WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.879 Well, in our evening services at the moment, we are looking at the book of Ezekiel, and 00:00:07.879 --> 00:00:12.880 we're highlighting what we're calling six epic images in this book. 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:18.679 It's a remarkable prophecy, and at various points in this book, we have some stunning 00:00:18.679 --> 00:00:24.199 images set before us that we're going to look at together. 00:00:24.199 --> 00:00:28.920 You can see it there, we've got these amazing epic images that we're looking at. 00:00:28.920 --> 00:00:32.200 We're at number four this week, here's just a reminder of what we've looked at and what 00:00:32.200 --> 00:00:33.200 we're going to look at. 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:37.840 We looked at the wheels and wings of chapter one, we looked at the abandoned baby of chapter 00:00:37.840 --> 00:00:42.000 16, we looked at the watchman of chapter 33. 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:46.359 Tonight in chapter 34, we're looking at the shepherd. 00:00:46.359 --> 00:00:52.880 Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep 00:00:52.880 --> 00:00:56.920 at their hand, and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. 00:00:56.920 --> 00:01:03.440 No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves, I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, 00:01:03.440 --> 00:01:05.719 that they may not be food for them. 00:01:05.719 --> 00:01:14.599 For thus says the Lord God, Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them 00:01:14.599 --> 00:01:17.599 out. 00:01:17.599 --> 00:01:20.840 Ezekiel's not the most commonly read book of the Bible, even though it's one of the 00:01:20.840 --> 00:01:24.320 biggest, it's not one that we go to very often. 00:01:24.319 --> 00:01:29.719 And in lots of ways, it's maybe not the easiest book of the Bible to understand, it can feel 00:01:29.719 --> 00:01:32.559 a little bit inaccessible. 00:01:32.559 --> 00:01:37.280 But with a wee bit of help, we can open up this book, and when we do, we see that it 00:01:37.280 --> 00:01:39.719 reveals some stunning teaching. 00:01:39.719 --> 00:01:44.919 As we said when we were reading it, Ezekiel comes at a very important time in the history 00:01:44.919 --> 00:01:47.879 of God's people in the Old Testament. 00:01:47.879 --> 00:01:53.280 If you want to summarize the history of the story of God's people in the Old Testament, 00:01:53.280 --> 00:01:58.040 so wee bit like a Nike tic, so if you've got a set of Nike shoes on or anything, you 00:01:58.040 --> 00:02:03.120 can see it's a tic, it kind of goes down, and then there's wee upturn at the bottom. 00:02:03.120 --> 00:02:06.680 And that's the story of God's people in the Old Testament, it's down, down, down, down, 00:02:06.680 --> 00:02:11.000 down, down, and there's like a tiny wee up bit at the end. 00:02:11.000 --> 00:02:16.639 But just at the very bottom, at the lowest point, that's when Ezekiel comes. 00:02:16.639 --> 00:02:18.680 They've lost the nation. 00:02:18.680 --> 00:02:21.240 They've lost the city of Jerusalem. 00:02:21.240 --> 00:02:23.800 They've lost the temple. 00:02:23.800 --> 00:02:28.040 The nation's just in a mess. 00:02:28.040 --> 00:02:34.040 As we approach Ezekiel, or as we approach any other prophecy in the Old Testament, there's 00:02:34.040 --> 00:02:36.280 two key words to remember. 00:02:36.280 --> 00:02:40.439 I'm sure that you know these, those who have been here for the last three weeks, because 00:02:40.439 --> 00:02:42.640 we've tried to highlight them several times. 00:02:42.640 --> 00:02:51.120 Whenever you approach any prophecy, two key words you want to remember, judgment and salvation. 00:02:51.120 --> 00:02:55.240 Remember if you like, warning and hope. 00:02:55.240 --> 00:02:59.840 All the prophets in the Old Testament came to warn the people, because they were turning 00:02:59.840 --> 00:03:03.960 away from God, they were rebelling against Him, and they were forgetting about Him. 00:03:03.960 --> 00:03:08.240 The prophets came to warn them not to do that. 00:03:08.240 --> 00:03:12.560 And at the same time, they came with a message of hope. 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:18.360 No matter how bad things were, God was calling the people back. 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:27.600 And perhaps the most powerful example of this twofold message of judgment and salvation 00:03:27.600 --> 00:03:33.360 is found in Ezekiel chapter 34. 00:03:33.360 --> 00:03:36.480 The chapter is based around the image of a shepherd. 