Why does God use the image of shepherd to
describe His relationship with us? I
suppose, when people really ask that question, they want to know why God is
insulting them by calling them a sheep.
But it is a question which has come up in a number of Advent locales the
last month. It’s been a subject in
Sunday morning Bible study led by Larry.
It’s come up in our Monday morning and Tuesday evening Bible studies. It even served as a discussion on social
media in light of language and Prayer Revision proposals at General Convention.
I have to confess I have never really
thought of sheep language as insulting or misogynistic or separating us from
God. I have been told that because I am
a white aging male heterosexual in the church, I wouldn’t. Sheep language speaks to patriarchy and
misogyny and the oppression of minorities in Scripture, at least according to
some. Like you, I am scratching my head
at that one. I did not give it much
thought, truth be told. I assumed that
those who tended sheep in Israel were, well, Jews. If people tended sheep in Egypt, I would
assume that they were Egyptians. If
folks tended sheep in Midian, I assumed they were Midianites. Quite frankly, thanks to Moses’ wife, I don’t
really even think of being a shepherd in the ANE as an exclusively male
occupation, though I do recognize that men mostly did it. But women seem to have been capable of doing
the job in Scripture, or at least in the movies about Scripture!
The other problem, of course, is that we
believe Scripture is God breathed. That
means God is involved in the writing, the editing, the collecting, and every
other part that goes into His people’s decision discerning that a writing
belongs in Scripture. God does not seem
to be too big on insulting or shaming us.
God is all about confronting us with the truth, but He is not a parent
who works by shaming. If calling us
sheep were somehow oppressive, I figure the Holy Spirit would have helped
remove those references in Scripture over time.
The fact that they remain tells us there is something important in the
use of that imagery.
It’s also helped by the fact that one of
my seminary professors was a bi-vocational priest early in his ordained
life. Many of you read the article that
Leander wrote for The Living Church looking to the future life of our church,
now that GC has made its decisions. More
than one of you have remarked to me or on social media how gentle his article
was. Leander, I am sure, would credit
some of his softness to those lessons he learned early in his pastoral
life. FYI—Leander is the one who told
the story “Away to me” and the priest who once lost a body. Well, he did not lose it technically. He started out performing a traditional
funeral in a church cemetery that ended with an unexpected burial at sea. We are, as he taught from time to time in
class, very much like sheep. In fact,
our real problem is that we are removed from an agrarian society. We assume we know about farm life; when, in
fact, most of us would starve were we to use our “knowledge” to feed ourselves
and those whom we love.
For example, how many of us think sheep
are stupid? Go ahead, raise your
hands. Of those of you with hands
upraised, how many of you have spent significant time with sheep? Whoa!
Those went down quick. Why, then,
do you think they are stupid? Ah, don’t
watch where they are going? Good. Can’t tell wolves from other sheep,
good. You’ve been told they eat things
that are bad, if not poisonous, for them, good.
I’ll actually cover those qualities in a second, but let’s talk about
their supposed stupidity first. They are
not stupid animals at all. Talk to a
sheep farmer and you will quickly learn that sheep are fantastic at finding a
hole. If there is a hole in the fence,
every one of them will find it and escape.
It’s almost like they don’t want to be penned in.
How do they find the holes or broken spots
in fences? Some shepherds wonder that,
too. You see, sheep have great vision
from about 12-18 inches in front of their face.
Think how their bodies are shaped and they heads work. Their vision is perfect for seeing what’s in
front of them. But, seeing some distance
ahead or some distance behind is nigh impossible. That frustrates the shepherds because they
find the damn holes so easily!
That eyesight, too, contributes to
predators’ ability to sneak up on them.
They are, as you’ve now been reminded, great at seeing what’s right in
front of them. If a wolf or other
predator approaches from the side or behind and, more importantly, from
downwind, they have no way of telling who or what is there. When the dogs herd them, they are responding
more to the barking, the noise, than to any real fear of the size or appearance
of the dog. And, if the dog is a good
nipper, then pretty much any dog can be used to herd the sheep.
One other characteristic stands out about
sheep: they are incredibly stubborn!
