Ezekiel 34 What real pastors look like: devouring shepherds and good shepherds

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1 1 Ezekiel 34 What real pastors look like: devouring shepherds and good shepherds God is not great and organized religion is pointless This past year I read Christopher Hitchen s book God is not Great. In it he argued that the main source of hatred in the world is organized religion. He concludes: religion is not good for the world. This is obviously not a Christian book, but as I read it I found myself agreeing with so very much of it. Sadly. It makes me wonder what God thinks about organized religion. I mean, certainly God seems to have instituted a very organized religion, so he must be in favor of it, right? *** Pastors who abuse Pastor Phil was a dynamic speaker and senior Pastor of Set Free Christian Fellowship in Anaheim California. His church was filled with thousands of white, Hispanic and black young adults. He catered to the simple, those without schooling, the bikers, and the desperately hurting. Tina and Art came to the church with marriage difficulty hoping for help. Pastor Phil separated them quickly and made them live in separate households and required that they submit completely to him. They were arguing but had no intention of splitting up. They received no couple counseling and Pastor Phil eventually encouraged them to divorce. Soon thereafter she married one of the other leaders in the church. Her husband was allowed to see the kids only on Sunday and only at the church. The new couple moved into a one bedroom place with 4 kids and pregnant with another. During the 11 months they were married, her new husband went on 4 different drug binges and stole all her money. He was quickly received back to the church and put into leadership. Tina had no money to pay the bills and her electricity was turned off. Pastor Phil would regularly come into Tina s room to encourage her. Pastor Phil has a history of abusing his congregation. One time he called the softball coach over the stands with a bullhorn to rebuke him for not substituting the assistant pastor whom he had demanded be substituted. The next week he forced everyone to play different positions and to play with their opposite hand because they needed to be humbled. Phil doesn t have elders because he alone is responsible before God for all of his flock. He requires permission slips from his congregants for all areas of life. Pat was not allowed to oversee his family as husband and father, but was expected to consult with Phil on all matters. He says he lives a life of poverty but eats out nearly every day and is always buying new parts for his Harley. 1 Inappropriate conversations with women, never counseling couples together, public displays to humiliate people, financial deception. 1 For more on Pastor Phil and other such leaders read Ronald M. Enroth, Churches that Abuse (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992),

2 2 Unfortunately, spiritual leaders have a long history of abusing their people. In the 1920s, one of the most famous evangelists of all, Aimee Semple McPherson faked her own death. She claimed she had been kidnapped but the truth was that she had run off with a lover. This third marriage ended in divorce three years later... again. In 1986, Jimmy Swaggart started attacking his fellow televangelists Marvin Gorman and Jim Bakker, both of whom had affairs. Gorman retaliated by hiring a PI to uncover Swaggarts adultery with a prostitute. He promptly repented. Three years later he was found again with a prostitute driving on the wrong side of the road. Peter Popoff claimed to be getting supernatural revelation from God about audience members, but a magician skeptic showed that he was actually using an in-ear receiver. Mike Warnke was a popular Christian evangelist in the 70s and 80s. He claimed in his book the Satan Seller (73) that he had been a satanic priest before converting to Christianity. A magazine investigated his claims and found much fraud deceit, multiple marriages, affairs and divorces. Also that he was never a drug addicted dealer or Satanic High priest. Robert Tilton was exposed in 91 by Diane Sawyer showing that he wouldn t allow his phone operators to stay on more than 7 minutes with those who were hurting and threw away prayer requests without reading them, only cashing the checks (80 million a year) Roberts Liardon, Paul Crouch, Ted Haggard and Paul Cain all were caught in acts of homosexuality Vaugn Reeves, just three years ago was sentenced to serve 9 six year sentences for defrauding his congregation of 13.1 million dollars. Howard Douglas Porter was pastor at Hickman Community Church and in 2008 was convicted of embezzlement, elder abuse, attempted murder and first degree murder. A host of Cardinals and bishops have been involved in Pedophilia and coverups. A Maryaland Pastor embezzled 850L from his DC church. Writing checks to himself, opening up credit card accounts for $50K for his own private use, went on extravagant vacations, VIP tickets to NBA games and bought fancy cars. This was just this past month. And we know personally pastors who have been jailed and others who have insulted specific people from the pulpit By the way, not just Christians in case you were wondering. There is a host of information online about other spiritual leaders Zentatsu Richard Baker (Buddhist), had affairs and a ridiculously lavish lifestyle