00:03:36.480 --> 00:03:42.560 Now sometimes when we think about a shepherd and sheep, we can have immediately in our 00:03:42.560 --> 00:03:47.880 minds the idea of a kind of tranquil and peaceful image. 00:03:47.879 --> 00:03:53.079 So as an experiment, I typed in shepherd to Google images, and all the pictures that come 00:03:53.079 --> 00:03:56.439 up are so idyllic. 00:03:56.439 --> 00:04:00.719 You just see this beautiful scenery and green grass and lovely sheep. 00:04:00.719 --> 00:04:05.240 And in our minds, we can have the idea of lambs skipping about the place and everything 00:04:05.240 --> 00:04:09.000 just looking so rosy. 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:17.600 But that's probably not what the reality is like, 99% of the time. 00:04:17.600 --> 00:04:22.240 Many crofters in the highlands of Scotland will tell you that there are not many days 00:04:22.240 --> 00:04:28.680 of sunshine, peace and tranquility in the life of a shepherd in Scotland. 00:04:28.680 --> 00:04:34.240 And if that's not true of our country today, it is most definitely not true of a shepherd 00:04:34.240 --> 00:04:35.760 in the Old Testament. 00:04:35.760 --> 00:04:38.200 And you can see that if you look closely through the chapter. 00:04:38.200 --> 00:04:43.960 As we read, you heard mention of things like wild beasts, rugged mountainous landscape 00:04:43.960 --> 00:04:45.920 and bad weather. 00:04:45.920 --> 00:04:51.759 The shepherd of the Old Testament didn't just lie in the sunshine with all his sheep just 00:04:51.759 --> 00:04:53.640 relaxing beside him. 00:04:53.640 --> 00:04:57.160 It was a brutal job. 00:04:57.160 --> 00:05:00.000 A shepherd had to lead his flock through harsh terrain. 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:01.680 He had to find food for them. 00:05:01.680 --> 00:05:04.000 He had to defend the sheep from predators. 00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:05.400 He had to strengthen the weak. 00:05:05.400 --> 00:05:06.879 He had to carry the injured. 00:05:06.879 --> 00:05:09.000 He had to go and rescue the lost. 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:16.879 A shepherd had to be brave, strong, determined and he needed a huge amount of stamina. 00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:20.480 Would you ever fight a lion? 00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:23.519 Would you ever sleep in a ravine? 00:05:23.519 --> 00:05:30.759 Would you drive a herd of sheep or cattle across mountains? 00:05:30.759 --> 00:05:36.639 The shepherd is not a tranquil image. 00:05:36.639 --> 00:05:42.959 It's an epic image. 00:05:42.959 --> 00:05:49.079 But it's very important to remember that Ezekiel 34 is not actually talking about shepherds. 00:05:49.079 --> 00:05:53.000 It's actually about leadership. 00:05:53.000 --> 00:05:58.560 And this shepherd image is a metaphor for the leaders of Israel. 00:05:58.560 --> 00:06:03.240 Chapter begins in verse 1, the word of the Lord came to me, son of man, prophesy against 00:06:03.240 --> 00:06:07.400 the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, even to the shepherds, thus says 00:06:07.400 --> 00:06:12.040 the Lord, Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves should not shepherds 00:06:12.040 --> 00:06:13.040 feed the sheep. 00:06:13.040 --> 00:06:17.199 And at the very end of the chapter, it says, they shall know that I and the Lord their 00:06:17.199 --> 00:06:21.240 God with them, that they the house of Israel are my people. 00:06:21.240 --> 00:06:26.840 You are my sheep, human sheep of my pasture. 00:06:26.840 --> 00:06:32.120 So when Ezekiel 34 talks about sheep, it's talking about people. 00:06:32.120 --> 00:06:33.800 God's people. 00:06:33.800 --> 00:06:39.920 And when it talks about shepherds, it's talking about Israel's leaders. 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:44.280 And the ultimate example of that leader shepherd was the king. 00:06:44.280 --> 00:06:47.160 The prime example of that is David. 00:06:47.160 --> 00:06:53.519 He was a shepherd and he became the model king against whom all other Old Testament kings 00:06:53.519 --> 00:06:54.840 were measured. 00:06:54.840 --> 00:07:01.120 And when he became king, the people said to him, the Lord said to you, you shall be shepherd 00:07:01.120 --> 00:07:02.879 of my people Israel. 00:07:02.879 --> 00:07:07.040 You shall be prince over Israel. 00:07:07.040 --> 00:07:13.160 And from David onwards, the rulers of Israel were to be shepherds who led their people, 00:07:13.160 --> 00:07:18.120 who protected their people, who defended their people, who provided for their people, who 00:07:18.120 --> 00:07:23.480 always looked out for their people. 