God’s grace, peace
and mercy be with you. My sermon today is The Lord is Our Shepherd and my focus
is our Gospel (John 10:1-10). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote,
“I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’”
Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we
listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply
as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.
Someone
to Watch Over Me by George and Ira Gershwin has been
performed by numerous artists since its 1926 debut. It is a ballad and jazz
standard in the Great American Songbook. Its memorable stanza goes:
There's
a somebody I'm longing to see
I
hope that she turns out to be
Someone
to watch over me.
I'm
a little lamb who's lost in a wood.
I
know I could always be good
To
one who'll watch over me.
The sentiments
expressed by the Gershwin Brothers stir our longing for someone to watch over
us – little lambs lost in a wood – especially when we are tempted to sin or
enter the sheepfold by another way. We need a shepherd to protect or correct
us. On this Good Shepherd Sunday, I offer an overview of Biblical Shepherds;
explain the meaning and model of Christian Shepherds; and finally, reflect on
how God calls us to shepherd one another.
First, Biblical
Shepherds. Even if we never met one, we know a shepherd is a person who tends,
herds, feeds and guards herds of sheep. Like many terms, the word shepherd
stems from an amalgam of several words – sheep herder.
The Good Shepherd
illustrates God's care for His people as we heard in Psalm 23, our morning
psalm – The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. … For
millenniums Jews and Christians have taken to heart the words of the psalmist
as a way of saying that in our Judeo-Christian tradition, Shepherd is a term
used for God.
Those God
appointed to watch over His people started out as shepherds. Among God’s great
leaders were Biblical shepherds including Abraham, Moses, David and Amos. They
protected and corrected God’s people, like good Missouri Synod Lutherans who
expertly applied Law and Gospel as needed.
Of course, all
Scripture points to Jesus, who fulfilled the Law, Gospel and prophecy. Jesus is
the Good Shepherd who watches over us. In His earthly and risen life, Jesus is
protector and corrector. Before He ascended into heaven, He appointed others to
protect and correct us. My second point, Christian Shepherds.
In the Gospel of
John, Jesus called Peter to shepherd His sheep (John 21:15-29). In his First
Letter, we read how Peter called wayward Christians to return to the Shepherd
and Overseer of souls (1 Peter 2:25). His letter demonstrated care and correct
teaching for Christians.
Over time, the
Church appointed men like Timothy and Titus to shepherd and oversee multiple
congregations. By the end of the first century, the fluid terms of bishop,
priest and deacon achieved fixed forms to designate certain functions. The
Church recognized Timothy and Titus as bishops because they ordained and
disciplined priests and deacons.[1]
Bishop comes from
the Greek word, episkopos, meaning overseer. Today, not every Christian
denomination recognizes the office of bishop in its structure, however, most
recognize those who oversee, protect and correct as pastors. The term Pastor,
the Latin word for shepherd, denotes clergy of most Christian denominations.
Pastors perform
three basic tasks. Remember this the next time you are standing in line at the
airport. Pastors teach, sanctify and administer – TSA – but we will never
search your luggage or take away your knitting needles. Pastors teach the Faith
in Sunday School, inquiry and confirmation classes, and from the pulpit or over
the internet. Pastors form Christians through correct teaching and correct
misinformed Christians and catechists when, like in First Peter, false teaching
appears under the guise of Christian orthodoxy.
Pastors sanctify –
or make holy – when they lead worship and when Christians gather for any type
of prayer. Lastly, pastors administer the daily business of the church. However
successful, every pastor knows that through the Holy Spirit, Christ continues
to oversee and shepherd His Church.
That brings me to
my third point: Christians Shepherd One Another. Our reading from Acts is a
snapshot of the Church immediately after Pentecost when Peter and the apostles
baptized 3,000 people. Today’s passage illustrates their devotion to teaching,
fellowship, communion and prayer. Think of Peter and the apostles teaching,
sanctifying and administering the church as they tend to the needs of everyone.
Eventually,
tending to the needs of everyone overwhelmed the apostles, and the Church chose
men like Stephen to tend to duties apart from preaching and sanctifying. These
were the original deacons. Today, deacons serve some remote (LCMS) churches,
while in most congregations, laymen known as elders are appointed to serve the
congregation in its temporal affairs and assist the pastor in his
administrative tasks.
