The Good Shepherd (2)

Notices

Lenten Cross

Welcome

Welcome today we are going to look at the fourth of Jesus’ seven “I am” statements that are in John’s Gospel; “I am the good shepherd.”

Opening Prayer:

Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.

Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his.

We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise.

Give thanks to him and praise his name.

For the LORD is good and his love endures forever.

His faithfulness continues through all generations, Amen.

Opening Songs:

God is good we sing and shout it.

Collection

Great is your faithfulness.

Warm up:

Mum and Child who knows best.

Question 1: What is the name of your child’s best friend?

Question 2: Which flavour of crisps does your child like to eat best of all?

Question 3: What makes your child really really, angry?

The people who know us the best are normally the people we spend most of our time with aren’t they?

They really know us, what makes us happy and sad and what is going on in our lives.

Memory Verse: (on Screen)

The memory verse is John 10:14.

Sheep 1: “I am.

Sheep 2: the good shepherd.

Sheep 3: I know my sheep.

Sheep 4: and my sheep know me.”

Sheep 5: John chapter 10, verse 14

In the verse today, Jesus says “I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep,

and my sheep know me” (John 10:14)

So, if Jesus is the good shepherd……who are His sheep? (Receive answers)

Drama:

In the days of Jesus, people would often see shepherds with their flocks of sheep,

So, when Jesus said that He was the good shepherd, people would have understood what He meant.

Nowadays, in this country, we don’t really see shepherds in our everyday lives, do we?

What we may not realise is that sheep are creatures that are not that good at doing things for themselves!

They need a shepherd to look after them and to provide for them.

Watch now and see all the different ways that a shepherd in Jesus’ day would have looked after his sheep.

Narrator: The life of an Eastern shepherd was a hard one. The most important thing that a shepherd did for his sheep each day was to provide them with food and water.

Early in the morning a shepherd would go out with his flock, leading them to green pastures where they could eat.

(Enter shepherd with his flock of five sheep following him, walking up the centre aisle and leading to the “pasture” at a point at the front of church)

The shepherd had to watch his sheep constantly otherwise they would wander off.

The shepherd’s job was dangerous one as he had to guard the flock against wild animals, especially against wolves.

(Enter wolf sneaking around until he finds a sheep at the edge of the flock and then pounces. Shepherd runs over and using his “rod” shoos the wolf away and rescues the sheep)

The sheep were often with the shepherd for many years and so the shepherd had names for each one of them.

Shepherd: “Brown leg” (sheep stops grazing and moves to the shepherd)

“Rammy” (sheep stops grazing and moves to the shepherd)

“White tip” (sheep stops grazing and moves to the shepherd)

“Curly” (sheep stops grazing and moves to the shepherd)

“Lazy” (sheep ignores shepherd!!)

Narrator: The sheep would know the voice of the shepherd and they would respond to him. If a stranger called, the sheep would lift up their heads in alarm and runaway.

Stranger: “Lazy, lazy” (Lazy sheep looks up and runs away. Stranger walks on)

Shepherd: “Lazy” (Lazy immediately looks up and moves to the shepherd.)

Narrator: Now the shepherd would walk in front of the sheep to make sure that the path was safe, and his sheep would follow him.

(Shepherd walks down the aisle in church with the sheep following in a single file. Once he reaches the back of the church he turns round and takes the sheep back to the front again)

When the shepherd found a new patch of grass for his sheep, he would go over it and check it first with his staff.

(Sheep stand still as shepherd using his staff clears the ground)

He would break down any thorn bushes, dig up poisonous weeds, fill in snake holes and kill scorpions, making the pasture like a safe table to eat from.

(Shepherd beckons the sheep to come and eat.)

As well as grass to eat, the shepherd also needed to find water for his sheep and what you might not know is that sheep are afraid to drink from fast running water.

So, the shepherd would dig a pit by a fast-running stream which would fill with water, which the shepherd would then block off. Once the water was still, the sheep could drink from it.