3 3 Yogi Amrit Sesai (Hindu), required celibacy of his disciples, had several affairs and while requiring seva (selfless service), he himself made a considerable amount of money. Hari Krishan Child abusers at boarding schools. Sheikh Muhammad al Gamei a (Muslim) was a major interfaith leader but gave an interview in Egypt where he said that Jews were responsible for 9-11 and that if we knew the truth we would do the same to the Jews as Hitler did. Rabbi Neulaner had his wife killed in 1994 and had at least two affairs before that. We are at no loss for examples of pastors hurting their people as the media reminds us so very often. What does God have to say to abusive Shepherds and hurting sheep? So, with all this in mind, what does God think? Does he ever speak out against the pastors of flocks? Does he have any warnings for them? Any words of advice? Any thoughts for people who put themselves under people who seem so prone to pride, and temptation, and not only falling on their face, but taking so many people with them? I know what Ezekiel things about it. He is ticked. He has had it with these so called shepherds who don t actually care for the sheep. Who don t feed them, who don t love them, who only care about themselves. I want to spend most of my time in Ezekiel 34 today because it deals most prevalently with this issue, but this is not the only place it comes up. It is a significant theme from beginning to end of this book. I want to ask five questions here this morning and answer each of them as simply as I can from Ezekiel s time and then ask how this might help us in our own thinking. Question 1. What is a shepherd? Easy answer. A shepherd watches sheep. We don t see a lot of these today, but they sure did. A shepherd is supposed to care for his sheep. Protect them from wolves, make sure they are well fed, keep them from wandering off cliffs. Of course it s just an analogy to make a point. For Ezekiel the shepherds are the leaders of Israel. They are there to lead the people into safety and provision. To care for them. To be God to the people in a good sense. What is a shepherd today? Maybe a pastor? It does come from the Latin which means shepherd. We even speak of a pastoral setting which means a rural, bucolic, looking out over a prairie kind of scene. So Pastors watch and care for people as if they were sheep. We protect them, we care for them, we feed them with God s word. You get the idea. No rocket science here. Question #2. Why must Ezekiel prophesy against them? The answer begins as early as chapter 3 when God calls Ezekiel to be a watchman. In chapter 33 he repeats this again and everywhere in between, Ezekiel s job is to watch God s people. To warn them. To call them to repent. To feed them God s word.

4 4 But in chapter 34 it becomes really obvious: 2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy and say to them: 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? So they are shepherds but they don t care for the sheep. How can this even be? 3 You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. 6 My sheep wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. They were scattered over the whole earth, and no one searched or looked for them. (Eze 34:2-6 NIV) Obviously these are the religious and royal leadership of the time. But it sounds just like our long list at the front of this sermon. Pastor Phil sure seemed to rule harshly. And as more people are abused they wander to other churches and finally to no church and they are on their own crying out for someone to love them and lead them well. Question #3. Why do sheep need watching and care? Because without it they wander (verse 6). Without it they are plundered and become food for wild animals (verse 8). Without it they live in day of clouds and darkness (verse 12) For Israel this was very specific, they were wandering, they were alone, they were discouraged, they were outside of the land, living in exile, away from the pleasant face of God. The application isn t too hard to find for us. Without leadership, Christians fall. Without a church around you, you will likely weaken and fizzle out. The pull to sin is too powerful and so God gives us a church that helps keep us accountable and love us and watch out for us and he gives us pastors who feed us properly and aren t out to use you for their own gain. Servants, who will give their lives for the sheep. Question #4. What happens when there are no good shepherds? God himself will be their shepherd: I will rescue my flock from their mouths, and it will no longer be food for them. 11 " 'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them.

5 5 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice. (Eze 34:10-16 NIV) For Israel, this meant that despite the horrendous leadership, God would bring them out of exile he would deliver them from their abusers and conquerors and give them life. But there is more. Question #5: What will this one shepherd do? He will, according to verse 22, save his flock so that they will no longer be plundered. He will rescue them. He will pasture them (vs 13). He will search for the lost. He will shepherd with justice. He will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak (16) He will destroy the sleek and the strong He will judge between the fat sheep and the lean This is all for the Judahites. There is hope. There is something on the other side of exile. There is life after death. And all this because of one shepherd that is mentioned in verse 23. This one will rescue them but not as they expect. He will lead as all leaders should have but did not. He will be a King that people can look to and see God. God will bring one king, (again verse 23), my servant David and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the Lord will be their God and my servant David will be prince among them. I the Lord have spoken. The good shepherd Now you know how this ends right? No son of David ever sits on the throne again. Ever. Did God lie? Did Ezekiel misunderstand? Of course not.

