You Shall Not Steal, You Shall Steward
Notes
Transcript
Prayer of Thanks:
Pastoral Prayer: Josh and Michelle Lum
Prayer of Illumination:
1 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five oxen for the ox and four sheep for the sheep. 2 “If the thief is caught while breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there will be no bloodguiltiness on his account. 3 “But if the sun has risen on him, there will be bloodguiltiness on his account. He shall surely make restitution; if he owns nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4 “If what he stole is actually found alive in his possession, whether an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double. 5 “If a man lets a field or vineyard be grazed bare and lets his animal loose so that it grazes in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best of his own field and the best of his own vineyard. 6 “If a fire breaks out and spreads to thorn bushes, so that stacked grain or the standing grain or the field itself is consumed, he who started the fire shall surely make restitution. 7 “If a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep for him and it is stolen from the man’s house, if the thief is caught, he shall pay double. 8 “If the thief is not caught, then the owner of the house shall appear before the judges, to determine whether he laid his hands on his neighbor’s property. 9 “For every breach of trust, whether it is for ox, for donkey, for sheep, for clothing, or for any lost thing about which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before the judges; he whom the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor. 10 “If a man gives his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep for him, and it dies or is hurt or is driven away while no one is looking, 11 an oath before the Lord shall be made by the two of them that he has not laid hands on his neighbor’s property; and its owner shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. 12 “But if it is actually stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 “If it is all torn to pieces, let him bring it as evidence; he shall not make restitution for what has been torn to pieces. 14 “If a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it is injured or dies while its owner is not with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 “If its owner is with it, he shall not make restitution; if it is hired, it came for its hire.
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Introduction
The desire of the wolf and the shepherd are by nature opposite to each other. The wolf desires to take and consume what is not his at the expense of the shepherd and the sheep. The shepherd desires to keep and protect what is His from the those who would come to steal and destroy. The wolf fundamentally asks himself, “What don’t I have?” always looking for something to steal. The shepherd is always asking, “What have I been entrusted?” He’s always counting making sure none are missing. The wolf seeks to satisfy himself, while the shepherd puts himself at risk to fight off wild beasts, all for the good of the sheep.
This morning as we look to Exodus we get a bit of God’s exposition of the command, “You shall not steal.” God is setting out to ensure the property of every person in Israel is protected by the full extent of the law. There are some severe punishments for theft. This law serves the nation of Israel and their prosperity, but it also serves to reveal sin. It reveals the wolves whose hearts are devoted to consumption at the expense of their neighbor. In this analogy one might make it their ambition to simply not be the wolf. Our neighbors certainly benefit if we refrain from being wolves, but as sheep we need the Good Shepherd more than anything. We need one who is willing to lay down His life, give of Himself in death that we would be blessed. Apart from Christ we are helpless sheep wandering in the wilderness and helpless before the demands of the law. He is our righteousness, He is our faithful Shepherd, He is the giver of life and all good things. When we recognize that we have all that we need in Christ, we can forsake the heart of the wolf, always looking for more to consume and take on the heart of a steward, caring for all that we’ve been given.
Exodus 22 goes on to call to account those those who have been entrusted with their neighbor’s goods, their neighbor’s blessings. We’re introduced to another character somewhere between the wolf and the Good Shepherd: That is the unfaithful shepherd. Christ Himself speaks of this character multiple times and like our text this morning holds to account those who were entrusted with the care of the flock. They may not be thieves, but they too proved to be detrimental to the well-being of Israel. Again, we may look to ourselves first and strive to be the faithful steward, the faithful shepherd keeping what we’ve been entrusted, but we must first look to Christ. He is the faithful shepherd who keeps his own letting none be taken from whom the Father has given him. We must set our faith in Christ the faithful shepherd before we set our mind to be faithful stewards.
Our Main Point:
Both the wolf and the unfaithful shepherd prove to be detrimental to the flock. As feeble sheep, our security is found in Christ the Good Shepherd who gave His life for us and is faithful to keep us. In that hope we join Him as stewards of God’s grace.
Both the wolf and the unfaithful shepherd prove to be detrimental to the flock. As feeble sheep, our security is found in Christ the Good Shepherd who gave His life for us and is faithful to keep us. In that hope we join Him as stewards of God’s grace.
