Zechariah 11: 4-17 "Thus said the Lord my God: “Become shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter. 5 Those who buy them slay them and go unpunished; and those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the Lord, I have become rich’; and their own shepherds have no pity on them. 6 For I will no longer have pity on the inhabitants of this land, says the Lord. Lo, I will cause men to fall each into the hand of his shepherd, and each into the hand of his king; and they shall crush the earth, and I will deliver none from their hand.”7 So I became the shepherd of the flock doomed to be slain for those who trafficked in the sheep. And I took two staffs; one I named Grace, the other I named Union. And I tended the sheep. 8 In one month I destroyed the three shepherds. But I became impatient with them, and they also detested me. 9 So I said, “I will not be your shepherd. What is to die, let it die; what is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed; and let those that are left devour the flesh of one another.” 10 And I took my staff Grace, and I broke it, annulling the covenant which I had made with all the peoples. 11 So it was annulled on that day, and the traffickers in the sheep, who were watching me, knew that it was the word of the Lord. 12 Then I said to them, “If it seems right to you, give me my wages; but if not, keep them.” And they weighed out as my wages thirty shekels of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, “Cast it into the treasury”[a]—the lordly price at which I was paid off by them. So I took the thirty shekels of silver and cast them into the treasury[b] in the house of the Lord. 14 Then I broke my second staff Union, annulling the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.15 Then the Lord said to me, “Take once more the implements of a worthless shepherd. 16 For lo, I am raising up in the land a shepherd who does not care for the perishing, or seek the wandering,[c] or heal the maimed, or nourish the sound, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs. 17 Woe to my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May the sword smite his arm and his right eye! Let his arm be wholly withered, his right eye utterly blinded!
Outline:
Real horrors vs. imagination horrors.
One of my indulgences is a TV series called American Horror Story. Yes, I do watch TV and cable, and social media, because it is my personal belief that in order to reach those within my territory, I’m must be not only biblically correct, theologically sound, but socially relevant. So I try to get my pulse on American pop culture so that I can meet people where they are and understand what they have been encounter outside of the ecclesiastical kingdom. I’m a tentmaker pastor and for the last fifteen years of my pastorate, I’ve endeavored to minister to people beyond the pews. So as I indicate, in keeping my pulse on our pop culture, there is a TV Emmy award winning show call American Horror Story. And each year since its inception, they’ve used horror as an allegory for the real tragedies that have plague humanity be it, infidelity and divorce, mental illness and electroshock therapy, missing children and human trafficking, the Jewish holocaust and slavery, incest and date rape, and all these everyday demons we witness and do not address. And it is the sense of allegory that strikes my interest because (if the truth be told) our imaginary monsters are only allegories for real situations that threaten and scare us on a daily basis. For our harsh reality in America, every day is becoming less of a treat and more of a trick because Satan’s arrows are bombarding us on every side. It just seems like each day, we witness new levels in the depth of depravity within our humanity. Our nightmares are manifesting themselves into everyday challenges: Mass murderers turning on co-workers in the workplace, like Michael Myers. Our own children slashing other children, like ‘little chucky. And Dracula is just another name for the gas attendant that sucks your wallet at the gas pump. Every day, we are confronted with horrors. “The Night of the Living Dead” is just another Monday morning head to dead-end jobs. The return of the werewolf is just your abusive spouse coming back home from work. And the bride of Frankenstein is just your baby mama, looking for child support. Monsters, Goblins and demons, are just an allegory for the real things that frighten us:
Lay-offs and unemployment, cancer and m/s, homelessness and home-invasions-those are the things that scare us. Those are the horrors that beckon us to God’s altars and put us on our knees.
And those horrors do not end at the church door, but they have crept into kingdom of God. Look at the text. “Thus said the Lord my God: “Become shepherd of the flock doomed to slaughter.” God tells the Prophet Zechariah that his church has become a slaughterhouse. The sheep of his flock are officially headed for the butcher. In order words, we all have a bull's eye printed on our backs and an "x" on our forehead. We have been bought and sold, chained and shackled. Those who were once emancipated have once again become slaves to someone or something. Some are slaves to their addictions-alcohol, cocaine, nicotine, and caffeine. Some are slaves to relationships-spouses and lovers, children and parents. And some have been just locked up with debt. Look at the facts, the latest surveys show that American people are no longer dreaming of homes, expensive cars and 2.5 children. Nowadays, people just want to be debt free-free from the pimps on Wall Street causing them to do tricks on Main Street; free from backward politicians selling them out to lobbyists and right wing extremists: free from the 1% controlling 40% of our nation's wealth. The people just want freedom from this slaughter house we call America. This land of the free, where young women are held captive by rapists and serial killers, where wives are abused and children are victimized; where racial profiling is the norm and the red, white, and blue are the police lights and sirens we see in our rear-view mirror.
