June 12, 2005
“Sheep without a Shepherd”
Mathew 9:35-10:8
1. What do you know about sheep or sheepherding? Where I grew up there was no such thing to speak of … although I livedin a farming area … few raised sheep. We hardly ever ate it. I doubt it was all that available at the local butcher shop. My ancestors never talked about it much although there is Sheep ranching in both Norway and Germany.
Or, where else would we get the name of that well known dog… the German shepherd? My mother’s family, by contrast, had a Norwegian elkhound – which is used morefor hunting.
Maybe it was that sheep are not raised much for meat in the Midwest.
In fact, it is hard to get and often expensive in these parts.
So, if I want to get lamb I often get it in Minneapolis when I am down there for a visit. The best place is, appropriately enough, the Holy Land Deli … in North East. According to a promotional blurb, this Greek and Lebanese deli serves up huge gyros on homemade pita bread. You can also get chicken and lamb kebabs, hummus, spinach pie and falafel along with Middle Eastern baked goods and meats in the grocery and bakery. This is one-stop shopping for Middle Eastern delicacies, and if you love olives, you probably already know that Holy Land carries more varieties than anyone else in town. You can buy frozen lamb meat there for a bout
$ 3.99 a pound and put it in a cooler and bring it back with you.
2. Contrary to these parts, lamb is eaten in many parts of the world, especially in Greece, the Mideast, and in India.
In fact, since I am in the mood, I think I will grill up some lamb this week with a garlic, ginger, and garam marsala rub and eat it with grilled squash along with yogurt and mint, chutney and pita bread. How’s that?
I am getting hungry already!
Well, if you don’t like lamb to eat …you still might be interested in sheep if you like wool sweaters or you like to knit. Sheep are not only raised for meat but also for wool. Like in the Bemidji woolen mills.
And now that I have you think about wool and sheep … this leads us into our discussion for this morning. The use of sheep and shepherding as a primary metaphor for God and all of us … in the Bible.
For as we know … because of the fact that the Israelites depended a lot of sheepherding for their livelihood … since they lived in an agriculturally based society … we find Moses, the prophets, and Jesus, himself, using the symbolism of sheepherding for understanding of much of our religious faith.
Think about it … how many times do images of sheep and shepherds appear in the Bible?
Take a Moment …
3. Well, here are just a few, for example:
A. the story in Luke about the Shepherds who were watching their flocks whom the angels came to them and who went to the stable where Jesus was born…
B. then, there is the famous story in the 1st Book of Samuel about the shepherd boy, David, who is called to come and play the lyre for Saul and later slew Goliath and became the great leader of Israel … a true shepherd for his people …
C. but, it begins even before that – as far back, even, as the book of Genesis (Chapter 4) … the creation … when according to Scripture as you may remember, it was Able who kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the LORD. 4 But Abel brought fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The LORD looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
D. and then it was Abraham, the wandering nomadic founder of Israel, who had sheep and oxen … and even later it comes to pass that when Moses was about to die and he seeks his replacement, who will be Joshua … as it is written in the Book of Numbers: 15 Moses said to the LORD, 16 "May the LORD, the God of the spirits of all mankind, appoint a man over this community 17 to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the LORD's people will not be like sheep without a shepherd."
And, so we have these first images of Israel as like needing a leader just as Sheep need a shepherd like Abraham and David.
4. But, moreover, the Bible also calls Israel to consider its relationship to God … as that of sheep and a shepherd … as we read in the very familiar words of the Twenty-third Psalm:
1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not be in want.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, [
a] I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
In this famous psalm we have one of the great images of God … not in abstract theological language … but in the powerful metaphor of poetry and image … not like in Greek philosophy as in God is this … but rather in metaphor as in God is like … and so we learn that God is like … a faithful herder who leads his flock with “goodness and kindness.” Like a shepherd, God does not run at the first sign of trouble, but remains with the sheep.
And God skillfully grazes the hungry animals and “restores life.” He knows “the right paths” from the village to pasture and water during the dry season. He knows how to feed the hungry. This psalm also celebrates God for knowing how to protect the animals from harm. Unlike Abel, whom Cain accuses of getting lost and therefore not being worthy of the name “shepherd,” God does not wander off. We also learn that the “valley of darkness” through which God as the shepherd leads the animals describes the dangers that can lead to the loss of herd animals. For as long as God is the herder, the sheep are safe. They “dwell in the house of God,” not because they are in the temple, but because they are cared for by God, who is a good shepherd.
And there you have it … might as well quit now … what more do we need? So, if someone comes and asks you what is God like … here is your answer … right? God is like the good shepherd in Psalm 23.