The Wolf: Thieves break in and steal.
The Good Shepherd: Christ has given us Himself.
The Unfaithful Shepherd: The Steward’s neglect.
The Good Shepherd: Christ will keep Us.
The Wolf: Thieves break in and steal.
The Wolf: Thieves break in and steal.
Over the course of chapter 21 we’ve seen God provide Israel with an exposition of sorts of two of the 10 commandments. Honor your Father and Mother, and You shall not murder. This morning we see God provide an exposition of You shall not steal. Much like how Honor your Father and Mother goes beyond, “don’t curse your parents” it extends to honoring good and proper authority, the command, “You shall not steal, goes beyond the simple act of taking what isn’t yours. It extends to the preservation of our neighbor’s property, but we do need to start with the simple command.
Vs. 1 presents a case in which a cattle thief has stolen an ox or a sheep to sell or slaughter. You’ll notice how severe the penalty is. If an ox was stolen and sold, the thief shall pay five oxen in return. If a sheep is stolen for resale then four sheep will be paid in return. We have some pretty high walls protecting the property of the ordinary Israelite! God’s not concerned with simply restoring material possessions to it’s rightful owner. He’s concerned with preventing crime! He’s concerned with protecting the good and material blessings of His people. If you were tempted to steal you would know the penalty in advance. If I get caught, I won’t just need to return what I stole or repay the owner. I’m going to have a debt four times or five times what I stole. In God’s good and perfect justice, the thief and the robber will not prosper, and the blessings which God Himself has given his people will be theirs for their good.
These protections go even further.
If this thief is caught in the act and killed, there’s not even a mention of the one who killed him. We might be inclined to ask, maybe that was a bit harsh. Is the one who protected his own possessions guilty for killing a thief. The answer’s clearly no. The question God answers is, “What guilt remains on the head of the thief who broke in to steal?” The answer to that question is none. Death has paid for his crime in full and no guilt remains on his head. We catch these little glimpses throughout these very particular instructions of God’s greater plan of redemption and the real problem at hand. These laws certainly protect the ordinary Israelite, but he’s also teaching His people what the price of sin is. The wages of sin is death. This man who breaks into a house has already given in to the heart of a thief and stands guilty before his neighbor and before His God such that death is a just payment. His guilt has been paid for.
If however he’s caught in his sin once the sun rises (vs. 3) “there will be blood-guiltiness on his account.” Restitution will be made for his guilt.
If he already sold what he’s stolen he’ll be required four times what he stole to be returned to the offended. If he’s found in possession of what he stole (vs. 4) he’ll be required to pay double in return. What if he cannot pay? (vs. 3)“then he shall be sold for his theft.” There’s no point where the thief can say, “Well I have nothing to give.” There’s no prison sentence to serve. There’s no bankruptcy to declare. He’ll pay for his crimes in bond-service to the one he offended. The debt must be paid! God is not a God who let’s the guilty go unpunished. He is a just God, and His people will be taught justice. The weak and the mighty both will be protected by the justice of God.
3 The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, And the Lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. In whirlwind and storm is His way, And clouds are the dust beneath His feet.
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Much like we saw last week, it is not only those who willfully committed the crime to their neighbor’s harm, those who neglect their neighbor’s property will be held to an account with the thief.
We’re given two scenario’s:
(vs. 5) A farmer let’s his sheep graze in his neighbor’s vineyard or his neighbor’s field. He may not have done it maliciously but out of neglect, he’s let his animals take what belonged to someone else. Out of his own crop he’ll pay back his neighbor.
Similarly in vs. 6. If someone lights a fire and it results in burning the neighbor’s field or the neighbor’s barn, the one who lit the fire will be held to account.
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In all the above cases there are evils and crimes to be avoided, but in every call to remove the evil we must look for the call to fill with good. There are many I’m afraid who argue that because they haven’t stolen anything or they haven’t let their dog tear up the neighbor’s landscaping that they’re good. God’s happy with them because they’re not like those thieves over there in prison or the lazy man over there. The heart God intends for His people is to seek the blessing and prosperity of their neighbor. That certainly begins with protecting their property, but it doesn’t end there.
In response to the rich young ruler who claimed he was faithful to the ten commandments, “All these things I have kept; what am I still lacking?” … Jesus responded.
