1602AFC010816 – The Lord is my Shepherd
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Isaiah 40:11 – He will feed his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
and carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead the mother sheep.
God is rather fond of shepherds. Have you ever wondered why? It began – as all things do – in The Beginning. You’ll find Abel, a man who tended flocks, giving an offering to God from the best of his flock. With him is his brother, Cain, who also presented an offering to God. Both worked hard at preparing their sacrifices. God accepted Abel’s offering but rejected Cain’s – who was his older brother – offering. Cain got very angry and ultimately committed the first recorded murder – he killed his little brother. It’s a very famous passage and includes the familiar quote, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Why did God reject Cain’s gift? The story in Genesis 4 gives only thin hints of why God rejected Cain’s sacrifice, but there are other hints elsewhere.
There are some additional clues in the Old Testament in places other than the book of Genesis. In the letter to the Hebrews, the author alludes to the reason for God’s rejection of the offering as Cain’s lack of faith. (Hebrews 11:4). The first letter of John describes Cain’s acts were linked to Satan, (“belonged to the evil one”) and because of his own evil nature. (1 John 3:12). In the Letter of Jude there is an allegation that Cain only made the offering out of greed, hoping God would increase his “profit margin.” (Jude 1:11). I also believe that, because Cain was the older brother, he believed that his status as the eldest counted for more than the quality of his gifts.
Cain brought “to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the LORD had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. Cain’s gift was some of the fruit of the ground, but we are left wondering if it was perhaps not the best (“first”) fruits of his labor. It was apparently an imperfect offering – he held back the best for himself. Abel did the opposite. In this story, it was the shepherd’s gift that was favored, and it cost the shepherd his life. Here are some additional insights into why.
Hebrews 11:4 – By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain’s. Through this he received approval as righteous, God himself giving approval to his gifts; he died, but through his faith he still speaks.
James 2:26 – 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
Cain’s offering was not made in faith; Abel’s was. What does that mean? Cain was working on his own opinion of what God wants. He apparently decided he could impress God with a showy pile of fruits and vegetables. It was not an act of faith. It was an act of the kind that brought about the presence of evil on Earth – an act of pride. Abel’s prayer might have been something like, “LORD, accept this offering of your servant as a statement of my trust in you. I leave this with you to testify to that trust.” Cain’s prayer might have been like, “LORD, how do you like them apples? I grew them myself. I’m going to take all this and sell it!” That is far from being an ideal sacrifice, whereas Abel’s sacrifice was that of a true believer, an ideal shepherd, and an obedient servant.
The Ideal Shepherd Isaiah talks about is the Davidic Shepherd in Psalm 23, and in Ezekiel 34, especially 34:15-23. Isaiah portrays this shepherd carrying the lambs with tenderness and care. Little lambs have a lot of energy, but they also tire easily. When they are moving with the flock as they graze, the little guys sometimes get tuckered out and just can’t go any farther. The good shepherd will pick up that little one and carry it for a while so it can rest without being left behind. As for the ewes, especially those still carrying their progeny, they must be led with care – slowly, with an eye toward safe paths, gentle slopes, adequate water, and gradually move the flock so as not to endanger their lives. When Jacob and Esau were going through the process of reconciling with one another, Jacob makes a comment that driving the herd hard would kill the future of the herd – the ewes and the lambs they carried. Here’s the thing: If there are bleating, hopping, stumbling, messy, cute little lambs around, they are the future of the herd, and there will soon be more during the herd’s birthing season. Same for the Church. If there are squalling, wiggling, falling, messy, dear little children around, they are the future of the Church, and soon enough they will bring their own children to Church. Jesus loves the little children. So should we love them and as unconditionally as he did. While they are not livestock, of course, they are the substance of the future and a statement of faith in God’s Providence.
For the nation Israel, livestock was a central component of everything from worship to shelter to clothing. Animals were important, and they were cared for as the investments they truly were. We know the story of the lost sheep. It’s not a stretch of the imagination to realize that losing one lamb would be a bad setback. Losing a ewe and her unborn lamb would be far worse. God says that he himself with be the shepherd to Israel, and for the Israelites that was a brilliant illustration. God’s “hired hands,” the Priests who were supposed to lead and protect the people, had failed in their job, so God announces, “I will do the job myself because I care about my sheep so much I don’t want them to suffer like this any longer.” Then he promises to send another Davidic Shepherd, the heir of David’s throne, and like the shepherd David, this Good Shepherd will lead God’s people in the right way, defeat God’s enemies, and establish a Kingdom where God and his Shepherd rule with justice and equity for ever.
Beloved, that is – of course – the Kingdom of God, and you and I already live there. So does every living soul on this earth. All of us live in the Kingdom of God, but not all of us are part of the Kingdom of God. If Jesus is your Shepherd, you are part of His Kingdom. If Jesus is not your Shepherd, you live in the World, but not in the Kingdom. No one is excluded from the Kingdom by the Shepherd. The only way to be excluded is to ignore the Shepherd. And if Jesus is your shepherd, then you have to go where Jesus goes; that’s what we mean when we say, “follower of Jesus.” We go where he goes, and conversely, we do not go where he does not go.
The Good Shepherd
He leads us tenderly, graciously, safely, sweetly, gently, caringly to “verdant pastures” and “beside refreshing streams.” He give us rest and restores us. He blesses us and protects us. We are important to him, and he himself chooses to guide us and protect us. That is such good news. As we proceed through the rest of 2016, we will once again recall how God favored shepherds with the first glimpse of the Good Shepherd. I have always dreamed about being with those shepherds on that first night of the life of Jesus. I can just barely hear that heavenly chorus as the announcing angel was joined by the heavenly host singing, “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, goodwill to all people.” (Luke 2:14 Authorized (King James) Version (AKJV) KJV reproduced by permission of Cambridge University Press, the Crown’s patentee in the UK.) Wow! Gives me chicken-skin! When we sing the Gloria in Church we sing the words of the Angels, and I often feel they are singing with us:
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Be of good will and glorify God with the Angels and the Good Shepherd.
Whatever, whenever, wherever, whoever, however, if ever, forever — at your service, Beloved!
Aloha Friday Messages by Charles O. Todd, III is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture passages are from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE) New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
