When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd

 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.

But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.  Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."

And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.  Now the names of the twelve apostles are these:  first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. 

- Matthew 9:35-10:4

Yesterday we read that two blind men followed Jesus, crying out and saying, "Son of David, have mercy on us!"  And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him.  And Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?"  They said to Him, "Yes, Lord."  Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith let it be to you."  And their eyes were opened.  And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, "See that no one knows it."  But when they had departed, they spread the news about Him in all that country.  As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed.  And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke.  And the multitudes marveled, saying, "It was never seen like this in Israel!"  But the Pharisees said, "He casts out demons by the ruler of demons."

Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.  It's interesting to note Jesus' behavior, and the shape of His ministry.  He has just been accused by the Pharisees of exorcism (and subsequent healing) by the power of demons.  In this instance, rather than acknowledging or responding to their accusations, the text tells us that He simply went about to all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease.  This is His response, to assert the reality of the presence of the Kingdom by manifesting its promises in Himself and His ministry.  He lives what He is here to do and to be:   teaching, preaching, and healing.

But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.  Then He said to His disciples, "The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."  My study bible notes here that Jesus does not condemn sinners.  Rather, He sees them as lost sheep who are to be found and brought home.  Compassion, it says, means "suffering with."  The illustration of sheep having no shepherd is drawn from the Old Testament (Numbers 27:17; 1 Kings 22:17; Ezekiel 34:5).  This is an accusation against the religious leadership who are charged with the duty of shepherds, but have behaved like wolves.  When Jesus prays about the harvest, it suggests to us the clear abundance of people ready to accept the Kingdom.  He is both the Sower and the Lord of the harvest, my study bible tells us.  His own disciples are not sent to sow, but rather to reap what He, as Lord, had already sown by the prophets.  My study bible says that how many are sent to the harvest is less important than with what power they go into the harvest (see the verse that follows).

And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.  Now the names of the twelve apostles are these:  first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.   Jesus responds to the needs He finds in ministry, and "sends out laborers into His harvest."  The words disciples and apostles are frequently used interchangeably for the twelve.  The word disciple means "learner."  An apostle is one who is "sent out."  Jesus shares His power with His laborers, investing it in them to carry out this work.  He gives them power, while the works done by Him were performed by His own power.  The names of the twelve vary in different lists, as many people had more than one name.  The names here in Matthew's Gospel are given in pairs, perhaps suggesting which individuals traveled with one another on this first missionary journey.  Mark reports that they were sent out two by two (Mark 6:7).

In yesterday's reading, we read that the Pharisees accused Jesus of casting out demons (exorcism), and hence healing,  by the power of demons.  But here in today's reading, we see in response the continual expansion of Jesus' mission.  He teaches in the synagogues, preaches the gospel of the Kingdom, and heals sickness and disease.  He lives the work He is here to do, the ministry He is meant to live.  He is Messiah not by declaration or proclamation or the formal recognition, but rather simply by fulfilling the role that is His:  preaching, teaching, healing.  He proclaims the Kingdom in all of these ways.  But something even more astonishing is happening in the spread of this ministry.  He who heals and performs miraculous signs by His own power has chosen twelve with whom He will share and thus further distribute that power.  This is the harvest:  those who go out to find the sheep and bring them to their shepherd.  Let us note how this comes about:  Jesus is moved with compassion for the multitudes, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.  Modern human beings don't like to think of themselves as sheep, moreover as sheep having no shepherd.  We tend to be conditioned to think of ourselves as our own masters, autonomous, independently making our way and deciding what we believe and follow.  Jesus uses sheep as a metaphor to teach us that, in fact, we're not all-knowing.  When we make choices, we don't necessarily have all the information we need in order to know what a good choice is.  Adulthood, and much experience, should teach us that, if we are paying attention.  Responsibilities come with choices which we are often ill-prepared to make with full assurance.  We can't peer into the future.  What sounds like a fantastic idea easily turns out to be a foolish one.  Life is not simply a place where good planning fixes all ills.  Rather, it's a continual learning curve.   We hopefully learn from mistakes, but there is always something new to learn.  To consider oneself a rational sheep is to put into perspective the fact that we will always need a kind of guidance in life.  We are those who learn and absorb from what is around us -- but we need to find the soft place to fall, the true guidance that stands us in good stead, a kind of wisdom that can lead and teach and heal.  When we recognize who we are and what our needs are, then we can come to terms with our need for this Shepherd.  We are not absolute autonomous beings possessing infinite wisdom.  Rather, we are dependent upon so many things.  Our societies are not made of isolated individuals with no connection with one another; rather we depend upon relationships and we need to choose wisely how to navigate them, and how to choose whom we follow and with whom we partner and associate.  To consider oneself a rational sheep is to know that good leadership is essential for all of us, and that discernment rests upon good teaching in the first place.  In this sense, we turn to Christ.  He is wisdom; and as Lord, He has sent the prophets beforehand to teach.  As Lord, He establishes His Kingdom to show us the way, to offer us a place in which to dwell that paradoxically dwells within us and among us. This place, the Kingdom He proclaims, teaches us what love is and gives us love's guidance for a good life and true community when we live it.  If God is love, then this is the Shepherd we seek, who offers us love in action as leadership.  But first we need to understand what and who we are, so that we know what and Who we need.  When we find ourselves to be weary and scattered, let us consider the place to which we need to turn.