21 Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
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Let’s notice that Jesus is not providing a path to justification by means of generosity. He’s showing the rich young ruler the degree to which he’s fallen short of the heart of the law, “Love the Lord Your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength”; and “Love your neighbor as yourself.” The rich young ruler may have refrained from harming his neighbor. He may have even protected his neighbor’s property, but he failed to seek the well-being of his neighbor with all that had. Even more so he failed to love the Lord with all that he had in failing to follow Christ Himself.
Perhaps you sit here this morning and you think, “I don’t think I’m a thief. I haven’t taken anything that is not mine… I don’t think I’ve brought about harm to my neighbor through neglect.” Even if that’s the case, the standard to which Christ holds us is not only whether or not we’ve committed some evil. The standard to which we are held is the fullness of righteousness. Sin should be understood to be the absence of righteousness, not the opposite of righteousness. To the degree that righteousness is absent, that is still sin. To the degree we have failed to love our neighbor, seek their prosperity and their abundance with what we’ve been given we fall short of righteousness. We sin!
The disciples come to the appropriate conclusion in response to Jesus’ difficult explanation of his statement to the rich young ruler.
25 When the disciples heard this, they were very astonished and said, “Then who can be saved?”
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Before the fullness of the law: the call to protect, the call to avoid neglect, the call to fill with good and give all that we are for the good of our neighbor, and that’s just the law with respect to how we treat one another. Apart from Christ we must conclude, “Then who can be saved?”
The law may serve to advance the common good of Israel for a time, but it reveals a heart deserving of condemnation.
As the church of Christ we must cling to Jesus’ response.
26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, “With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
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The righteous demands of God must be satisfied. The law must be fulfilled. The guilty must receive their just penalty for sin. How is it that salvation is going to be accomplished for Israel and the nations? We must look to Christ the Good Shepherd who has given Himself, that we might be saved.
The Good Shepherd: Christ has given us Himself.
The Good Shepherd: Christ has given us Himself.
In one simple statement Jesus explains to his disciples why He came:
28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
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Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, the one through whom all things were made. Holy God has humbled Himself and walked among us. We who are a guilty people in need of a ransom. We are the one’s who should be slaves and servants because of the debt we owe. We are the ones who cannot pay the price for our sin, and yet the one who is entitled to the riches of glory of heaven came to walk among us and ransom us by giving His very life. The gracious master has become the servant that we might receive the riches of salvation and glory in heaven with Him. There is no greater gift! That is the fullness of righteousness which God requires.
When we look at the instructions here in Exodus and it shows us the sin and shows the debt that we owe, let’s not hesitate to look to one who ransomed us - the author and giver of life.
When we recognize we have taken what is not ours whether that’s someone’s property, perhaps an idea, even their time. We look to Christ who is our ransom and righteousness. He’s paid the debt in giving his life, and accomplished the law required of us.
When we recognize we have burdened our neighbor or our family because of our neglect, we look to Christ who is our ransom and righteousness. There is no degree of good which the Father has overlooked or neglected in giving us His Son and the presence of the Spirit.
When we recognize we have withheld love and good works from our neighbor or family out of selfishness or personal ambition, we look to Christ who is our ransom and righteousness. He went to the point of shedding His own blood, bearing our shame, and enduring the wrath of the Father for us. No degree of our guilt went unpunished, and there was nothing lacking in His sacrificial love for us.
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When we in our need grasp in faith all that Christ has accomplished for us and is for us today, we can begin to walk in His footsteps.
If you look at the context of that simple verse Matthew 20:28 (I came not to be served but to serve...) Jesus is addressing the disciples ambition for glory. The mother of James and John come to Jesus asking that her sons be given positions of honor in the kingdom. “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.”
It’s that heart of ambition that’s willing to pursue glory and blessing and wealth at the expense of others. It’s presumptuous to assume, “Surely this is for the taking and I can claim it because I deserve it.” That ambitious and presumptuous heart lies at the heart of the thief, and if we’re honest that deceitfulness of our hearts tempts us with that same ambition and presumptuous thought.
What is it that Jesus calls us to instead?
