Acts 2: 42 – 4 / Psalm 23 / I Peter 2: 10 – 25 / John 10: 1 – 10
This is the homily given at St. John’s, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania on Sunday, April 30, 2023, by Fr. Gene Tucker.
“A PURPOSE TO ALL THINGS: SHEPHERD AND FLOCK”
(Homily text: John 10: 1 - 10)
A fascinating image we have of the Lord
is that He is our shepherd. Think of the appointed Psalm for this Sunday, which
begins with the statement “The Lord is my shepherd”.
The image that often comes to mind of
the Lord as shepherd is a tranquil scene in which a shepherd has a young lamb
wrapped around his shoulders (a well-known painting depicts the Lord that way).
If we dig a little deeper into the
business of shepherding, it’s possible we’ll see quite a depth of meaning for
the relationship that we, the Lord’s sheep, have with Him, our shepherd.
Hopefully, we’ll see that the shepherd and the sheep of his flock each have
interwoven purposes and roles to fill.
Let’s look a little deeper then…
We might begin with the place that
shepherds had in the ancient world. We see, in those times and in that culture,
that being a shepherd wasn’t the most notable or sought-after calling. Think,
perhaps, of King David as the prophet Samuel comes to David’s father, Jesse,
informing him that God had sent him to Jesse’s household because God had chosen
one of his sons to be king in the place of Saul[1]. As
Jesse parades one son after another in front of Samuel, Samuel says, of each
one, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” Finally, after seven of the sons
have come and gone, Samuel asks Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” Jesse says, “There
remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” When David came
in, Samuel was instructed by the Lord, who said, “Arise, anoint him, for this
is he.”
Note that David was the youngest of the
sons, not the oldest or the older ones, the ones we might expect would be the
ones chosen. And, note that David is a shepherd.
This aspect of shepherding might prompt
us to consider that the Lord is not only the one who cares for us, but the Lord
is also the one who is called to serve us, His sheep. Jesus’ remark comes to
mind here: “…I am among you as one who serves”.[2]
A shepherd’s work involves leading the
flock of sheep. One of the tasks involved in leading sheep is to lead them to places
where there is good grazing. Transferred into the relationship between God and
God’s people, we can see that the Lord, as shepherd, leads us into all truth,
and leads us into those things that will benefit our wellbeing.
Another task that is a part of
shepherding is the protection of the flock. Sheep are well-known for being able
to get into trouble, trouble that they, themselves, cannot free themselves of. To
aid in rescuing sheep that are in danger, the shepherd carries a staff, known
as a crook, with a hooked end on one end (to retrieve sheep from danger) and a
pointed end on the other, to prod sheep to go in a direction that is good for
their welfare.[3] In our walk with the Lord, we are rescued from those things that would harm us
us spiritually, even as we are prodded by the Lord to make changes in our
relationship with Him.
As often as we focus on the shepherd
and the work that the shepherd does, we would also do well to consider the
flock itself.
The shepherd’s purpose is directly
related to the existence and the welfare of the flock. Simply put, if there is
no flock, there is no need for a shepherd.
The sheep themselves also have a
purpose, and that is to provide wool for clothing, and – in Old Testament times
– lambs for Temple sacrifices. We, as the Lord’s flock, have a purpose to
fulfill in His plans for the world and those who live in it. That purpose has
to do with casting the Lord’s light into the darkness of the world by what we
do and by what we say.
We are the Lord’s flock, His people.
The Lord, as shepherd, preserves us, nurtures us, and leads us, that we might
be known as the Lord’s possession forever.
Thanks be to God.
AMEN.
[1] See I Samuel 16:1 – 13.
[2] Luke 22:27b
[3] The Bishop’s crozier is a stylized version of the shepherd’s crook.
