Lost Sheep of Israel

"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field'" (Matthew 9:36-37).

Keep in mind how Matthew described the people Jesus saw, "harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." When I read that I think of people wandering looking for a place to settle. The people Jesus is looking at are people who have become disenfranchised from Judaism. They have been harassed because they are not devout followers of Judaism. They are helpless because the most religious have harassed them to the point they feel like God is so far away.

Maybe they are believers in God, but not sold out to the institution. The yoke has become so heavy they feel like there is no way they can live up to the standards placed upon them by the most religious. They live their daily lives believing, but not participating in the religion of the day. Jesus looked upon them and had compassion on them. He includes them in the harvest that is plentiful. He is looking for workers to go into this harvest field, giving them hope in God.

Matthew 10 starts with Jesus gathering his disciples and sending them out with instructions to gather the wandering sheep. The instructions begin with Jesus saying, "Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel" (Matthew 10:5-6).

Who are these "lost sheep of Israel"? They are the same people Jesus has compassion on, the "harassed and helpless." Those who are not a part of the religious institution. The religious leaders call them sinners, "people of the land." Jesus calls them important worth leaving the ninety-nine to go after the one (Matthew 18:10-14).

How does this apply today? After reading books like "Revolution" (Barna), "Essential Church" (Rainer), "They Like Jesus but not the Church" (Kimball) and others, there are people who believe but are tired of the institution. I am hesitant to call them lost because they believe, but they are wandering looking for something authentic, something real.

Look, I am not trying to bash the church here, I have been a part of the institution all my life. I love the church. But as church leaders we have to admit there is something really wrong with the institutional church. We have become more like the religious leaders in Jesus' day than Jesus himself. The caution for every church, even new churches, is to be careful not to become an institution. This seems to be the tendency of every church at some point in its life.

Jesus changed his strategy during the last part of his ministry on earth. He was trying to build something that would last. So he instructed his disciples to go after a harvest that had the most potential of producing a large crop. It was not the most religious. It was not the Gentiles, those who were farthest from God. He went after the sheep who were wandering. People who knew God and wanted a relationship with God. People who were harassed by the institution.

As church leaders we need to change or strategy. Churches are in decline because of our unwillingness to change our strategy. The strategy Jesus instructs his disciples to have is the same strategy that would work best today in our culture. We need to leave the ninety-nine and pursue the lost sheep of the church.

When we reach the point of becoming an institution, protecting and sustaining the institution, people begin to wander.

More on this later.