THE GREAT SHEPHERD

                                                     THE GREAT SHEPHERD

    Today we're going to combine the study of animal husbandry and spirituality as it
actually applies to scripture. You understand, of course, that Jesus Christ was and is
the greatest and perfect shepherd ever. There are many reasons Christ used shepherd
and sheep in His teaching. Perhaps it will help you to understand God's Holy Word if
you take a crash course in animal husbandry and why Christ chose sheep and their
care as an example for you. I realize some of you have never seen a live sheep, and
have no experience in their care. We do not have the opportunity to see Him in the flesh,
either, but we have His teaching.

    I will quote the 23rd Psalm to begin this message, because it says it all. While this
scripture is often used to comfort people who are troubled, it is for each of us from day
one through life, troubled or at peace. "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." Now 
go to verse 6, "All the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever."
The heavenly guarantee is clearly and simply put. Now we need to know why Christ
used sheep and Himself to teach us.

     Why use sheep instead of cattle or horses, or any other animal? If you raised or
worked with sheep, you would probably know why. As a young man, I was a shepherd,
raising a large flock of registered sheep. Registered animals all look pretty much alike,
so you are a sort of pastor with a large congregation. People are more like sheep than
just about any other animal. Except for horned rams, they have very feeble defenses.
Oh, yes! I forgot to remind you that shepherds are considered on the bottom end of the
social totem pole. They are "regular" people, working in what is considered a bottom
end job, poorly paid and not exalted by others. That was clear in the Old Testament,
when a surprising shepherd boy came from the field and confidently challenged the
Philistine giant. I Samuel 17:47 declares, "Then all this assembly shall know that the
Lord does not save with sword or spear; for the battle is the Lord's, and He will give you
into our hands."
    
    While mankind disdains shepherds, as did the Philistine, God exalts them, as you may
see if you recall that not only wise men, but shepherds in the field recognized the birth of
our Savior and went to worship Him. Luke 2:9 tells us, "And behold, an angel of the Lord
stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly
afraid." Verse 11, "For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is
Christ the Lord." Now understand this: God selected certain people to visit the Christ child,
not by chance, but by purpose. He sent wise men who were leaders to worship the Savior,
and He also sent shepherds. Note the wise men exhibited their wisdom when they knew
Christ would be endangered if Herod knew His whereabouts. Christ was worshiped by the 
lowest element of mankind, shepherds, and the highest, the kings from the Orient. The
kings, by the way, brought gifts, but did not seek any material things, although they knew
He had all power in heaven and earth, even as a babe. We should always worship Him
as these shepherds and kings did, expecting only the promise of the 23rd Psalm (read
the entire Psalm, it'll do you good). We don't really need anything else to have an abundant
life, no matter what pastors tell you.

    Without a good shepherd, the flock of sheep faces a great possibility of destruction. That's
why man and dog are necessary for their welfare. You see, welfare is an important word
that many Americans consider a "dirty" word. You may already be thinking politics, and you
should be ashamed if you are. Sheep need both guidance and assistance if they are to
live a productive life. We'll examine guidance first, because that is paramount in the safety
and well-being of the sheep. They must understand the role of man and dog for protection
and direction in grazing. Shepherds of humans must do as Christ directed in John 21: 18a,
"Tend My sheep," and "Feed My sheep." That is the lesson for pastors. Tending refers to
guidance through teaching and speaking up for the truth of scripture, not politics. Feeding
refers to a diet of the Word of God. There can be no altering of scripture, no changes by
rules of men or denomination. There can be no divisiveness because of disagreements
in the understanding of the written Word. If there is disagreement, more study and careful
listening to explanations of differences is necessary. If we accept salvation through acceptance
and commitment to Christ, we are all equal. That means no denomination may divide people
because they are of differing denominations. We are all sheep, and belong to His flock, with
no difference because of race or color. He does not discriminate, He does not enslave and
He cares for their complete welfare.

    I'm afraid many pastors don't realize the magnanimity of their undertaking when they are
ordained. Usually there is emphasis on the learning of scripture, but there is also considerable
emphasis on the way a denomination presents and requires certain denominational rules.
The importance of finance is usually stressed, because mankind rates a church or organization
by size and wealth. Most people don't recognize Matt. 18:20, "For where two or three are
gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." I once went to an interview
for a headmaster position at a church that was organizing a Christian school. I was very
disappointed when they wanted a fund raiser and were not in the least interested in anything
concerning a curriculum. These school board members did not have Christ in the midst of
them. 