(Shepherd produces digging tool and makes a pit and sheep drink from it.)

At the end of the day the shepherd had to get the sheep into a sheepfold for the night.

(Shepherd moves into an area where there is a sheepfold created with 3 walls. Sheep follow and line up except for Rammy who wanders off and hides!)

The shepherd would stand in front of the fold and put his rod across the entrance. Each sheep would then pass beneath his rod and as they did, the shepherd would count them and check to see if they were injured.

(Shepherd lets sheep into the fold under his rod one at a time. Counts them and inspects them)

Shepherd: 1 (lets in sheep 1)

2 (doesn’t let sheep 2 pass as it is limping)

Oh, dear I can see that you are limping. Let’s have a look at that foot. I can

see the problem. Look at this huge thorn. (Removes thorn from sheep’s foot) Now that’s removed, you should feel better. (Lets sheep 2 pass into fold)

Narrator: Some sheep may have cut themselves during the day and the shepherd would bring out his bottle of olive oil and pour it over the cut to help it get better quicker.

Sometimes the shepherd would pour oil onto the heads of his sheep before

they went out in the sun to protect his sheep from sun stoke.

Shepherd: 97 (lets in sheep 4)

98 (pretends he has another sheep)

99 (pretends he has another sheep)

99 sheep. Where is Rammy? I can’t settle down for the night until I have found Rammy.

(Shepherd leaves the rest of the sheep and goes off around the church looking for Rammy, calling him/her as he goes)

Rammy, Rammy, where are you?

Narrator: If a sheep was lost, the shepherd would go out and look for that sheep, often risking great danger to find it.

(Shepherd keeps looking until he finds Rammy and then brings him/her to the sheep fold, carrying Rammy on his shoulder if s/he isn’t too heavy)

Shepherd: Rammy, I’ve found Rammy come on I’ll carry you,home.

Narrator: Having got all of his sheep safely into the sheepfold the shepherd would lie across the opening to stop the sheep wandering in and out, and to protect them from robbers and wolves.

(Shepherd lies down at the entrance of the sheep fold)

The sheep’s every need was taken care of by his shepherd.

Songs:

The Lord’s my shepherd

We have just seen all the different ways that a shepherd looked after his sheep in Jesus’ day.

David was a shepherd boy who wrote lots of the Psalms in the Old Testament.

David realised that he was rather like a sheep that needed looking after….

and that God looked after him in the same way that he looked after his sheep.

Listen to this:

Reader 1: The LORD is my shepherd,

Reader 2: I lack nothing.

Reader 1: He makes me lie down in green pastures,

Reader 2: he leads me beside quiet waters,

Reader 1: he refreshes my soul.

Reader 2: He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake.

Reader 1: Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil,

Reader 2: for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Reader 1: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

Reader 2: You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Reader 1: Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,

Reader 2: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Talk 1:

For this talk,you will need a pen or pencil and an A5 copy of the sheep template (from

Appendix 2) for each person in the congregation. Hand out the sheep and the pens / pencils

Jesus is our good shepherd, and from our verse today we have discovered that He knows us.

So, would you like to write your name or draw a picture in the middle of your sheep.

We have also discovered that in the same way that a shepherd looks after their sheep, so Jesus looks after us.

One of the ways that a shepherd looked after his sheep was by:

1) Giving them what they needed.

Sheep need grass and water. I wonder what you and I need.

Has anyone got any suggestions? (Receive answers)

Jesus provides everything we really need.

Not only does He provide food and water for our bodies,

but he also gives us love, forgiveness, joy, hope, peace and many other good things that our spirits need.

So, would you like to write in the bottom righthand corner of your paper: “He gives me all I need” or draw a picture of some grass.

Another way that a shepherd looked after his sheep was by:

Guiding them on a safe path

So, that they wouldn’t fall into danger.

Like sheep, it is easy for us to wander off and get into all sorts of trouble.

