In my last blog post, I mentioned that I will speak at the TRYAD camp this week. I will give four presentations on Matthew 18. This chapter forms a unit on the community of the Messiah, Jesus. I wrote about Jesus placing a child before His disciples as the model for greatness in His church (1). We must not only become child-like (not childish), but we must also welcome those without status in this world and protect them.
In my second presentation, I will move to the image of the lost sheep (Matthew 18:12-14). The image of the LORD, as the shepherd of Israel, has deep roots in the Old Testament. David personified the shepherd-king, as the LORD’s anointed to watch over Israel, the flock of the LORD. Those who followed David were not always good shepherds. Ezekiel 34 is the great chapter that condemned the bad/false shepherds, and yet promised that the LORD would, Himself, be THE great shepherd, and would send a true shepherd. In John 10, Jesus declared that He was that good shepherd, who knew each sheep by name and would lay down His life for His sheep.
As for Matthew 18:12-14, or Luke 15:1-7, I have often heard them interpreted through the presumed nature of sheep. Sheep, we are told, are both dumb and in constant peril. Sheep are prone to wander, if not guided by a shepherd, becoming prey for predators. All of that may be true, but it’s simply not the point Jesus is making in Matthew 18.
For Matthew 18, the point is not the nature of sheep, but the value of each sheep. In the ministry of Jesus, gaggles of self-important folks decided certain others didn’t belong in the flock. They criticized Jesus for being with these unimportant “sinners.” Jesus countered that the one sheep, whom they despised, was so valuable that the shepherd will leave the remaining ninety-nine in order to find the precious one. Let’s not be distracted by what Jesus does not say. Did the shepherd leave the remaining flock under the care of others? Was the lost sheep large and beautiful? These questions distract us from the meaning of Jesus’ words. ANY sheep that the shepherd knows by name is of great value. He seeks it because each sheep is loved and important.
No member of the Messiah’s family is dispensable! When ONE leaves, it is a painful loss. The flock dare not wash their hands of the one who leaves. Beyond grieving, they are to seek restoration and reconciliation. They never close the gate or say good riddance. Jesus knows that people are not sheep, and some will leave, determined to never return. We cannot be responsible for the decisions others make, but we can reach out in love, making sure that we leave no apology unspoken, no loving gesture unmade, and no avenue of return unopened.
Whether our congregations number 65 or 650, there are no insignificant members, even, and maybe especially, those we find hardest to love. It is heartbreaking when one leaves, and it’s a heartbreak I’ve experienced too often and recently.
There’s a paradox in the one and the many in the church. In 1969, the rock band, Three Dog Night, recorded a song by Harry Nilsson, entitled "One is the Loneliest Number.” Out on their own, a wandering sheep finds that one is a lonely and endangered number. In the community of the church, however, that one (each one) is not the loneliest, but the most important number. Returning on the shoulders of the Shepherd, the sheep that was away, is now the indispensable sheep, whose unique place in the flock is honored.
Let me close with another song. This was written and recorded by a Christian folk-group called Dogwood. It’s entitled, “If I Forget the Ones.” The first verse says:
I'd love to stand up on a mountain
And look down upon the world and see
A thousand times a thousand people
And tell them all what Jesus did for me
However, it closes with these haunting lyrics:
Oh, but, Lord, remind me daily of my neighbor
And those who may call me by my name
If I forget the ones and think of millions
It would be much more for me than eternal shame
It would be much more for me than eternal shame
Tim Kelley
(1) https://www.littletonchurch.org/blog/2024/8/20/their-angels