26 “It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave;
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To walk in the footsteps of Christ our Savior by faith is to lay aside pride and selfish ambition and put on the humility of a servant. You might say it is a new selfless ambition that drives us now that we have received such an abundance in Christ. We can readily admit, I have all that I need in Christ. There is no more glory or blessing to be found. It all awaits us in heaven and until then we labor and strive as humble servants for the glory of God and the good of our brothers and sisters.
Paul puts it rather succinctly.
28 He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.
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As the church Christ saved by such glorious grace, we forsake all selfish ambition which steals and we devote ourselves to giving even laboring so that we can serve those in need, for that is what Christ has done for us.
A simple question for us to ask ourselves.
Whose needs am I trying to fulfill? (Write that down, pray about it later)
Is it ours? Perhaps it’s not even a need perhaps it’s just a personal want. Christ has called us to lay aside that selfish ambition that heart of the thief. Might we walk in the footsteps of Christ ambitious to meet the deepest needs of our family, our brothers, and sisters even though they may be undeserving.
A second question to ask those closest to you:
How can I serve you today? (Maybe write down a name of someone you can serve this week.) Make a point to ask them that question this week. Maybe just send them a text sometime this week.
“He came not be served, but to serve.” Let’s make that our ambition.
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God’s instructions in Exodus 22
move on from calling thieves to account to calling poor stewards to account.
Let’s look for the unfaithful shepherd here.
The Unfaithful Shepherd: The Steward’s neglect.
The Unfaithful Shepherd: The Steward’s neglect.
You’ll notice from verse 7 through verse 14 a bit of a progression.
We begin with a trusted steward. He’s been given money or goods to care for.
(vs. 7) “If a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep for him...
We move to a steward who has become a suspect. The judge needs to determine whether this steward is guilty or not.
(vs. 8) “If the thief is not caught, then the owner of the house shall appear before the judges...”
The text concludes with restitution required from the unfaithful steward or the unfaithful shepherd as we see the theme throughout Scripture.
Let’s circle back and take a closer look at verse 7.
7 “If a man gives his neighbor money or goods to keep for him and it is stolen from the man’s house, if the thief is caught, he shall pay double.
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For the sake of analogy let’s say your neighbor has loaned you their car for a brief period. It’s a nice car! One of those brand new BMWs. Maybe your car is in the shop. Maybe he’s on vacation. Whatever it may be, if that car gets stolen, but the thief is found and the car is recovered, all is well. The thief will pay the price, but at the end of the day, you’re not held to account. You were able to return what you were entrusted.
What happens if the car gets stolen though and it isn’t recovered? You walk into the drive way one morning and it’s gone! What’s going through your head at that moment? “I lost it!” “My neighbor is going to think I sold it.” You might imagine your neighbor having some questions when he gets back. If you just say, “I lost it!” That’s probably not going to cut it. At that point the steward becomes a suspect.
8 “If the thief is not caught, then the owner of the house shall appear before the judges, to determine whether he laid his hands on his neighbor’s property. 9 “For every breach of trust, whether it is for ox, for donkey, for sheep, for clothing, or for any lost thing about which one says, ‘This is it,’ the case of both parties shall come before the judges; he whom the judges condemn shall pay double to his neighbor.
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The LORD provides a little freedom here for the judges to determine who is at fault, but the general principle is clear. “I lost it.” isn’t the end of the story. We don’t get to walk away free of charge even if we didn’t steal it ourselves. The person entrusted with the goods of His neighbor is held to account if he loses out of neglect what has been entrusted to him. Now their are some provisions in the law. Today in the insurance world we call them “Acts of God”. If you drive home one day from work in the middle of a thunderstorm, you pull up to your driveway and the BMW has been struck by lightning. It’s a burning heap. What then?
10 “If a man gives his neighbor a donkey, an ox, a sheep, or any animal to keep for him, and it dies or is hurt or is driven away while no one is looking, 11 an oath before the Lord shall be made by the two of them that he has not laid hands on his neighbor’s property; and its owner shall accept it, and he shall not make restitution. 12 “But if it is actually stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner. 13 “If it is all torn to pieces, let him bring it as evidence; he shall not make restitution for what has been torn to pieces.