5. but, we know that is not the end of the story … at least not for Israel … because, although they had a great leader (or shepherd) in King David … it was not always that way …
Troubled times came upon Israel … and God was not happy with the leaders of that Nation … and God raised up prophets who spoke to the people and to the rulers … as we read in Ezekiel (Chapter 34) and this is what Ezekiel said (on behalf of God):
Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? 3 You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. 6 My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them.
6. For this is the time of the Babylonian captivity … and Israel, it seems has been scattered and destroyed. Yet in the midst of this time of despair God first speaks judgment against the rulers of Israel … and says:
I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock. I will remove them from tending the flock so that the shepherds can no longer feed themselves. I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them.
11 " 'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep.
Then God promises to make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety.
And, when this is done God says: they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You the sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "
7. And, in condemning the rulers of Israel, God says that He will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats.
Which leads to a little quiz for this morning:
How do you tell the difference between sheep and goats? Anybody know?
Sheep have fleece and goats have hair.
Sheep say baa and goats say maa (their sounds are different)
Most goats have horns, sheep do not.
Sheep appear generally to be not as smart as goats.
While goats like to run with the sheep they don’t like to be shepherded. In other words … they are more independent …
What this means is not that one is literally good and the other bad but rather that sheep and goats are a figure of speech. For, in the Jewish sense of things, both animals are kosher and fit for sacrifice. Sheep aren't good and goats bad. Sheep aren't chosen because they're meek and gentle whereas goats are randy and rambunctious. Sheep and goats are different kinds of animals. They only signify difference.
And so they are used often in metaphors in the Bible such as in the famous judgment story in Mathew 25:
31"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32All 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. 33He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34"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. 35For 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, 36I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
And so on … and of course … I could get into a good argument over this and other passages … which are used, on the one hand, to uphold and condemn either those who have the true faith and those who do not … according to the Calvinist idea of predestination where God literally condemns some to hell and others to heaven even before the beginning of the world or, on the other hand, more literally, to support the idea that God rewards those who act to help the poor. Take your pick. I am not going to get into that today.
8. In today’s scriptural passage from Mathew we read:
35Then Jesus made a circuit of all the towns and villages. He taught in their meeting places, reported kingdom news, and healed their diseased bodies, healed their bruised and hurt lives. 36When he looked out over the crowds, his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. 37"What a huge harvest!" he said to his disciples. "How few workers! 38On your knees and pray for harvest hands!"
If we assume by this passage and by our theology the Divinity of Christ then here we have God, in person, encountering the real reality of human life … walking among us … the incarnation …
And, at least in this passage … not a judgmental God at all … a least not toward the majority of people … isn’t that right … what we have here is a God who is moved by compassion … that’s what it says … in the Eugene Peterson version … “his heart broke” --- by what he sees …
And what does He see? He sees people who are confused … aimless … like sheep without a shepherd!!!
And what do we see … today … people confused … aimless … uncertainty … doubt … anger … fear … trouble …
No, this is not some God up on high … in heaven … far away … looking on in judgment … but, no, this is the same God of Psalm 23 … the good shepherd … here among us … in the person of Jesus … seeing things “up close and personal” --- and God is “moved to compassion” ---
There is a thought for you to take home today … and think about.
What is God all about? What would you answer? God is compassionate … just like Jesus … or is it the other way around?
9. Now while Mathew still only hints at the Divinity of Christ … in the Gospel of John … John puts it straight out … in the open …
See, how much Bible study you are getting today … I don’t always do this … but you can’t go home today … saying Pastor Hucke didn’t mention the Bible … because this is all Bible … right?
Now, let me read from John using the Eugene Peterson translation. Here is what Jesus says:
1"Let me set this before you as plainly as I can. If a person climbs over or through the fence of a sheep pen instead of going through the gate, you know he's up to no good--a sheep rustler! 2The shepherd walks right up to the gate. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. 5They won't follow a stranger's voice but will scatter because they aren't used to the sound of it."
6Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. 7So he tried again. "I'll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. 8All those others are up to no good--sheep stealers, every one of them. But the sheep didn't listen to them. 9I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for--will freely go in and out, and find pasture. 10A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
11"I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd puts the sheep before himself, sacrifices himself if necessary. 12A hired man is not a real shepherd. The sheep mean nothing to him. He sees a wolf come and runs for it, leaving the sheep to be ravaged and scattered by the wolf. 13He's only in it for the money. The sheep don't matter to him.
14"I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. 15In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. 16You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They'll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd.
10. And now you have it … Jesus … like Moses … like Abraham … like David … is like a shepherd and He like is the good shepherd like the God of Psalm 23rd -- who in fact He is …
So where does that leave us?
