The good shepherd
Throughout Scripture, the metaphor of sheep and shepherd are used to paint a vivid picture of God and His people. Psalm 23 begins with the line, “The Lord is my Shepherd,” and Jesus affirms this in John 10. While few of us today know the intricacies of agrarian labor, we have read stories, watched films, and driven past enough farms that the realities of these statements are within the realm of imaginative meditation. Let us dust off the redeemed imagination so that the goodness may hit us afresh, so that we may ingest the treasures of truth to be found within the living Word.
What kind of Shepherd is He?
It is easy to fall into a functional belief that the Shepherd is out to get us, regardless of whether we would claim that theology or not. It is easy to assume there is a joyless strictness, a stringency and vindictiveness to the God who sees, that He is watching out for mistakes and cannot wait to correct and shame the wayward. The world certainly believes He is that way. But this image is closer to the view of the thief that Jesus refers to in John 10 – He is not like that at all.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:10-11
The thief comes to inhibit, to mislead, to hurt. Jesus comes to offer vibrance, safety, abundance. He leads with care and gentleness, as the prophet Isaiah states:
“He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those who are with young.” Isaiah 40:11
Is there a more tender mental image than a Shepherd carrying a newborn sheep? Something so weak, helpless, and directionless, that left to its’ own devices it would quickly end up dead. But the Shepherd tends, gathers, carries, and leads.
There is a visceral power to His humility. Those who dare to step between Him and His flock are in a dangerous position, but those whom He rescues are safe forever. Ezekiel 34 offers a prophetic vision of God’s shepherding care that holds the thieves accountable and restores and protects the flock with zeal.
“As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep…. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy.” Ezekiel 34:12, 15-16
What kind of sheep are you?
This Shepherd makes space for sheep that are wayward, injured, weak, and burdened. We delude ourselves into thinking we are better than sheep, but we are not. There are moments where I find myself believing the Shepherd is frustrated with my sheep-like qualities. As I reorient my heart towards Him, I ask myself: “what kind of sheep am I right now?” Stuck in the bushes? Drowning under the weight of muddy wool? Injured and unable to walk? Fallen halfway down a cliff?
When I locate myself in this imaginative exercise I can think clearly about how the good Shepherd moves towards me – tender, patient, decisively gentle even if His rescue is painful. He is unlike any other, and this reality leads me into awe, worship, and deepens my desire to follow Him more closely day by day.
“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me.” John 10:14
I am so quick to assume He exhibits fallen characteristics toward a sinful sheep. But He is not purely human, not tainted by my selfishness and greed. What a mercy. May we know Him more and more as His own.
Rebecca Faulks is a nurse and seminary student who lives in Boston, MA.