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Sometimes this broken world exacts a price on what’s been entrusted to the steward. He’s not to be held to account for nature taking it’s course. Sometimes sheep die. Sometimes the lion or the wolf comes and there’s nothing you can do about it. That’s part of being a shepherd, but there’s a difference between one lost sheep and losing a dozen out of neglect. There’s a difference between a nail in the tire of the BMW from ordinary use and crumpled front fender because we decided to have a little fun with the brand new BMW. There’s a point where the trusted steward moves beyond even being a suspect. Moves beyond being the caretaker when nature takes its coarse - A point where the steward is evidently unfaithful and has neglected the duty he’s been entrusted.
Verse 12 and verse 14 communicate the guilt present there.
12 “But if it is actually stolen from him, he shall make restitution to its owner.
14 “If a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it is injured or dies while its owner is not with it, he shall make full restitution. 15 “If its owner is with it, he shall not make restitution; if it is hired, it came for its hire.
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There’s a difference between something happening when you’re not looking. As a shepherd out in the field with his sheep there are moments when you’re not looking. That’s different however from just letting the sheep roam and the shepherd is not with them at all. No one should be surprised at that point if the sheep get stolen or killed. There is no protector in sight. There is no rod of the Shepherd to protect the sheep anywhere in view because the shepherd is at home napping. If the BMW gets stolen because you decide to leave town while your neighbor has entrusted you with his car, that’s a bit different than it being stolen while you’re in the house at night.
As we work through Exodus we’re going to continue to see laws and principles delivered for the common good of Israel. I’ll continue to point that out, and like I’ve said we do well to seek the common good of our neighbor through faithful stewardship! Let’s be trustworthy people with the material that we’ve been given, but as I’ve eluded, there’s a spiritual reality here as well that we need recognize. If we look to the book of Ezekiel briefly, we can see the shepherds in a spiritual understanding held to account in much the same way as our text.
7 Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 8 “As I live,” declares the Lord God, “surely because My flock has become a prey, My flock has even become food for all the beasts of the field for lack of a shepherd, and My shepherds did not search for My flock, but rather the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock; 9 therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: 10 ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand My sheep from them and make them cease from feeding sheep. So the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore, but I will deliver My flock from their mouth, so that they will not be food for them.” ’ ”
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You might recognize the same progression in this text as we see in Exodus 22.
Shepherds: trusted stewards given care of the flock. The flock does not belong to them, but they are called to care for it.
The flock becomes prey and food for the beasts of the field. The shepherds become suspect. Is this nature taking it’s course or is it something more serious? And it is!
The shepherds are proven unfaithful even detrimental to the flock.
They did not search for them.
They fed themselves and did not feed the flock.
The sheep themselves were food for them.
What is God’s response?
“ I will deliver My flock from their mouth.”
The spiritual leaders, the priests, and the kings have utterly forsaken their duty to lead and shepherd the people into the holiness of God. For this unfaithfulness, for this poor stewardship they will surely be held to account, and God will take it upon Himself to gather and keep His flock. The law of God proves to reveal the threats to the common good, but it also puts on display the spiritual depravity of the people. Who is the one who will faithfully provide and faithfully keep the flock of God for their spiritual life and well-being?
For want of the perfect spiritual shepherd, for want of one who will faithfully keep His flock in the faith provided to Abraham, we must look to Christ first and foremost.
Unfortunately, the state of the flock in Ezekiel is the same condition Israel is in hundreds of years later when Christ comes. Jesus looks out upon His people Israel with pity.
36 Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.
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Time and again Jesus will address the Pharisees, the spiritual leaders and shepherds of Israel and rebuke them for their unfaithfulness.
He rebukes them for turning the temple into a Den of thieves. Shepherds actively hindering the sheep from coming to worship.
He calls them sons who failed to go work in the field. Shepherds who have failed to work and steward what they’ve been entrusted.
He refers to them as hired hands who seek to steal the inheritance of the Master’s son by killing him. Shepherds who would rather kill and steal rather than respect the Master’s Son.
When Christ comes to His people, His sheep without a shepherd, he is not so concerned with the material stewardship of his people. He’s concerned with the spiritual stewardship and shepherding of His people.
This ought to be our primary concern as citizens of that eternal, spiritual kingdom to which we’ve been called. We as His church, as His flock, are called to a stewardship that the world simply cannot understand.
The world doesn’t understand what it means to store up our treasures in heaven where no thief can break in and steal.