Are we sheep without a shepherd? Are we lost? Do we recognize the Master’s voice when he calls?
Do we really like being thought of as sheep? Here in America where we are supposed to be all self reliant individuals … all in charge of our own destiny … all looking out for # 1 … all making it on our own … and not dependent on anyone or anything …
Can this be true? When all we hear are messages like …“Get all you can … while you can … it’s all yours … it belongs to you …” Don’t be a sheep … run with the wolves …swim with the sharks … got a problem …better get down to the bookstore and get another self help book … one that will tell you how to live a guilt free life … and get you off the hook with those annoying relatives … and the boss you can’t stand … and all the rest … and besides God will love you all the more for it!!! Is that what life is all about? Is that what Jesus was talking about … is that what the Kingdom of God is all about? Is that what he sent his disciples out to proclaim when he said that they would be like sheep among the wolves …?
11. Obviously, we have to be careful here in our interpretations … do we not? Just as we, like the sheep, must be careful in whose voice we listen to …
For, it is clear by now, that according to the Biblical accounts, there are good shepherds and bad shepherds … and we know what Jesus thought of the religious and political leaders of his day … for he called them rustlers, and hired hands, and sheep stealers …
And, like Ezekiel before him, he said Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves!
And, yet, even today … we have religious leaders and institutions who exist more to perpetuate themselves … and to get rich … and no sooner to we get rid of one bunch of televangelists than another one comes along like Benny Hinn who flies around in fancy jets and owns countless wealthy homes and justifies it all in the name of God … to say nothing of all the other strange religious cults and profiteers …
It seems as though people are willing to believe almost anything … nowadays … In fact, someone I used to work with told me about a friend who twenty years ago, just for fun, invented his own religion … which he called the Church of the SubGenius. I looked it up on the internet … and it’s still going … the Church of the SubGenius … you can even be ordained … buy T shirts the whole thing … and it’s all a hoax … and it’s funny … or a least I think it is … look it up.
12. On the more serious side … recently our faith discussion group watched the documentary on the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the Germany Lutheran pastor … in Germany during the time of Hitler… and there was this amazing newsreel photo of Hitler as he returned to Berlin after the defeat of France … and hundreds of thousands of madly cheering Germans … saluting … and believing that this little man with a funny mustache had redeemed them from the defeat they had suffered in World War II. Like sheep they blindly they followed him … and then only a short four years later you see the same city of Berlin in total ruins, bombed into total oblivion … What kind of shepherd was he?
And this same Bonhoeffer was executed in prison for daring to oppose Hitler almost at the same time as Hitler was taking his own life … before the Allies could capture him …
Sheep among the wolves … sometimes we are …. It seems … and yet this was Jesus, too, wasn’t it … for he did not seek power … or to revenge himself … but sought to bring God’s love into every heart … who would listen … He sought to be the good shepherd …
And so we … are to understand that while we are to be like sheep in following Jesus and hearing his voice … we are also to be shepherds and to lead others … as it is written in Peter 5:1-11: So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
13. So, I don’t want to leave you with the idea that as hearers of Jesus word … and followers of Jesus … is just a matter of being sheep in the sense of blind obedience … or subservience … not at all.
Too much abuse has happened in terms of religious institutions … leaders … families … and all the rest to give anyone the idea that blind obedience is what is called for …
Otherwise there wouldn’t be all the condemnation of false leaders and shepherds who mislead their flock … in the Bible
So, it is a two way street … we are to be like sheep … as hearers of the word and followers of Jesus … and yet at the same time we are to be shepherds and leaders … in hearing and doing the word … and to be watchful and careful … that we are not led astray and that we do not lead others astray …
Does that make sense …?
Think about it … have you ever had to be shepherd … of course you have … just being a parent … or a grandparent … or a teacher … or at your work … or being a friend to someone …
We all do it … we all are hearers and doers of God’s word … even if we aren’t always aware of it …
And we don’t necessarily have to be making a big deal out of it … or pointing attention to what we are doing or trying to get everyone to agree with our point of view …as if we, and we only, know the absolute truth about Jesus … that’s what it says …
shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.
14. That’s why we are here today … because we have been called … and we come to hear the word … of God … who knows each of us by name …
And we are called to be followers … and to be shepherds … and to have compassion as Jesus did … and to reach out those in need … both those who are hungry … and who are poor … but also those who are spiritually hungry … and who need a friend … and are hurting …
Those who need someone to shepherd them …
It’s going on all the time … for God is always at work … just as Jesus was … teaching in the synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, healing the sick … and saying … to his disciples … go and do likewise …. all for no direct personal gain … for as we have received without paying … we give without pay …
Let us pray …
