Humanity Needs a Good Shepherd

John 10:11-18
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”

Imagine a 17 year old boy. We'll call him Benjamin. Benjamin is a cutter. This means that he cuts himself. He is not suicidal. Rather, he is filled with such inner-pain the he has only found relief through outer-pain. There are many Benjamins in our world. There is probably at least one in your congregation. Benjamin needs help. He needs a Good Shepherd. The only shepherd he's found so far is the shepherd of self-mutilation.

Next meet Katia. She is a real person discussed on PBS. She was drugged and sold into slavery in Turkey. Each day in captivity she was drugged, beaten, and raped. Katia was lucky in that she managed to escape. The United Nations estimiated in 2001 that there are roughly 1 million victims of "human trafficking"...slavery.

Katia and others like her have a unique perspective on the words of Jesus when he says, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy". Katia needs a good shepherd.

Recently in the news we've been learning disturbing facts about our dear United States of America. We have allowed a thief into the fold. That thief goes by the name of Torture. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy. This thief has stolen our nation's moral platform. This thief has killed our good name. This thief has destroyed our integrity.

Those in high places of power who ordered these despicable and cowardly deeds have not been held accountable. Indeed, the grunts who did their dirty work have taken the blame. They were called "bad apples" by the very people responsible for the torture. For instance, to this very day there is a prison guard from Abu Ghraib that is still in prison for the sins of his superiors.

Instead of a good shepherd this guard had a "hired hand" who abandoned him as soon as danger was near. Now that hired hand is in his mansion while this guard, this grunt, is in prison. This grunt needs a Good Shepherd . He needs a shepherd who brings good news to the poor, release to the captives, sight to the blind, and freedom to the oppressed.

Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He is holy, but not legalistic and exclusivist. He is the Prince of Peace, but he holds those in authority accountable and to high moral and ethical standards. He brings justice, but he does not return violence for violence. Our Good Shepherd Jesus is one with the Father. He is our older brother who brings us into the fold as children of God.