Zechariah is told to go and shepherd this flock doomed for the slaughter. God heard the cries of his people and saw the affliction upon their lives. He knew that they would need a leader. He knew they needed a shepherd. He knew they needed pastors according to his own heart to feed them with knowledge and understanding. Without a shepherd they would scatter and go astray. Without a shepherd they would continue to be harassed and helpless. Without a shepherd, the sheep would be troubled, oppressed, and they would perish. For all the horror stories that incubate around our lives, God has called shepherds to minister to the needs of his people. There is no position in society that is more important than that of the Pastor /Teacher. The relationship between a Pastor/Teacher and their members is a subject that is never stressed enough within the body of Christ. The apostle Paul says it best in Ephesians 4, "When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men.” And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers.” In order words, this vocation, this calling, this office of pastorate is suppose to be a gift from God to His people. I'm a present wrapped up and presented to you. I'm supposed to be a token of his love and consideration to you. That's why many are called but few are chosen. Not everyone is cut out to become a pastor. I mean look at the story of Zechariah. He takes on the assignment of being the shepherd of God's flock. The tools of his craft are his two staffs named “Grace” or in (KJV- beauty) and “union” (Band): the one called “beauty” represents God's gracious attitude towards his people and the one called “union” represents his purpose of reconciliation. The shepherd’s attitude is to be one of beauty and reconciliation. God's shepherd, his pastor is to have a beautiful attitude towards reconciling the unsaved to God. And right there is where i knew i didn't volunteer for this job of pastor. For as much as i have attitude, it sure is not a beautiful attitude when it comes to being conciliatory with God's people. And this is the lesson Zechariah learns about himself. Within one month, he says he grew impatient and broke both his staffs. He didn't like his sheep and his sheep didn't like him. Like Moses, in the wilderness, he lost his temper. Like Jesus, in temple with the merchants, he wanted to whip out of the temple. Like Paul with the churches of Asia-minor, he wanted to curse anyone who went against the word of God. Now if one of the best in the business, loses it after a month of employment, what can we expect of ourselves? What would cause Zechariah to call it quits and said, “What is to die, let it die; what is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed? Surely, he can't have the heart of a pastor? What happened to Zechariah to tick him off?
First it's a hard life being a "gift". It’s a challenge when you are presented to people and once they unwrapped you, they are asking for the receipt so that they can return and exchange you. It’s hard being a gift that no one wants. This is what happens to Zechariah. He says that the first thing he did was to get rid of three shepherds. He got rid of three images of a pastor that the people wanted him to be.
The first image was that of a politician (represented here as The Herodians during Jesus' earthly ministry). The Herodians as leaders of Gods people were caught up in politics. They couldn't get anything done in leadership because everything needs a vote. As Shepherd, Zechariah was expected to play politics with the movers and shakers of his community. He had to get Deacons approval for this, and Trustees consensus on that, so that when the joint board and council meet, everyone can agree and ministry can get done. However, Zechariah found out it just isn’t that easy and just as Washington gets shut down, often God's church is shut down, because you can't get leaders to agree. So often God's shepherd does more politicking than he does preaching. He has to strokes egos and not rub certain people to wrong people...
The second expectation was that he should be an Aristocrat, a business man. represented as the Sadducees: those who were caught up in their wealth that there was no spiritual foundation. Those who live there lives accumulating things because they felt this was all there was and there would be no heaven. They want more sermons on money blessings and gaining financial wealth: name it and claim it, blab it and grab it religion. They wanted to hear more about Jabez prayer of increasing their territory than learning the lord's prayer of forgiving our debtors and we forgive our debtors. They wanted him to be a shepherd that wouldn't hold them accountable for their greed and shallow materialism. Stop telling them they have to tithe to demonstrate faith, and go to bible study to get understanding. Stop preaching about sacrificing of time and learning the word of God...