00:07:23.480 --> 00:07:27.680 And I just want to pause for a moment there because this is where we are being reminded 00:07:27.680 --> 00:07:32.759 of the biblical definition of good leadership. 00:07:32.759 --> 00:07:40.160 So in the Bible, whenever somebody is given the authority or power that comes with leadership, 00:07:40.160 --> 00:07:46.720 with that there always comes a major duty of care towards those who've been placed 00:07:46.720 --> 00:07:48.759 under you. 00:07:48.759 --> 00:07:54.800 And for everybody in here who's in the position of leadership in your work or in other areas 00:07:54.800 --> 00:07:59.920 or for any of you who will aspire to be in a position of leadership, that is something 00:07:59.920 --> 00:08:06.520 that you must never, ever forget. 00:08:06.520 --> 00:08:11.600 Neil said 100% of people have hassle at work in Scotland. 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:13.680 That's probably true. 00:08:13.680 --> 00:08:18.319 And I'm sure that the hassle just gets worse the higher up the ladder you go. 00:08:18.319 --> 00:08:20.759 And for a lot of people here, you face targets. 00:08:20.759 --> 00:08:26.399 You face targets in terms of performance or efficiency or cost cutting or marketing or 00:08:26.399 --> 00:08:27.399 whatever it is. 00:08:27.399 --> 00:08:28.759 These are all a heavy burden. 00:08:28.759 --> 00:08:30.560 You go to work, you've got targets. 00:08:30.560 --> 00:08:37.360 If you're a boss, what is God's number one target for you? 00:08:37.360 --> 00:08:44.240 His number one target is to make sure that the people under you are well cared for and 00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:49.039 safe and looked after. 00:08:49.039 --> 00:08:55.559 Now, that's the biblical model of good leadership. 00:08:55.559 --> 00:09:01.799 And wouldn't it be brilliant if all your bosses were just like that? 00:09:01.799 --> 00:09:07.439 The Bible's got a lot to say still today. 00:09:07.439 --> 00:09:12.919 So Ezekiel 34 is using this image of a shepherd and that's to give Israel a message, especially 00:09:12.919 --> 00:09:17.000 their leadership, to give them a message at a time, as we said, when the nation has fallen 00:09:17.000 --> 00:09:18.039 apart. 00:09:18.039 --> 00:09:22.959 And in the first instance, that message is a stark message of judgment. 00:09:22.959 --> 00:09:29.480 Thus says the Lord God, behold, I am against the shepherds. 00:09:29.480 --> 00:09:37.599 But as we'll see, this chapter also contains a remarkable message of salvation and hope. 00:09:37.599 --> 00:09:42.799 Now, there's an enormous amount of teaching in this chapter and we're only going to barely 00:09:42.799 --> 00:09:43.799 scratch the surface. 00:09:43.799 --> 00:09:45.319 We won't even touch the surface, I think. 00:09:45.319 --> 00:09:46.639 Let alone scratch it. 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:50.080 And I want to highlight three things and they're all based around the simple question which 00:09:50.080 --> 00:09:53.519 is asking, what does this chapter teach us about God? 00:09:53.519 --> 00:09:58.080 And I think that's a great question to always ask whenever you come to any chapter in the 00:09:58.080 --> 00:09:59.080 Bible. 00:09:59.080 --> 00:10:02.000 And we're going to pick out three things that we learn about God from this. 00:10:02.000 --> 00:10:14.120 And they are the frustration of God, the compassion of God, and the determination of God. 00:10:14.120 --> 00:10:16.480 So first, the frustration of God. 00:10:16.480 --> 00:10:21.200 When we think about God's attributes, our focus tends to be on things like the holiness 00:10:21.200 --> 00:10:24.200 of God or the power of God or the love of God. 00:10:24.200 --> 00:10:28.600 We don't often think or talk about the frustration of God. 00:10:28.600 --> 00:10:34.480 If anything, it can almost seem slightly inappropriate to say something like that. 00:10:34.480 --> 00:10:41.759 But I do think that looking at this chapter, it's clear that God is deeply frustrated with 00:10:41.759 --> 00:10:42.759 Israel's leadership. 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:51.840 In fact, he's absolutely appalled at the way in which these leaders have been behaving. 00:10:51.840 --> 00:10:52.840 Why is that? 00:10:52.840 --> 00:10:58.600 Well, the reason that he's so frustrated is because Israel's leaders have utterly abused 00:10:58.600 --> 00:11:04.639 their position and they have horribly exploited the people who were under their care. 00:11:04.639 --> 00:11:06.879 The first few verses make that so clear. 