Jesus knows the safe path to walk through life and He promises to lead us on that path.

So, would you like to write in the bottom lefthand corner of your paper: “He guides me on a safe path” or draw a picture of a path.

Another way that a shepherd looked after his sheep was by:

3) Always being with them.

The shepherd often spent all day and all night with his sheep.

Do you remember that even when the sheep couldn’t see the shepherd, the

shepherd would reassure them that He was with them, by banging his rod against the stones, so that they wouldn’t feel afraid.

Jesus has promised to always be with us. He said: “And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)

We can trust Jesus to keep His promise.

Even when we can’t feel Jesus near us, He is still with us, looking after us.

So, would you like to write in the top righthand corner of your paper: “He is always with me”.

And finally, one of the biggest ways that a shepherd looked after his sheep was by:

4) Protecting them from harm.

We have heard how the shepherd would lie in the entrance.

To protect his sheep from wolves and thieves at night-time.

A good shepherd would be willing to lay down his life for his sheep.

Jesus, our good shepherd was willing to lay down His life for us, so that we can have eternal life.

He said: “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.” (John 10:28)

In this life, we may have to cope with all sorts of troubles, but Jesus has made it possible for us to be kept safe for all eternity.

So, would you like to write in the top lefthand corner of your paper: “He protects me from harm eternally” or draw a picture of a cross.

Four wonderful ways that Jesus, our good shepherd looks after us.

He gives us all that we need.

He guides us on a safe path.

He is always with us, and he protects us from harm eternally.

Songs:

One thing remains,

In every circumstance of life

We have heard about all the ways that a shepherd looks after his sheep.

So, what does the sheep need to do to stay safe and enjoy all the good things provided by the shepherd? (Receive answers)

That’s right the sheep needs to LISTEN to the shepherd and FOLLOW him.

What do you think happens if the sheep doesn’t listen to the shepherd? (Receive answers)

That’s right the sheep could get into trouble and end up lost or hurt.

If you and I are going to enjoy all the good things that Jesus provides for us, and walk on safe paths through life, enjoying His presence with us, then we, like sheep, need to LISTEN to our shepherd Jesus and FOLLOW him.

When we don’t listen to Jesus and choose to wander off on our own or follow the crowd, we can get into all sorts of problems.

James has discovered how important listening is.

Puppets:

Enter Grandad and James

Grandad: James I haven’t seen you for ages…..how are you?

James: (rather subdued) OK I s’pose…

Grandad: Oh dear…..someone is a bit down in the dumps…..can I guess that you might be in a spot of trouble again James?

James: Just a bit Grandad…..oh I have been such a silly boy. I wish that I’d listened.

Grandad: Is it that bad?

James: Yes Grandad….it really is that bad…..my parents are so cross with me and….

Grandad: Why don’t you tell me all about it James?

James: It’s about my class trip to the safari park…..

Grandad: I thought that you were looking forward to going James.

James: I was Grandad…..I was so excited…..but then I didn’t listen to what my

teacher said to my class on the day of the trip.

Grandad: Ri…ight

James: Well I was a very, very silly boy Grandad…a very silly, silly, not listening silly…

Grandad: OK I have got the idea James…..what exactly did the teacher say to your class that you didn’t listen to?

James: The bit about not getting out of a moving coach…..

Grandad: Help me understand which bit of that you didn’t listen to…..

James: Well, my teacher said that when we went through the safari park that we were (Shouts the words) NOT ON ANY ACCOUNT TO GET OFF THE COACH

Grandad: I see……

James: But a monkey grabbed my cap Grandad through an open window and so I had to get off the coach to get it back.

Grandad: Oh no…..

James: The coach was only moving very slowly through the monkey park, so it was really easy to open the back door and jump out.

Grandad: But why did you do that James…..couldn’t you see that it was a really

dangerous thing to do?

James: All I could think about was my cap Grandad….it was a really good one and I wanted it back.

