The Shepherd Cares for His Flock

Herding by Drones

The image of a sole shepherd leading his sheep to green pastures and quite waters is being replaced by a screeching drone making low level passes to drive the flock to different pastures. Cameron Neild is a sheep ranchers who is changing the industry. They are taking the leg work out of gathering the scattered sheep into a tightly knit flock. Cameron has over 10,000 ewes scattered over 10,000 acres. He flies the drone from his vehicle moving the isolated sheep into a mob. Once the mob is formed he uses his dirt bike and sheep dogs to direct the sheep. He also uses the drone to check fencing and gates.

Ben Watts is a certified drone teacher and merino breeder. He says that interests in using drones in shepherding have increased. It goes along with accomplishing more with less movement. He runs workshops to teach people how to safely use their drones. Unless the drones are used with care and skill they can increase the stress on the flocks.

I am not sure if we need a new translation of this passage regardless of how popular drones become with the modern shepherds. Somehow “I am the good drone,” leaves me cold for the very reasons that Jesus uses the image of the shepherd.

The Passage Background

Today’s passage is part of a discourse which begins that flows from the healing of a blind man. Jesus uses the imagery of the sheep and shepherd to describe his relationship with his followers. This would have been a familiar image for his disciples. Several ancient Hebrew writers also employed this analogy in their writings.

Psalm 80:1 NIV84

Hear us, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock; you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth

Isaiah 40:11 NIV84

He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.

Isa

Some of the most famous passages in Scripture also use this analogy.

To counter the local reputation of shepherds, Jesus describes his shepherd as “good.” The adjective carries a moral and ethic tone. Jesus is saying this is not an ordinary shepherd but a good shepherd. Someone who fears God and obeys the Law. This is someone you can trust.

Psalm 23:1 NIV84

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.

Psalm 23

Isaiah 53:6 NIV84

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isa 53:6

Ironically, shepherds in Jesus day had a terrible reputation. They were paid low wages and were required to reimburse their master for their losses. They compensated by miscounting the lambs at birth and stealing them for their own family.

To counter the local reputation of shepherds, Jesus describes his shepherd as “good.” The adjective carries a moral and ethic tone. Jesus is saying this is not an ordinary shepherd but a good shepherd. Someone who fears God and obeys the Law. This is someone you can trust.

This would have been a contrast to the Pharisees. They required a man to adhere to a strict standard of behavior before he would be considered righteous. Failing to follow their rules and regulation meant severe judgment.

To counter the local reputation of shepherds, Jesus describes his shepherd as “good.” The adjective carries a moral and ethic tone. Jesus is saying this is not an ordinary shepherd but a good shepherd. Someone who fears God and obeys the Law. This is someone you can trust.

Since God rested on the Sabbath and did not preform any work, they believed that God would not preform a miracle on the day of rest. Anyone who did must be a heretic. They threatened to banish anyone from the synagogue who claimed that Jesus had given sight to a blind man because it was the Sabbath. This would virtually cut off the person from God. The synagogue was the dwelling place for the Divine. Contact between a person and God took place in the synagogue not in the field or on a walk through the wilderness.

Jesus develops the imagery of the sheep and the shepherd in several ways positive ways. First he likens anyone who has any other motive than to heal them through gentle caring as a thief and a robber. In contrast the good shepherd knows his sheep intimately and calls them by name. The sheep are willing to trust this shepherd and so follow him.

The good shepherd is not like the hired man who does not have an intimate relationship with his sheep. The hired man runs at the first sign of danger. He does not care for the sheep. His first priority is to save his own life.

In contrast the good shepherd stands between danger and his flock. He is willing to confront the threat and risk his own life to defend his flock.

Their our two thoughts that run through this passage that are meaningful to me. One is protection from danger. Our world has become quite a scary place. As Bilbo Baggins once said to his nephew Frodo, “It is a scary thing to step out of your front door...” Our schools are threatened by hurting people with guns. Our retirement investments are vulnerable to the instability in the financial markets. Our drinking water is easily contaminated. Disease and illness may strike at any moment no matter how many vitamins we take or how far we walk every morning. We need a good shepherd to stand with us during these difficult times.

The second thought that I see running through this passage is sufficiency. The good shepherd is all the flock needs. Someone who will provide nourishment and refreshment. The good shepherd knows where the pastures our green and the water is plentiful and cold.

In his sermon “His Goodness Faileth Never,“ Spurgeon exhorts his congregation to “Sit still and meditate on these things.” That is some simple but powerful advice. Most people do not sit very long except to watch TV. Then we will sit for hours. But sitting still and meditating on Scripture is a difficult skill that must be learned through practice.

Let us try it for a moment. You may keep your eyes open or closed, whatever you prefer. Now plant in your mind a vision of Jesus as a shepherd. Maybe you will use the image from a familiar painting. Think of how the shepherd cares for each animal in his flock. He is not operating a drone from the driver’s seat in his truck. He is walking right through the midst of flock. Think on that image for a moment.

<Count to 15>

Now think of the anxieties in your life. Those pending events that are causing worry—surgery, chemo therapy, pending bills that are coming due, a child or grandchild that has been in and out of trouble, a friend who is very sick. Now imagine you are walking beside this Good Shepherd. You are discussing this threat that you fear. Take a moment and meditate on that.

<Count to 15>

How are you feeling at the moment? Did that exercise trouble you? Did it stir up some uncomfortable feelings?

Jesus told parables to give the people a new understanding of God. Theologians and pastors have spent so much time explaining what the stories mean that they have neglected to connect with the stories in and experiential way. Jesus told this particular story to give his disciples reassurance during seasons of drought. When no one would show them hospitality and their purse was nearly empty, he would be with them and provide for them.

There is quite a contrast between the personal interact of the 1st century shepherd and the drone flying shepherds today. Like other things in our modern world they have lost the personal touch. But the good shepherd never loses that personal care.

Dalai Lama, An Appeal by the DL to the World.

On some days I think it would be better if there were no religions. All religions and all scriptures conceal the potential for violence. That is why we need secular ethics beyond all religions. It is more important for schools to have classes on ethics than religion. Why? Because it’s more important for humanity’s survival to be aware of our commonalities than to constantly emphasize what divides us.