I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 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. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me (John 10:11-14).
Shepherding comes with responsibility as it involves tending, herding, feeding, or guarding herds of sheep. A shepherd has to possess the temperament, commitment and the wherewithal to protect and provide for the sheep he leads.
The Shepherd and Sheep imagery were used in the Old Testament to describe the relationship between God and His chosen people and the earthly leaders that should lead these people. God expected the leaders of Israel to lead His people as committed shepherds but that was not to be. Their failure included lack of care, lack of commitment, unfaithfulness, greed, abandonment, wickedness and bringing disunity among God’s people. In Ezekiel 34:1-4, the prophet wrote, “The word of the LORD came to me: 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? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep. 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”.
God would not abandon a project nor abandon His own people so He promised in verses 11-12 “For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness”
Jesus Christ is God’s fulfilment of this promise. First He came as man – with flesh and blood, and demonstrated sacrificial and servant shepherding. Jesus was willing to and did sacrifice His life so the sheep might live. It is this extreme commitment to the welfare of the sheep that qualified Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Good shepherding involves protecting, providing, and self-sacrifice. In John 10:1-18 Jesus apparently contrasted Himself with the unworthy and ignoble Israel’s leaders who acted as hired hands when they tried to preserve their own positions and willingly sacrificed Jesus. Because they do not care, they sought and harmed God’s sheep for personal gain.
Jesus last words to His disciples before being taken away as recorded in Acts 1:8 were that “… you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” His commission to them and to all that believe in Him is to seek His lost sheep to the ends of the earth and bring them to the same flock. The promised Spirit is available to us now if we will allow Him into our lives.
Christian leaders would be behaving like hired hands when we put our own needs ahead of the requirements of those we are called upon to serve. Apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 5:1c-4, “I exhort the elders among you to tend the flock of God that is in your charge, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion but willingly, as God would have you do it — not for sordid gain but eagerly. Do not lord it over those in your charge, but be examples to the flock. And when the chief shepherd appears, you will win the crown of glory that never fades away.”
We have God’s sheep that we shepherd in one way or the other – young Christians, workers, family. And we are joint heirs with Christ Jesus to God’s kingdom (Romans 8:14-17) so God’s sheep are ours and we should not shepherd them like hired hands.
Have a fulfilling week as you place the needs of others above yours.
Your brother, Vicar & Archdeacon
S. Igein Isemede