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Lions, Liars, and Shepherds

Lions, Liars, and Shepherds

Last updated on: July 9, 2026 at 2:25 pm by C. Don Jones

Lions, Liars, and Shepherds 2026-07-09T14:25:07-06:00 C. Don Jones

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A woman in my neighborhood watches as her kids ride their bicycles. She wears a T-shirt with a curious imperative. It is black with white letters and reads, “Raise Lions not Sheep.” I worry for her kids.

Lions and Liars

Christians often use the image of the Lion of Judah as a symbol for Jesus. C. S. Lewis cemented the image in our minds with his character Aslan. The male African Lion is a symbol of strength, fortitude, wisdom, fierceness. Westerners know the Lion to be “the King of the Jungle.” The film The Ghost and the Darkness depicts two male lions of Tsavo with shaggy manes hunting the poor railway workers. Unfortunately, a male lion of Tsavo does not have a mane. Like other ideas we have about these majestic cats, the image itself is not true.

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Lions and Sheep

My son was very young when, upon learning that African Lions lived in the savanna, asked, “Why is it called the King of the Jungle?” The poor individual leading the presentation did not know how to answer that question. Honestly, I could not have either. The point is that someone gave the male lion that title knowing it is a lie. We have used a lying metaphor and imposed it onto the meaning of the lion of the tribe of Judah. The woman who wore the shirt may not have known any of this. A shepherd keeping sheep would not consider a lion a good neighbor. To that person a lion is a thief, a threat, and should be killed. Unless a lion is protected by law, it is hunted and killed.

The Good Shepherd

We read the scriptures hearing about God and Christ as good shepherds. “The hired hand who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away…I am the good shepherd…And I lay down my life for the sheep. (John 10:12-15). The thief “comes only to kill and steal and destroy.” Many thieves pose as shepherds leading sheep to their destruction. What would be a better way to do that than by making sheep believe they are anything other than what they are? What happens when such people come close to where we live?

Hired Hands

A recent article in The Atlantic tells where a pastor and church terrorized a local bookstore owner to make a mark in the community. Unfortunately this happened where I live. The husband and wife cult leaders claimed the store was the seat of demonic activity in our town. They caused a lot of damage and had willing accomplices outside their “church.” They eventually declared the demon-in-charge left the area, declared victory, and moved out of state. Thank God.

These types love to claim they are strong spiritual warriors against the forces of darkness and dupe many gullible people. Their followers receive from the leaders affirmation that they are on the right-side, that they are lions, and are prayer warriors for Jesus. The followers allow themselves to be fleeced and abandoned by hired hands. They neither hear nor listen for the voice of the good shepherd. Should one be angry at them or pity them? “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way,” says the Prophet Isaiah. Christians read Jesus into the final verses of the chapter, “yet, he bore the sin of many and made intercession for transgressors” (Isaiah 53:6, 12).

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