More Than Hired Hands
"'I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.'" (John 10:11-15)
"Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.'" (Matthew 9:36-38)
The phrase "to lay down his life" is not at all shepherd-like. It is more "lamb-like," it is more the action of a lamb who does not resist when being put on the altar and giving up its life. And for a shepherd to lay down his life for the sheep! A shepherd should feed and look after the sheep in order that he might feed and clothe himself with what the sheep produce, even slaughtering the lamb to enjoy its meat. But who ever heard of such a crazy shepherd as this who would do the opposite, allowing Himself to be slaughtered in order to feed His own sheep with His own flesh! ...
"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few." This situation always seems to persist. The true laborers, the good shepherds are few or even none. But the hired hands are plentiful, and this seems to be a constant crisis. However, God has a different perspective on what seems to be a critical situation. He can be glorified in the crisis, precisely when the laborers are only a few compared to the plenty of the harvest. Think of Gideon, when the Lord said to him, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, for Israel would become boastful, saying, 'My own power has delivered me.'" (Judges 7:2)
"Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest." "Therefore," -- what for? Not, for there are few laborers, but for God’s glory! He does not need us. ...But He says, "I am the Good Harvester, the Good Shepherd, implore Me, -- I am not imploring you to send out more missionaries, more laborers, more experts for My work." No, not at all! The Lord alone is the Good Shepherd ... and He has done what was needed. He has laid down His life for the sheep. Implore Him to send out laborers. In other words, it is His harvest and it is He who sends out, not us. The field is His, so the laborers and even the harvest are also His. And He is interested in the harvest, in the laborers, and most of all, He is interested in the sheep -- in contrast with the hired hand.
The hired hand is not concerned with the sheep, says the Lord. The phrase "not concerned" in the original means not having an interest, not having a profit in the sheep. This is curious! We would think it would be quite the opposite. If a hired hand is working for wages, why is he not interested? In what is he invested if not in the sheep?
The Good Harvester, the Good Shepherd put His interest in the field, in the sheep. He invested in the flock. Jesus is neither hypocritical nor prudish about the importance of investment and profit. It seems that the hired hand is the more profit-oriented one as he works for money. But while the shepherd does not work for money, He is not working for nothing. He does not invest in His wages, but in the sheep. The value of the sheep is not in themselves, but in the measure of sacrifice -- the laying down of His life -- provided for them by the shepherd. You are precious to Me because I died for you. Your value equals My life’s value.
... My soul's profit is the Lord, and the Lord's profit is my saved soul. ... The hired hand sees his profit in his wages, the shepherd sees it in His flock, even in the most ignored and marginalized ones, so He can invest in them for eternity. ... our greatest gain is in people, let's invest in them by prayer, counseling, sacrifice, sharing, giving and dedication. Then and only then can we say boldly with Paul, "For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me. What then is my reward [profit!]? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel. For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more." (1 Corinthians 9:17-19)
[LH, 2008]
"Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest.'" (Matthew 9:36-38)
The phrase "to lay down his life" is not at all shepherd-like. It is more "lamb-like," it is more the action of a lamb who does not resist when being put on the altar and giving up its life. And for a shepherd to lay down his life for the sheep! A shepherd should feed and look after the sheep in order that he might feed and clothe himself with what the sheep produce, even slaughtering the lamb to enjoy its meat. But who ever heard of such a crazy shepherd as this who would do the opposite, allowing Himself to be slaughtered in order to feed His own sheep with His own flesh! ...
"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few." This situation always seems to persist. The true laborers, the good shepherds are few or even none. But the hired hands are plentiful, and this seems to be a constant crisis. However, God has a different perspective on what seems to be a critical situation. He can be glorified in the crisis, precisely when the laborers are only a few compared to the plenty of the harvest. Think of Gideon, when the Lord said to him, "The people who are with you are too many for Me to give Midian into their hands, for Israel would become boastful, saying, 'My own power has delivered me.'" (Judges 7:2)
"Therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into His harvest." "Therefore," -- what for? Not, for there are few laborers, but for God’s glory! He does not need us. ...But He says, "I am the Good Harvester, the Good Shepherd, implore Me, -- I am not imploring you to send out more missionaries, more laborers, more experts for My work." No, not at all! The Lord alone is the Good Shepherd ... and He has done what was needed. He has laid down His life for the sheep. Implore Him to send out laborers. In other words, it is His harvest and it is He who sends out, not us. The field is His, so the laborers and even the harvest are also His. And He is interested in the harvest, in the laborers, and most of all, He is interested in the sheep -- in contrast with the hired hand.
The hired hand is not concerned with the sheep, says the Lord. The phrase "not concerned" in the original means not having an interest, not having a profit in the sheep. This is curious! We would think it would be quite the opposite. If a hired hand is working for wages, why is he not interested? In what is he invested if not in the sheep?
The Good Harvester, the Good Shepherd put His interest in the field, in the sheep. He invested in the flock. Jesus is neither hypocritical nor prudish about the importance of investment and profit. It seems that the hired hand is the more profit-oriented one as he works for money. But while the shepherd does not work for money, He is not working for nothing. He does not invest in His wages, but in the sheep. The value of the sheep is not in themselves, but in the measure of sacrifice -- the laying down of His life -- provided for them by the shepherd. You are precious to Me because I died for you. Your value equals My life’s value.
... My soul's profit is the Lord, and the Lord's profit is my saved soul. ... The hired hand sees his profit in his wages, the shepherd sees it in His flock, even in the most ignored and marginalized ones, so He can invest in them for eternity. ... our greatest gain is in people, let's invest in them by prayer, counseling, sacrifice, sharing, giving and dedication. Then and only then can we say boldly with Paul, "For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me. What then is my reward [profit!]? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel. For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more." (1 Corinthians 9:17-19)
[LH, 2008]
posted by CS at 2:57 PM
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