worship this Sunday…
Sheep? Again?
This Sunday,
April 23, 2026 at 10:42am
April 23, 2026 at 10:42am
This week’s Scripture passage reads like a Biblical cliche. And by that, I mean it is a passage where Jesus is talking about sheep…a lot. Yep, sheep, shepherds, and pens of sheep - literally the whole nine yards of sheep metaphors are in this passage.
This may have carried deep emotional and relational meaning for people in 1st century Galilee (where everyone probably had or at least knew somebody who had a sheep). But how can we relate to this passage? What do we do with all this focus on lambs, wool, and mutton?
Maybe the answer is for us to substitute something that plays the role of sheep for us here in suburban Southern California. Like maybe squirrels, raccoons, skunks? Or perhaps more in a pet direction? Dogs, cats? I don’t know. Perhaps not. I’m not sure any of these substitutions really help us hit the same note as a sheep did for the folks living in rural Galilee.
For those folk, sheep were not just animals. Sheep represented in a very real way their livelihood, their enduring source of food and clothing, and even their social standing. But sheep were always quite vulnerable and prone to predation. This meant that if you had an unsafe/unwise shepherd caring for your flock, this could put you at tremendous risk. Shepherds needed to be hypervigilant, wise, and quick to act in order to care for the sheep. More than all that, they needed to be reliable, dependable, and responsible. In a word, trustworthy.
It is that trustworthiness that Jesus most seems to highlight in this passage. He warns the hearers of his words to watch out for those who only pretend to be a shepherd, but are in fact thieves. Jesus says he is the shepherd. Others who pretend to be only lead to loss. He, and he alone, is the one who brings saving to the sheep.
I wonder then in what ways we look for security. In what ways other than God? What systems, oppressions, ideas, tools, or weapons do we rely on to keep us safe, when in reality they are thieves of our real life in God? What does it look like to truly believe that a life following the gracious and radical love of God is to be saved, and that other promises are paths to loss?
Maybe this Sunday is an opportunity to think about how we imagine “safety” in our lives and to examine the things we do for safety. What do we give up in this quest? What do we lose? What do we miss? What is a balanced way to think about safety for those who are called to follow Jesus into a world that still condemns the meek and the peacemakers?
See you on Sunday as we think through Jesus' words and yes, probably sheep as well.
Sincerely
Brent
This may have carried deep emotional and relational meaning for people in 1st century Galilee (where everyone probably had or at least knew somebody who had a sheep). But how can we relate to this passage? What do we do with all this focus on lambs, wool, and mutton?
Maybe the answer is for us to substitute something that plays the role of sheep for us here in suburban Southern California. Like maybe squirrels, raccoons, skunks? Or perhaps more in a pet direction? Dogs, cats? I don’t know. Perhaps not. I’m not sure any of these substitutions really help us hit the same note as a sheep did for the folks living in rural Galilee.
For those folk, sheep were not just animals. Sheep represented in a very real way their livelihood, their enduring source of food and clothing, and even their social standing. But sheep were always quite vulnerable and prone to predation. This meant that if you had an unsafe/unwise shepherd caring for your flock, this could put you at tremendous risk. Shepherds needed to be hypervigilant, wise, and quick to act in order to care for the sheep. More than all that, they needed to be reliable, dependable, and responsible. In a word, trustworthy.
It is that trustworthiness that Jesus most seems to highlight in this passage. He warns the hearers of his words to watch out for those who only pretend to be a shepherd, but are in fact thieves. Jesus says he is the shepherd. Others who pretend to be only lead to loss. He, and he alone, is the one who brings saving to the sheep.
I wonder then in what ways we look for security. In what ways other than God? What systems, oppressions, ideas, tools, or weapons do we rely on to keep us safe, when in reality they are thieves of our real life in God? What does it look like to truly believe that a life following the gracious and radical love of God is to be saved, and that other promises are paths to loss?
Maybe this Sunday is an opportunity to think about how we imagine “safety” in our lives and to examine the things we do for safety. What do we give up in this quest? What do we lose? What do we miss? What is a balanced way to think about safety for those who are called to follow Jesus into a world that still condemns the meek and the peacemakers?
See you on Sunday as we think through Jesus' words and yes, probably sheep as well.
Sincerely
Brent
this week’s scripture…
John 10: 1-10
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
songs for this week
Here are links to get familiar with the songs the band will be playing on Sunday. Please note, we often will change words to be more inclusive – so don’t get too attached to the lyrics. 🙂
This Little Light of Mine
Psalm 23
Jesus We Love You
Goodness of God
