus’ left – a goat? Or will I be on Jesus’ right – a sheep?
But we find a surprising Jesus here. No longer the kindly servant who rode into Jerusalem on a donkey; no longer the suffering Messiah Who died on the cross, the gentle shepherd caring for his sheep - but the Judge Who says: “Depart from me – go into the eternal fires.” You lived only for yourselves. You never raised a finger for the needy. You had no compassion for the hungry and naked. Those languishing in prison never entered your minds. You’ve lived as if life was all about you - your contentment. When God came calling, you offered an excuse. When it came time to serve others, you said things like, “I’m busy. I don’t have time. I go to church, what more do you want? Maybe he’ll ask – what did you do to find the lost sheep who wandered away from my flock – I gave you all you need, I told you that I didn’t want anyone to perish, I begged you to share my concern for the lost, I gave you examples, illustrations and most of all I gave you the gift of the Holy Spirit and what did you do? Did you stay huddled in the safety of the flock, the comfort of the pen – or were you really a member of my body, invested, an owner – one who shares my love for the lost, the needy, the broken and the difficult?
People often twist this text to teach that Christians are to earn their way to heaven by serving the poor. A formula for salvation, where you, on your own, can earn a place in heaven. But that isn’t it. You see, these kind deeds are evidence, evidence of what’s in the heart, but not a ticket to heaven. Deeds of kindness occur because people want to show the same kind of love and mercy that God has shown to them – they are a natural response to the love, grace and mercy that Christ has extended to them. And so when Jesus says that those on his left will not enter heaven because of their lack of kindness to the poor, the sick and needy, He is really referring to their cold, self-cantered hearts, their lack of faith in action or in reaction to his love.
Yesterday on the BBC website I was reading about the ongoing rescue efforts in Christchurch New Zealand after the devastating earthquake there. A team of experts from the UK are there and in an interview said that their mission was still a rescue mission and they refused to think of it as a recovery mission. They acknowledged that the last person to be brought out alive from the rubble was three days ago and that yes it was becoming increasingly unlikely that they would rescue someone alive – but they were adamant that they would not give up and would continue to work with the expectation and hope that they would rescue someone lost in the rubble.
What a great illustration for us – yes people out there often have hard hearts, we convince ourselves that those who left Christ or who never knew him are a lost cause rather than just lost. Our mission is an active one – one where we need to keep on like that team in NZ and not loose heart; for someone may be alive under that rubble, desperate to be saved. How terrible would it be for the one trapped, buried, holding on to life to realise that those above ground had given up on them?
Christ wants us to be fully invested in his mission for the lost – for the one individual who may just be ready for us to reach out to him. Christ won’t give up but as I said last time up here – he has no hands but ours. I encourage us all this morning to be owners not renters – to follow the good shepherd lest we too be lost on the mountain, to share Christ’s passion for the lost sheep and be alert and active in our search so that when we come face to face with Jesus Christ our savoir he will see us as his sheep and not send us away with the goats.
