"Your Rod and Your Staff they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4)
The rod and the staff are two tools a shepherd carries all the time. The rod is to defend and discipline while the staff is used for caring and feeding. Thye are both necessary for the wellbeing of the sheep.
The rod conveys the concept of authority, power, discipline and defense of the sheep. In terms of people as sheep, it is the word of God. The rod signifies the law, reminiscent of the Aaron's rod, and the staff signifies the grace of God given through Jesus Christ. We can think of The rod as the Old Testament and the staff as the New Testament.
The Law protects our life in the evils of this world while the grace protects our soul in eternity. We need the old testament laws to live safely and in discipline. It also defends us from harming ourselves and from the evil enemy around us. But we are not complete by the law, we need the grace of God for salvation of our souls which was given to us through Jesus Christ.
God disciplines us by means of His Eternal Word. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16). Solomon says that the scripture is good for our health of the body. “My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life into those that find them and health to all their flesh.” (Proverbs 4:20-22).
The Word of God is a double edged sword. It is always alive and active in guiding our paths. "For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart"(Heb 4:12).
The Word of God guides us in the paths of righteousness. When the sheep go astray, the shepherd uses the rod to direct them to the right path and saves them from getting lost and be eaten by the predators.
"For this commandment is a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way to life." (Proverbs 6:23). “I gain understanding from Your precepts; therefore I hate every false way.105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (Psalm 103:104).
The written word leads us to the Living Word, Jesus Christ. "In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1). "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14). The Gospel of Jesus Christ reveals the law and brings the grace of God into our lives that leads us to eternity.
A staff is a long, slender stick, often with a crook or hook on one end. You may have seen the symbolic staff carried by the Bishops of our church and some other churches. They are called Crosiers or Pastoral Staff. Some call it “Crooks”. Crosiers used by Western bishops have curved or hooked tops, similar in appearance to staves traditionally used by shepherds, hence they are also known as crooks. The crook itself (i.e., the curved top portion) may be formed as a simple shepherd's crook, terminating in a floral pattern, or in a serpent's head. It may encircle a depiction of the bishop's coat of arms or the figure of a saint. In some very ornate crosiers, the place where the staff meets the crook may be designed to represent a church.
Popes no longer carry a crosier and instead carry the papal ferula. In the first centuries of the church, popes did carry a crozier but this practice was phased out and disappeared by the time of Pope Innocent III in the thirteenth century. In the Middle Ages, much as bishops carried a crosier, popes carried a papal cross with three bars, one more than the two bars found on crosiers carried before archbishops in processions. This too was phased out. Pope Paul VI introduced the modern papal pastoral staff, the papal ferula, in 1965. He and his successors have carried a few versions of this staff, but never a crosier.
A bishop of the church head bears this staff as "shepherd of the flock of God" He is the representative of the “Great Shepherd of the Sheep” (Hebrews 13:20)
The word "pastor" derives from the Latin noun pastor which means "shepherd" and is derived from the verb pascere – "to lead to pasture, set to grazing, cause to eat". Regardless, the A staff is a unique instrument used totally for the care and management of sheep. The symbol represents the concern and care that a shepherd has for his sheep. The staff represents patience and kindness of the shepherd.
It gives the assurance that we can go to Him and trust in Him with all our needs. The psalmist plainly says that the shepherd’s staff brings him comfort when he is under the fearful shadow of death. It shows that the grace of God that is always keeping us. The Grace of God that appeared in Jesus Christ, who is the Great Shepherd of the Sheep. "For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." (Titus 2:11-14)
A Staff Gives Rest. Psalm 23 starts right off with equating the Lord with a shepherd (“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”). So, we know immediately we’re talking about shepherding tools. When the shepherd and the sheep rest, in a quiet shade after feeding and drinking, the shepherd stands the staff on a visible place where all the sheep can see it. When they see the staff, they know the shepherd is there nearby. They don't have to be afraid of any enemies and be at rest. For us today, the staff serves as a symbol that we too can find rest when we lean on the Lord. When we lean into Him, He’ll lean into us. He is both the shepherd and the staff supplying all the rest we need when we lean on Him.
The Staff is Our Rescue. God also uses His staff to rescue us from difficult or dangerous situations. In the field, a shepherd would use the curly end of the staff to pull a sheep out of thick brush or to lift it if it happened to fall or was injured. God rescues us the same way. Any time we experience trouble (and He told us we would have them), He promises to be right there to save you from the evil one and lead you to safety.
God brought this shepherd in Jesus Christ—not merely “the shepherd of the sheep” but “the great shepherd" of the sheep. Jesus, the ultimate shepherd is the new Moses who led the people like shepherd through the desert, is able to lead his people like a flock through death and into everlasting life. Songwriters Crosby and Lowry gave us this beautiful hymn: “All the way my Savior leads me, cheers each winding path I tread. Gives me grace for every trial, feeds me with the living bread. Tho’ my weary steps may falter, and my soul athirst may be. Gushing from the rock before me, lo! A spring of joy I see. Gushing from the rock before me, lo! A spring of joy I see.”
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