00:11:06.879 --> 00:11:08.919 We can pick it up at verse three. 00:11:08.919 --> 00:11:12.679 It says, you eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones 00:11:12.679 --> 00:11:15.239 but you do not feed the sheep. 00:11:15.239 --> 00:11:18.239 The weak you've not strengthened, the sick you've not healed, the injured you've not 00:11:18.239 --> 00:11:23.519 bound up, the strayed you've not brought back, the lost you have not sought and with force 00:11:23.519 --> 00:11:27.919 and harshness you have ruled them. 00:11:27.919 --> 00:11:32.799 And so these shepherds, these leaders, instead of caring for the flock, they were exploiting 00:11:32.799 --> 00:11:33.799 them. 00:11:33.799 --> 00:11:36.199 In other words, they were fleecing their own flock. 00:11:36.200 --> 00:11:43.240 And God's response to that is one of deep and profound frustration. 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:48.200 Now it's easy for us to think that the frustration of God would be a negative thing. 00:11:48.200 --> 00:11:52.560 We don't necessarily like the idea of God being frustrated or speaking in that way. 00:11:52.560 --> 00:11:59.000 But what I hope this chapter shows us is that the frustration of God is a beautiful and 00:11:59.000 --> 00:12:02.520 wonderful thing. 00:12:02.519 --> 00:12:10.120 And to see that, we have to first of all ask ourselves the question, what frustrates us? 00:12:10.120 --> 00:12:12.840 What frustrates you? 00:12:12.840 --> 00:12:17.399 And what frustrates the culture around us? 00:12:17.399 --> 00:12:18.399 What would you say to that? 00:12:18.399 --> 00:12:23.360 Well, there's lots of things but I'm still fairly new to Edinburgh. 00:12:23.360 --> 00:12:27.159 Those of you who are visiting won't know that but we moved here last summer. 00:12:27.159 --> 00:12:30.720 And one of the things that has really struck me and that I've really been quite surprised 00:12:30.720 --> 00:12:37.040 about and I don't think I'll ever get used to, is how frustrated people get in regard 00:12:37.040 --> 00:12:42.560 to driving and traffic. 00:12:42.560 --> 00:12:48.800 So the other day I was making my way in to work here quite peacefully and I saw a cyclist 00:12:48.800 --> 00:12:52.480 coming across the pathway, across the cycleway. 00:12:52.480 --> 00:12:56.080 And there was a pedestrian walking down, the cyclist pinging their bell. 00:12:56.080 --> 00:12:59.759 The pedestrian had headphones in their ears so couldn't hear a thing. 00:12:59.759 --> 00:13:04.519 And the cyclist kind of shot past in front of the pedestrian, quite close and had to 00:13:04.519 --> 00:13:06.000 make him stop. 00:13:06.000 --> 00:13:10.319 The pedestrian went ballistic. 00:13:10.319 --> 00:13:16.840 And he pretty much started chasing the bike down the road, shouting at him. 00:13:16.840 --> 00:13:23.200 I know of somebody else who had a note put through their gate complaining about their 00:13:23.200 --> 00:13:26.600 parking because somebody had dumped their car in front of their house. 00:13:26.600 --> 00:13:30.840 It wasn't even their car but somebody had seen this car with the wheel on the curb and 00:13:30.840 --> 00:13:36.879 had written an expletive filled letter complaining about this parking which wasn't even the person's 00:13:36.879 --> 00:13:39.399 car anyway. 00:13:39.399 --> 00:13:42.399 It's quite astonishing how frustrated people can get. 00:13:42.399 --> 00:13:44.800 I'm sure you can think of examples yourselves. 00:13:44.800 --> 00:13:49.480 I'm sure there's other areas where people get frustrated. 00:13:49.480 --> 00:13:54.960 Neil said to go on Instagram and Twitter and Facebook. 00:13:54.960 --> 00:13:58.680 You can find lots of great stuff but also these places are a great place to go to find 00:13:58.680 --> 00:14:02.639 frustration if you're looking for it. 00:14:02.639 --> 00:14:07.600 We can often get very frustrated by things and maybe it's a good question to ask yourself 00:14:07.600 --> 00:14:12.560 what frustrated me in the last week. 00:14:12.560 --> 00:14:18.120 But a mean even more important question is what frustrates God? 00:14:18.120 --> 00:14:27.440 The answer that Ezekiel 34 gives us is on the screen in front of you. 00:14:27.440 --> 00:14:37.840 It's when powerful people rip off the vulnerable people around them and treat them with harshness 00:14:37.840 --> 00:14:42.360 and make themselves richer and more comfortable at the expense of other people. 00:14:42.360 --> 00:14:47.200 The sick you've not healed, the injured you've not bound up, the strayed you have not brought 00:14:47.200 --> 00:14:53.000 back, that is what frustrates God immensely. 