Our Calling: Shepherd or Sheep?

The word of the Lord came to me: ² Mortal, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel: prophesy, and say to them—to the shepherds: Thus says the Lord God: Ah, you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? ³ You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep. ⁴ You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the strayed, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled them. ⁵ So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and scattered, they became food for all the wild animals. ⁶ My sheep were scattered, they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill; my sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with no one to search or seek for them.

Ezekiel 34: 1-6

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹² The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. ¹³ The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. ¹⁴ I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, ¹⁵ just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. ¹⁷ For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. ¹⁸ No one takes^[a] it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”

                                                                    John 10: 11-18  

Abel, Abraham, Rachel, Jacob, Moses… Jesus- what did they have in common? All were shepherds- a role that, at one point, was considered a chief occupation.  It wasn’t until agriculture took off to new levels that the role of the shepherd was reserved for the youngest son or a hired hand- and then Shepherds were looked down upon and even hated at times.  Over time, “shepherd” became a designation for kings, Israel’s leaders, and God- just as seen in the all time favorite Psalm 23 that was used for this morning’s call to worship.  A shepherd’s job was to lead the sheep to food and water and to keep them safe from the wild animals- much like these leaders were charged to do for their people.

The term “shepherd” is mentioned over 200 times throughout the Bible so one can’t help but think that it might be important.  Of the 200 times that shepherds are mentioned- only 16 of those are in the New Testament when we find the shepherds in the field on the night when Jesus was born, and the remaining occurrences all refer to the relationship that Jesus has with his followers or between the church leaders and members- a role that when translated in it’s Latin form actually means “pastor”.

This morning’s Old Testament reading reflects the concern of the dwindling respect and care of the shepherd’s role- those who are supposed to be caring for the people (the metaphorical sheep).  Here, we find a warning for those leaders who chose to care for and tend to themselves rather than their people.  Our Gospel text goes beyond how the leaders care for their people and focuses on how Christ cares for his sheep, the people- or does it? 

This text is not terribly uncommon for those entering into ministry within the church as in many cases, following Paul’s lead, the minister is referred to as a shepherd and the congregation, the flock. However, my question this morning is if that is where this text stops? During my first week in my chaplaincy internship, a patient asked me a very bold question that I will never forget- “In this crazy, messed up world will you be a sheep or a shepherd?”

The Good Shepherd provides us with a narrative of what it means to be a true leader.  Christ highlights the importance of caring for one’s flock- laying down one’s life for those in your care, knowing each sheep by name and caring for those not necessarily in your charge.  Here, Christ paves the way for us as a leader- demonstrating to us the ultimate and absolute love that is required of a role such as this.

The good shepherd lays down their life for the sheep when a hired hand might flee when danger comes.  I am reminded of a scene in one of my favorite childhood movies that I watched during one of the recent snow days- in the story of “Babe” the pig who just doesn’t fit in, the young pig finds a pack of dogs attacking the sheep in the field- the ones that are in the care of the farmer who took him in- and immediately the pig charges into the field throwing himself at the dogs and chasing them away in order to save the flock.  Now, Jesus wasn’t a young pig but I imagine this scene is a lot like he might have been picturing when he explained the importance of being present so as to protect the flock from the wild animals- something that this morning’s Old Testament passage tells us was not actually happening in many cases.

“I am the good shepherd, I know my sheep and they know me.”  Have you ever seen a flock of sheep? Maybe for some of you it might be a bit different, but for me they just look like one big wooly mess! How in the world can someone tell each sheep apart from the next? Maybe there is a spot on the face or leg, but I don’t want to have to get that close just to tell them apart.  Anyone who has ever worked with a large group of people probably knows the feeling of not knowing anyone from the next person- even if you figure it out one day, it is not likely that they will be wearing that same green shirt that helped you tell them apart from the blue shirt next week.  However, Jesus tells us that he knows every sheep in the flock- every child of God- and this isn’t the first time that we have been told this! Remember the story of the lost sheep when we are told not just that he knows every sheep, but that he knows every sheep BY NAME? Think about the amount of love and genuine care that would be needed for this.  This would not likely come from someone who is just hired off the street to watch the sheep.

“I have other sheep that don’t belong to this pen… I must lead them too.”  The care and love of a good shepherd is not limited to this single flock, but instead it is shared with ALL sheep- Just as a doctor is not only present for their patients but is also charged with the care of those in need throughout their daily lives when someone asks if there is a doctor in the room.  Here we find just another example of Christ’s incredible, unending love for ALL of us.

As if the description of the role of the good shepherd weren’t enough, Jesus continues and explains that this isn’t anything that he is forced to do but instead he CHOOSES to do this.  Yes, he was instructed by God to do this, but it was his personal choice that led him to follow through.  How easy would it be to ignore those instructions and continue to lead an easy, stress free life only worrying about ones self? After all, that is what we found in Ezekiel- however just as in Ezekiel, we find the importance and need for this outward focus and care.  If no one steps up and cares for the flock, the people, the wild animals and external evils will come in and at the very least scatter the flock.

