Perspective: No Sheep Left Behind

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No Sheep Left Behind

Which one of you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?  When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders and rejoices.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost."

Luke 15:4-6 (NRSV)

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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.

John 10:14-15 (NRSV)

I left the ninety-nine to find the one

And you're the one

I walked a thousand miles in this desert sun

Only to bring you back

From "To Bring You Back" by Paul Alan

The religious leaders, particularly the Pharisees and the religious scholars, didn't always like the type of company Jesus kept, and they criticized Him for fellowshipping with "sinners."  One Hebrew term they might have used for these so-called "sinners" is am ha'aretz, which is translated into English as "the people of the land."¹  This term, which in some cases might equate to bumpkin or yokel nowadays, was sometimes used to describe rustic, uneducated Jews who didn't follow the Jewish Law quite as meticulously as the educated scribes and Pharisees.²

One day, when Jesus hears the murmurings of the Pharisees and scribes, He begins telling them parables to help them to get the picture.  In the first of these parables, which is almost framed as a rhetorical question, He tells of a shepherd who owns one hundred sheep and suddenly realizes that one of them is missing.  He leaves the other ninety-nine sheep in the wilderness to track down the one that went astray.  When he finds the sheep, he carries it home and celebrates.³

In the past, I've found this parable a bit confusing.  I understand that the one missing sheep is important to the shepherd, but I cannot help but think about the other ninety-nine.  Ninety-nine unattended sheep in the wilderness are basically a buffet for wolves.  Perhaps this parable would make more sense if we just assumed that the sheep the shepherd left behind are safe.  William Barclay notes that some flocks of sheep were owned by entire communities and that community flocks typically had multiple shepherds.  If the flock in Jesus' parable was such a flock, one shepherd could go out in search of the one lost sheep, while the others looked after the other ninety-nine.⁴

The point of the parable is not which sheep are more important, but rather the circumstances of the sheep.  Jesus concludes, "There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance."⁵  In other words, seemingly good behavior from supposedly good people is to be expected, but an experience that turns a troubled person's life around is truly a cause for celebration.

In another Gospel account, Jesus says, "I am the good shepherd."  When Jesus calls Himself the good shepherd, He is saying that He is not merely someone hired to watch the sheep.  If the sheep were in danger, a "hired hand" would rather risk his job by running than risk his life by protecting the sheep.  The Good Shepherd, on the other hand, "lays down his life for the sheep," because He is personally invested in their well-being.  Jesus says that the sheep He tends are His, and, since those sheep represent people, He is directly identifying with the Creator.⁶

On the evening before Jesus "lays down his life for the sheep," He warns the Disciples that trouble is coming.  Peter claims that he will face anything for Jesus, even imprisonment or death.  Jesus then predicts that Peter will deny even knowing Him three times before dawn, but Jesus also says to him, "Once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers."⁷  A few hours later, Jesus is arrested, and, when Peter is questioned, he claims that he has never met Jesus.  After Peter's third denial, the rooster crows, and Peter weeps bitterly, remembering what Jesus said to him.⁸

I suppose everyone takes a turn playing the lost sheep, and Peter, with his denial, became the lost sheep.  Jesus knew that Peter would deny Him, but He had already forgiven Peter.  He knew that Peter would go astray, but He also knew that Peter would eventually return to the flock.  One Gospel account tells us that Peter, having decided that he was a failure as a Disciple, decides to return to his former life as a fisherman.  Jesus, like the shepherd from His parable, goes out and looks for him.  He finds Peter, asks him three times if he loves Him, and asks him three times to feed His sheep.⁹  The Good Shepherd does not give up on His sheep, even if the sheep give up on themselves.

In Jesus, we see a God who is not satisfied with even a ninety-nine percent success rate.  In Jesus, we see a Creator who is personally invested in every last one of us.  If we truly want to be like Jesus, then we must be personally invested in the well-being of others, especially when we find ourselves in places of leadership or influence.  May we learn to love one another as Christ loves us.¹⁰


Notes:

1. William Barclay.  The Gospel of Luke, Revised Edition.  1975, Westminster Press.  pp. 199-200
2. Wikipedia: Am ha'aretz
3. Luke 15:1-6
4. Barclay, pp. 200-201
5. Luke 15:7
6. John 10:11-15
7. Luke 22:31-34
8. Luke 22:54-62
9. John 21:1-19
10. John 13:34

Le Bon Pasteur was painted by James Tissot in the late 1800s.