The Good Shepherd: Counting Sheep
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Theme To know the reality of the Good Shepherd is to experience peace and to work for community.
Prelude
Welcome
Call to Worship
Leader: Shepherding God, be with us to guide us in this time of worship.
People: Help us to find rest and peace in your resurrection presence.
Leader: Prepare our hearts and minds with joyous praise.
People: Grant us mercy and grace, so that as we abide in your comforting love, we may flourish in grace and blossom into new and hope-filled persons.
Leader: Affirming the diversity within this congregation, I call each of you to participate in the unity of worship.
People: We unite our voices and gifts into one communal offering of praise to God. To the living God – our abiding shepherd – we give praise, glory, honor, and the devotion of our lives. Amen.
*Hymn of Praise insert He Is Exalted [66]
*Invocation (the Lord’s Prayer)
*Gloria Patri # 575
Just for Kids The Good Shepherd
Our Offering to God It is with love that we enter this moment of giving. Let us open our hearts to the needs of others as we bring our offering to God.
*Doxology #5 72
*Prayer of Dedication As we bring our offerings to you, O God, we pray that our lives will be opened even wider to see where love may be needed.
*Responsorial Psalm Based on Psalm 23
The Lord’s my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters.
We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
God restores my soul and leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Even though I walk through the valley of death, I will fear no evil; for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil and my cup runneth over.
We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.
We will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
*Hymn of Prayer # 296 I Will Sing the Wondrous Story
Pastoral Prayer Gracious God, we thank you for the love that stands under the whole creation. We thank you that love is our guide and calling for every moment in our lives – the strong foundation for a future that sounds with hope and sings a new song of peace. We thank you for life that breaks the power of cynicism and restores trust, even if that comes at a price for you and sometimes for us.
*Hymn of Praise # 46 The King of Love My Shepherd Is
Scripture Reading John 10:11–18
Jesus identifies himself as the good shepherd, who lays down his life on behalf of his sheep. Jesus knows his people like a shepherd knows his sheep and desires oneness among them. Followers of Jesus know the voice of Jesus the shepherd and obey. God is pleased with Jesus the good shepherd.
"I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice."
"I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full."
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep."
"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd."
Message The Good Shepherd: Counting Sheep
Jesus claimed that God cares, personally, for everyone
| Bryan Wilkerson | |
| headline: "St. Dolly and Her Flock." Dollywood. For those who are not country music fans, Dollywood is the name of Dolly Parton's theme park, located in her hometown of Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. It's got rides and attractions and restaurants and shows, just like you'd expect. People have found refuge there. People like Thomasina Bicer, a 50-something-year-old employee at the park. Thomasina first visited Dollywood some 10 years ago, at a time when life wasn't working well for her. There she found what she called a "peace haven" that changed her life. "I was on five different medications for high blood pressure and depression, and after I got back from here and listened to her songs, I went off the medicines completely. Doctors asked me what happened, and I said, 'Dolly did that to me.'" // She visited the park six or seven times a year for the next seven years, and then moved from New Jersey to Tennessee and began working at the park. Soon after she wrote Dolly a thank-you note. "I told her that she saved my life. If it wasn't for her making a peaceful, loving place to calm me, I would have gotten sicker." She never did hear back from the star, but that doesn't bother her. "Dolly's a very busy person," she explains.As it turns out, Thomasina's experience is not unusual. Hundreds of Dollywood employees and thousands of Pigeon Forge residents feel the same way about the singer. One observer attributes the phenomenon to Dolly's "authentic accessibility." Now, authentic probably isn't the first word that comes to mind when you think of Dolly Parton, but whatever it is, people are drawn to it. Even though she makes only two appearances a year at Dollywood, the people there feel that she knows them and cares for them personally. Like Thomasina, many would say that their relationship with Dolly has saved their lives, in one way or another.headline: "St. Dolly and Her Flock." The writer is suggesting that Dolly is like a shepherd to the residents of Pigeon Forge.The Dollywood phenomenon speaks to the universal human longing to be known and cared for by someone—someone important and powerful, like a movie star, an athlete, a business magnate, a politician. Why else do people collect autographs or have their pictures taken with famous people? And the more important or powerful that someone is, the greater the sense of security and significance, even when the so-called relationship is just an illusion.There's nothing wrong with that longing. In fact, I would suggest it's essential to the human condition, that it was placed there by God himself. It's nice to find some measure of comfort and belonging in a place called Dollywood. But ultimately those longings can only be fulfilled in a relationship with Jesus Christ, who calls himself the Good Shepherd.Jesus claims "I am the