Shepherding

Eze 34:2    "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? ESV

 

I wonder what it would be like to be a shepherd? Your sole responsibility is to take care of a flock of sheep. That is it. Watch after them. Lead them. Feed them. Look for them when they stray. Fix their injuries. Round them up. Take them to places where they should go to eat that are safe and secure. Protect them from wild animals. Pretty basic stuff.

 

God's word came to Ezekiel again and he told him to talk to the shepherds of Israel. Now, He was not talking about the actual shepherds...he was talking about the guys who were leading the people of Israel. "And you are my sheep, human sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Lord GOD." Eze. 34:31 The sheep were people and God was their ultimate Shepherd, yet He still placed individuals in positions of leadership who were to shepherd his people.. The problem was that these guys did a horrible job. All they cared about was what they wanted. All they cared about was their needs. All they cared about was feeding themselves. They didn't care about the sheep.

 

This chapter clearly lays out the responsibility of shepherds. Shepherds, leaders of people, are responsible to feed, to strengthen, to heal, to bind wounds, to go after those who stray and are lost, to protect, and to bring to places of rest. The problem was that these guys weren't doing any of this. All they cared about was their comfort. All they cared about was their own security. All they cared about was filling their own stomachs...and if I am not careful, and if we in leadership are not careful, we can get sucked into this trap. This is the trap of selfishness. This is the trap of "its all about me, my wants, my needs, my control, my power". When this happens, it is time to remove those shepherds. If this happens to me, it is time to take myself out of the game.

 

I want to look at these responsibilities:

 

To feed. This is the big one in this verse. We have to realize that people are hungry. They are not hungry for fast food. They are not hungry for scraps from the table. They are hungry for substance. For meat. For that which is going to fill and satisfy them. This is not easy. This takes time. This takes energy. This takes effort. In short, feeding sheep takes hard work. If I am not willing to put the time into gathering and preparing the meal, don't be a shepherd.

 

To strengthen and protect. Sheep are not strong animals. They need help. They need protection from wild animals. They need shepherds who realize that things are dangerous. There is always someone or something that is ready to attack. As a result, the shepherd needs to be alert. He needs to be aware. He needs to be paying attention. He can't be asleep at the switch. Frankly this culture and Satan are always ready to pounce on unsuspecting sheep and I have to pay attention to what is going on in this world. Why? To protect. And I need to make people aware in order to prepare and strengthen them.

 

To heal and bind up wounds. We have to realize that people are sick and hurting. God has placed shepherds in the position to bring healing. We have to be sensitive to this. We have to be aware of the needy. This is hard stuff. Many times we want to avoid the people who are hurting but this is our responsibility. To go to them with healing words and with words of encouragement. We need to be there for them and help.

 

To go after those who stray and are lost. This is particularly hitting me right now. It seems like we have taken a position that these people need to come to us. We have put out the offer that they need to come and meet with us and resolve things. That is not how sheep operate. Shepherds go after their sheep. Shepherds look for them. Shepherds seek them out and find them and bring them back.

 

To bring to places of rest. Sheep need to rest. Shepherds need to bring them to places where they can be still. Why? Because sheep need to hear the voice of the ultimate Shepherd. If there is so much activity, if there is so much noise going on around them they may be distracted and run after other stuff. Shepherds need to provide places of peace and quiet so people can be still and know that He is God.

 

I wonder how I am doing? I wonder how we are doing? How hard do we work? How intentional are we? How sensitive are we? How searching are we? I know I need to get better. I need to not be so self absorbed. People are hungry and hurting and in need and tired. Be there.