The Good Shepherd is seminal to biblical thought and understanding, yet our society and culture has little connection to shepherds or sheep and we might not fully understand the importance of this spiritual icon. The Old Testament abounds with shepherd heroes… the patriarch Abraham watched over herds of sheep… Moses was a shepherd in Midian when he encountered the burning bush… King David was a young shepherd when he fought and killed Goliath… The 23rd Psalm which begins, "The Lord is my shepherd," is one of the most often quoted scriptures. The New Testament is filled with shepherd symbolism… the story of the Lost Sheep or Jesus asking Peter three times if he loved him. Each time Peter said, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you,” Jesus replied, “Feed my sheep.” But this Sunday’s reading highlights Jesus as the Good Shepherd to lead, protect and care for the flock. The story of the Good Shepherd is in part the question of good and evil, the eternal battle of our existence. The protection of the innocent from the forces of evil, be they poverty, racism, prejudice, brutality or injustice. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech “The Three Evils of Society” over 50 years ago touched on similar issues.
Andrew Young was a pastor, close confidant to Martin Luther King, Jr., Congressman from Georgia, Ambassador to the United Nations, and Mayor of Atlanta. In 1996 he wrote a book, A Way Out of No Way about his spiritual journey in life and how real change occurs. Young observed that changes for the better do not happen simply because we teach people how to work better or harder. He believes reforms take place when people exert their spirituality to achieve change. What a powerful insight about achieving change from an international leader; this insight calls us to question seriously our concepts of power for effecting change.
The jury’s decision in Minneapolis this week put our judicial system to the test as it witnessed the quality of justice in America as the entire world watched. The killing of George Floyd precipitated the largest public outcry in US history with the Kaiser Family Foundation estimating 26 million protesters between June 8-14. This occurred in 40% of all counties in the US, and 95% of them had white majority populations. Perhaps hearing Mr. Floyd’s six-year-old daughter Gianna’s powerful and innocent statement, “My Daddy changed the world,” brought about a moment of spiritual reckoning in many souls.
Most of us imagine that we give or confer power equally. However, the one who moves into the seat of power may understand how that power is to be used in a completely different way from the way it was conferred. The marks of power are different for the variety of people on whom the power is conferred. Most people in power are not transparent about their strategies for dealing with power. They just act and not always as they should. By contrast, in John 10, we hear how our Lord Jesus perceived his role as our Good Shepherd and understood the nature of the power given by God.
A great comfort for us is that Jesus loves all within the fold and that he also loves others, who are not of this fold. God’s love is universal; there can be no doubt that God loves us, the sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross was for all… the resurrection is God’s truth that love is for all. The sacrifice of Jesus was complete and no one needs to die again for the sin of the world, certainly not George Floyd nor any other of the men and women who have been the victims of misguided power of law officers. Andrew Young once said, “It is a blessing to die for a cause, because you can so easily die for nothing.” Let us hope and pray that Gianna’s words ring true, “My Daddy changed the world.”
God Bless,
1 Comments
Andrew —
You write well and I like this piece.
Someone might call you on the line “Moses was a shepherd for Pharaoh.” In fact, he was a shepherd for his father-in-law Jethro. The gist, however, is that Moses was shepherding when a magnificent theophany happened!
Best for Easter Season.
Bob Dannals