Bread of Life; I am the Light of the World." "Before Abraham was, I AM," by which Jesus of Nazareth claimed to be God Almighty, in the flesh. "I am the Resurrection and the Life," "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life." This morning we turn to one of the most comforting of all the claims, "I am the Good Shepherd." Jesus' claim to be the good shepherd shocked his hearers "I am the good shepherd." Now maybe that doesn't strike you as such an outrageous claim. What's so unusual about a spiritual leader describing himself as a shepherd?But to the people listening that day, it was outrageous. Jesus spoke these words after the healing of the man born blind, described in chapter 9. The crowd understood that someone who did such a remarkable thing and then spoke such remarkable words was not an ordinary person or a run-of-the-mill rabbi. He was either a very disturbed person, or very special person. Look at their response in verses 19-21: "At these words the Jews were again divided. Many of them said, 'He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?' But others said, 'These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?'" Now, why the extreme reactions? What was so outrageous about this claim? Well, two things. First of all, Jesus was identifying himself as a very special servant of God Almighty. In the Old Testament, the shepherd was a very common metaphor for describing God's relationship to Israel. Remember Psalm 95: "Come let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our God our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under His care." And Isaiah 40: "He tends his flock like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart." Several of those prophecies linked the role of the shepherd to the ministry of the Messiah. Like Micah 5: "He will stand and shepherd the flock in the strength of the Lord Almighty." Or Ezekiel 34: "I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd." This was spoken long after David was dead and buried, so God is clearly referring to David's descendant, who would be the Messiah of Israel.So when Jesus began using this shepherd imagery so liberally, and applying it directly to himself, the people listening understood what he was suggesting—that he was, in fact, the Messiah. That's why they were so alarmed. For an uneducated carpenter from Nazareth to be making such a claim was outrageous!Once again we find that there are really only two responses to the claims of Jesus. When Jesus claimed to be "I AM", God in the flesh, the options were either to stone him, or serve him. And now, again, the people are divided in their response. He's either from Satan or God; he's a madman, or the Messiah. There's no middle ground. You just can't be neutral about Jesus. His claims won't allow it.But Jesus' claim to be the Good Shepherd is outrageous on another level, as well. It's outrageous to suggest that God Almighty, even his Messiah, should have such an intimate, personal, and attentive relationship with his people. Notice again the language Jesus uses to describe himself: he knows, he cares, he calls, he leads, he lays down his life. Could God Almighty, King of the Universe, Maker of Heaven and Earth—really know and care so intimately for every one of his people?Prothero, a prof at BU points out how each generation tends to view Jesus in terms of its cultural setting. But he makes it clear that the common thread running through American Christianity, and evangelicalism in particular, is the personal Jesus. What he calls "the daily life Jesus." / "What Would Jesus Do?" / Think of the intimate language in so many of our hymns and praise songs: "He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way," or, "Knowing you, Jesus, it is the greatest thing. You're my all, you're the best." Many people who visit a church are taken back at how freely and frequently we use the personal name, Jesus, and by how casually we talk about him and to him and with him.Sheryl Crow is a pop singer who's not known for being especially heavenly-minded. She's known for dating Lance Armstrong and for songs like, "All I Wanna Do Is Have Some Fun." But in one of her recent songs she offers some advice: "You gotta talk to the One who made you, talk to the One who understands." There it is again—that yearning for someone who knows, who understands, who cares.It's all very comforting, and very American, Prothero would say. Is it reasonable to believe that God Almighty should be so intimately acquainted and involved with every one of us on a personal level? Is it possible that you and I could matter that much to God?That's what makes this an outrageous claim, and that's why it's worth a closer look. What exactly does Jesus mean when he claims to be the Good Shepherd? Well, three things jump out at us from this passage:Jesus claimed God knows us, personally Look again at verses 3-5: "The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger." Later on in verse 14 he says, "I know my sheep and my sheep know me." He calls his own sheep by name. They recognize his voice and follow him. Some of us parents wish we had that kind of relationship with our kids!Most of us have heard stories and sermons about how shepherds know their sheep individually, by name, even. But is it really true? Tim Laniak wanted to know, so he asked. He asked this question of almost every shepherd he met, and they all assured them that they knew every one of their sheep. He told me about a conversation he had with the owner of a large flock of sheep, a couple of thousand. He asked, "Do you really know every one of your sheep?"The shepherd looked at him as if he was crazy. "Of course I do. How could I be their shepherd if I don't know them?"Laniak wasn't convinced, so he pressed further. "What do you mean, you know them? What exactly do