The Fourth Sunday of Easter (OTA)

Ezekiel 34:11-16

¹¹ “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. ¹² As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. ¹³ And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. ¹⁴ I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. ¹⁵ I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. ¹⁶ I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

Does anyone ask the question why these sheep are lost in the first place? God does not allow for one of the little ones to fall from his hands. Jesus did not lose one of them, whom the Father has given to him. But for some reason these sheep are lost.

Most of us know that the preceding text is about bad shepherds of the house of Israel. These shepherds mistreated and mis-taught the sheep of Israel. Therefore, the Sheep of Israel find themselves in exile. They are no longer on the fertile hillsides that God had called them out of Egypt to live. They have abandoned the rich pasture land. Therefore, the sheep are lost because of what others have done to them.

Wrong! They are lost because of what they have done. They are in exile because they are sinful. They were sinful in Egypt. They were sinful in the wilderness. They were sinful when conquering the land. They were even sinful when they asked for a King. They continue to be sinful. Just like you and me, we are all sinful.

Why are the sheep lost? Because of their sinful hearts, Every inclination of man's heart is bent toward evil. This has not changed. God is changing the attack plan. He is going to be their shepherd. He is going to lay down his life for the sheep. He is going to carry them to where they are supposed to be. He is going to remove their sin, and eventually raise them to life in the new heavens and new earth.