00:14:53.000 --> 00:15:00.200 And that tells us that God cares deeply about people. 00:15:00.200 --> 00:15:03.800 His frustration is not a character flaw like it so often is in us. 00:15:03.800 --> 00:15:10.440 It's actually a sign of his integrity, his justice and his mercy. 00:15:10.440 --> 00:15:16.160 So I've seen people raging because a car in front of them is in the wrong lane. 00:15:16.159 --> 00:15:20.559 I've seen people raging because somebody in front of them is struggling to park. 00:15:20.559 --> 00:15:23.759 I've seen people raging because a plane is delayed. 00:15:23.759 --> 00:15:29.360 I've seen people raging because of the threat of climate change. 00:15:29.360 --> 00:15:35.079 I've never seen anyone raging because they've seen a child who has to wear the same clothes 00:15:35.079 --> 00:15:37.079 every day. 00:15:37.079 --> 00:15:43.159 I've never seen anyone raging because there's people going to food banks. 00:15:43.159 --> 00:15:47.319 Now, I'm not saying that people don't care about these things. 00:15:47.319 --> 00:15:48.319 People do. 00:15:48.319 --> 00:15:49.600 I know that they do and that's a good thing. 00:15:49.600 --> 00:15:56.600 But what I mean is that instinctive reaction of deep frustration when the vulnerable are 00:15:56.600 --> 00:15:59.480 exploited. 00:15:59.480 --> 00:16:03.879 We are numb to it. 00:16:03.879 --> 00:16:15.799 And programs like Jeremy Kyle tell us that we're entertained by it. 00:16:15.799 --> 00:16:19.159 Now I can think of one exception to this. 00:16:19.159 --> 00:16:25.480 I can think of one person who saw vulnerable people being exploited. 00:16:25.480 --> 00:16:33.320 And he actually physically saw people who had kind of commercial enterprises set up so 00:16:33.320 --> 00:16:41.040 that they were sucking every penny that they could out of these most vulnerable people in 00:16:41.040 --> 00:16:42.240 society. 00:16:42.240 --> 00:16:45.000 And they were doing that in order to make themselves richer. 00:16:45.000 --> 00:16:47.480 And this person saw them. 00:16:47.480 --> 00:16:53.520 He actually saw them at their work, saw them gathering their income from these people. 00:16:53.520 --> 00:16:59.640 And he literally went in among them and he threw their money on the ground. 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:05.599 And he told them to get out. 00:17:05.599 --> 00:17:10.480 Do you know that person's name? 00:17:10.480 --> 00:17:15.599 Jesus Christ. 00:17:15.599 --> 00:17:22.599 God is deeply frustrated in this chapter because the powerful are fleecing the vulnerable. 00:17:22.599 --> 00:17:25.240 God's frustration is a beautiful thing. 00:17:25.240 --> 00:17:31.759 When I look at myself and I need to pray, Lord, please make my frustrations the same 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:35.759 as your frustrations. 00:17:35.759 --> 00:17:38.880 So Ezekiel 34 reveals the frustration of God. 00:17:38.880 --> 00:17:43.680 That frustration is directed towards these leaders who failed in their responsibilities 00:17:43.680 --> 00:17:47.079 and who've abused those underneath them. 00:17:47.079 --> 00:17:50.000 God is frustrated with the shepherds. 00:17:50.000 --> 00:17:55.880 But if he is frustrated with the shepherds, what does he think of the sheep? 00:17:55.880 --> 00:18:02.240 Well, if we go back to that imagery of shepherds and sheep, there's another really important 00:18:02.240 --> 00:18:05.279 point that we can easily misunderstand. 00:18:05.279 --> 00:18:08.000 And we were saying at the start that you can easily think that being a shepherd's an easy 00:18:08.000 --> 00:18:12.319 job because it's all tranquil and peaceful and warm and lovely. 00:18:12.319 --> 00:18:18.400 And we can also think that looking after sheep is a very kind of relaxing and stress-free 00:18:18.400 --> 00:18:21.800 activity to be involved in. 00:18:21.800 --> 00:18:35.560 Again, that's a misconception because the truth is sheep are incredibly annoying animals. 00:18:35.560 --> 00:18:40.080 Any of you who've had any experience with sheep will know that. 00:18:40.080 --> 00:18:45.040 I mean, I've never been a crofter or a shepherd or anything like that, but I've had plenty 00:18:45.039 --> 00:18:48.559 of experience with sheep even just from driving along the road. 00:18:48.559 --> 00:18:52.519 So where I come from in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, you can be driving along 00:18:52.519 --> 00:18:56.960 the road and there can be a sheep just having a snooze in the middle of the road. 00:18:56.960 --> 00:18:58.119 Quite happy. 