you know about them?"The shepherd replied, "I know the year the sheep was born, the circumstances of its birth. I know if it's broken any bones. I know which diseases it's susceptible to, which foods it doesn't digest well. I know which animals it doesn't get along with. I know its temperament—if it tends to wander or fight or follow" Tim got the point. A shepherd really knows his sheep. But is that true of Jesus, too? Can we believe him when he says, "I know my sheep?" It's certainly true when we meet him in the Gospels. Remember when a seeker named Nathaniel came to meet Jesus? As they approached, Jesus said, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.""How do you know me?" Nathaniel said.Jesus answered, "I saw you when you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you." Jesus had been watching Nathaniel, and he knew the condition of his heart.Jesus knew that a fisherman named Simon had leadership potential. He knew the woman at the well had been married five times and was living with a man who wasn't her husband. Jesus knew the rich young ruler had a problem with money. He knew the religious leaders were turning him over out of envy.Jesus knew people. And he knows you. He knows your past—your childhood, your achievements, the mistakes you've made. He knows the circumstances of your birth, and the bones you've broken, and who you get along with, and what temptations you're vulnerable to. He knows what you did last night. He knows what's worrying you about the week to come. He knows the condition of your heart toward him right now—if you're skeptical, or curious, or obedient. How could he be your shepherd, if he doesn't know you?He calls each sheep by name, and leads them out. Zacchaeus! Mary! Lazarus! That's why you're here today. Somewhere along the way, Jesus called your name, and you began to follow. When Jesus says, "I know my sheep," we can believe him.Jesus claimed God cares for us, personally The second thing we learn about the Good Shepherd is that he cares for us, faithfully. Verses 9-10: "I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." Laniak learned that there really are bad shepherds—shepherds who exploit their sheep, who run them into the ground, who fail to take care of them. But good shepherds want their sheep to be healthy and well-fed, to produce wool and milk, to bear young, year after year. And so they are attentive to the sheep's needs. That's why they lead them to quiet waters and green pastures. They rub oil into a sheep's wounds to heal them, and into their ears to keep out the bugs. It doesn't mean the sheep always get what they want, or that the grazing is always good. They're living in the wilderness, after all. But the shepherd knows what they need, and sees that they get it, because he cares for them.That's what we want. Someone who will care for us, who knows our needs and will attend to them, someone who will offer us comfort when we're hurting and guidance when we're lost.That's why every night of the week 42 million people tune their radios to listen to a radio host named Delilah. She's America's #1 nighttime radio personality. She hosts a musical call-in show every night from 7-12, offering people a listening ear, helpful advice, sometimes even a gentle rebuke. Every night people call in wanting to talk about their troubles, about some disappointment in life, some foolish decision they've made, some relationship that is or isn't working for them. Why do they call? Because they believe that she cares, that she can help.There are lots of voices out there that people turn to for wisdom and encouragement—Oprah and Dr. Phil, Rush Limbaugh, Howard Stern, Dennis and Callahan. Now they're not all "bad" shepherds, but they're all flawed and finite human beings. Dolly can't answer all her mail. Delilah can't take every person's phone call. You know how many people call in to talk to Delilah every night? 100,000! Thirty of them will get through.We need a good shepherd—someone who can really care for each of us, personally, someone who can hear every prayer, someone with the power and wisdom to respond to every problem or question. We need a shepherd with the power to heal and the power to comfort, a shepherd who knows what's right for each person, in each situation, a shepherd who's presence is real and personal and makes a difference in all the experiences of life. Visit anyone in a hospital room, and ask them what Scripture passage they want read, they'll say, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall want for nothing." Stand beside a grave and ask someone what verse they want read, they'll say, "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil."Jesus claimed God saves us, personally Jesus is a good shepherd. He knows us personally. He cares for us, personally. And he saves us, personally. In verse 9 he says, "I am the gate, whoever enters through me will be saved." And later on, in verses 11–14: "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away." Verse 14: "I am the good shepherd … and I lay down my life for the sheep." Protection is one of the primary responsibilities of the shepherd. Sheep spend most of their time in the wilderness, where they're likely to get lost or to be attacked by wolves or lions. A hired hand, who doesn't really know the sheep or care for them, won't bother to go out looking for a stray. Why go to all that trouble for one animal? Laniak asked if a shepherd would really leave the rest of the flock and go out to look for one stray? Again, the shepherd looked at him incredulously. Of course. In all his years he only had one sheep that wandered off and never been found. It had happened nearly 20 years ago, and it still bothered him.A hired hand will run away when a wolf shows up. Why risk his neck for someone else's sheep? But a good shepherd