“Promises, promises”: a shared Advent sermon series with Pastor Tim Klein from Faith, Warradale and Pastor Tim Ebbs from St Paul’s Glenelg
Week 4: The promise of God’s shepherd
When this ‘shepherd ruler’ was announced by Micah to God’s people, they were on the road to ruin. Their nation was riddled with violence, uncertainty, idolatry and injustice.
Despite their ways, the Lord still cared for them. No matter what they did to themselves, God was still concerned for their eternal wellbeing. He wanted them safe and saved. He promised them a shepherd!
So what did they expect? Unlike us in 2021, they did not have the advantage of hindsight. They had no New Testament Scriptures to tell them the ‘who’, ‘how’ and ‘when’ of this promise. All they had was their history, their present circumstances, their understanding of kings and shepherds; and their hopes of what the Messiah would do for them.
During the previous 3 Sundays of Advent we have learned of 3 characteristics of the Messiah through 3 promises: ‘The promise of safety’; ‘The promise of presence’; and ‘The promise of peace’. Today Micah proclaims he will be like a Shepherd! Micah, like the other prophets we have heard from, is promising the Messiah.
What were they hoping for now that Micah has promised a shepherd? They were hoping for an end to violence and uncertainty, an end to economic instability and injustice. They wanted peace under their own strong and righteous King.
But what did the Lord give them? A shepherd!
From the text, the shepherd has 2 main jobs:
- He will lead his sheep
- He will care for his sheep.
There are many scripture references that use the image of shepherding to speak of the Messiah. And they all fit under these 2 roles.
The King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the eternal Judge, seated on the throne with the earth as his footstool, comes as a shepherd. He comes as a humble King, out of humble circumstances, in humility doing what his Father wanted, offering his life for us. As Jesus says in John’s Gospel: “I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10:15).
Like the shepherd boy David who became King before Jesus, Jesus also came from a humble home in a humble town, and God used them both the change the world.
Unlike King David, Jesus never lived in a palace. His body was laid to rest in a borrowed tomb. The only significant clothing he owned was gambled over at his death.
His home town Bethlehem is sometimes named in the Scriptures as Bethlehem Ephrathah. Both are Hebrew words; Bethlehem can be translated “House of bread”, and Ephrathah as “Fruitful”. So perhaps even in the name there’s prophecy: Jesus, the Bread of life; Jesus and the fruit of his life, death and resurrection.
All so very unexpected—not at all what God’s people were looking for in their promised Messiah. Perhaps we too should look for the presence of the Shepherd in unexpected place and circumstances.
But that’s what God gave them: a leader and a carer. And that’s what he gives us too. Someone who will lead us in the paths of righteousness and the pathway of peace. Someone who will lead us safely through this fragile life and bring us safely through death’s valley into eternity with the Lord.
Someone who cares deeply for what is happening in our lives – who knows sorrow and struggle and injustice, and yet was able to keep his heart locked on the Father’s will for all people, focused on eternity, forgiving our sin and bringing us there in his care and love for us.
He does this as a humble shepherd, by the “…power and glorious name of the LORD his God. His people will live securely, and the whole earth will know his true greatness, because he will bring peace.” (Micah 5:4-5)
He will lead us safely through this life into heaven. Along the way he will care for us.
Even here in this modern world – riddled with violence, uncertainty, economic disruption and idolatry, with COVID thrown in which has disrupted our lives: God still cares for us! No matter what we do to ourselves, God is still concerned for our eternal wellbeing. He wants you and me, and all people, safe and saved.
He is a shepherd with purpose, the Father’s purpose – that all people should be safe and saved. God wants everyone to be saved and to know the truth, that there is only one God, and Christ Jesus is the only one who can bring us to God. Jesus was truly human, and he gave himself to rescue all of us. (1 Timothy 2:4-6).
The Good shepherd king is Jesus. Jesus, who cares for us, who leads us, who wants only good for us, who lays down his life for us sheep.
God’s people Israel were very much like us. We want to be our own shepherd: “God, leave us alone; we can sort out our own problems; we want to do what we want to do – when we want it; we know where we are going and how to get there.”
I don’t know about you, but I find it hard to be both the wayward sheep and my own shepherd. That’s what make this promise so good. I can trust myself into his care, I can trust my sin into his hands because of his word and actions of forgiveness – and so can you.
There is no danger, no crooked pathway, no dead ends from which he cannot save you and me.
God bless you with peace and assurance of the presence of our Good Shepherd, the Saviour Jesus. Because of Jesus and the forgiveness he has won, laying down his life for us, you can be at peace, and he will lead us all safely into his eternal kingdom.
Let’s listen to Jesus speaking to us in John chapter 10:
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
“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. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.
And now may the peace of God, deeper than all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus – The Good Shepherd. Amen.