00:18:58.119 --> 00:18:59.119 And you have to stop. 00:18:59.119 --> 00:19:02.559 And the sheep gets up and it kind of will walk about a wee bit. 00:19:02.559 --> 00:19:03.879 It'll walk towards you a wee bit. 00:19:03.879 --> 00:19:05.039 It'll wander around a wee bit. 00:19:05.039 --> 00:19:12.879 Meanwhile, a few of its friends will come onto the road and they're just incredibly annoying. 00:19:12.880 --> 00:19:17.200 I know friends who are more involved in sheep and they go to gather the sheep from the top 00:19:17.200 --> 00:19:18.200 of the hill. 00:19:18.200 --> 00:19:19.200 They climb up this hill. 00:19:19.200 --> 00:19:22.800 They bring them all down and they're just about down and one of them decides, oh no, 00:19:22.800 --> 00:19:24.400 I think I'll go back up to the top again. 00:19:24.400 --> 00:19:27.360 And the rest of them follow them all back up again as well. 00:19:27.360 --> 00:19:32.680 And the whole thing becomes incredibly frustrating. 00:19:32.680 --> 00:19:35.400 Sheep are very frustrating animals. 00:19:35.400 --> 00:19:41.960 And of course, the truth is people can be very frustrating as well. 00:19:41.960 --> 00:19:48.640 And the remarkable thing that is being shown in the imagery of this chapter is that not 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:57.880 one ounce of God's frustration is directed towards the struggling sheep. 00:19:57.880 --> 00:20:05.000 Instead, he shows them the most profound compassion. 00:20:05.000 --> 00:20:12.759 Think again at verse four and you'll see the kind of key words that have been highlighted 00:20:12.759 --> 00:20:14.680 to describe the members of the flock. 00:20:14.680 --> 00:20:24.640 It speaks about the weak, the sick, the injured, the strayed and the lost. 00:20:24.640 --> 00:20:28.799 And this is a remarkable verse four. 00:20:28.799 --> 00:20:35.159 God's frustration with the well-fed shepherds arises from his deep compassion towards the 00:20:35.159 --> 00:20:38.960 most vulnerable in his flock. 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:41.960 Imagine being a shepherd for a moment yourselves that you've got this flock of sheep. 00:20:41.960 --> 00:20:46.000 You're trying to move them from one place to another. 00:20:46.000 --> 00:20:50.399 So imagine that you were just maybe trying to take them to the meadows for some lovely 00:20:50.399 --> 00:20:51.399 grazing down there. 00:20:51.399 --> 00:20:55.399 And you're making your way from here down to the meadows. 00:20:55.400 --> 00:21:00.240 You try to move forward, but the weak ones are holding you back and others are getting 00:21:00.240 --> 00:21:02.480 sick and slowing down. 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:05.800 You carry on a bit more, some of them stumble, they get injured. 00:21:05.800 --> 00:21:06.800 They need help too. 00:21:06.800 --> 00:21:10.200 You need to go and you actually have to carry a couple of them. 00:21:10.200 --> 00:21:12.640 And then half a dozen of them wander off. 00:21:12.640 --> 00:21:16.840 You go after them, you find two, but the other three or four are nowhere to be seen. 00:21:16.840 --> 00:21:21.240 You're going to have to stop and go and look for them and see if you can find them. 00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:32.200 These sick, weak, injured, straying sheep are such a burden and such a pain. 00:21:32.200 --> 00:21:37.359 But God says they're not a pain. 00:21:37.359 --> 00:21:45.680 They're my sheep and they are the priority. 00:21:45.680 --> 00:21:49.960 And this is why Ezekiel 34 is one of the many chapters in the Old Testament that reveals 00:21:49.960 --> 00:21:54.400 the extraordinary compassion of God. 00:21:54.400 --> 00:21:58.960 As we've been saying, in many ways, the Old Testament is a story of failure. 00:21:58.960 --> 00:22:02.759 The kings failed, the nation failed, the people failed. 00:22:02.759 --> 00:22:05.039 Ezekiel is the prophet at the lowest point of all. 00:22:05.039 --> 00:22:06.039 Jerusalem's fallen. 00:22:06.039 --> 00:22:08.600 They're all in exile in Babylon. 00:22:08.600 --> 00:22:11.160 He is prophesying to a failed nation. 00:22:11.160 --> 00:22:18.799 But at the same time, the Old Testament is a story of never failure. 00:22:18.799 --> 00:22:26.720 Because in it all, no matter how weak, sick, injured or lost the people, where God's mercy, 00:22:26.720 --> 00:22:34.759 compassion and love never, ever fails. 00:22:34.759 --> 00:22:40.319 And the compassion that has been shown by God in this chapter towards the sheep is a 00:22:40.319 --> 00:22:43.680 huge comfort to us. 00:22:43.680 --> 00:22:52.279 Because in our Christian lives, it is so easy to think that our weaknesses and our failings 00:22:52.279 --> 00:23:00.240 are frustrating and annoying to God. 00:23:00.240 --> 00:23:05.440 So often in my life, I look at myself and I see my own failings as a Christian. 