Have you been around a group of people without a leader? Have you been around a group of people with good leadership? Have you noticed the difference? Was the leaderless group disorganized and at odds with one another? Was the other group all moving in the same direction?
Poor leadership or no leadership will keep an organization or group of people from achieving what they set out to accomplish. In fact, poor leadership can be worse than no leadership. If there is no leadership, a leader may emerge from the group and guide them to their goal.
Jesus sees the people of the towns and villages He visits as people without a shepherd. This is the same as having no leader or very poor leadership. He wasn’t talking about accomplishing a goal but about life. Evidently, they were not worshiping God correctly or at all.
Lest we think worshiping God is about form, we must remember Jesus spoke of the heart. Worshiping God is not about rituals. It is about worshiping in truth and spirit. Worshiping God is not about being in big, beautiful cathedrals. It is about humbling ourselves before a Holy God in all that we do, every moment of every day.
Jesus saw these people going through the motions, but their heart was not in it. He saw them grudgingly choosing a lamb for sacrifice, perhaps even grumbling about it, rather than joyously looking for the best animal for their perfect God. He had compassion for them, seeing them as lost sheep.
We can see the same attitudes in our churches today. We can get wrapped around the rituals, the traditions, or go grudgingly. We may see some people who view the church as a social club. Jesus does not desire a social club. He desires hearts who submit themselves to His guidance. Are we sheep without a shepherd? We might need to ponder that question for a bit.
I pray we all humble ourselves before God. I pray we worry less about ritual and more about the heart. I pray each one of us evaluate our reasons for attending church and allow Jesus to be our shepherd. Humble yourself before God. Give your heart to Jesus. Put your faith in Jesus. Follow Jesus’ heart. Give God every moment of every day.
Matthew 9:35-36 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
Marty Pressey 