John 10:11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, since he isn’t a shepherd and the sheep aren’t his own, sees the wolf coming, abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf drags them off and scatters them. 13 The hired worker behaves like this because that’s all he is, a hired worker; so it doesn’t matter to him what happens to the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd; I know my own, and my own know me — 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father — and I lay down my life on behalf of the sheep. 16 Also I have other sheep which are not from this pen; I need to bring them, and they will hear my voice; and there will be one flock, one shepherd.
17 “This is why the Father loves me: because I lay down my life — in order to take it up again! 18 No one takes it away from me; on the contrary, I lay it down of my own free will. I have the power to lay it down, and I have the power to take it up again. This is what my Father commanded me to do.”
Would your boss put their career on the line for you?
Before you assume the best in them, let’s look at this same question from a different perspective:
Would you put your own career on the line for someone under your authority?
Hurts a little, doesn’t it? Here you are, a believer that understands justice and the ways of the Kingdom and even you wouldn't sacrifice your livelihood for someone else.
Don’t fret though. You’re a hired worker. This is exactly to be expected. There is no rebuke from Yeshua regarding this type of behavior. He says this is normal. The sheep do not belong to the hired worker so when danger comes, he flees.
But is it the right behavior? It depends.
In the world, people sell people out all of the time. Survival of the fittest, right? There is ownership of the work but no ownership of the people. The organization or the project above humans every single time. And Yeshua says to expect this.
A shepherd, on the other hand, doesn’t view the work as the end -- it’s the people that are at the end. The work is just a means to that end.
Serving and protecting them all from the wolves that absolutely 100% will come.
The shepherd knows the ploy of the enemy and goes to war against that enemy in order to protect the sheep -- to the point of death. Self sacrifice for the sake of the whole flock. Holding a line that cannot be crossed and not sending a member of your flock to the slaughter in your place.
This is sacrificial leadership. The interesting thing about this concept is that the sheep will be incredibly loyal to the shepherd that is willing to die on their behalf. When deadlines come, the sheep double down in order to serve that leader. No questions asked. Events get handled, jobs get done, and people are actually happy as a result. Tired maybe, but happy.
It’s an amazing thing when this synergistic model gets going. The sheep see what it means even for them to sacrifice for the sake of having protection from the wolves, and they also begin to behave in a life-giving way.
What then happens to you when you operate like this? I mean, you can’t go around martyring yourself for every lazy person in your organization. We’re not talking about that situation, though. It is ultimately changing your perspective on what exactly you are to be doing in your job. Yes, projects have to get done but it is the people doing them. Tasks must be completed and meetings must be had, but without people that’s all a complete waste of time. All of it.
(Very important note: this isn’t a commentary on how the sheep behave. It’s a commentary on the wolves and protecting your sheep from them. You spank the sheep if you have to.)
But going further, we see there is a much bigger game at play:
“This is why the Father loves me: because I lay down my life — in order to take it up again! No one takes it away from me; on the contrary, I lay it down of my own free will. I have the power to lay it down, and I have the power to take it up again. This is what my Father commanded me to do.”
Read that again. Read it 10 more times. Seriously.
This…This is why the Father loves Him: because He took on the role of Shepherd. It became about everyone else. He literally put Himself to the lowest position possible.
And His Abba loved it.
Is this all lost on you because there is no one under your care?
I’d like to argue that there are many people you can protect. Family, friends, co-workers, etc. Really anyone you have a relationship with. You can go out of your way to fend off the wolves that are coming for them for no other reason than to consume them. (Again, if people are stubborn and disagreeable then get reprimanded, that’s a different topic altogether.)
We’ve looked at this from the perspective of being a good leader, but the reality is we needed that understanding so we could become a good follower.
A sheep that is in the Shepherd’s care has nothing to fear. The wolves may come for you but they can’t get anywhere near you without encountering the Shepherd first.
But a sheep that leaves the pen…that sheep is subject to an attack. It is ridiculous for the sheep to assume they are protected if they walk away from their Shepherd. Not “walk away” from a leaving-the-faith perspective but a choosing-to-step-out-into-the-world perspective.
Your Shepherd has every tool He needs to combat the wolves but you must stay in the flock.
You were asked at the very beginning whether your boss would put their career on the line for you. We know humans are fickle and unreliable, so we are confident that no, they won’t do that for you. But there is greater news.
We have a Shepherd that put His life on the line for you. And He laid it down because He wanted to. Not a hired worker that was there to only do the work when it was easy, but One that stayed even when the work was hard.
Are you loyal to your Shepherd as a result? Do you make sacrifices for Him because of what He’s done for you? You should.
The perpetual onslaught of attacks against you now cannot stand. There is no wolf that exists that can come and consume you when you are being watched by your Shepherd.
Be warned, however, that if you choose to stick your head out of the pen and into the world, it will get cut off.