00:23:05.440 --> 00:23:09.600 And I think that God must be so fed up of me. 00:23:09.600 --> 00:23:11.320 And you can look at yourself and think the same. 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:14.720 You can think, I'm so weak in my faith. 00:23:14.720 --> 00:23:17.359 I'm so sick in my mind and in my body. 00:23:17.359 --> 00:23:21.359 I'm injured and bruised by my life and everything that's happened. 00:23:21.359 --> 00:23:29.319 I stray from God so often and sometimes I just feel so lost. 00:23:29.319 --> 00:23:35.039 And in all of that brokenness, what does God think of you? 00:23:35.039 --> 00:23:45.319 He says, you are my sheep and I love you so much. 00:23:45.319 --> 00:23:52.720 And that's proved by the third thing that we see in this chapter, the determination 00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:55.480 of God. 00:23:55.480 --> 00:24:00.440 Ezekiel 34 delivers a firm message of judgment against the leadership of Israel. 00:24:00.440 --> 00:24:04.079 God is not happy at how they have treated the people. 00:24:04.079 --> 00:24:06.480 The situation described in the chapter is a mess. 00:24:06.480 --> 00:24:11.119 The stronger just getting stronger, the weaker just getting weaker. 00:24:11.119 --> 00:24:16.759 The people are being exploited and as a result, everyone's just broken and scattered. 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:22.799 The shepherds have failed, the flock is disintegrating, the people are broken. 00:24:22.799 --> 00:24:25.439 And that's what's been described before us in terms of this sheep. 00:24:25.439 --> 00:24:30.559 The sheep, the flock is a mess and that's exactly the reality faced by the people of 00:24:30.559 --> 00:24:31.559 Israel. 00:24:31.559 --> 00:24:37.639 The nations collapsed, 80, 85% of the nation had been destroyed 200 years earlier by the 00:24:37.639 --> 00:24:39.200 Assyrians. 00:24:39.200 --> 00:24:41.279 What was left is kind of all over the place. 00:24:41.279 --> 00:24:43.720 Some of them are in Babylon. 00:24:43.720 --> 00:24:51.000 Some of them fled to Egypt and a few of the weakest ones are left in the wreckage of Jerusalem 00:24:51.000 --> 00:24:52.359 itself. 00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:58.599 The shepherding of this nation, the protecting of them, the guidance, the provision, the security, 00:24:58.599 --> 00:25:05.559 the defence that a shepherd is meant to provide has been a complete and total failure. 00:25:05.559 --> 00:25:13.919 Israel's shepherds have been a disaster, but God's response is amazing. 00:25:13.919 --> 00:25:18.199 All of Israel's shepherds have failed. 00:25:18.199 --> 00:25:27.359 So God says, I'll do it. 00:25:27.359 --> 00:25:33.679 For thus says the Lord God, behold, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them 00:25:33.679 --> 00:25:34.679 out. 00:25:34.679 --> 00:25:38.599 As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he's among his sheep that have been scattered, 00:25:38.599 --> 00:25:44.000 so I will seek out my sheep and I will rescue them from all places where they've been scattered 00:25:44.000 --> 00:25:48.439 on a day of cloud and thick darkness and I will bring them out from the peoples and gather 00:25:48.439 --> 00:25:53.359 them from the countries and will bring them into their own land and I will feed them on 00:25:53.359 --> 00:25:57.559 the mountains of Israel by the ravines and in all the inhabited places of the country. 00:25:57.559 --> 00:26:01.599 I will feed them with good pasture and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their 00:26:01.599 --> 00:26:02.599 grazing land. 00:26:02.599 --> 00:26:07.000 There they shall lie down in good grazing land and on rich pasture they shall feed on 00:26:07.000 --> 00:26:08.319 the mountains of Israel. 00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:12.839 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep and I myself will make them lie down, declares 00:26:12.839 --> 00:26:13.839 the Lord. 00:26:13.839 --> 00:26:15.559 I will seek the lost. 00:26:15.559 --> 00:26:21.000 I will bring back the strayed and I will bind up the injured and I will strengthen the 00:26:21.000 --> 00:26:22.159 weak. 00:26:22.160 --> 00:26:24.600 The fatten the strong I'll destroy. 00:26:24.600 --> 00:26:28.920 I will feed them injustice. 00:26:28.920 --> 00:26:33.200 God's response is not to moan about the shepherds or to lament their failings or to give up 00:26:33.200 --> 00:26:34.920 on these broken sheep. 