Of Wolves and Sheep

“… the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and know my sheep, and am known of mine ”

Pity the poor wolf.

He has such a bad name among men. He's hated and feared and chased from field to forest and killed wherever he is found. Poor wolf! What's he done to deserve all that, except to eat? He only picks out the lame or the sick of the flock—he actually strengthens the herd. And why do the sheep trust the shepherd against the wolf? Isn't the shepherd going to eat the sheep himself, someday? He picks out the choicest young lambs and burns their meat on the fire. And when he isn't eating them, he cuts their coats of thick wool and sells it. Pity the poor wolf. He just wants an occasional meal, and he eats it raw and cold in the wild.

We've seen a shift in our culture about wolves in my lifetime. When I was a kid, he was the big bad wolf , and he was sneaky and dangerous and not to be trusted. He lurked around the edges of fairy tales as a symbol of trouble and death—hunting down and killing the young and the innocent. But naturalists have studied wolves in their habitat and have taught us to respect these big wild dogs for their society, their nobility and their beauty. They needn't be hunted and exterminated because they provide a proper function and make up an important part of the ecological world. We don't hate lions or tigers for being predators. Why hate wolves?

But wolves are ever a danger to an agrarian society, especially nomads, where survival depends on the safety of the flock. The economic imperative is to keep the sheep away from the wolf. That's the job of the shepherd and the sheepdog. What would a shepherd be without a wolf to give him job security?

The wolf has stood as a symbol for evil of both human and spiritual natures. Ezekiel heard God judge Israel saying : “Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.” Ezekiel 22:27 Jesus warned His disciples to : “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves,” Matthew 7:15 and said: “Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” Matthew 10:16 And St. Paul told the church at Ephesus, “I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” Acts 20:29

The worst symbolic wolf of all is Satan and his fallen angels. For the devils to really be enemies of heaven, they needed to have a prey. They tried to fight God and His angels, but were defeated and thrown down. So, they found something that God loved but was somewhat undefended. Us . Like a wolf or a roaring lion, Satan stalks us and lures us away from the safety of the shepherd where he can attack us, wound us, weaken us, and come in for the kill. We are sheep for this wolf, a chosen prey, a tasty morsel, the very reason he lives and finds meaning for his existence : a way to strike back at the God he refused to worship and was punished eternally for it.

But the devil is only like a wolf, and we like sheep all gone astray. Jesus is our Good Shepherd and cares for us, keeping us out of the danger of demonic attack. These things are metaphors, of course, and metaphors all have limits. Jesus isn't looking to fleece us or to eat our young. And Satan isn't a beautiful fellow creature of this planet, just trying to get along in the wild, either, which we might come to admire if we only understood him better. I understand him well enough. His purposes are not so noble.

So, what is our relationship to the shepherd? This is the real question and it's why Jesus describes Himself as shepherd to us . If we have the wrong relationship with the shepherd, we become easy prey to the wolf.

As recorded in St. John's Gospel, Jesus first taught that only the one who enters by the door to the sheepfold is the true shepherd . The true sheep will recognize his voice and follow only him. Then he taught that He was the door for the sheep. A shepherd would lead his sheep into a place of safety, a little ravine with an enclosure at the entrance, with a gate only wide enough for one sheep to enter at a time. The shepherd would then lie down in that gateway, becoming its living door to guard the sheep, even in his sleep. With his faithful dog by his side the wolf had no access to the flock.

Jesus instructed them that other leaders of the flock were only thieves and robbers, leading the flock into danger. In this, He was criticizing the leadership of Israel, the Pharisees, scribes and priests who made their living from the flock but betrayed the people into false beliefs. He said “ if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” John 10:9

He observed that, “The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy.” v. 10 This is Satan's purpose against us. He will steal us away from God if he can. Failing that, he may try to kill us and take us out of this world so that our light will not aid anyone else. God's saints are truly a threat to the enemy and Satan wants us out of here. And finally, he wants nothing left of us in this world to inspire anyone else, so he will seek to destroy our name, our testimony, our legacy, and our reputation so there will be nothing lasting after we depart this world. This is what this particular wolf is after: our loss, our death, and our annihilation.

But Jesus came to give us life in abundance. He is the ultimate good shepherd who gives His life for the sheep. He won't run away at times of danger, but will die rather than lose us. This was His mission on earth, and He did in fact die that we might live. This was the true test of the Good Shepherd. It was the test of others who followed in His path, for they too gave their lives rather than betray the sheep. Others will protect their own interests, do what they do only for a living. When their lives or livelihoods are threatened, they simply abandon the sheep. You might not think there are those who lead Christian churches who would abandon them to seek their own safety, but it is happening today by the thousands as whole denominations are being stolen from Christ and their standard of faith ruined by living wolves, false shepherds who come to lead the sheep into danger rather than away.

Christ said His own sheep know Him and He knows them. There are more out there who should belong to His flock, and He seeks to bring them in as well. He made quite a point about His voice, that His true sheep hear it and follow it. Where can you hear the voice of Jesus? His actual voice might strike our modern ears strangely, in its Aramaic accents. But the voice of Jesus is heard through His true pastors, in His Word enshrined in Scripture, and the doctrines of His Church. When we hear the truth of Jesus Christ, we recognize and distinguish it from the spiritual deceptions that are frequently taught.

Jesus told them He would die for the sheep: lay His life down and then have the power to raise it up again. This last claim caused quite a stir. They thought He had lost his mind. On this side of the Cross and Empty Tomb, we know He was telling the truth. He allowed Himself to be killed for us, so that we might live. Then He rose from death to life everlasting, so we might follow Him to His Father's side.

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” Isaiah 53:6-7 The sheep to a shepherd are usually food and clothing, a source of living, his own farm on foot, as it were. But the Good Shepherd actually allows Himself to be slain for the sheep, goes like a sheep to be shorn or killed in silence, without complaint.

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, bears a rod and staff. With these He leads us. The staff has a hook to pull the errant lambs away from going astray. The rod is for prodding the sheep to move along and not hang back where danger lurks. The rod also is used as a club, to beat the wolf on the head. Where these tools of discipline are employed by faithful shepherds, the sheep find comfort and security. A valley may be full of deadly perils, but the sheep have nothing to fear. We have been given a table groaning with a feast, and our cup is running over with wine that is actually the Savior's Blood. Psalm 23

We are sheep to this Good Shepherd, and He saves us from the destroyer. We “were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:25

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