6 6 God gives them their prince in the person of Jesus, of the line of David whose kingdom knows no end. It is he who perfectly images God. A perfect human representative for God. So when we see Jesus, we know what God is like. This one truth changes our entire thinking about everything. It changes our hermeneutic and our doctrine of God and our teaching on violence and the future and everything. It blew their mind and it should blow ours. But it doesn t much anymore. That Jesus is the image of God is something I have known and accepted for so long, that it barely registers anymore. Am I the harsh and brutal shepherd? But it has again lately. Not that it never does, but I have spent a lot of time mulling over the first several verses of this chapter as a pastor of real people. Hurting people. Stressed people. People who prioritize the wrong things. Who chase after the wrong people. Who desperately want to please God, but consistently move off the path. That s my task. And Carl s and Kyle s. We care for the flock. And as I read these words in Ezekiel, I wonder if we have done a good job. Maybe I should just speak for myself. Here is what I meditated on: but you do not take care of the flock. 4 You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally. (Eze 34:3-4 NIV) Is the opposite of this how I would characterize my ministry here? Caring for the flock? Strengthening the weak? Healing the sick? Binding up the injured Have I sought out the strays and searched for the lost? Am the opposite of harsh and brutal? Maybe gentle and compassionate? Or do the weak not last long here because the expectations are too great? Do the sick just pretend to be well so they can survive here until they just wither away? Are books and s and meetings my priorities and not real flesh and blood people? We have lost several families over the last 6 months. All of them have different reasons and it makes it difficult to grasp where the real problems lie or if maybe this is just part of the ebb and flow of church life, but I wonder if the root might be that I simply have not done a good enough job shepherding. Caring. Healing. When they fall away, perhaps it shouldn t be about making sure they are on the right path, but loving them on the wrong path.

7 7 There isn t anything profound here. I never chased after anyone with baseball bats demanding that they do better. I understand grace. I go to people s houses and try to love them. I send them encouraging notes. I am not having an affair, embezzling money, claiming to hear secret messages from God, forcing the softball team to play with their opposite hand, calling people to divorce when things are hard. I am not that evil pastor, and it becomes easy to compare myself to them and see how phenomenal I am doing. But when I compare myself with the good shepherd, it makes me wonder if I am the sacrificial servant I need to be. Actually it doesn t make me wonder, it just makes it very evident that I am not. Are the sheep God gave me to care for, wandering? I guess I want to apologize for pastors. You have surely sat under some really sucky ones. I could tell you that it is a hard job and we struggle a lot, but that is not an excuse; we are called to heal the sick and love the unloved, and rescue those wandering. We are called to care and be a servant and sacrifice everything so that you can see Jesus. You have had sucky pastors. And I fear even now you have one who can t figure out when he is succeeding and when he is failing. How much time should I spend going after Ken and Diana Fitzwater and make sure they know they are loved. Or Mark Gorres or Zannie Bates, or Jamie and Teresa Witt or Bill and Janna Williams or Dave and Chandra McCall, Joel or Tierney of Rick Carr, or Mike and Melissa Lewis, Chris Hardison, or Gary and Trish? How about Kelly and Leslie? Tom and Suzonne? Jeff and Nancy? Andy and Joy? Chris and Jennifer? Thom and Sandy? Ashley Funk? Are these people hurting and need me even as they put their hands up to stop me from coming? I cry over these and wonder if God could build his church far better if you just had someone to lead like Jesus leads. I don t know how to deal with this. I cry over my failures and seek to do better, but must keep in mind that the early church had messes too. Every church does. So we can feel the pain but we absolutely must accept grace too. Is Ezekiel s message to his people what I should give to my people? But Ezekiel isn t written directly to me. It s written to a group of people who are waiting for a leader who would image God. But you already have him. And it s not me or Kyle or Carl. You have had sucky pastors, Jesus is the perfect one.

8 8 In John 10, the watchman opens the gate for him and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and lead them out... He goes on ahead of them and they follow him because they know his voice. In verse 11 he utters that famous line. I am the good shepherd. The good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. People of Israel, you are listening to bad shepherds who only use you. Jesus is the good shepherd who will even die for you. People of Poolesville Baptist church, he is the good shepherd. You have for too long put your trust in men and when they fell you were crushed. Put your trust in the servant, son of David who actually did go to the cross for you. He will do anything to reconcile you to himself. This doesn t mean I am off the hook. In fact, by the power of the Holy Spirit I am to be that sacrificial leader. I am to be the servant. I am to chase after the straying and bind up the injured. And I will continue to cry out to God that he would make me a better leader and shepherd. But perhaps I should remind you that this call of sacrificial servanthood, this call of chasing after the wandering and healing the hurting is not for me alone. It is for all of us. Because of Jesus example as the good shepherd, we all may heal and love and care and chase. We don t give up on people because they are hard. We reach out to those who have rejected God and church. A little word of warning here. God says that the Good shepherd will separate between the fat and the lean. Please don t be one of the fat ones. Don t be the ones who are comfortable not serving, not sacrificing, not caring. Don t use your introverted-ness as an excuse. Don t tell me that you aren t gifted in a certain area so you can t serve there. Don t tell me that you are better at speaking up front than you are at crying with someone hurting in their home. Don t be a fat one. But for those of you who are trying to love but falling prey to the world s lies, remember that you have a power inside of you that is unequalled. The world can t win against you if you tap that power. If you rely on the Spirit. But most of all remember this. Jesus is the good shepherd. He gets it. He loves you. You are his sheep and he will chase you down wherever you go, even if crummy pastors like me don t. He will bind up the wounded. He will be a father to you. He says in verse 31, you are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture and I am your God. He is yours. You are his. He loves you and will back that up every chance he gets. Communion