Once a sheep gets an idea into its head, it seems to stay there. Leander, just to remind you, famously talked
about sheep with an incredible urge and drive to start swimming for Portugal
from their island pastures off the coasts of New Brunswick and Maine. In case you did not know it, wool does not
make the best floatation device. And,
it’s a long swim from the NE coast of North America to Portugal! Yet, sheep will work hard to get where they
think they want to be.
Sheep are also evolutionarily weak. They are really dependent upon others and
upon their human shepherds for survival.
Many animals have an instinct for things that are dangerous or poisonous
to them. Sheep have no such
quality. Their method seems to be “if
it’s green, I’ll eat it. If it moves, it
must be another sheep.” Leander would
share stories of how shepherds would go looking for their flocks, across a hill
or ravine, only to find the flock decimated by a noxious plant or
predator. They simply did not recognize
the danger, even after the danger began preying upon others in the flock.
I could go on, but hopefully you have
begun to see why God uses the image of sheep to describe us. Many of us are pretty stubborn, often to the
point of being stiff-necked. We are
often narrowly focused. We know what we
want, and we want it now! We are often
oblivious to dangers. Why do you think
so many of us get hooked on drugs or alcohol or engage in unsafe sex? Why do you think so many of us eat too much
or exercise too little, knowing the long term consequences of such behavior? We are easily blinded. If left to our own devices, we can often find
ourselves entangled, wounded, or injured.
Although we do not recognize it, we are highly dependent upon someone
caring for us. We tend to follow the
herd unless we get a new idea in our head that causes that stubborn streak to
rear its head. One might argue that part
of the discord facing our country is the increase in the number of voices
willing to shepherd us. Many of those
offered voices do not have our best interests at heart. I hear and see the rueful laughter and
expressions on your faces. You get that
metaphor a bit better.
There’s another image at play, too, when
God is describing us as sheep and either Himself or Jesus as the Good
Shepherd. Kings in the ANE described
themselves as shepherds. The idea was
that the people needed someone to care for them, like sheep. They needed someone to protect, to feed, to
tell them what was best for them. The
problem, of course, was that too many kings were intent on their own
self-interest rather than the good of their people, much like those
“entertainment” and “wisdom” voices offered today in our own time. God, of course, is the only One truly
concerned about what is best for His people.
But we Americans chafe at the idea of kingship. The idea that one person could tell us what
is best for us is an abomination or four letter word. We
can figure out what we need. We
can take care of ourselves. And so we reject this image because we really
reject the idea of bending the knee.
Think I am kidding? Look at the recent GC discussions over the
idea of LORD as being too masculine and misogynistic. How many of us are willing to go along with
God, so long as His ideas don’t impinge on our freedom, our knowledge, or our
opinions? How many of us try hard to
recreate God and claim ownership of Him?
My God would never . . . My God
does not require me to go to church. My
God does not expect me to carry a cross that hurts. My God understands I need to make sure the
Vestry is spending my gifts, my tithes, and my offerings on the right things. Oooh.
That caused some squirming. Did I
hit to close to the truth in our hearts?
That understanding, of course, serves as
background for one of the central points of our lesson. He had
compassion for them, because they were sheep without a shepherd. When does Jesus’ compassion, God’s
compassion, finally wear thin? When, in
Scripture, are you and I ever taught that God does not have compassion for us
and our plights, no matter whether are plights are our own making or the making
of someone or something else? Good
answer. If you did not hear, there was a
cry of Judgement Day. Certainly the
parable of the workers in the vineyard speaks to that. All who get in to work before the whistle
blows get the days’ wages. Time and time
and time again, how does God respond to the short-sightedness, the
stubbornness, the sin of His people?
Compassionately. How do we? How do we who claim Him as Lord and who claim
to be His heralds, His ambassadors, how do we respond to the needs of those
around us? Is there a limit to our
response? Is there a point at which we
have decided we have helped enough, that we have given them all that He
requires of us?
I have been reminded of the need for
Sabbath rest by some Adventers these last few weeks. It has dawned on some that we do not get away
enough. In truth, I think I have only
used three or four weeks of vacation since I arrived at Advent, and all but one
of those was the first summer, the last being Amanda’s graduation. So, in the lead up to this sermon, I knew
this would be the classic case of the pot calling the kettle black. If I stood in the pulpit and chewed us out
for not taking our Sabbath, I ran the risk of some Adventers preaching my own
sermon back at me later in the week.
