Biblical Conduct - Part 14 Protect the Sheep
By Ben Quine
**This article is part of a series written by Ben Quine that takes us through the whole of Scripture to discover what God has to say about how we as believers in Jesus Christ should conduct ourselves both inside the church and outside in our public and private lives. You will discover that the Word of God has much to say about our conduct.
Of all animals, sheep are some of the most helpless, foolish, and weak. That is why God so often compares humanity to sheep. It’s not flattering, but it is the truth: like them, we are helpless, foolish, and weak. But God loves and cares for the weak.
So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and 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. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing 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.” (John 10:7-15)
Take a minute to think about all of the different adversaries Christ Jesus describes his sheep encountering. In verse eight, we see thieves and robbers; in verse ten, the thief; in verse twelve, the wolf. We’re also told that false prophets are like ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15), and that the devil is prowling around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (I Peter 5:8).
Jesus Christ, the good shepherd, is the opposite of the robbers, thieves, wolves, false prophets, and the lion which are trying to destroy the sheep.
But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him.” (I Samuel 17:34-35)
David took decisive action when his sheep were threatened.
Then David said to the Philistine, “You come to me with a sword and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down and cut off your head. And I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel, and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give you into our hand.” (I Samuel 17:45-47)
David would not allow those who defied the Lord to go unchallenged.
The Philistines intended to slaughter and enslave God’s people, but David opposed them because a good shepherd is a warrior who fights against those attacking his flock. David was a sinner, but also a righteous man. He prayed for his enemies, considered others better than himself (Philippians 2:3-4), and he wished Goliath would repent and turn to God (Acts 2:38). But David still rescued his people by killing Goliath. It is not a conflict for believers to be both godly and strong on behalf of the sheep.
O you who love the Lord, hate evil! He preserves the lives of his saints; he delivers them from the hand of the wicked. (Psalm 97:10)
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. (Proverbs 8:13)
Christians are also called to love the sheep, and that means we too must hate evil. We must turn from it in our personal lives, and we must expose and oppose it in our culture.
Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. (Ephesians 5:11)
Modernist theologians have selectively presented an incomplete view of God’s character: specifically, they avoid teaching on His holiness, justice, jealousy, and wrath, and which leads to distorting His other, more “friendly” attributes. They also ignore the examples of Christians of the past, and of Christ Jesus himself (see articles 5 & 6 in this series). Modern philosophy has also presented an unbiblical view of “gentleness,” teaching that all conflict is unchristian, and that believers in Jesus must never be offensive. This theology has hamstrung our evangelism, neutered our churches, led to confusion among believers, and brought pain and suffering to our culture.
As a shepherd, God is gentle with His sheep (Isaiah 40:11). But gentleness does not mean inaction, and it does not avoid confrontation (see articles 1-6 in this series). Gentleness can say “you are wrong.” Gentleness does not coerce. It will walk away if the person rejects the truth. But it is certainly not incompatible with calling out someone who does something wrong or who is hurting others. In the early 1500s, Martin Luther stood up with the truth of Scripture against the false teaching of his day, demonstrating that rebuke and correction are essential components of caring for and loving the sheep.
The enemies of God are still attacking His people, just like in the days of David, Christ Jesus, and Martin Luther. Maybe you have felt God’s call to protect the sheep, but you’ve been seized by fear? You can experience freedom from fear by orienting your life towards pleasing your Father in Heaven. Courage doesn’t mean we never experience fear – it means that, like David, when we are afraid, we focus on God, trust in Him, and obey Him (Joshua 1:9, Deuteronomy 31:7-8, Psalm 56:3-4).
All the Israelites were frozen with fear because they looked at Goliath, but David was filled with power because he focused on God.
Today there are many examples of powerful, evil leaders — wolves and thieves trying to destroy the sheep. We must remember that they are made in the image of God and they need a Savior.
We must pray for them to repent, and we must work to have them non-violently removed from power.
We must also seek to limit the power and scope of government to the Biblical model. When government is allowed to ignore God’s guidelines, the sheep suffer terribly. So we must hold government accountable to the charge God gave it (I Peter 2:13-14); we must hold governors accountable to God’s principles (Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 13:1-4); and we must oppose unbiblical government systems and policies such as Socialism, Communism, and Anarchy (Proverbs 29:2, Isaiah 10:1-2, Ephesians 4:28).
If you have not done so, take the Christians Engaged pledge to PRAY, VOTE, and ENGAGE, right now! Then ask God how He wants you to get involved in your community. Ask Him to make you a shepherd who will care for the weak, who will expose evil and protect the sheep! This is one of the best ways we can show love for our children, our grandchildren, our neighbors, our country, and our culture.