“His heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.”

Sermon on Mark 6:30-34 for the Ninth Sunday after Pentecost, July 19 & 22, 2018

1. Today’s Gospel is really a bridge lesson from last week’s Gospel about Jesus sending his disciples out to proclaim the good news and next week’s Gospel about the feeding of the five thousand. That doesn’t mean that this week’s lesson is unimportant—in fact it is very important—it has a very important phrase. “His heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.” This week is another Good Shepherd Sunday. All the lessons and the psalm portray our Savior God as the one who tends, leads and feeds his flock. But what does St. Mark say about this crowd of over 5,000 who are gathering? He says they were like sheep without a shepherd. What does that mean? It means that they were wandering aimlessly. They didn’t know what they were doing. They didn’t know where they were going. Since this account comes right after the apostles were sent out, it makes sense that the people were gathering because the Twelve had done their work of announcing that the Messiah is here. And by this time, about two years into Jesus’ ministry, he was getting well known. We know that some people were following Jesus because they wanted him to be like a George Washington—a revolutionary who would lead a war of independence against the Romans. We know that some of the disciples had that idea, too.[a] Some people followed because they wanted to see Jesus perform miraculous signs.[b] Some followed because they wanted healing.[c] There were probably some who came because they wanted to see a good show of Jesus sparring off with the Pharisees. They were following Jesus for many reasons—most were selfish reasons. That’s what “sheep without a shepherd”
2. Think again about that phrase, “sheep without a shepherd.” That can mean a person wandering aimlessly through life, a person who finds trouble easily, a person who causes trouble. Do you know anybody like that? Maybe a neighbor, someone you read about in the paper, a childhood friend or schoolmate you hear about later, a relative, a child—maybe even yourself at some time in your past—“a sheep without a shepherd.” Did you ever have to deal with somebody like that? Somebody who is always getting in trouble? Somebody who might be trouble for you? And did you ever decide for yourself, “That person is going to be too much trouble”? Ooh! That’s a pretty harsh judgment. It’s also an attempt to predict the future, isn’t it? What did Jesus do when he saw this gathering crowd of over 5,000 who were troubled and helpless like sheep without a shepherd? What did Jesus do when he saw this crowd of over 5,000 that he knew he would feed and that he knew would be begging for another free lunch?[d] He shepherded them. He stepped in and gave them what they needed. “He began to teach them many things.”
3. Why did Jesus do this? Mark says “His heart went out to them.” Matthew says “He was moved with compassion for them.” Both of those phrases mean that what the crowd was experiencing and feeling affected what Jesus was feeling. Compassion literally means that you “feel with” someone. Compassion means you see another person with his or her problems and you ask yourself, “How would I feel if that was me?” Jesus took it beyond feelings. He acted. He met their needs—first the spiritual need by teaching them. He would also take care of their physical needs later. That is compassion. For Jesus, it is also grace—a love that loves without first looking for a reason. He loves because it is his nature.   John wrote, “Dear children, let us love not only with word or with our tongue, but also in action and truth” (1 John 3:18).
4. Look at yourself. Look at yourself as a sheep without a shepherd. Look at the places where your thoughts have wandered—maybe more than thoughts. Maybe your thoughts get stuck in anger—you replay painful memories in your head again and again, and the anger keeps burning. That isn’t your shepherd’s “path of righteousness,” is it? Or maybe your thoughts get stuck in a pattern or self-service. What’s the latest cool thing? What do I want for me? How do I feed my desires? (It’s not bad to give yourself a break—Jesus does that with his disciples at the beginning of this lesson—but sometimes we take a huge break while ignoring our duty to others, or we indulge our desires in ways God has told us not to.) There are times when you are a wayward sheep. There are times when I am a wayward sheep. That’s the human condition. That’s what’s behind King David’s famous psalm (23). To paraphrase, “I am such a wayward sheep, I need the power and might of Jehovah himself to shepherd me. On my own, I’d wander out in the desert and starve, so the Lord has to make me lie down in green pastures. I’d wander out in the desert until I fell over, but the Lord has to lead me by quiet waters. On my own I’d be stuck, facing wild animals or stuck in a place I couldn’t get out of, so I need the Lord to restore me and lead me on his path of righteousness.” How many times has God come to your rescue? Once? Twice? Too many times to count? And was it because you deserved it? Think of the author of that psalm—King David had a history of polygamy, adultery, treachery, murder. The Lord restored him—because of compassion. Because of grace.
5. We live in a time where there’s a great lack of compassion. We see it in the political world where there’s name calling, attacks, attacks on individuals, attacks on families of individuals. A great war of hateful words. And if I don’t like what you’re saying, I’m going to go off to my safe space. It even is happening in the world of psychology and counseling. If you tell your counselor about trouble in some relationship, the counselor may tell you to limit your contact—maybe even cut that person off. Is that compassion? One of the reasons people are hurtful is that they are hurting. They may be reflecting what they have experienced. “…like sheep without a shepherd.”
6. So the compassion of Christ is also a call for you and for me to have compassion, too. Not just to follow Christ’s example in showing compassion, but to follow him also in seeing that waywardness as a need. Jesus is far more than an example for us to follow. He is our Savior—like the shepherd who goes off to rescue the lost sheep.[e] He doesn’t save us by showing us how to be better. He saves us by laying down his life[f] and taking what we deserve in our place.[g] This self-sacrifice of Jesus, our Savior—the one who rescued us when we couldn’t rescue ourselves—should move us to compassion. Isn’t this what other people need? Isn’t this what that wayward person in your life needs? …not to be cut off, but to be shepherded, helped, rescued. Maybe you can’t do it—not alone. But there’s someone who shepherds when we speak his words, isn’t there? “Whoever listens to you listens to me” Jesus says (Luke 10:1). There is a Shepherd who meets our needs by empowering us to do what we couldn’t. That is Jesus, our Savior and compassionate Shepherd—who has had compassion on us, who came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19:10) and who also calls us to shepherd with him.

Amen.

Mark 6:30-34

The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all that they had done and taught. ³¹ He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” For there were so many people coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat. ³² They went away in the boat to a deserted place by themselves. ³³ But many people saw them leave and knew where they were going. They ran there on foot from all the towns and arrived ahead of them. ³⁴ When Jesus stepped out of the boat, he saw a large crowd. His heart went out to them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. He began to teach them many things.

[a] Simon the Zealot. See also Acts 1:16

[b] John 6:2

[c] Matthew 4:24

[d] John 6:26

[e] Matthew 18:11-13.

[f] John 10:15-17.

[g] John 1:29, Matthew 20:28.