Our Sermons

Bible Passage: Acts 20:28-32
Pastor: Pastor Berg
Sermon Date:  April 22, 2018

“It is better to be a lion for a day than a sheep for all your life.” That quote comes from Elizabeth Kenny, an Australian nurse most famous for promoting an alternative method of treating polio. So what does it say to a group of people who have already sung with gusto this morning, “I am Jesus’ little lamb”? Do you like being called a sheep? It’s not usually very complimentary and certainly isn’t in Kenny’s quote. It usually means you’re a mindless follower, one who can’t think for himself. In fact, in Greek, the word for sheep is literally translated, “forward moving thing.” That’s about how bright they thought sheep were. During storms, sheep have been known to pile up on top of one another in the corner of a pasture, actually smothering themselves to death. They are guided by their stomachs and their insatiable desire for more and that often leads them off the straight, narrow, safe path into the path of danger or disaster. Is it any wonder that the Bible uses that same picture as Isaiah writes, “All of us like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way…” To be called a flock of sheep makes us seem vulnerable and weak.

And that’s pretty accurate, isn’t it? We do wander into the same sins again and again without giving much thought to what led us there. We do mindlessly follow the devil’s suggestions and the influence of the world around us. We are driven by our stomachs as the desire for pleasure leads us off the narrow safe path. And the devil, the world, and our own flesh circle around us in a pack, hunting us down, eager for a kill. On our own, we’re helpless.

And all too often, we’re apathetic about the whole thing. Oh, sure, we pay lip service to how important spiritual things are to us, but the way we spend our time and our money says otherwise. We say that we’re serious about the spiritual battle that rages around us and for our souls. But worship and Bible Study attendance begs to differ. We have a weapon at our disposal—God’s Word—that has the power to drive the enemy away, but we’d rather pick up our phones than the Bible.

In fact, Paul warns us that “from your own group men will rise up, twisting the truth.” It’s not just outside, but inside, even in ourselves. Who among us hasn’t thought, “Okay, I’m not perfect. But I’m not that bad. What’s the big deal? So what if I let my guard down for a little while? So what if I don’t take care of my soul? It will all be okay, I’m sure.”

And for our apathy, we deserve to be devoured. We deserve to be duped by false teachers, the savage wolves that want nothing else than to feed on us. For not taking all of God’s Word seriously, we deserve to fall for twisted truths. For putting the care of our souls on the back burner, we deserve to burn in hell forever.

That’s what we deserve. And that’s what we’d all get for our apathy, negligence, and carelessness if we were left to ourselves. If…but we’re not. We have a Shepherd who cares for us perfectly. We have the Perfect Shepherd to cares for his flock. What did Jesus say in the Gospel today? “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” And that’s wonderful news to hear, isn’t it? It’s good for us as the sheep. And it’s clear from the Scriptures that this was Jesus’ goal from the first Christmas to the first Easter: that Jesus be our good shepherd and we be his sheep. Our Good Shepherd willingly gave his life for us. He endured the hell we deserved as he was forsaken by his Father on the cross.

Did you see how God inspired Paul to describe it?  “To shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.” God purchased the church with the blood of Jesus. Your sins and mine are so costly—nothing less than the blood of God himself would cover the cost. But Jesus, in his great love for you, eagerly paid the price. Again Jesus said in our Gospel: “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it up again.” Jesus was in control the entire time. He chose to lay down his life for you to pay for your sins. He chose to take his life up again to assure you a place in heaven. When you have a Good Shepherd like that, it’s not so bad being a sheep, is it!

But Jesus’ care for you doesn’t stop there. No, right here and now he proves the very best care for you? How, by guarding you with his shepherds. “Always keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock in which the Holy Spirit has placed you as overseers…Therefore be always on the alert! Remember that for three years, night and day, I never stopped warning each one of you with tears.”  

What a great pastor those Ephesians had! Paul did the tough work of warning and admonishing his brothers and sisters in Christ. And he did so with great patience—over three years and with great diligence—never stopping day or night and with great love—with tears in his eyes.

I can’t speak for Pastor Schlicht, but these are daunting words personally. The word pastor means shepherd. It’s a daunting task to have someone else’s soul placed under your care. It’s a daunting task to speak the truth in love, especially when that truth hurts. It’s daunting to know that I will have to give an account for all of the sheep under my care. In fact the task is so daunting, it’s impossible for me to carry it out, alone. And it was for Paul too! Notice what he says: “And now I entrust you to God and to the word of his grace, which has power to build you up and to give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”  I realize that as much as I want to, I can’t fight off satan for you. I can’t keep the influence of the world away. I can’t keep you safe from your sinful nature. But God can. Your Good Shepherd has. And he promises he will. So what I can do is entrust you to God. I can entrust you to the power of his Word. And that what the pastors at Eastside have been doing for the last 90 plus years. The shepherds of Eastside may not be able to hold a candle to Pastor Paul, but that doesn’t mean you haven’t been blessed by them. Your pastors have fed you. They’ve given you the Word. They’ve given you the Sacraments. They’ve led you to your Good Shepherd. And I promise you that at Eastside to have two shepherds who care, who want what’s best for your souls and a faculty who cares for your little lambs as well.

The task is daunting, but my confidence in carrying it out and your confidence that God is in control comes from these words: “The Holy Spirit has placed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God.” First of all, this is God’s church. This isn’t my church or Pastor Schlicht’s church or even your church. This is God’s church and he promises to work all things for the good of his church. He’s given all authority to Jesus, to govern everything for the good of his church. And secondly, it’s the Holy Spirit that has placed me here. It’s the Holy Spirit that brought Pastor Schlicht here. What a comfort it is to know that this is exactly where God wants me to be at this time, in this place, doing this work. What confidence it gives to everyone that God is carrying out his plan through imperfect sheep and imperfect shepherds to carry out his perfect ministry.

The world may not see sheep as anything but foolish, and maybe being a sheep on this earth won’t get us ahead. But, because God has made us the sheep of his flock, we have an eternal inheritance in heaven. I don’t know about you, I’m not that interested in being a lion, even for a day. I think I’d rather be a sheep for an eternity. AMEN