The Lord is My Shepherd

The Lord is My Shepherd is an interesting and different look at the Christmas Story as told by the Bible. It is a story not as we celebrate it on December 25th each year, but one of constant running, hiding, and deliverance to ensure Christ is able to fulfill his mission.

By Robert E. Freer, Jr., President of The Free Enterprise Foundation

“Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him.... Then Herod, when he had privily called the wise men, enquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found [him], bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way.” (Book of Matthew, ch 2 et.seq)

Christmas is regretfully not a season of unalloyed goodness and loving kindness. While celebrating the joy we feel in the angel’s message of the Savior’s birth and our Creator’s love of all mankind, we are only too conscious, after reading of the visit by the three kings, not to be jarred that no sooner do the Magi depart, than we are presented with Herod’s wickedness: “… behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.”

Thwarted in his first attempt to identify his threat, Herod decrees that all new born males, two years old and under in the area of Bethlehem be destroyed. Having previously killed several of his own sons to protect his throne, this savagery was nothing new to his rule, but coming in the midst of the season we celebrate with joy and giving, it is a discordant note that is far more glossed over than considered.

It is also one of two times that the angel appears to Joseph. In the first, he convinced a doubting groom to marry the child’s mother, and now he propels him to the defense of his family. Joseph appears only three times in the story of Jesus. In all three he takes on the role of Shepherd of his family. Two we have seen. The third occurs when Jesus, age 12, disappears on a trip to the temple in Jerusalem. Joseph and Mary are frantic and ultimately chase down their lost lamb to that very temple, where Jesus is in learned discussion with the most respected Rabbis in the land. Joseph metaphorically leads a bewildered Jesus by the ear, back on the road to Nazareth, while Mary asks, “Why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” To which Jesus coolly replies, “Why were you searching for me...Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?”

We can take this incident as a declaration of Jesus’ emancipation; thereafter, while respectful of his earthly parents, his heavenly father is his only Shepherd. It remains so for us as well. When we come of age, we stand before man and Lord alike on our own. If there is anyone, it is God who becomes our Shepherd. At this point in the life of Jesus, Joseph disappears from the story of his life completely, and Jesus is not seen again until he takes up his Ministry almost two decades later. Man’s nature has not improved in those years. Another depraved Herod is Tetrarch in Galilee, much of society is devoid of respect for God’s Commandments, and there is a thirst for the Word of God to lead His earthly flock from its wilderness.

It is no wonder that when The Word came, it set those in power on edge. John, the Baptist, called forth to pave the way for Christ, chose the words of the prophet Isaiah that seemed to call for the physical transformation of the world and threatened, or seemed to, the earthly lives of those who did not repent. Like a good lead act for a contemporary rock concert, John whipped the audience into frenzy. The authorities were in no mood to parse his words, and he was promptly incarcerated and ultimately beheaded.

Christmas, two millennia later, we are faced with a world that has advanced technologically beyond the grasp of our imagination but is as divided spiritually, morally and culturally as in the time of Christ. And “Herod” is still here to confront us in so many ways. The Lord speaks, and we debate the meaning; division racks us; we speak in many different tongues, and there is illness in our core. We yearn, just as they, for the peace that comes only as our Father’s voice finds its way into our soul.

Intuitively man knows, whatever His/Her shape and affect, there is but one God; that He is our Creator and that life apart from our Creator leaves us broken. Whether Muslim, Christian, Jew or Agnostic, the only path to the peace of our Father begins with faith and travels the way of the Ten Commandments. In our weakness, with emotion overwhelming good sense, we all sometimes depart the Road, and The Lord is our Shepherd, our only Shepherd, leading us safely home, even while the world around us is beset with turmoil, pain and outright evil.

May God bless you this season and sustain you throughout the New Year. Whatever the strength of your faith, He is there to be called upon, and I encourage you to do so. A former Archbishop of Canterbury, speaking of the power of prayer, said, “All I know is that when I pray, coincidences happen; ... and when I don't pray, they don’t"

Copyright © 2008 by Robert E. Freer, Jr. All rights reserved

About the author: Robert E. Freer, Jr. is President of The Free Enterprise Foundation. He is a Visiting Professor, at The Citadel and elected in 2005 to be their first John S. Grinalds Leader in Residence. A regular contributor to the Mercury, He can be reached by E-mail at The Citadel . Copies of his earlier columns can be found The Free Enterprise Foundation.

If you’d like to contribute an article to this collection please e-mail it for review .

Go to 2008 Business Ethics Articles from The Lord Is My Shepherd