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Lessons in Shepherding 1: God, Moses and David [Editors note: In the interest of providing pastors with good resources, or at least of pointing them toward good ideas, we are grateful to present Pastor Paul Alexanders elder training seminars for new elders. Alexander himself says that this study is dependent on and adapted from Timothy S. Laniak, Shepherds After My Own Heart (IVP, 2006), and A.D. Clarke, "Leadership," in the New Dictionary of Biblical Theology (IVP, 2000). This issue of the 9News presents the first half of Alexanders curriculum (classes 1 to 4), which exclusively focuses on the metaphor of shepherding in Scripture. In a future issue, we hope to present the latter half of his curriculum, which moves to the more practical aspects of eldering.]
GOD THE ULTIMATE SHEPHERDThe whole history of Gods people can be traced using the metaphor of God as the shepherd of his people. From Jacob in Genesis, to the exodus from Egypt, and all the way to the second exodus from the wilderness of this world, God reveals himself as the shepherd of his people. For Jacob To begin with, God reveals himself as the shepherd of particular individuals, and individuals who were representative of the whole nation of Israel, such as Jacob.
What did Jacob mean when he said that God had been his shepherd all the days of his life? Its helpful to go back to Gods promise to Jacob in Genesis 28, where he promises to give Jacob the Promised Land and many descendants, and then says to him, "Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you" (Gen 28:15). Gods presence and Gods protection were the ways in which God shepherded Jacob all his life. So even before Israel became a nationwhen Israel was just Jacob the individualGod was the shepherd of his people, providing his sovereign presence and omnipotent protection to ensure the fulfillment of his original promises to Abraham of a people and a place. For David God also shepherded David, another representative Israelite. As we read in Psalm 23,
What are some of the functions of a shepherd that David ascribes to God in this chapter?
Through The Exodus Just as God shepherded Jacob and David, two representative individuals of Israel, so God shepherded the entire nation of Israel through the exodus. For instance, the Psalmist describes Gods care for corporate, national Israel in the wilderness of Sinai as shepherding care: You led Your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron (Ps. 77:20).
What aspects of shepherding do we see in these verses?
Its important to see here that Israels whole history is described as one seamless pastoral journey. From the days of Jacob, through the exodus from Egypt, through the wilderness of Sinai, to the peoples possession of the Promised Land, Gods relates to his people as a shepherd to his sheep. Through The Exile Looking forward to the nations exile, Isaiah saw another exodus coming, an exodus out of slavery to sin and into the holiness of the new creation:
Chapter 40 of Isaiah, from which these verses come, marks the beginning of a new section in Isaiah in which God promises that he will lead his people through a new exodus. Several chapters later, Isaiah says, "Behold, I will do something new, now it will spring forth; will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert" (Is. 43:18-19). In one sense, this is exactly what God had done in the wilderness of Sinailead the people through a wasteland with no road, and provide water in the desert. Yet now he promises to do it in a new way. It wont be a physical or geographical exodus, but a spiritual exodus out of slavery to sin, through the wilderness of this world, and into the new creation (see Is. 40:1-2). Still, God uses the same language to describe how he will lead his people in this second exodus"like a shepherd." Jeremiah sees the same thing: "Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare in the coastlands afar off, and say, He who scattered Israel will gather him and keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock" (Jer 31:10). In exile, the shepherds gathering role comes to the foreground. God will gather his scattered sheep back together in one place. Micah sees God gathering his sheep from exile as well: "I will surely assemble all of you, Jacob, I will surely gather the remnant of Israel. I will put them together like sheep in the fold; like a flock in the midst of its pasture they will be noisy with men" (Micah 2:12). Micah later prays, "Shepherd your people with Your scepter, the flock of Your possession which dwells by itself in the woodland, in the midst of a fruitful field. Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old. As in the days when you came out from the land of Egypt, I will show you miracles" (Micah 7:14). Notice that God speaks of protecting his sheep, which is what a scepter was for. He also speaks of feeding them. And Micah connects this shepherding idea with the new exodus out of exile for sins. Its going to be like the days when Israel came out of Egypt. Summary So God is the shepherd of his people. First, he leads them through the dry wilderness of Sinai to the Promised Land, and then he leads us through the parched wilderness of a sinful world on our way to heaven. What aspects of Gods shepherding care for Israel have we seen so far?
These are the activities that God thinks about and performs when he uses the metaphor of shepherding for leading his people. As under-shepherds, then, we who are elders are called to shepherd Gods people in the same way:
We lead them there
MOSES THE FIRST EXEMPLARY SHEPHERDLets turn then to those whom God appoints as shepherds over his people, and begin with Moses.
Interestingly, Moses was actually a shepherd when God called him to lead Israel out of Egypt. And upon Gods call he remained a shepherd, but now of a much larger flock: "You led Your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron" (Ps 77:20). God did the leading, but he lead by the hand of Moses and Aaron. Moses leadership was an extension of Gods leadership. As Tim Laniak puts it, "Moses is the extension of Gods rule in their lives, the means of their provision, and the agent of their deliverance .[his hand] became an extension of the hand of God leading his people."[1] Hosea 12:13 makes the same point: "By a prophet the Lord brought Israel from Egypt, and by a prophet he was kept [or cared for]." Moses threw the branch in the bitter waters of Marah, but it was God who made the desert waters drinkable for his flock (Ex. 15). Moses struck the rock at Massah with his staff, but it was God who caused the water to gush forth for his sheep to drink (Ex. 17). Moses as Prophet As the shepherd of Gods people, Moses was also a prophet: "The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend" (Ex 33:11). He was the one who went up to Mount Sinai on behalf of the people to receive the law. And when God spoke in their hearing at Sinai, the people said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen; but let not God speak to us, or we will die" (Ex. 20:19). As the paradigm shepherd and prophet of Israel, Moses was the voice of God to the people. They were to follow his voice. Moses as Priest Moses was also the voice of the people to God. He interceded with God on their behalf. Notice the change in Moses willingness to identify himself with the people of Israel that occurs in his prayers between chapters 17 and 34 of Exodus.