Rightfully so.
Sabbaths are vitally important to us and our
life with God, and we may get to that in a moment. The are needed, vital, for us to tune out the
noise of the world and to focus on the still, small voice of God. I am more concerned right now, though, with the
limits of our compassion. How do we
respond to others in need? Where do we
limit our response? When is enough
enough? These are clearly challenging
questions, right? Jesus leads His
disciples away to rest and eat. But the
crowd hunts them down. As tired as He is
and the disciples are, though, Jesus does not send them away. He sees they are like sheep without a
shepherd and begins to teach them. Heck,
we skip over it until next week, but He eventually feeds them, after
challenging the disciples about the food!
As important as Sabbaths are, God values
compassion even more. After all, you and
I are called by Him to represent Him to the world. That means we are required to be open to the
need that is around us at all times and to respond as He calls us to respond. How we respond to those in need, of course,
testifies to our belief in God as our Lord, our Shepherd, often in ways we
never consider.
Giving is an easy measure and
testimony. Many of us are happy to give
when it is convenient or we have plenty.
But what about those times that it gets in the way? Say, maybe when you are out to dinner or a
movie? Perhaps when you cross the street
or avoid someone because you know the ask is coming? If God is the Creator of all that is, seen
and unseen, if He is truly limitless and cares for us, should there be a limit
to our giving? I am not talking about
the needs we do not know or the needs that we do not have. I am talking about those needs we know, those
needs we have, and that we guiltily avoid or excuse. Why kind of testimony are we offering the
potential receiver? What kind of
testimony are we offering those around us?
And how do we respond when things, be they money, time, emotions or
other, are stretched thin or frayed? Do
we respond as does our Lord, or do we turn miserly? Selfishly?
Jesus has the same need for a break in His
Incarnated form. Yet how does He
respond? It’s easy to excuse our
shortcomings, right? I am not God. Maybe the stories are embellished. We are quick to think up excuses which justify
our actions and decisions rather than to do the best we can to follow our Lord
and Savior. If I helped every bum I encountered, I’d be a bum myself! If I gave to ever cause God put on my heart,
I’d have no money for me! If I wasted
time on all these people, I’d never have time for me. Squirming again, huh?
I do not speak this as one condemning, I
am right there in the midst of it with you.
Some of you are really good about calling me or visiting me on Fridays. In my mind, there are 150-200 Adventers whom
I know God has given into my cure. In
the minds of Adventers, there may be as many as 600 or so. Can you imagine the temptation I have not to
answer the phone on Fridays? How many
10-15 minute conversations would it take you for you to let the calls go to
voicemail? Or how many times would it
take for an individual to call you on your Sabbath about something non-emergent
to let them go to voicemail? Yet, as the
professional disciple around here, what should be my response? Should it be the response of the world, or
should it mimic the response of God? Of
course, we are all disciples of God when it comes right down to it, why should
your response to need be any different than what you expect of me? Yes, time away for rest and refresh is
important, but you and I minister among sheep in the wilderness. Their needs do not always correspond to what
is easy for us. In fact, Jesus would say
quite the opposite. We are, are we not,
called to bear crosses, not signs of relaxation.
In the end, the real teaching of this
section for us this season is that we are insufficient to meet the need of
those around us. If left to our own
devices, our own resources, we would fail.
We know this, even though we don’t really know this. Thankfully,
mercifully, compassionately, we are not.
We are called by God, equipped by God, supplied by God, taught by God
that He is the Good Shepherd, that He is the only One who can meet needs. It is only He that truly has the best
interests of me and you and everyone we encounter in the world at heart. The best you and I can do is serve as
signposts, as pointers, to Him.
Sometimes, that work is best done when we are out of patience, when we
are out of supplies, when we are out of resources, because then you and I are
reminded of our insufficiency and of His complete sufficiency to meet whatever
need. It is in those frustrating moment
of our impotence that His power is best evidenced to us. What’s the verse, His power is made perfect
in weakness?
