Woodlawn Evangelical Lutheran Church           

Brothers and sisters in Christ,

            I’m sure you all know the game played by little children called, “Follow the leader.”  One of them is picked to be at the head of a line and he or she can go wherever they please.  It may be played on a playground structure, on paths through the woods, or even in a classroom.  It’s a game that teachers might use to teach students the importance of following directions, staying in line, doing things in an orderly and safe fashion.  It may not be very flashy or impressive, but it can provide some very “teachable moments.”

            Those lessons are important for our lives as we grow older as well.  We have to “follow the leader” in lots of ways throughout our time here on earth.  We follow the directions of traffic officers around the scene of an accident, as I had to do on the freeway not too long ago.  We follow the lead of our employer when it comes to the uniform we wear or the way we conduct ourselves with the customers.  We take orders from our health care providers when it comes to taking medications, following nutrition plans for our diet.

Our Scripture readings for today also talked about following the leadership and teachings of those whom God has placed over us in the church. And while there are some people who don’t like following, who think they can set their own agendas in everything, who rebel at the idea of being told what to do, who rarely trust those in positions of authority over them, often times that course of action will only lead to friction and hostility. 

            What makes following easy is when we trust our leaders, come to realize that the leader has our best interests at heart, when we learn that by being good followers we will reap all kinds of benefits.  That’s what our loving God impresses on us in the beautiful words of Psalm 23.  On this weekend known as Good Shepherd Sunday, and on a day when nine of our young people are making their vows of faith to the Lord, let’s see why it’s so important and so beneficial for us to be good followers.  Using images from both David’s Psalm and Jesus’ words in our gospel, I encourage all of you, and especially our confirmands,

FOLLOW YOUR GOOD SHEPHERD

            David begins his psalm with the simple statement, The LORD is my Shepherd.  David had been a shepherd before he became the king of God’s people, Israel.  He had tended his father’s flocks on the hills outside of Bethlehem.  He knew all the work that was involved, the long and lonely days, the dangerous nights.  He knew that the first concern for a good shepherd is always the sheep.  Their welfare came first.

            David says that that’s the way God is toward his people.  He is totally concerned with their welfare, especially their spiritual well-being.  He calls God, “the LORD,” the God who is the Savior, who showers us with his love and mercy.  All his devotion and energy and kindness are directed toward us.  That showed itself in the great work of sending his one and only son to die for our sins.  That’s what makes Jesus the Good Shepherd, because he was willing to lay down his life for the sheep.  As the shepherd of our lives and of our souls, everything he does is meant for our good.  He went to the greatest of lengths to earn our salvation.  And he wants all of us to enjoy it.

            And so, as David says here, God refreshes us daily with this good news of salvation.  He does that by providing us with everything we need.  That’s why we can say with David, “I shall lack nothing.”  Our loving God has done it all for us when it comes to saving us.  And it has to be that way because the Bible says that we are like dumb, stupid sheep.  We don’t have any brains at all when it comes to spiritual matters.  We want to follow our own instincts, our natural inclinations.  That leads people to think that they can find their own way to salvation.  But instead, they end up going off the beaten path God has prepared.  We would get lost without his direction, get headed for eternal destruction in hell.  We need a shepherd who guides us down the one and only path that leads to heaven, here called the path of righteousness.

            Our Good Shepherd did that by coming into our world to be the Savior we need.  He took our sins upon himself and laid down his life on the cross for us.  Through his suffering and death we are declared holy and righteous, free from the punishment that should rightfully come our way.  Through faith in the shepherd, trusting in him completely, we have that blessing of salvation.  We have the forgiveness of our sins.  We know where we are going when we die, what God has done for us and what lies ahead in the future.

            The way he leads us is through his holy Word.  Staying with the image of shepherd and sheep, David writes, He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters.  For an earthly shepherd that meant bringing his sheep to the best possible grasslands he could find for them to eat from.  It meant finding a stream of water where they could rest and would be safe from wild animals.

            For us sheep in the Lord’s flock, his lush pastures and his quiet waters are the means of grace, the good news of the gospel that comes to us through the preaching and teaching of his word and by receiving the holy sacrament .  Those are the source of nourishment for our souls.  They are the tools that God uses to bring us to faith, give us new spiritual life in Christ.  It is the Spirit working in our hearts through this spiritual food by which we are to continue growing stronger in our faith and love for the Shepherd.  That’s what these young people have been doing the past two years in confirmation classes and in our day school, Sunday School and learning from their parents at home. 