    The obligation of a pastor to care for his flock can be pretty serious. Christ tells us in Luke
15:4, "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the
ninety-nine  in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?" This poses
quite a problem for a mega church. Small, country churches and some city churches with
small congregations are threatened with closure because of finances. Many of these are
the very ones that really get the true Word of God to the people. Like educational studies
have suggested, it is better to have small groups than large groups. It would be far better
to break up the large mega churches than to consolidate the smaller ones. Christ did not use
money as a criteria for church organization. In fact--I'll be criticized in emphasizing this
scripture--the early church in Acts 2:44 we are told "Now all who believed were together,
and had all things in common, (verse 45) and sold their possessions and goods and
divided them among all, as anyone had need." This is socialism, not capitalism, but it
is not dictatorship or communism. Socialism does not breed laziness if guidance and
responsibility is provided. Remember, not any type of man rule has been successful,
and people have always strayed, even from the priests and prophets of Israel.

    Christian pastors as a group have the awesome responsibility to fulfill the same role
as the priests of Israel. They are to lead the promulgation of truth and righteousness.
In a nutshell, that means to "make known by open declaration to the public the terms
of a document." That document, for Christian pastors, is the Word of God, the holy
scripture, and the teaching of Christ's values and guidance. Unfortunately the Christian
pastors in America have failed in their mission. The worst part in their failure has been
permitting and even encouraging politicians to mislead the people, in part for consideration
of popular approval, and, of course, tax privileges. It is interesting to recall what Christ
told His followers when they asked about paying taxes. He said, (Matt. 22:21) "Render
therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's."
The people with money worry about losing money to taxes to pay for the entitlements of
roughly half the population they claim pay no income tax. The truth is, most of those
lazy slackers are low income workers who pay taxes on income, sales and property,
among other levies. This is a successful way to separate people, because it stirs up
envy and greed, The charge is that unemployment is paid to lazy people who choose
to receive the "dole" rather than work. It's sad people fall for this line, because if they
took a couple of minutes to research this, they would find you can't collect unemployment
unless you have work history and have paid into the fund.

     In caring for the flock, shepherds are responsible for all the sheep. That includes all
the care and needs they may have. Some ewes need help at birthing; lambs are quite
delicate and sometimes need special care to survive. If they are hurt, they need to be
treated. We had a prize ram that someone shot. It was a leg wound, so he recovered
with our treatment. There are many people in the world who don't think twice about
hurting a sheep or taking advantage of their frailty. In Americans' desire for success,
it sometimes results in overwhelming or bullying a person. 

    A pastor needs some paralegal training to be able to assist poor people who can't
afford attorneys. The public defenders are mostly a joke. When a poor person gets into
legal trouble it may be the person's poor choices. However, it also may be the result
of circumstances or the purposeful desire of someone else. Our society has "progressed"
from "innocent until proven guilty" to "guilty until proven innocent". If a poor person needs
a public defender, the usual procedure is for the assigned attorney to seek a guilty plea
on a usually reduced charge. While the public defender's office is separate from the
district attorney's office, you will usually find the public defender actually follows the
direction of the district attorney. This is the less costly way justice works. You get the
idea how important money is to government?

    I'm attempting to point out the multifaceted responsibility of pastors. I want to particularly
underscore the failure of calling out politicians and leaders who make unscriptural claims,
use isolated scripture and fail to rightly explain any subject. I see very little corrective
statements and virtually no challenges to erroneous, and sometimes outrageous, claims.
I'm speaking of scripture, not other subjects. Politics and religion do mix, no matter how
hard we try to separate them. The nastiness and selfishness of today's politicians and
people who exhibit no civility, would have them charged for treason in the days of World
War II. Isn't civility an important issue to God? Do we not remember that sheep and goats
were separated by God for a reason? 

    Sheep, fleece and shepherds are the major subjects in scripture, and Christ's choice
of these examples should give us cause to consider and study. Those in Christ's flock
recognize Him, and hear His voice. John 10:27, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know
them, and they follow Me." When you depart from scripture, you are not following Christ.
If you are not following Christ, who are you following? There are too many separatists
among our leadership, and too many followers who don't bother to study scripture.
History has proven that people who are blessed by God, fall away when they forget,
alter, or change scripture to suit their personal goals. Unless there is an awakening
in America, history will repeat itself.

Rev. Walbear 

Join us on Facebook at  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Faith-Walk-Ministry/230373216976774