00:26:34.920 --> 00:26:42.000 He looks at the weak, the sick, the strayed, the lost people and he says, I will be their 00:26:42.000 --> 00:26:43.000 shepherd. 00:26:43.000 --> 00:26:44.400 I will lead them. 00:26:44.400 --> 00:26:45.800 I will provide for them. 00:26:45.800 --> 00:26:47.320 I will defend them. 00:26:47.320 --> 00:26:48.600 I will find them. 00:26:48.600 --> 00:26:51.120 I will rescue them. 00:26:51.119 --> 00:26:57.000 And you know there's a sense in which the whole of the Bible, the whole of the Christian 00:26:57.000 --> 00:27:01.519 message, the whole of Reformed theology, the whole of Calvinism as we call it can be summed 00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:05.559 up in three words from God. 00:27:05.559 --> 00:27:11.239 I'll do it. 00:27:11.239 --> 00:27:14.839 And the failure of the Old Testament leaders and of the Old Testament people shows us that 00:27:14.839 --> 00:27:16.679 on our own we can't do it. 00:27:16.679 --> 00:27:17.879 We can't save ourselves. 00:27:17.879 --> 00:27:19.719 We can't be our own shepherds. 00:27:19.720 --> 00:27:21.240 We can't fix our own problems. 00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:27.240 What we desperately need is for God to do it for us. 00:27:27.240 --> 00:27:38.079 And the amazing thing about God is that he is absolutely determined to do it. 00:27:38.079 --> 00:27:39.960 And that's what this chapter promises. 00:27:39.960 --> 00:27:45.039 We come to the end and he says, I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, 00:27:45.039 --> 00:27:46.160 and he shall feed them. 00:27:46.160 --> 00:27:49.920 He shall feed them and be their shepherd, and I the Lord will be their God, and my 00:27:49.920 --> 00:27:52.680 servant David shall be prince among them. 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:54.040 I am the Lord. 00:27:54.040 --> 00:27:56.640 I have spoken. 00:27:56.640 --> 00:28:01.600 Now there's a sense in which that's looking back because it's pointing back to David, 00:28:01.600 --> 00:28:03.040 who was the great model king. 00:28:03.040 --> 00:28:09.960 But in reality, verses like these are looking forward because they are pointing us towards 00:28:09.960 --> 00:28:11.920 Jesus Christ. 00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:17.279 He is the great descendant of David who is going to take his place on God's throne. 00:28:17.279 --> 00:28:18.640 He is the good shepherd. 00:28:18.640 --> 00:28:24.320 He is the one through whom God's message of salvation is going to come. 00:28:24.320 --> 00:28:29.360 And everything that we are seeing here is pointing us towards Jesus. 00:28:29.360 --> 00:28:32.960 And in many ways, he's the perfect model of what we've been looking at. 00:28:32.960 --> 00:28:39.600 As we said, he was deeply frustrated when he saw people being exploited. 00:28:39.599 --> 00:28:46.480 He was incredibly compassionate towards people in desperate need. 00:28:46.480 --> 00:28:57.839 But most of all, he is utterly determined to rescue his flock. 00:28:57.839 --> 00:29:04.079 And that determination took Jesus to the cross. 00:29:04.079 --> 00:29:12.679 And there the shepherd laid down his life for the sheep. 00:29:12.679 --> 00:29:19.119 And never ever forget that God knew that. 00:29:19.119 --> 00:29:23.279 So when God says in Ezekiel 34, I'll do it. 00:29:23.279 --> 00:29:25.119 I'll be the shepherd of my sheep. 00:29:25.119 --> 00:29:31.359 He knew that that would not mean going out into the hills and finding people. 00:29:31.359 --> 00:29:36.119 He knew that that didn't mean going to fight wild beasts. 00:29:36.119 --> 00:29:39.479 He knew that that didn't mean being exposed to bad weather. 00:29:39.479 --> 00:29:46.639 He knew it meant far, far more than that. 00:29:46.639 --> 00:29:52.000 He knew it meant death. 00:29:52.000 --> 00:30:01.319 And yet God the Son still says, I'll do it. 00:30:01.319 --> 00:30:16.200 And he did it because this epic shepherd is determined to save you. 00:30:16.200 --> 00:30:18.200 Let's pray. 00:30:18.200 --> 00:30:32.840 Dear God our Father, we thank you so much that you are frustrated by all the horribleness 00:30:32.840 --> 00:30:35.960 in this world. 00:30:35.960 --> 00:30:42.400 And that you are compassionate to all of us who are broken. 00:30:42.400 --> 00:30:52.560 And that you are so utterly determined to bring us hope through your Son Jesus Christ. 00:30:52.560 --> 00:30:59.120 And we thank you for Jesus, our amazing shepherd. 00:30:59.120 --> 00:31:12.240 And we just place all our security and hope in you because we need you so much. 00:31:12.240 --> 00:31:13.640 Amen.