            Outside of the word and sacraments there is no spiritual food.  Without the pastures and waters of God’s Word, we would be living in a desert wasteland.  And there is a lot of that out there, the worldly philosophies that appeal to our human reason, the attractions of the flesh that look so inviting, the false leaders and teachers who might be very charismatic and popular.  Those things are the “hired hands” Jesus talked about in our gospel.  They really don’t have your spiritual best interests at heart.  Only the Good Shepherd brings us the nourishment and the direction we really need.  Our lives are daily made brighter and more pleasant because of what he has revealed to us in his word, because of the refreshment that comes from the announcement that our sins are forgiven as we come forward to receive the sacrament.  It’s a message we can feed on every day of our lives through personal Bible study and meditation, through the classes and worship opportunities offered here at church.  Our Good Shepherd has given us all that we need to refresh our souls with the sweet message of the gospel.

            Now there are times in this life when that path through this world on the way to heaven is going to be rocky and difficult.  There are going to be obstacles in the way.  We are all going to walk through the valley of the shadow of death.  We will experience it when our friends and loved ones die.  We will be forced to sit down and ponder what death is all about.  We may face situations in our lives where difficulty and death seem to be right at our doorstep.  Maybe there is serious surgery or cancer treatment.  Perhaps we face an uncertain financial future or have to deal with a natural disaster.  We hear about these calamities all the time, and we all know that our time of death is always one day closer.  That’s when we are especially comforted by the fact that our shepherd is leading us safely.  We have no fear in those dark times, even as we face death, because our Good Shepherd has overcome the powers of this world, has even conquered death by his own death and resurrection.  We know who’s in control of life and death and we know what he has in store for his sheep when he finally calls us out of this life.  Our spiritual and eternal future is secure.  We have the sure hope and confidence that our good shepherd will one day return to receive us to himself in heaven.

            These words have probably given more comfort than any other portion of Scripture to Christians as they deal with difficulty and see their end approaching.  WE know that the tools of the good shepherd, his rod and staff, are being used to fight of the enemies that confront us.  We are protected by the precious gospel message that our sins are forgiven.  That good news helps fight off the doubt and the apprehension.  In times of distress, among the ruins of life, even at the approach of death, our good shepherd is there guiding us safely with his powerful word.  What comfort that is for God’s people!

            But it’s not just when we are hurting and in distress that our good shepherd blesses us, as wonderful as that is.  He pours out his richness upon us day after day after day, You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.  You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.  Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.  In addition to all the treasures of heaven, our loving shepherd takes care of our every need in this life.  He gives us food and drink, house and home, spouse and family, possessions and life itself.  It’s a veritable banquet table laid out before us.  We are the honored guest, those who have been specially selected for royal treatment.  I don’t think any one of us here today has just cause for complaining about how God has blessed us materially.

            But David is especially thinking about spiritual blessings.  Our cup overflows with God’s gifts for our souls.  Again, we think first and foremost of our relationship with Jesus, our Savior.  (You confirmands will be making promises to remain faithful to him and you have every reason to do so, because of his faithfulness toward you.  You will want to follow this good shepherd no matter what path he lays out before you in life.) We have forgiveness.  We have his word for comfort and guidance.  We have the sure hope of heaven and eternal life with our Lord.  All the enemies of our souls have been overcome and with God’s help we can keep them at bay.  The devil, the world and our own sinful nature would like nothing better than for us to give up our faith, to follow the wide and easy paths that seem to lay before us.  They don’t want you to remain part of God’s flock.  There are lots of wolves out there in the world dressed up in sheep’s clothing, trying to entice us away from God’s pure word.  Be careful that you don’t stray off on your own, to think that you can stand spiritually by yourself, without God’s help.  That will only end in disaster, being spiritually devoured and headed for hell.

            But thanks be to our good shepherd, the one we want to follow all the days of our lives!  His goodness and love are always there.  Our Good Shepherd is always there, ready and willing to keep blessing us, keep guiding us, keep refreshing our souls.  And that will go on forever.  WE have experienced them up to this point in our lives and will continue to do so throughout our earthly existence and on into our eternal future.  Through faith created and nourished by the gospel we are members of his flock.  With Jesus leading and guiding us as the Good Shepherd, no one can snatch us away from him.  No one can take those things away from us if we don’t let them.  As long as we remain faithful to him, follow his word, we will enjoy all these blessings he has earned for us.  Through the power of his word, following close to our Good Shepherd we will remain his blessed sheep.  AMEN.