The Parable of the Shepherd

A man had a flock of sheep and needed a shepherd to care for them. The shepherd he interviewed and hired seemed to be very knowledgeable about sheep – he understood their anatomy and physiology, nutritional requirements, how to treat their illnesses, etc. Unfortunately, in a short period of time the flock started suffering. Unbeknownst to the shepherd the sheep started wandering off, contracting illnesses, suffering malnutrition (especially the lambs), and biting each other. Upon discovering this, the owner confronted the shepherd. “What is happening here? The size of my flock is diminishing. The sheep are suffering from malnutrition, a variety of illnesses, and fighting with each other.” The shepherd replied, “I don’t get it. I get the flock together once a week for an hour and at least a third of them show up. While they are here, I feed them, pat them on the head, collect their wool and send them on their way. They know where the food is kept so all they need to do is eat when they are hungry. If they get sick, they just need to find me, and I will diagnose and treat their problem. As far as fighting with each other is concerned, it is a natural thing for sheep to try to dominate each other. But have you noticed how nice the farm looks? I just put a new roof on the barn, as well as a fresh coat of paint. Look at how clean and sharp these shears are. The finances are good because I sheer plenty of wool from the sheep and take it to the market.” I don’t see the problem.

If you were the owner of the flock, would you retain the services of this shepherd? Of course not. Yet, the parable is a fairly accurate allegory of most of God’s flocks and shepherds. The intimacy between the shepherd and sheep is exceptionally shallow, limited to an hour or two a week, a handshake at the door and hindered by the distance between the pulpit and pew. Of course, this limited exposure in a worship service only involves about 30 - 50% of his flock in a congregation of over 200 members. Bible class attendance is even more dismal, perhaps 10% on a good Sunday .During their limited exposure, the shepherd explains to the sheep how to be sheep but seldom knows if the knowledge is ever applied. He doesn’t know about the spiritual life of the individual members the 165 hours outside of the building, if husbands and wives share any time in prayer and the Word, if parents are daily teaching, worshipping and holding their children accountable with the Word, or if all are seeking to live as Christ lived (I John 2:6). What is worse, most shepherds are oblivious to their failures. I can testify to this from personal experience.

How sad it is that such malfeasance happens, even if it is unwittingly. Here are a few verses that might be helpful.

John 10:14

I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own and my own know me.

Jesus is the definition of a good shepherd/pastor. While no pastor can hope to meet His standard, Jesus’ shepherding attributes must be attributes of every shepherd’s ministry. Knowledge of and intimacy with the sheep are mandatory.

Acts 20:28

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to ALL the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Pastoral self-evaluation and evaluation of the shepherd/all the flock relationship is imperative (literally).

Ephesians 4:11-12

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ…

The pastor is to equip the sheep to do the work of the ministry, not just do it himself. This requires a growth plan for each of the sheep. (Note: Size of his flock is no excuse for failure. If size is a problem, the problem must be resolved!)

I have written some Bible studies that address this "shepherding" problem as a resource for pastors wanting to shepherd "all the flock" and those professing believers who are not receiving the personal pastoral care they need. It Is called, "God's Plan/My Plan." For more information, please contact me through this website.