The world doesn’t understand what it means to beware the devil, the roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
The world doesn’t understand what it means for the shepherd to run after the lost sheep.
We do! We do understand because we know our Savior Jesus Christ! We know the Good Shepherd, and that’s where we begin and end our pursuit of faithful stewardship. There’s no point where our call to steward the grace of God in Jesus Christ can be separated from Christ Himself.
Our hope that we will receive that eternal inheritance is founded in Christ Himself keeping it for us.
Our hope against the lion prowling around seeking whom he may devour is Christ Himself keeping us .
Our hope for the wandering sheep, lost and alone, is Christ Himself devoted to keeping His own.
Let’s close with The Good Shepherd and the hope that He will keep us.
The Good Shepherd: Christ will keep us.
The Good Shepherd: Christ will keep us.
If you look to John chapter 10 Jesus mentions explicitly the two main characters of God’s instructions to Israel in Exodus 22 and I’ve eluded to them intentionally. When Christ mentions thieves and robbers, when Christ mentions the hired hand entrusted with the sheep, He does not put the burden on the people. “These failed. Go be better!” There’s a time for a call to generosity and faithful stewardship, but apart from Christ those calls are doomed to failure. Christ points to Himself!
7 So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 “All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. 9 “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
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The answer to the depravity and destruction of thieves and robbers reaping both material and spiritual harm to the flock is Christ Himself! He is the means by which we are saved and find pasture in which to flourish. He is the one who will give life, and that being life abundant.
How do we respond to the destruction that comes from the unfaithful steward?
12 “He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 “He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. 14 “I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, 15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.
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In a world full of men who seek authority and responsibility for their own gain. In a time when men leverage even their spiritual influence to their own gain and the spiritual destruction of the church, where do we look for hope? In time we pray a better under shepherd would come. We pray and seek for better, more faithful men to serve the church, but where does Christ point us first and foremost? He says, “I know My own and My own know Me.” ... Do we know Christ? That is the root of our hope! Christ is the one who will keep us. Christ is the one who is devoted to us more than any man or pastor or church could ever be.
We don’t need to go looking very hard to find news of unfaithful pastors who used their position of trust and responsibility to the detriment of the church. It extends to the family too! Tragically, the world is full of hired hands who don’t care and unfaithful shepherds using the sheep for their own glory. Perhaps you know someone who’s experienced that first hand. This is the hope we give them! Christ will hold those who are unfaithful to account. The justice served in Exodus is a mere echo of the greater justice that Christ will deliver from His judgement seat in the end, but even more so. Christ is no less devoted to us!
16 “I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. 17 “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again.
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27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.
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Jesus is the Good Shepherd because he’s the one who lays down His life for the sheep. He is the faithful steward because he is the one who loved us even unto death and that love is never ending. His devotion to us is sure such that no one will snatch us from His hand.
Christ is the Shepherd who gave His life that we may have life eternal.
Christ is the Shepherd who has defeated death and the devil.
Christ is the Shepherd who promises to keep His own to the end.
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This hope and foundation is sure! As sheep in a world of wolves and hired hands only looking out for themselves, is Christ the hope we cling to? Is Christ the comfort we give to one another when our faith feels threatened and weak, vulnerable to the thief and poor stewards. The Good Shepherd is the rock which cannot be shaken. Let’s put our trust in Him above all.
With that hope and comfort of Christ, we do need ask, How will we steward this grace which we’ve been entrusted?
In the abundance we have in Christ we have been given a gospel to steward and protect. Gifts to put to good use for the good of the flock.
I’ll leave it with a simple question. Simple to ask, not so simple to do.
“How can I steward the grace given to me for the good of the flock?”
Is your brother or sister depressed because of their sin, encourage them with the grace of the gospel.
Is your brother or sister wandering, remind them of the mercy of God which leads to repentance. Encourage them with the grace which you have come to know in the church.
Is your brother or sister weak and in need. Steward the gifts and means God has given you for their flourishing.
At the end of the day. The stewardship of Christ as the Good Shepherd looked like dying. For us it may look similar, humbling ourselves for the sake of the flock. Yet we know death and dying is not the end. One day we will all be gathered as the flock into eternal glory to worship our Savior.
Let’s Pray.