Moses moves from "this people" and "their sin" to "us" and "our sin."[2] Such identification was primarily a function of Moses priestly role, but it was not unrelated to his shepherding role. God wants his under-shepherds to identify with the plight of his sheep, which is exactly what we see the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ, doing at his incarnation and all through his earthly ministry.
Where is Jesus getting that reference to "sheep without a shepherd"? Moses as Leader Jesus allusion in Mark 6 to "sheep without a shepherd" comes from the book of Numbers.
Whats the one character trait that God told Moses to look for in Joshua? The Spirit was in him. What particular aspect of shepherding is noted here? Leadership leading them out and bringing them in. Why would Joshua need the Spirit to do that kind of work? Because leading Gods people in and out was really an exercise in helping them to follow God as the ultimate Shepherd of Israel. As Laniak sums it up, "Human leader[ship] of Gods people is nothing other than God leading his own people through an anointed servant." That doesnt make the human leader infallible or unable to be corrected. But it does make him the human instrument by which God shepherds his flock. DAVID THE SECOND EXEMPLARY SHEPHERDDavid is introduced to readers as an actual shepherd twice in 1 Samuels narrative.
David, Saul, and Goliath Its also worth observing, Davids own introduction to King Saul:
What aspects of shepherding are prominent here?
Yet to whom does David give credit for these things? The Lord. The Lord was the one who delivered him from the lion and the bear. His confidence to defeat Goliath is not rooted in himself. Its rooted in the greatness of God. Why is David so confident that God will enable him to defeat Goliath? Because he knows that God is committed to his own glory among his people, and Goliath is working against Gods glory by making fun of his people. The man who is a shepherd of Gods people must know that he is a guardian of Gods fame, a fact in which he should find tremendous confidence. If God is wholly committed to the honor of his own name, then to stand up for Gods fame, even if it means committing professional suicide (or worse), is to stand in the safest place in the universe. David as Ruler The kings of Israel were nothing like the pagan pharaohs of Egypt, kings of Babylon, or caesars of Rome, absolute in their power and beholden to no one. Rather, David and his sons were to be from among the people, and their rule was a stewardship.
The word for ruler here is nagid, referring not to an autonomous king but a crowned prince whose authority was derived, not inherent. The idea of being a nagid is placed in parallel position here with shepherding Gods people. So Israel gets a king, but, as Laniak writes, "only on the condition that it understands his role as derivative from and dependent on the rule of Jehovah, the flocks true owner. Kings, beginning with Saul, were to be measured in terms of their responsiveness to the words of that Owner, mediated through the prophets."[3] When David made Jerusalem the new capital, he tried to transport the Ark of the Covenant there on an ox cart (see 2 Sam. 6), contrary to Gods command to carry it by poles. So God allowed David to encounter a little resistance. The ox cart began to tip over, Davids helper Uzzah reached out to steady the ark, and God killed him on the spot. It seemed to be Gods way of saying, "Well do this my way, David. Im the melek (king); youre the nagid (prince)." In the next chapter, David expresses his desire to build God a house. Yet God turns it around on him and tells him hes going to build David a house. The reason God objects to Davids idea is instructive:
God objected to the house of cedar because he had never asked his people to make him a house of cedar. God will be the one who initiates. He will be the one who controls and determines the rules of engagement. "God will bless David, but on Gods terms."[4] Concluding Thoughts The issue at stake here lies with who has the ultimate authority. And God always makes sure that his under-shepherds know how to answer that question rightly. God has the ultimate authority, and whenever that authority is challenged, he will squash the challenger. He will not share his glory with another. God takes the initiative in calling his shepherds, and God holds his shepherds accountable by blessing and disciplining them according to his Word. Gods shepherds are called to exercise Gods work of gathering, guarding, nourishing, uniting, and guiding Gods flock through the God-opposing wilderness of this world on behalf of God. They do this by keeping the flock centered upon God and his Word. God is the king, the owner of the sheep. We who are elders are adopted princes, under-shepherds with no authority of our own. If we ever begin to shepherd Gods flock contrary to his Word or in a way that ignores our accountability to him and his ultimate authority over us, we will be the losers. The whole story of Israels history in Psalm 78 ends with a reference to Davids shepherd leadership.
May the Lord grant us skillful hands. Footnotes: 1.Timothy S. Laniak, Shepherds after My Own Heart: Pastoral Traditions and Leadership in the Bible, in New Studies in Biblical Theology, ed. D. A. Carson (IVP, 2006), 87. Paul Alexander is the pastor of Fox Valley Bible Church in St. Charles, Illinois and the co-author (with Mark Dever) of The Deliberate Church (Crossway, 2005). March 2007 Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way, you do not charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction, and you do not make more than 1,000 physical copies. For web posting, a link to this document on our website is preferred. Any exceptions to the above must be explicitly approved by 9Marks. Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: ©9Marks. Website: www.9Mark.org. |
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