Remember when you were a kid and someone would ask you, “If you could be any animal, what would you be?” Suddenly your imagination would run wild considering all your options and trying to pick the most glorious one! Maybe you chose a lion so that you could be the king of beasts! Perhaps you wanted to be some epic bird of prey or a pterodactyl so that you could soar in all your glory over the world. Or maybe, if you’re like me, your choice was simply based on cuteness: a kitten… that would always stay a kitten and never grow into a cat! But my guess is that most of us had one thing in common: We didn’t pick a sheep.
Most of us probably don’t wander through life identifying ourselves with sheep. But interestingly, the Bible draws a lot of comparisons between people and these wooly creatures. In a couple days, our GRIP reading will bring us to Ezekiel chapter 34, where the people of Israel are described as a flock of sheep. God is using the prophet Ezekiel to speak against the wicked shepherds, or leaders, of His people. According to verses three and four, these leaders took advantage of their “flock”, benefiting from their positions of leadership while refusing to look after the sheep in their care. God rebukes these leaders for ruling over the sheep “harshly and brutally.”
This theme of the sheep and their shepherds continues throughout the entire chapter as God promises to “hold [the shepherds] accountable for [His] flock” (Ez. 34. 10). He goes on in the same verse to promise that He will one day rescue His sheep from the mouths of these criminal shepherds. In verses 16 and 17, God promises, “I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down… I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak”, giving us a picture of the relationship God desires to have with mankind. And finally, as the chapter draws to a close, the Lord gives us these profoundly comforting words: “You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, and I am your God.”
While I may not typically think of myself as a sheep, I find these words almost as soft and warm as I imagine the wool of a sheep to be. They are so personal, so intimate. “You are MY sheep”, God says. “The sheep of MY pasture.” The use of the possessive determiner “my” in these two statements speaks volumes to me. They paint a clear picture of God’s desire for personal intimacy with His people.
We saw this theme in our GRIP plan earlier this week as we read through John chapter 10. This chapter confirms the identity of God as the true shepherd of the sheep, as Jesus—who is God Himself—states, “I am the good shepherd” (John 10:14). He is the fulfillment of the promise given in Ezekiel 34, and He continues to paint the picture of intimacy between the sheep and their shepherd. “[The shepherd] calls his own sheep by name… he goes ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice” (John 10:3-4). Jesus knows His sheep uniquely and individually. Not only that, but those who are truly His sheep know His voice and trust Him enough to follow Him, no matter where He leads them.
I have often marveled at this idea that I can have such a deep and profound relationship with the God of the universe. That as big as He is, and as small as I am, He is my shepherd. And He is a GOOD shepherd. One who can pick me out of the flock and actually knows me by name. One who helps me to learn His voice so that I will be able to identify it above the rest of the noise of life. One who looks for me when I stray, binds up my injuries and strengthens me when I am weak. It’s crazy to think that I have a shepherd like this, and even crazier to think that there are times in my life when I struggle to trust Him.
I don’t often think of myself as a sheep. But when I read these passages, and meditate on the immense goodness of my true shepherd, it all just makes so much sense. So I don’t know… as cute and cuddly as kittens are, perhaps if I were asked now what animal I would be if I had my pick, I just might say a sheep.
-Talasi Guerra
(Director of Children and Family Ministries)