Grandad: Oh James....we could have easily replaced that cap. So, what happened?

James: I ran after the monkey Grandad, but he ran faster than me. Even though I ran and ran I couldn’t catch it and then all the monkeys surrounded me in the

woods…..it was very frightening.

Grandad: I’m sure it was.

James: I didn’t know what to do Grandad…how I wished that I’d listened to my teacher.

Grandad: You must have given her quite a fright…..I can’t imagine that she was happy that you had got off the coach.

James: She was furious Grandad when Richard went and told her what I had done.

Grandad: I’m not surprised.

James: She saw me running into the woods, so she ran after me. Eventually she

found me and I won’t tell you the words she used when she found me.

Grandad: I expect she was really frightened James of what could have happened to you.

James: That’s what my head teacher said…..he also told me that she is terrified of monkeys so she had to be very brave to find me.

Grandad: Your poor teacher…..

James: My “poor teacher” has banned me from the next school trip to Lego Land.

Grandad: What a pity, but James you seriously put your safety and the safety of your teacher at risk…..so what have you learnt from all of this?

James: To listen Grandad when I am told to do something and then to do it.

Grandad: Well that’s a really good lesson to learn James…..to listen and then to

obey…..that way you will stay safe.

James: At least I got a selfie with the monkey wearing my cap…..it has got thousands of likes Grandad!

Grandad: Oh James

So, let’s learn to listen to Jesus and follow what He says so that we can stay on the safe path through life.

Jesus will speak to us through our Bible readings.

He will speak to us when we spend time with Him praying.

He will speak to us through other Christians,

And He will speak to us when we meet to worship Him.

The important thing for us is to learn to recognise Jesus’ voice…..and then to act on it…. for He is the good shepherd who wants to bless us and lead us on the safe path through life.

Would you like to write in large letters across the front of your sheep: “LISTEN TO JESUS AND FOLLOW HIM”

Confession:

Sometimes however, we choose not to listen to Jesus and end up doing and saying things that are wrong.

The prophet Isaiah said this:

“We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:6)

So, let’s say sorry to Jesus this morning where we have failed to listen to Him and follow Him.

Lord Jesus, our good shepherd

Please forgive us where we have not listened to your voice and have thought, said, and done things that have been wrong.

Please forgive us where we have followed the crowd rather than following you.

Please forgive us where we have been stubborn, wanting to go our own way instead of going your way.

Thank you, Jesus that as our good shepherd you laid down your life so that we might be forgiven.

We receive your forgiveness today.

Bring us back onto your safe path and help us to listen to you and follow you.

Amen.

Songs:

Jesus, lover of my soul

Prayers:

You are the good shepherd.

Help us to listen to and follow you.

The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.

He makes me lie down in green pastures,

He leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul.

Thank you Lord that you are our good shepherd.

Thank you that you give us everything that we need.

Help us to share your good gifts with others,

and please provide for those who have little to eat today.

You are the good shepherd.

Help us to listen to and follow you.

He guides me along the right paths for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.

your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Thank you Lord that you guide us each day.

Thank you that you never leave our side.

Guide the leaders in our country to make wise decisions,

and comfort those who are going through difficult times.

You are the good shepherd.

Help us to listen to and follow you

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Thank you Lord that you keep us safe from the evil one.

Thank you that you are the One who heals us.

Bring healing to those who are unwell today,

and help them to know your love.

You are the good shepherd.

Help us to listen to and follow you

Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Thank you Lord that you never stop loving us.

Thank you that we can look forward to being with you forever.

Strengthen your church that we might show your love to those around us,

and keep our eyes fixed on you.

You are the good shepherd.

Help us to listen to and follow you, Amen.

End the time of prayer with the Lord’s prayer.

Final Song:

Forever

Blessing:

Christ the good shepherd,

Who laid down his life for the sheep,

Draw you and all who hear this voice,

To be one flock within one, fold and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be among

Us and remain with us always. Amen.