The Fold And The Flock

by David T. Hyland | Category: General | Aug 1960

Among the many offices and attributes of the Lord Jesus Christ His Shepherd character is delightful to contemplate. The pastoral imagery of the sheep and the fold, the flock and the shepherd, which the Lord employed in His teaching, was familiar enough to His hearers; but many found difficulty in understanding the application.

The message of John the Baptist primarily was "to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." His mission, as the forerunner of Messiah, was "to make ready for the Lord a people prepared for Him." Paul makes the issue clear, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on Him which should come after him, that is, on Jesus "(Acts 19.4). The disciples of John were as sheep gathered in the fold. Baptism was the door, the means of entrance to the fold ; John, as the porter, carefully guarded the door. The sheep waited and the porter kept vigil for the coming of the Shepherd.

When the true Shepherd was revealed John recognized Him and opened the door of the fold. The Lord was baptized of John, thus fulfilling all righteousness. John's ministry drew to a close; as he said, with characteristic self-effacement, " He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3.80).

>From the fold, of which John was the porter, the Shepherd put forth all His own. He leads to a fold of which He says, "I am the Door." Entrance, which is open to all, is by an initial act of faith. Once within the fold none can stray or be removed, either by force or allurement. Under the figure of the fold, personal relationship to Christ, the Good Shepherd, and the eternal security of the believer are clearly seen. Every child of God is safely gathered in the shelter of the fold.

The enjoyment of this security and liberty will promote friendship and fellowship between the Shepherd and His sheep. The Shepherd desires His sheep to "go in and go out, and find pasture." This is experienced through feeding upon the word of God and upon Christ Himself.

There is also a further desire of the Shepherd, which was an objective before Him in His sufferings and death. This is, that His sheep, through hearing His voice and following His guidance, should be gathered together and become "One Flock, one Shepherd."

The fold and the flock should not be confused; they are not interchangeable terms. We must endeavour to differentiate between the distinctive aspects of truth associated with their use. The fold is co-extensive with the family of God and "the Church which is His (Christ's) Body." These expressions describe the believer's unconditional and eternal relationship to the Father and the Son. A consideration of the occurrence of the terms " the flock," " the little flock," and "the flock of God" will show that they describe a conditional unity of baptized and added believers. "The flock" may be equated with "the kingdom of God," "the churches of God" and " the house of God." These expressions describe various aspects of the collective experience and service of the people of God.

In relation to the fold, Christ alone is the Shepherd; He is the sole Guardian but in His care for the "Flock of God," He associates spiritually mature, yet fallible men, who are accountable to Him, the Chief Shepherd, for their stewardship. The elders are to exercise a pastoral care over the churches. The character of " the Flock of God" is expressed locally in the church of God. We have previously stated there can be no severance from the Saviour-Shepherd and no scattering of those within the fold. In contrast to this, Paul warned the elders of the church of God in Ephesus of the solemn possibility of grievous wolves entering in, "not sparing the Flock." This would be accompanied by the defection of under-shepherds who would become sectarian in outlook. With apostolic vision Paul forewarned of these things and exhorted to watchfulness. The admonition was unheeded and apostasy swept away that unity of divine testimony expressed in the " little Flock."

Towards the end of the last century it pleased the Lord to cause renewed exercise concerning His desire to have a people together in testimony and the "Flock of God" is in existence again. Although the flock should cease to be, the gathering of lost ones within the fold would continue. Nothing can prevent the progress of the Good Shepherd's work of saving His own. Its completion will be marked by the second advent of the Lord.

The company gathered by and companying with the Lord in the days of His flesh was addressed by Him as a " little Flock." When the Shepherd was smitten the sheep of the Flock were scattered abroad. After His resurrection He went before them into Galilee where He gave unto them the great commission as recorded in Matthew 28.18-20. During forty days He taught them the things concerning the kingdom of God" (Acts 1.3). This company and others obedient to the word ultimately formed the flock of God which gave collective expression to God's revealed will after the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. This testimony continued until the apostasy to which we have previously made reference.

It is suggested by some that each of the many sects of Christendom is a fold. It is further affirmed that the aggregate of these sectarian bodies constitute the Flock of God. Obviously, this is far from the truth. There is no scriptural support for the suggestion that there is a plurality of folds in the present dispensation. Further, in no sense could Christendom be described as a flock. A flock must be united under adequate shepherd care. Christendom is in a state of hopeless division.

In assessing the value of a flock, numerical strength is not the sole criterion. The present testimony, although remnant in character, has a unique place in the affections of the Chief Shepherd. May many be granted grace to follow in the footsteps of the Flock." The day of reward for faithfulness to God's revealed will may not be far distant.

David T. Hyland | Aug 1960
General