Apostolic Advice for Shepherds and Sheep

4th Sunday of Easter, 4/25/21 Acts 20:28-32 Apostolic Advice for Shepherds and Sheep I. Be on guard. II. Be encouraged. Giving advice to their children is something almost every parent feels compelled to do, especially as parent and child part company. As she gives her daughter’s backpack a final tug of adjustment and plants a kiss on her head, the mother sends her daughter out the door on her way to school with the obligatory advice, “Study hard! Stay of trouble! Be good! Be safe!” As his 16-year-old son jingles in his hands the keys to the family vehicle, his father reminds him, “Drive carefully! I want your cell phone to be in your packet while you’re driving. And don’t play loud music! Keep your eyes on the road.” Fighting back tears, father and mother hug their daughter in her freshman dorm room. For the first time in her life, they aren’t going to be right there for her every day. They tell her, “Call us. Study hard. We’re praying for you.” If you’re a parent, you’ve spoken those words or some very similar words countless times. And rightly so. It’s a dangerous world out there. Tragedy can happen to your child in a moment. He or she is so easily influenced by others. And it’s terrifying to think what might happen to that child whom you dearly love. The Apostle Paul spoke these words of our text to the leaders of the Christian church in Ephesus. In a spiritual way, Paul was their father. The Lord used Paul to share his word with the people of Ephesus and the Holy Spirit worked through that word to bring these people to saving faith in Jesus as their Savior. I’m sure Paul was filled with joy over these fellow Christians, but he was also filled with concern. He knew the spiritual dangers that surrounded them. What’s more, he knew this was the final time he would speak to them. In one of the verses before our text begins, Paul stated, “I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again” (20:25). As their spiritual parent, Paul feels compelled to give them his parting advice. And the words he speaks echo the words of our Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. On this Good Shepherd Sunday, let’s listen to Paul’s apostolic advice to shepherds and sheep. In spite of the fact that his spiritual advice was spoken nearly 2,000 years ago, it’s timely advice for us. Part I. Have you noticed the tremendous growth in the security business the past few years? At nearly every place of business, you’re likely under surveillance as soon as your vehicle comes into the view of the camera mounted on the building. Simple home security systems are quickly becoming the norm instead of the exception. Link your system to your smart phone and you can instantly see who is at your front door. Cybersecurity for businesses is no longer simply a good idea; it’s required. Many employees go through weekly online security training. And, as people go about their daily lives, many people carry personal security devices which they can use as soon as they sense danger is near. The people of Ephesus knew nothing about those types of security measures. But they did have a spiritual security guard in the person of the Apostle Paul. Listen again to what Paul told them, “Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.” Do you think Paul was stretching the truth a little bit here? Three years of warning? With tears? That doesn’t sound realistic. But Paul wasn’t exaggerating at all. You see, Paul wasn’t simply afraid of what might happen among the Ephesians after he departed from them. He knew what would happen. Listen to his words again. “Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard!” “I know that savage wolves will attack.” If you know anything about sheep, they are no match for a hungry wolf. Within seconds such a wolf will be enjoying lamb for dinner. So, Paul warned them. And he alerted them that the wolves would come from two directions. First, they’ll come from the outside. Already in Paul’s day there were traveling preachers who peddled false teachings in exchange for a meal and lodging. They told the people what they wanted to hear because that made good business sense. Even worse, the wolves would attack from within. It pained Paul greatly to know that some of the Christians in the congregation at Ephesus would begin believing and proclaiming false teachings. Those false teachings would weaken the faith of the Ephesians, not strengthen it. Ultimately, those false teachings had the potential of robbing the Ephesians of saving faith entirely. Paul called them savage wolves and that label was spot on. If the Ephesians weren’t careful, those wolves would devour them. So, Paul’s apostolic advice for the Ephesian shepherds and sheep was this: Be on guard! According to a poll taken a few years ago by the Pew Research Center, the number of Americans who consider themselves to be spiritual, but not religious, is increasing. That doesn’t surprise me. More and more people consider their spiritual lives to be personal, not collective. They want the opportunity to pick and choose what they will believe and how it will impact their behavior. It makes me wonder if the Apostle Paul saw that wolf coming from within. You see, I don’t think many of you, if any of you, are tempted to be misled by false teachers. But all of us are tempted to be misled by the wolf inside us. It’s the wolf that insists that my spiritual life is personal, and I’ll believe and do as I please. Your Good Shepherd, Jesus, is the way and the truth and the life. You have a relationship with him based on the truth that he shares with you in his word. Anything contrary to that word only hinders that relationship. What is it that hinders your relationship with Jesus? Work? Recreation? Your family? Other relationships? Satan so easily lulls us into spiritual complacency, causing us to think that we’re just fine, even though our Good Shepherd is only a peripheral part of our lives. And that’s when the wolf is right outside the door of our hearts. Paul reminds shepherds and sheep to be on guard. Stay close to your Good Shepherd through his word and sacrament. That’s how he feeds you and keeps you safe in a world full of spiritual danger. Part II. Quite a few of you have shared with me that you’re deeply concerned about the future of Christianity in our country and our world. It seems as if Satan is winning, and we’re losing. Churches are closing. People are abandoning long-held Christian beliefs. World governments still oppose what Jesus taught and, what alarms us most, is that at times that opposition comes from our own government. It’s not a rosy picture. But is there only bad news for Christians and Christianity? Are the sheep who comprise the church simply prone to attacks from wolves of all sorts? If you think that way, then listen to these closing words of the Apostle Paul. “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” In the midst of our anti-Christian world, Paul gives us his apostolic comfort. He reminds us that no matter how much difficulty the church on earth faces, we are all still under the almighty and protective care of our Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. He has promised to guard and keep us until he calls us home to heaven. And until then, he leads us into the green pastures of his word to feed us and strengthen us. Recall his promise: that his word will stand forever. Nothing, not even Satan and his hellish hounds, can overcome the word of our almighty and eternal Savior. And with that word in our hearts and filling our minds, we can withstand the fierce assaults on our faith. Finally, Paul reminds us that God has an inheritance in store for us. By faith in Jesus, we are heirs of eternal life. At your baptism he wrote your name in the book of life. Jesus won that life for you and he has promised to give it to you. It’s yours. It belongs to you. You will receive it when he calls you to it. There’s no reason to live your Christian life in discouragement. The future is eternally bright. Here’s apostolic advice for shepherds and sheep: Be encouraged! Paul’s final words to these Ephesian Christians were filled with concern. I’m concerned for Christians and Christianity. I’m sure you are, too. But there’s a big difference between concern and hopelessness. Christians are never hopeless, because they belong to the Good Shepherd. He’s the One who laid down his life for the sheep and then he rose again as the eternal victor over sin, death, and hell. His victory is your victory by faith in him. With Jesus you win. You win forever. May that truth encourage you eternally! Amen.