The Good Shepherd

                 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep 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)

 

          The usual response to this sort of statement is, “Oo, wow. He was willing to lay down his life for the sheep…” And it is an “Oo, wow” thing. But sometimes, I think we get caught up in the drama of laying down one’s life for someone or something else. But if Jesus had been a scoundrel or a monster who had, at the “minute ‘til midnight” moment of His life had done what He did, would we think so highly of him?

          No, the point of His being willing to lay down His life for the sheep is that He will also do all the lesser things necessary for the well-being of the sheep. A friend once said that he would gladly slay a dragon for his lady-love, but taking out the garbage was another matter. We tend to be more willing to make the grand dramatic gesture, but balk at what we think trivial. Most of the things shepherds do seem trivial. Most of our lives are spent dealing with trivial things. That may be part of the reason we make mountains out of molehills. It makes us feel as if we matter. The truth of the matter is that the trivial things probably matter more, and demonstrate our love better because they happen so often and they don’t take as much out of us, so we can do them more often. It’s hard to wrap our minds around this, but we need to open our eyes to the unspectacular  and even the “No” as demonstrating love.