In our texts this week, we see a lot of talk around the image of God as the Good Shepherd. In fact, this pivot Sunday at the center of the Easter season bears the name “Good Shepherd Sunday”.  Time and time again, the gospel tells us that the Risen Christ is protecting us like a shepherd does their sheep. While the Triune God has many titles, Good Shepherd is one of the most comforting.  This comforting image does not originate in the gospels, but in numerous references within Hebrew scripture, most notably in the beloved 23rd psalm.

Reading these texts, we discover that it is not only Christ who names or titles himself (as God is named): “I am the good shepherd.”  We also get a title. We are the sheep in this analogy, being tended to and cared for by our Creator and Redeemer.

I have always found this a bit incongruous.  Even as we find it comforting to be the claimed as sheep by the Good Shepherd, in most other contexts, being called a sheep is an outright insult. We call people sheep to describe them as mindlessly following someone or not exercising critical thinking. The scriptural assumption, that it is good to be a sheep with the divine shepherd, just feels discordant with a modern lens.

In scripture, however, taking on the role of a sheep need not be so degrading. In another shepherd-related story, the shepherd searches for the lone sheep so intentionally because sheep are not meant to live independent of each other. Sheep are herd animals, not because they are mindless followers, but because they rely on one another for survival. Simply by living and staying together, sheep make each other safer.

More than staying together, sheep follow one another. By watching what the rest of their flock is up to, they are more equipped to respond to danger and move as a unit. Shepherds play a crucial role in keeping flocks safe, but sheep also need one another to live full, secure, and abundant lives.

We are the same. We cannot live the lives God wants for us on our own. We are created for community. Simply by living with one another, we make each other's lives more whole and more secure. We are often encouraged as Christians to lead by example, but we also need to take after our sheep namesake and watch what the rest of the flock is doing. This can provide us with some cues for what to do.  By taking up the example that others set - being mindful of whose example we follow - we can improve the lives of the whole flock.

Take Peter in our Acts text. He performs a miracle and raises Tabitha from the dead, leading to a bloom of new belief in the town of Joppa. Peter led through action in in the power of Christ’s resurrection, and the town followed. Both parts – leading and following - are vital elements of Christian community.

If our text of raising a woman from death seems too dramatic as an example for us, we can bring this lesson down to Earth. The climate crisis and environmental protection has been turned into a partisan issue, but being good stewards of the Earth is a divine call, not a political talking point. Solving the problem of climate change will take effort and sacrifice from all of us. Through changes large and small, individual, corporate, and political, we can’t be lone sheep wandering the countryside on this. Like so many other aspects of life, we need to be a flock, to be willing to follow the lead of others, and above all, to stick together. Everything from composting to installing solar panels, from writing your legislator to boycotting brands, makes a dent.

I would bet that most of us have someone in our lives (maybe we are that someone!) who takes every action they can to fight climate change. There will always be those willing to lead.

The question is, are we willing to follow?