Too often, you and I like to think that it
is we who are making a difference in the lives of others. I do not wish to downplay His desire that you
and I respond as He asks, but we often inflate our standing in His kingdom in
our own eyes, both to our own spiritual danger and to the detriment of
others. Were it not for the Holy Spirit
giving us eyes to see, would we see that beggar soon enough to cross a street
to avoid him or her and their need? Were
it not for the Holy Spirit giving us ears to hear, would we be able to hear the
need that is so often behind the expressed want or need? How otherwise do we even think to ask the
probing question or questions? Were it
not for the Holy Spirit giving us hearts to understand the needs of those with
whom we are in particular relationships, would we know to let them go to
voicemail or to let the call for help go unanswered? And were it not for God blessing us, would we
have anything, anything at all that might allow us to show compassion in His
name?
Our focus these last couple weeks have
been on baptism. Beginning next week we will
begin the shift to the Eucharist. It’s
how the lectionary divided the readings and not Brian’s grand plan. I do recognize, however, that there has been
a real tension in the lives to which we are called and the lives in which we
live. A couple weeks ago, I reminded us
all that God, by virtue of our baptisms, has sworn a covenant with us not
dissimilar to the one He swore with David.
As a result, we should be mindful of the fact that God is with us, no
matter what we face or experience in life and no matter the testimony of the
world. I have also reminded us all these
last few weeks that, although God desires each and every one of us to choose to
serve Him, He is not “lucky that we chose Him” or His side. That kind of pride can lead to all kinds of
spiritual dangers and even damnation.
The difficulty is reminding ourselves to Whom we are bound.
If we mistakenly believe that this, all
this and the associated ministries here at Advent, are the doings of you and
me, we will ultimately fail. This parish
will wither and die. I’m not bad as far
as professional clergy go. I’m fairly
smart, pretty well-educated. I think I’m
attractive. Wait, why are y’all laughing
like I just told a joke? I can read
balance sheets and budgets. I can speak
effectively to the working poor in our community and the Vandy-educated. But nobody has ever accused me of walking on
water, of feeding 5000 men besides women and children, of casting out demons,
of healing the sick, of freeing a slave, or anything else of my own power. Those miracles have clearly been of God. In fact the stories y’all enjoy the most are
the ones in which we, both you and I, marvel at God’s redemptive power, God’s
omnipotence, and God’s compassion.
Similarly, nobody in the wildnernesses in which y’all serve should have
any suggestion that you are little messiahs.
That role has been filled by the only One who could fill it. What makes us significant, what makes our
work truly valuable, is the One for Whom you and I are called to work. And it is only through His instruction, His
callings, His provision, and even His judgment that you and I are valued. To put it in biblical language, His image is
stamped on us, not the other way around.
Brothers and sisters, for some months I
have allowed to lie dormant the idea of a corporate ministry. It is not because I have given up or because
I do not think we are called to one.
Rather the converse. I have come
to realize, though, that few of us are truly attuned to God, few of us strive
to hear the voice of our Shepherd. Some
of us show up for worship most Sundays.
Far fewer really study God’s Word.
Fewer still are engaged in various ministries. And we have the gall to question, to wonder,
why it is so hard for us to hear His voice and to wonder why He is not blessing
us in the way that we think we deserve.
Our readings these last few weeks have been challenging, I get
that. We have spoken of the comfort and
the fear that should come from knowing He is with us. But these readings are also full of great and
wonderful news. God wants to use
you! God wants you to commit to
Him! But, to do that, we must commit on
His terms, not our own. And it’s there,
perhaps, that we find the most splinters from the cross He asks each of us to
bear. The path that He has staked out to
glory for all His children, all His adopted sons and daughters, is one that
leads through failure, through pain, through privation, and eventually even
through death. But even our death is not
the last word if we are His beloved children, if we have committed to Him, if
we have determined to trust Him with everything we have! Such is the covenant that He is made with each
one of us at our baptisms that He would be besmirched, He would be dishonored,
were He unable to keep His promises to us and for us. And so, all those evils through which He
allows us to pass is none other than the path that leads to glory. Not a fleeting glory like the world’s 15
minutes of fame. But an eternal peace,
an eternal joy, of THE job well done, of a sheep that is beside still waters.
In
Christ’s Peace,
Brian†
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