{Prayer}
If you had to choose a creature we humans are most like … what creature would you choose? In the nineteenth century, Charles Darwin claimed that people are most like monkeys. Well, that was wrong then and it’s still wrong today. Many biologists now say that people are more like rats. Pretty much, whatever makes a rat sick makes us sick. Isn’t that a happy thought to have? Other scientists believe people are a lot like bees because we’re social creatures who live in highly structured societies. Still others compare us to dolphins because dolphins and people have a similar ratio of brain-mass to body-size.
Monkeys, rats, bees, and dolphins. I’m sure you know but according to the Bible, what creature are we most like? Sheep. Sheep are mentioned over 500 times in the Bible, which is more than any other animal.
We are just sheep … and sheep need a shepherd. It was common practice in the ancient Near East, in Old Testament times, to call kings “shepherds.” Isaiah refers to the Persian king Cyrus II as a shepherd (Isaiah 44:28). The Bible frequently refers to King David as a “shepherd” (2 Same 7:8). A shepherd is what God wants in a leader. Someone who is tough but tender, mighty but merciful. Jeremiah says this in Jeremiah 22 regarding shepherds, “Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, to the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood” (22:3). That’s ideal.
But how does Jeremiah start out our reading? “ ‘Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!’ declares the LORD” (23:1). Instead of gathering the flock together and taking care of them, these shepherd kings are doing the exact opposite. They are depriving God’s people of justice and righteousness. Instead of worrying about the flock, the shepherd kings care nothing about them. They are all self-serving. Because of this, the LORD says to these shepherd kings, “Because you have scattered my flock and driven them away and have not bestowed care upon them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil you have done” (23:2).
When there is no good shepherd to tend to the sheep, sheep begin to do what sheep do … they wander. And when sheep wander … they find themselves in all sorts of predicaments.
Jesus asks the question, “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go look for the one that wander off?” (Matt. 18:12). The way Jesus asks the question the answer is of course “yes.” But really? One sheep? Is it really worth leaving the ninety-nine for something to happen to them to find one? Jesus says yes.
Interestingly, the Greek word Matthew uses for wander is planao. Planao means to wander, go astray, meander. The ancient Greeks observed that most of the heavenly bodies stay in one place. They called these stars. However, some luminous objects wandered. They went astray. They meandered. The Greeks called those heavenly bodies planets … planao. Sheep are like planets. They wander around and get lost in the dark. We are just sheep.
A few other things about sheep, things we have probably heard before but are worth refreshing our memories on.
Sheep are dumb. I mean really, have you ever seen a group of trained sheep in a circus? If someone says that sheep are as dumb as a brick … they’re actually insulting the brick.
Shepherds tell stories about one sheep falling off a cliff and the rest of the flock following. In 2005, Turkish shepherds watched in horror as hundreds of sheep followed each other over a massive cliff. More than 400 sheep died, but their bodies cushioned the fall of the additional 1,100 sheep who followed them.
Sheep are dirty. Sheepskin is full of an oil called lanolin. Lanolin coats a sheep’s wool so it stays warm in cold weather. It also makes the sheep wool one of the most effective types of glue known to man. Every time sheep lie down … grass, dirt, cockle-burrs, dust … everything imaginable sticks to their coat.
Sheep are defenseless. Sheep can only really see about fifteen yards. Sheep don’t know what hit them until it hits them. They have no natural defenses … no claws, no horns, no fangs, not even a stink-bag like a skunk. To make matters worse, sheep are top-heavy. Their legs are thin and wobbly. They’re sitting ducks for ravenous wolves.
Sheep are distracted. Distracted by nasal flies, bot flies, and warble flies. When tormented by these pests, it’s impossible for sheep to lie down and rest. They get up on their feet, stamp their legs, and shake their heads. Sheep become so distracted that even a jackrabbit suddenly bouncing out from behind a bush and freak them out and start a stampede.
Dumb, dirty, defenseless, and distracted … that’s us. We wander like planets and get lost in darkness. But remember what Jesus says? One sheep is worth everything. “And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did now wander off” (Matt. 18:13).
Through Jeremiah … God promises, “ ‘I will place shepherds over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid or terrified, nor will any be missing’ ” (23:4).
In 1972, a Palestinian shepherd brought his flock into an enclosed area for the night. After he fell asleep, there was a huge commotion. To his horror, the shepherd woke up and saw a wolf dragging off one of his sheep. Blood was flying everywhere.
The shepherd rushed over and struck the wolf with his staff. The wolf turned on the shepherd and began attacking him, biting him repeatedly. After a fierce fight, the shepherd finally killed the wolf. The shepherd then bandaged his sheep’s wounds. The shepherd gave it some water and took it in his arms. The next morning, the shepherd was found dead with his body draped over the sheep to keep it warm. The headline in the Jerusalem paper read, Sheep Alive, Covered in Shepherd’s Blood.
From the moment Jesus was born, his enemies, like ravenous wolves, set out to kill him. They tried to butcher him in Bethlehem, throw him off a cliff in Nazareth, and stone him to death in Jerusalem. Jesus went forty days without food, climbed into a ring with Satan and walked out victorious. There was no point in drowning Jesus, he walked away from that by walking on the water. The only thing that could kill Jesus was a cross.
On Good Friday, there were no green pastures. Rather spit and blood were caked to Christ’s cheeks. There were no quiet waters. There was no water as Jesus cried out, “I thirst.” And the cup overflowed. Jesus drank from the cup of God’s wrath. Surely goodness and mercy were twisted and perverted into the most inhumane way. The headline for the day? Sheep Alive, Covered in the Shepherd’s Blood.
Jeremiah predicted all this. “ ‘The days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will raise up to David a righteous Shoot, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. This is the name by which he will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness’ ” (23:5-6).
Jeremiah calls Jesus “a righteous Shoot.” Our Savior’s shoot-like beginnings, his humble ministry, and his refusal to exercise divine power led the Jewish elites to conclude that Jesus was the wrong kind of shepherd king. Jesus associated with the wrong kind of people, preached the wrong kind of sermons, called the wrong kind of followers, carried out the wrong kind of mission, and offered the wrong kind of redemption. “Above his head they placed the written charge against him: THIS IS JESUS, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (Matt. 27:37).
In the midst of the darkness … there’s a glimmer of light dawning. In the midst of the darkness of a new day, an Easter light begins to shine. The Easter light signifying that Jesus is alive, for us. Where the shepherd kings of Jeremiah’s day were scattering the sheep, Jesus, our Good Shepherd is gathering them in.
When we’re wandering around like lost sheep, Jesus leaves the ninety-nine and runs after you (Luke 15:3-7). When we’re confused by the voices of demons and devils, Jesus calls us by name and we know that voice (John 10:3). When we’re caught up in the web sin, Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29, 36). Jesus is our Good Shepherd who gathers us in his arms until we’re better, holds us until we can live with the hurt, and carries us close to his loving heart forever. We are just sheep … and we have a shepherd worth following all of our days. Amen.
The peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus our Lord, our Good Shepherd, now and forever. Amen.
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