Slideshow image

Dear Shiloh Family,

We have some of the best Sunday School and small group teachers and facilitators in the country. I love to hear the success and challenge stories, particularly from the little guys.

Recently, one of our pre-school teachers was teaching the story of the shepherd. She was intent and very diligent on establishing the relationship between the shepherd and his sheep, and how it corresponds to our relationship with Jesus.

Having spent many days in a kindergarten classroom, I am highly aware of the necessity of repetition and recital. Elementary school teachers are masters at producing different types of artifacts that say the same thing. However, you can’t reinvent the wheel so you spend day after day repeating the same things over and over.

Our teacher of the munchkins was doing a wonderful job with the process and was at the point of landing the plane and bringing the message home. It is my understanding that the conversation went something like this;

“Ok, we have learned that Jesus is the shepherd, and we are the sheep. So, repeat it with me.”
The children happily chimed in, “Jesus is the shepherd, we are the sheep.”
The teacher responded joyfully, “Great! You guys are awesome! Now, repeat it again. He is the shepherd; we are the sheep”
Again, they mimicked her words and enthusiasm, “He is the shepherd; we are the sheep.”
Then came the test. “Ok, what have we learned? Jesus is the shepherd; we are the what?”
Total silence followed. She smiled and repeated. “Remember what we said. Jesus is the shepherd and we are the what?”
The children were bug-eyed and speechless. After several attempts, she called on her own son to bail her out. “Hey buddy, think about what we talked about. We said that Jesus is the shepherd; so that makes us the what?”
The little guy thought for a minute, and as if the light bulb suddenly came on, he jubilantly replied, “People!”

Psalm 100:3: 3 Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. NKJV

I know she was a bit frustrated and a lot tickled at the response, but what a response.

We often teach analogies that are appropriate to read, but difficult to live. We are servants, soldiers, warriors, babies, and yes, sheep. However, when it comes down to the brass tax, we are simply people who have been chosen to follow Jesus. It is imperative that we remember that when we are dealing with wandering, growing, hurting people. We are all flesh, blood, and bone, and we all have human traits complete with people flaws. We skin our knees, bleed, and sometimes break.

The teacher laughed with her children and more importantly, she continued to love on them. That is what Jesus did, and that is exactly what we must to for one another. We occasionally need to laugh at our mess-ups and cry when we fall, But most of all, we must love one another with the love of Christ. John put it like this:

1 John 4:7-9: 7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. NKJV

Jesus even made it clearer: 

John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." NKJV

The love of God is better shown through his people than told through the preacher. 

God bless you all,
Pastor Derrell