ON THE FLIP SIDE, we have the sheep.  It can be all to easy to take the attitude of many of the animals in that movie “Babe” and say that sheep are dumb and that is just how it is.  However, my question today is what role do the sheep play?  Because there can’t be a shepherd, much less a GOOD shepherd, if there are no sheep- and it isn’t just that Jesus knows each one of them, but that THEY know HIM.  There is a relationship that has been fostered with shared love, concern, and respect.  So I think that it is important that we look at both sides of this coin.  In fact, sheep were so important that they are mentioned over 500 times throughout the Bible.

In biblical times, sheep represented wealth- they provided food, drink, clothing and shelter and also served as sacrificial offerings.  They weren’t just “any other animal”.  There was a great need to keep the sheep safe so that the people could survive and this is still the case in many places around the world where sheep and goats are the main source of nutrition for many.  Then there are the additional benefits like keeping the grass trimmed and the crops fertilized. 

Quite contrary to popular belief, sheep aren’t stupid.  In fact, I would venture to say that they have the “strength in numbers” strategy figured out quite nicely as one rarely sees a single sheep as they usually travel in flocks.  In my research about sheep I found stories from Great Britain where witnesses talked about seeing flocks of sheep roll over 8 feet of hoof-proof metal cattle grids in order to get to gardens for food.  Sheep are known to develop friendships with one another, and with humans, due to their ability to remember faces.  Many tests have been done that demonstrate the high intelligence level of sheep, sometimes believed to be equal to that of humans.

Knowing all of this, I can’t help but wonder why so many people look down on sheep today.  They serve incredible purposes, and I would argue that we could learn a lot from them- at least that flock that learned how to get to the gardens!

And so I am brought back to that question from my patient- “In this crazy, messed up world- will you be a sheep or a shepherd?”  Well, I think that both are equally important.

In this crazy, messed up world as my patient put it, we are all called to different roles and if all of these roles are not filled than the world might be a bit crazier and more messed up.  It might be easier to ask and answer the question of where we would be if we didn’t have leaders like the good shepherd- scattered, lost, alone, confused…. We could go on for a while.  But what if we didn’t have flocks like those that the good shepherd tends to? Hungry, cold, alone…

As I briefly mentioned earlier, Paul is the one who clearly drew the correlation between the shepherd and flock relationship with the pastor and church relationship.  The pastor, like the shepherd, is called to lead the congregation to find nourishment from the Word of God and to stay with them through the struggles of life.  The congregation is called to join together to provide needed relationships and support for another and the community, joining together to listen to and follow the leadership of the pastor.  BOTH the shepherd and the sheep, the pastor and the congregation, the leader and the follower are needed.

When my patient asked if I would be a sheep or a shepherd, right away I wanted to respond “Shepherd- of course!” However, is that always the answer that we need to give?

The description of the good shepherd that we read today is the ideal for what any leader should strive to be- but it is exhausting! If we are always striving to be that good shepherd in all that we do, will we ever actually make it there? What if we paid more attention that relationship with the sheep that is mentioned and strove to be the sheep in various parts of life?  8 months after the original question was asked, I have the answer that I wish I could have given to my patient that day- “Well, there are parts of my life when I really strive to be a representation of the good shepherd that Jesus taught, but there are also aspects of my life when I realize that I am a much better sheep and that is ok.”  Does it make us any less a person to give an answer like that? I don’t think so.

So, today I want to ask you the same question- in this crazy, messed up world are you a sheep or a shepherd… or are you both? 

In the closing scenes of “Babe”, we find a young pig who has been raised by sheep dogs standing in the middle of a huge field in the middle of the sheep dog championship, faced with a small flock of sheep.  As the clock ticks down, the crowd is wondering why the farmer is wasting their time with this little pig- after all, pigs are NOT supposed to herd sheep.  And then we see the sheep begin to move, without any mistakes along the way, and as the flock enters the gate with the pig by their side the crowd erupts and with a perfect score from the judges, Babe the pig is now a “sheep pig”.

Our calling to be a shepherd or sheep might come in the strangest of places just as this pig herded the sheep and the sheep listened to the pig- neither an expected action.  We just have to listen and pay attention.  No matter where you are called or what you are called to be- there is something that is present throughout the description of the good shepherd that we can all hold onto.  The incredible amount of love and care that is needed to be a shepherd is also needed to be a sheep- neither role only looks to themselves, but rather they look out for the good of the flock- they form a relationship with one another.

Where in the life of this congregation are you called to be a shepherd? Where are you called to be a sheep?

Where in your own life are you called to be a shepherd? Where are you called to be a sheep?

No matter where you are called, no matter how perfect or odd that it might seem- let the focus of your service be those relationships that are formed.  At the heart of the text of the good shepherd we find a phrase that is commonly overlooked-

“I know my sheep and they know me.”

At the center of Christ’s teachings we find this same focus on relationships- never letting any single role outshine another as long as ALL are focused on serving God.

So, whether you are a sheep or a shepherd, how will your service to God both within our congregation and your personal life, enhance and strengthen your relationships with one another, the community, and with God?

Because every sheep needs a shepherd… and every shepherd needs a sheep- and we are all dependent on the one true Good Shepherd.