St. John’s United Church of Christ
April 13, 2008
A Sermon by the Rev. John Krueger
The Patience of a Shepherd John 10:1-18
I have no first hand experience in taking care of sheep. The dairy farm I worked at in Wisconsin specialized in Holstein cows, calves and heifers, with a few pigs and some chickens thrown into the mix, but no sheep. My knowledge of sheep comes from others and the general opinion of them is not very high at all.
Sheep tend to be rather dumb animals, not like whales or elephants or dogs which get high marks. They eat, they grow wool, and they would die early if someone wasn’t constantly watching over them, so I’m told. All the more telling, then, that we are often called sheep in the Bible, sheep needing a kind and compassionate shepherd.
There is an interesting mix of references to shepherds in the Bible. In the book of Genesis we meet the early Patriarchs of the faith, people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Esau, and they are all nomadic herdsmen, tenders of sheep and goats. That seems to be an honorable way of life, but when Joseph is reunited with his father and brothers, welcoming them to come to Egypt with him and live out their lives in relative financial comfort, Joseph finds it necessary to make a case for this way of life with the Egyptians who have a negative opinion.
“Joseph said to his brothers and to his father’s household, ‘I will go up and tell Pharaoh, and will say to him, “My brothers and my father’s household, who were in the land of Canaan, have come to me. The men are shepherds, for they have been keepers of livestock; and they have brought their flocks, and their herds, and all that they have.” When Pharaoh calls you, and says, “What is your occupation?” you shall say, “Your servants have been keepers of livestock from our youth even until now, both we and our ancestors” – in order that you may settle in the land of Goshen, because all shepherds are abhorrent to the Egyptians.’” Genesis 46:31-34
So to be a shepherd was an abomination to the Egyptians, and to choose this way of life was an embarrassment.
The contrast to this is the many other references in the Bible to God as the Good Shepherd, such as in Psalm 23 and in other places. This shepherd is the one who leads us in green pastures, beside still waters, and even through the darkest valleys of threat and despair. The rod and the staff are not instruments of punishment but instruments of grace, to protect, to rescue, and to comfort.
Here in John’s Gospel Jesus calls himself the Good Shepherd, the one who knows each member of his flock, the one who assures the safety and protection of each sheep, the one willing to lay down his life for the sake of his sheep. The picture Jesus paints of God is the image of the Patient Shepherd, fully committed to the well-being of the flock, not just the flock in general but to each individual sheep. Each is important, each is the object of redemption and care, and each is valued and deserving of special treatment.
While that is a wonderful portrait of a caring, gracious God, perhaps we should consider the characteristics of sheep, why there is a need for a Patient Shepherd in the first place. As I said, people who know more than I do testify that sheep are not the brightest of God’s creatures. They often need herding and tending because they are by nature mindlessly grazing creatures. The grass is always greener just a few nibbles away, and so it doesn’t take long before this casual grazing results in sheep far removed from each other. It will take a good sheep dog, or a conscientious shepherd, to gather them back into the flock, those who nibble their way into lostness.
Perhaps you can see some resemblance of sheep to us. We too tend to get caught up in momentary satisfaction, often at the expense of longer ranged goals. We too can carelessly get fixated on just making it from day to day and not give much thought to larger questions of meaning and purpose, such as Why am I here? For what am I gifted? What is most important in my life? Who am I becoming, willfully or not? Where do I fit in with God’s purposes for my life? These are not tests of intelligence but rather the serious probing of important life issues.
I doubt if sheep spend much time looking up at the clouds, pondering the questions of life and meaning. Sheep spend their lives looking down, seeking out the next tempting morsel of grass, too busy in looking for food to think about anything else.
Sheep definitely need a shepherd, someone who sees over the next hill, who is aware of the approaching of evening and finds a safe place to spend the night. And sheep need a Patient Shepherd, one who accepts the limited attention span of the sheep, who understands the make-up of sheep and who is invested in taking care of wandering, willful sheep.
Psalm 23 and the 10th chapter of John’s Gospel are not so much insights into the characteristics of sheep but affirmations about the attributes of The Good Shepherd. What picture comes to mind when you think about God? Do you see the fierce face of judgment or the welcoming face of a kindly shepherd? Does your God spend time measuring the performance of sheep, “making a list and checking it twice,” or does your God search relentlessly for each of the sheep for the purpose of gathering them back in and reintroducing them to the flock? Is your God a God of ultimatums, shape up by next week or else expect dire consequences, or is your God a God of second, and third, and fortieth chances, intent on restoration and redemption, no matter how long it takes? Is your God like the parent who looks down the road each day, hoping and praying that will be the day when the child returns and the family is reunited in wholeness?
I remember a conversation I had with a person in Fort Wayne, the person professing to not believe in God, sort of baiting me into a debate. I said to the person, “Tell me about the God you do not believe in.” Perhaps you can imagine the ways in which that person described God - a God of vengeance, judgment, punishment, austere, demanding, calculating, harsh, and angry. I could say, truthfully, “Well, I do not believe in that kind of God either,” and we began a quite different conversation.
For me, God is patient, forgiving, loving, and compassionate, a shepherd out in the hills, in good weather and in bad weather, keeping careful vigilance over sometimes foolish sheep, doing all in God’s power to assure the well-being of these willful creatures. Our God is an Awesome God, awesome in power and might, to be sure, but even more awesome in patience and compassion.
My sheep tending friends shared one more insight with me. Apparently there are two basic ways to tend sheep: either you can drive them from behind or lead them from the front. The image Jesus uses is the latter, leading from the front, going before them, testing the unknown, assuring their journey by encouraging them to follow where he has gone before us. That is one of the theological concepts of the Incarnation, that God came to share human life with us in Jesus.
Times may be radically different, 2008 in Indiana from First Century Palestine, but human life is basically the same. God in Christ has walked our path before us, experiencing human life as we do and mindful of the joys and challenges we face. The Patient Shepherd walks before us, trusting we will recognize his voice, and will follow. The Patient Shepherd who willingly laid down his life for us bids us follow, through all the trials and blessings of this life to the arms of a gracious and loving God.