Jump Start # 971

Ezekiel 34:4 “Those who are sickly you have not strengthened, the diseased you have not healed, the broken you have not bound up, the scattered you have not brought back, nor have you sought for the lost; but with force and with severity you have dominated them.”

Our look at leadership among God’s people continues. Before we leave this verse, we must comment on the last phrase. It is shocking, sad but so true—back then and today. It says, “but with force and with severity you have dominated them.” Force, severity, dominated. Those are not good words. About the only context we would use those in a positive manner would be in a football game or in a military battle. Those words do not belong in the workplace, the home, and especially in the church.

Ezekiel’s picture is of sheep who are in trouble. They are sick, lame, and scattered. They are a mess. The leaders of Israel were not tender with them. They had little or no compassion. It seems that they were bothered to have to tend to the sheep. It was their job, but they didn’t like it nor do it very well. Sheep are not wired like cattle. Those old cowboy movies would show the cowboy yelping and slapping his rope on the side of the horse to drive the cows. What they were doing was called a cattle drive. They drove the cattle to the stockyards. Those were the COW-BOYS. God’s leaders are shepherds—not SHEEP-BOYS. Cattle and sheep are different. They look different. They act different. They need to be treated differently. What works on cows doesn’t work on sheep. Shouting and yelping and driving only scare sheep. They will run every direction. Fear will affect their diet. They will suffer. Sheep can’t be forced. They follow. They must be led.

Ezekiel says that these leaders were “Dominating” the sheep. That’s not hard to do. Sheep are timid by nature. You don’t have a rodeo with sheep. You don’t rope sheep, flip it on it’s side and put a brand on it. That happens to cows, not sheep.

God felt for those sheep. They were being oppressed and abused. Severity is not necessary. Force is not necessary. Dominance is not necessary. Why would shepherds do that? Seems like they were angry for the sheep being sick and broken and wandering off. It seems that they thought severe pressure would keep them in line. They sure missed it. The failure to be leaders is partly the reason the sheep wandered away and were now sick and broken. Had they been on the ball, much of this would not have happened. This is textbook example on how not to lead. Certainly, the sheep fell in line. They were afraid. The shepherds could rest at night knowing that no one would dare take a step. If they did, it would be bad. The shepherds would beat that sheep.

Unbelievable as it may seem, some church leaders operate under the same concept. The members attend, out of fear, not reverence for God. When someone says or does something unusual or out of the ordinary, threats are uttered. No one thinks. No one expresses ideas. The leaders dominate. The church feels more like a prison than a family of God. When one brave soul finally gets fed up, he breaks out. He leaves. He is treated harshly and under most circumstances never returns the rest of his life. The shepherds aren’t bothered by that. He was weak, they tell themselves. He didn’t fit in, they are convinced. These shepherds operate more like wardens of a prison. They walk the halls and are ready to bust the knuckles of anyone who dares to challenge them.

There is a time for discipline. Without discipline there is no accountability. Discipline at home and discipline within God’s family, is part of God’s way. This discipline however is to be helpful, not harmful. It is to instruct and not destroy. It is make better, not drive away. It is not used not as a threat but as a consequence. Severity, dominance and force is not the spirit that God wants. It is not the form of discipline that God wants.

The sheep in Ezekiel’s passage were in need of help. They didn’t receive it. They were made worse. There is nothing good about the way those shepherds did things. There is something wrong when a person goes to God’s leaders for help and they are made to feel worse. Some people do not want to change. Some people want a sign of approval for wrong actions. Some people want a handout when they ought to get a job. Shepherds have to say, “No,” just as a parent does. But with force? With severity? With dominance? I don’t think so. Use the occasion to teach. Use the time to show them how they can get better. Some people are quick to make a mess and then want someone else to clean it up. The expression, “You made the bed and now you must sleep in it,” is meant to illustrate that the problems we have created must be lived by us.

Consider the opposite of Ezekiel’s three words:

Force: lead them, walk with them, be there, be helpful

Severity: kindness, gentleness, compassion, love, tenderness

Dominated: work with, help them see, get them to contribute to the solution, teach them

Those that dish out force and severity generally do not like others to treat them that way. Most people do not like someone screaming in their face, making demands and being forceful. That’s not the way to get people to change. It doesn’t accomplish what the person thinks it will. It illustrates poor communication skills and a lack of leadership ability.

Jesus said, “come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls.” If anyone had a right to dominate, use force and be severe, it was Jesus. But He didn’t. Jesus said, “I am gentle.” Have we forgotten that? Leaders need to learn from Jesus.

Roger