In his book Pastors
and Elders, Reverend Timothy Mech addresses issues that often arise in
congregations.[2]
His book answers frequently asked questions: Who is in charge? What are the
expected and allowed duties of elders? How should pastors and elders work
together? How do members hold elders accountable? How do elders challenge
self-absorbed Christians?
The ultimate
responsibility of shepherding the Church, however, falls neither to the pastor nor
the elders, but to the parents. Parents bear responsibility for teaching their
children God's Word so that the Faith may remain alive and grow.
Godparents,
pastors, elders and catechists assist parents in their duty to shepherd their
children. Together, we ensure that everyone enters the sheepfold by the door
and does not climb in some other way.
With Mother’s Day soon
approaching and this being Good Shepherd Sunday, let me tell you how my mother
taught me pastoral theology. Mom taught me how to pastor by showing me how to
grow tomatoes. She was much better at growing tomatoes than I will ever be.
Every spring our
family planted more than 100 tomato plants, which sufficiently fed our family
of five. When the weather broke – usually around Mother’s Day – we tilled the
garden for tomatoes and many other vegetables.
We dug holes,
planted, fertilized and watered our plants. Through the summer, we weeded and
watered; checked for bugs and blight and discarded rotten tomatoes.
We harvested
tomatoes for salad, sauce and juice. We buried the discarded skin and seeds
which produced a later crop. Since we were 4-H members, we entered our prize
tomatoes in exhibits at local fairs.
Growing tomatoes
taught me three practical necessities about pastoral ministry: nourish, reserve
and share. Parents, pastors, elders and all members need to nourish, reserve
and share their faith.
First, nourish. By
exercising our faith – by attending worship, reading God’s Word, taking
Communion, seeking forgiveness and attending religious education classes – we
nourish ourselves.
Second, reserve. 36
years of ministry taught me there are times when we cannot nourish ourselves
adequately. There will be times when troubles and temptations attack us. … We
need a reserve. There will be times when caring for sick children or frail
parents exhaust us. There will be times when completing projects, cramming for
exams or meeting deadlines consume us. There will be times when we do not have
the luxury to bathe ourselves in God’s Word or enjoy the feast of His banquet.
We can only birdbath and eat on the run. During difficult times, we need that
reserved Mason jar of tomatoes in the pantry. That is why my mother taught us
how to can tomatoes. That is why she taught us to memorize Scripture passages
and prayers because she knew we would someday need a reserve – of spiritual
food that God provides to nourish our bodies and our souls.
Third, share. When
God blessed us with plentiful tomatoes, we shared them with others. We shared
tomatoes with friends, neighbors, pastors and the less fortunate. Mom taught me
to practice charity by sharing God’s abundant blessing with others. That said,
we will bring some here in due time. How do we share God’s abundant blessings
with others?
Take a moment,
look around and notice something that you have never noticed. Notice who is
missing. Given that we are in a new location, who is not here today that you
normally saw at the other church? Who was here on Easter or last Sunday, but did
not return today? More importantly, who has not been here for a month, a year? Who
has not been here since I have been here and is still not? Make a list of names
of people you have not seen in church, and when you go home, call those
individuals.
You may be
thinking that I am kidding. I am not. … Do not protest by thinking, “That’s not
my job. That’s my elder’s duty.” … True, it is not your job. True, it is your
elder’s duty. … Sharing with a little lamb who's lost in a wood how God
abundantly blessed you today during this time of worship is not a duty or a
job, it is a privilege, your privilege, my privilege. … Sharing the Gospel of
Jesus Christ risen from the dead for the forgiveness of sins is not a job to be
completed, but a privilege shared by all.
In this liturgy,
God nourishes us so abundantly that we have enough reserved in our spiritual
pantry not only for those times when life tests us and Satan tempts us, but
also enough to share with others.
Lest thieves and
robbers enter the sheepfold and steal souls for Satan, we – pastors, elders,
parents and members – must nourish, reserve and share our faith. Through the
power of the Holy Spirit, God the Father and Christ His Son charge you to watch
over one another as good shepherds, to protect and correct one another.
By teaching me how
to grow tomatoes, mom taught me how to be a good shepherd. She taught me to
nourish, reserve and share. I am sure your mother taught you the same. This
year, honor your mother by sharing the Gospel with others. Share with others
how God has blessed you today and ask them the same. And when you listen to
their blessed answer, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding,
keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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