Then there was the third image the legalists represented by the Pharisees: those who wanted heaven to be about just them. Those who knew the word of God and knew how to circumvent it to justify their hypocrisy and sin. Oh come on now, you know the type. These are the ones who like to hear what other folk shouldn’t do while their getaway their perverted wickedness; the ones who like to spiritually profile sinners and keep them out of the God’s house. They are so heavenly bound but no earthly good- the ones who quote every verse about supporting pro-life, but still support the death-penalty. The ones who promote abstinence but can’t keep their young women from having babies out of wedlock and their young men from spreading HIV. The ones who can justify having multi-marriages biblically, but struggle with same-sex marriage: The bible toting Pharisees who try to legislate morality rather than addressing the sin in their own homes.
Zechariah tells us that from the onset of becoming the shepherd of God’s people, he had to get rid of three expectations of what type of leader he should be. He couldn’t fit into their preconceived notions of what a shepherd ought to be. And immediately, they detested him and he couldn’t stand them either. He tells them to just give him, his pay and he would be gone. And what do they do? They gave him thirty pieces of silver-the minimum amount by law one could pay for the life of a slave. It was the “Judas compensation package”- whereby we have to pay you but we are really not trying to pay you. Just because we have to give you something, we will give minimum wage- after all, you suppose to be doing this because you love Jesus. After all, your reward is rich in heaven. Zechariah just reminds us that as pastors, people really don't want to pay us. They'll pay doctors ten of thousands for a misdiagnosis and pain medication but give you nothing as they want to pray for healing all night long. They'll pay hundreds of dollars for an open bar and bartender at a wedding, but only give you 100 dollars to bless and officiate their ceremony. They'll pay lawyers $100/ per hour for a divorce but paid you no mind, when you tell told them not to get married at all. God's people never want to paid the shepherd.
Zechariah reminds us that it's frustrating being a Pastor. It's frustrating when you know the answer to people's problem and they just don't want to hear it. Think about it. It's like trying to describe a tree to someone who was born blind? How do you explain to him the color green or describe the texture of wood? How do you describe the sunset to someone who has never seen the sun? It becomes frustrating when you can’t describe the simplest things to one who doesn’t have sight.
I said that to say this. . . It is hard being the only one with a vision in room full of blind folks. It is frustrating to a Pastor with a vision for the church and the church is full of people with their mind’s eye closed. Now don’t get me wrong, it is not the fact that they can’t see the vision that’s the problem. It is the fact that because they can’t see they don’t want to trust his vision. It is like leading a blind person by the hand, but every time you want to turn left, he starts pulling against you to turn right. Though they can’t not see for themselves, they still won’t trust the one with the vision.
Zechariah is full of vision but they just don't want to see it. So, gives Zechariah one more assignment. He says, Zach, I have another job for you since you didn't like the last one. This time Take once more the implements of a worthless shepherd- a foolish shepherd. For lo, I am raising up in the land a shepherd who does not care for the perishing, or seek the wandering,[c] or heal the maimed, or nourish the sound, but devours the flesh of the fat ones, tearing off even their hoofs. this time do the opposite of what you try to do in your last assignment. Don't visit the sick and the shut in. don't seek the lost or pray for oppress.
Not in my mind's eyes, I imagine Zechariah saying, Lord, why would i want to be a foolish shepherd, Why would i not want to heal the sick and cloth the naked, Why would you not want me to to feed the hungry and give water to the thirsty. Lord, Why would i not want to visit those who are imprisoned and set at liberty those who held captive.
And in my mind's eye, God answers Zechariah saying because you are not me. Stop trying to be God and just be his servant. (Now, I ready to preach). You see the journey that Zechariah took was not so much for the benefit of God's people but it was so that he would know who God was. As shepherds -pastors of God people, we have limitations. We are ambassadors for God, but we are not God. We may hear his voice and be his mouthpiece, but we can read his mind or understand his ways. There are just some things we can't answer. I don't the answers to why some mothers may outlive their children and have to bury their child; or why some spouses may loose the love of their lives to cancer or heart failure. I don't why some marriages last and other don't. Or why don't why families get destroyed by addictions or displaced by hurricanes. I don't know why some people are born black or others white, or some gay and others straight. There are just some things I don't have the answer to But what I do know Is the I'll understand it better by and by.
And that's the good news, as his shepherd I don't have to have all the answers. . I might fall short as a pastor, but the great shepherd is to stand in the gap. I may not go running after every member, who says, “I’m going leave your church” but I know finder of lost souls. I may not have the gift of healing, but I do know where I can find a balm in Gilead. I may not visit every sick bed and answer every phone call but I know who you can call up on the mainline.
