After the institution of the Holy Eucharist, we find Jesus warning his disciples about what was going to happen in the immediate future. ‘You will all become deserters because of me this night; for it is written, ‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered’ (Mt 26:31). The prophecy was fulfilled the very same night when one of his disciples betrayed him, another rejected him and the rest deserted him. John was the only one left to give us a first hand narration of the final hours of our Lord in this world.
Jesus was quoting from the book of Zechariah when he warned about the coming night; a time of tests and trials not only for him, but his disciples as well. “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who is my associate,” says the Lord of hosts. “Strike the shepherd, that the sheep may be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones’ (Zech 13:7).
True shepherds are rare to come. So when swords arise against them, it is the harbinger of great dangers facing the Church. Never think that the enemy’s true goal is the shepherd. The devil knows well that God’s shepherds are protected under His wings. ‘For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I walk before the Lord in the land of the living’ (Ps 116: 8-9). Such is the hope of a faithful shepherd whose trust is in the Lord who considers the ‘death of his faithful ones precious’ (Ps 116: 15).
The enemy’s ultimate target is not the shepherd, but the flock. He knows the weaknesses of a flock left without a shepherd. He knows even better how vulnerable is a flock guarded by false pastors. So he plans it very carefully , first to strike the shepherd, and then scatter the flock. It is impossible to chase a flock moving with the shepherd, but it is easy to devour sheep from a scattered lot that moves farther from the shepherd.
Everyday we see our enemy striking our shepherds with the ulterior motive of scattering the flock. Though it is painful to watch them struggling under the attack, remember that God has a plan in place for the shepherd as well as the sheep. It is an opportunity granted to separate the wheat from chaff. And in that process, two- thirds shall be ‘cut off and perish’, says the Lord; a stark warning of the perilous times lying ahead. ‘In the whole land, says the Lord, two-thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one-third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire, refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on my name, and I will answer them. I will say, “They are my people”; and they will say, “The Lord is our God’ (Zech 13:8-9).
The question is simple. Are we ready to go through God’s refinement process? Forget about the shepherd and the way he is struck. Instead focus on God’s filtration process, where only one- third will remain in the end. This one third will be put into the fire of trials and tribulations so that their mettle is proved. Once the process is over, they will shine like refined silver and pure gold. God cannot but answer them when they call on his name. God will surely certify them as his people and they will in return say; ‘The Lord is our God’.
Let us pray for our pastors at this time when the devil is using every weapon in his quiver to attack them. They need our prayers more than ever. The enemy’s attempt is to distance the sheep from the shepherd. ‘And we do this; but we are not ignorant of his designs’ (2 Cor 2:11). Let us stay vigilant against his cunning ways so that we may not be outwitted by Satan (2 Cor 2:11).