doesn't run from danger. In fact, he will run toward the threat, to fight it with his bare hands. One shepherd showed Laniak his hands. They bore the scars of thorns and fangs. Laniak heard stories of a shepherd who once slept in a cave with a pack of hyenas, placing himself between the predators and the sheep, in order to protect his flock.Jesus is that kind of shepherd. We, too, live in a wilderness. There are all kinds of things that can happen to us in this world. Like sheep, we tend to go astray. Our enemy, the devil, prowls about like a lion, seeking someone to devour. Ultimately it's sin that's our greatest threat. The sins we commit in our own foolishness and stubborness, and the sins that other people commit against us. That sin robs us of life and separates us from God. We need someone who can save us from sin and death.Think of the people that Jesus saved. He saved Simon Peter from a small and wasted life. He saved Zacchaeus from greed and loneliness. He saved Mary Magdalene from the demons that tormented her. He saved the Samaritan woman from a life of promiscuity and abuse. He saved the apostle Paul from legalism and empty religion.He saved them, and he saved us, by laying down his life. Everyone else runs from these enemies. We deny our sinfulness and avoid the subject of death. Jesus ran toward them. He bore the weight of our sin on his shoulders, and absorbed the sting of death in his body on the cross. The Son of God became the Lamb of God, became one of the sheep, and was slain for the sins of the world. You'll sometimes hear it said that if you were the only lost soul on earth, that Jesus would have gone to the cross for you. It's an outrageous suggestion when you think about it, but this passage tells us it's true. He's the good shepherd who knows, who cares, and who will stop at nothing to save one lost sheep.Conclusion There's that longing—that yearning of the human heart for someone to turn to, someone wiser and stronger, someone who knows us, who understands, who can meet our needs. It's the yearning for God himself. Not a distant, capricious, vengeful god. But the one true God of heaven and earth. Not a flawed and fallible human shepherd. But the Good Shepherd, God's Son, who lays down his life for the sheep.My fear is that too many people are listening to the wrong voices. They're looking to the wrong gods. There's only one shepherd who knows us personally, who cares for us personally, who saves us personally. Only one who calls us by name, and offers us life, life to the full.The Lord is my shepherd. Who's yours?F. Bryan Wilkerson is pastor of Grace Chapel in Lexington, Massachusetts.Outline Introduction • Illustration: A news story about fans of Dolly Parton illustrates our innate desire to connect and be cared for by someone greater than ourselves. • It's essential to the human condition to long for a caregiver, but that longing is ultimately filled only in relationship with Christ. Transition: This morning we turn to one of the most comforting of all the outrageous claims, "I am the Good Shepherd" (vs. 1–16).Jesus' claim to be the Good Shepherd shocked his hearers • The crowds understood such a claim was the words of a disturbed person, or of a special person (vs. 19–21). • Jesus was identifying himself as the Messiah. • Psalms 95; Micah 5; Ezekiel 34 • Jesus was also claiming that Almighty God has an intimate, attentive relationship with individuals. • Illustration: Dr. Stephen Prothero's book, American Jesus, gives historical examples of Americans adapting Jesus to their varying culture, but always preserving his intimate care for individuals. Transition: Is it biblical, or even reasonable to believe that God Almighty should be so intimately acquainted and involved with every one of us on a personal level?Jesus claimed God knows us, personally • A good shepherd knows his sheep, personally (vs. 3–5). • Illustration: While on sabbatical in the Middle East, Tim Laniak asked shepherds if they know every sheep, to which the shepherds answered emphatically, "Yes." • Jesus knew Nathaniel, Simon, and the woman at the well even before they met. • Jesus knows you, too. • When Jesus says, "I know my sheep," we can believe him.Jesus claimed God cares for us, personally • The Good Shepherd cares for us faithfully (vs. 9–10). • Illustration: Tim Laniak's experience with shepherds shows good shepherds know what the sheep need and sees that they get it, because he cares for them. • We all want someone who will offer us comfort when we're hurting and guidance when we're lost. • Illustration: Over 40 million listeners tune into radio host Delilah because of her care and counsel for callers. • There are many who care, but we need a shepherd who can be with every one of us personally.Jesus claimed God saves us, personally • Jesus laid down his life for his sheep (vs. 9–14). • Illustration: Tim Laniak confirmed through interviewing shepherds in the Middle East that they really do seek lost sheep and defend them from predators. • We, too, live in a wilderness and need to be saved. • Jesus saved Simon Peter, Zacchaeus, Mary Magdalene, the Samaritan woman, and Paul. • He saved them, and he saved us, by laying down his life.Conclusion • Illustration: The Hindu pilgrims at the river Ganges are desperate for a god who will hear, care, and save them. • There's only one shepherd who knows us personally, who cares for us personally, who saves us personally. | |
*Hymn of Response # 321 “Savior, like a Shepherd Lead Us”
Communion
Communion Hymn
*Sending forth
*Postlude
Thought for the Day The Good Shepherd sees to it that each member of the flock is in the fold – protected and secure, fed and made comfortable, peaceful. This is an open invitation, a source of great comfort, an enduring promise, and an awesome challenge for every one of Jesus’ followers.