Few things test a leader’s heart more deeply than watching someone you love wander toward destruction while resisting every attempt to help them. Shepherding is not simply about teaching truth when people gladly receive it; it is about remaining faithful when hearts grow hard, walls rise high, and your care is misunderstood. At times, leading people through rebellion, deception, or resistance can feel like Joshua standing before Jericho, facing something impossible to move through human strength alone.
Caring for God’s people when they wander down a wrong path is one of the most difficult assignments a leader will face. Scripture is clear about our responsibility: “If anyone among you wanders from the truth, someone should bring that person back” (James 5:19). Yet the reality is this, people don’t always want to come back. And sometimes, they resist and resent the very help they once asked for.
The call to shepherding leadership is not a part-time assignment. As Max Lucado observed in his book Safe in the Shepherd’s Arms.
- “No flock every grazed without a shepherd and no shepherd was ever off duty. When the sheep wandered, the shepherd found them. When they fell, he picked them up and carried them. When they were wounded, he healed them. Sheep aren’t smart; they tend to stray into running creeks for water, then their wool grows heavy and they drown. They need a shepherd to lead them to “still waters” (Ps 23:2). They have no natural defenses – no claws or horns. They need a shepherd with a rod and staff to protect them. They have no sense of direction. They need someone wise enough to lead them ‘in paths that are right.’ So do we.”
Facing the “Jericho Walls” in People
One of the hardest realities in leadership is this: some people seem determined to stay on a destructive path. You can see where it leads. You can warn them. You can plead with them. But they refuse to turn.
At times, helping people who are going astray feels like standing before the walls of Jericho, impossible, immovable, and beyond human ability. It is very important to remember in such cases that God still calls you. You must continue to walk in obedience in such cases, like the story of Jericho, circling the situation, speaking when He says speak, remaining silent when He says be silent, but ultimately, only He can bring the walls down. This is the difficult tension of true leadership.
- Leaders can guide, warn, and love, but only God can turn a heart.
- Leaders labor in obedience; God works in the unseen to bring transformation.
The leader’s responsibility is obedience to God and His word but it is important to remember, THE OUTCOME BELONGS TO GOD!!!
When Care Is Rejected
It becomes even more painful when those you’re trying to help begin to resist, or worse, turn against, and treat you as an enemy. Scripture warns us about such things: “Do not rebuke a mocker or he will hate you” (Proverbs 9:8).
Good shepherds don’t withdraw simply because things get difficult. But they must also recognize that they cannot force transformation. Only God can change a heart.
So how do we walk through these “Jericho wall” situations with sheep who refuse guidance or counsel?
Take God’s Posture of Love, Gentelness, and Patience, Not Your Own
The way we approach people can either soften hearts or harden walls. God’s posture we are to take always entails His definition of love (1 Corinthians 13:1-8). God’s type of love is not driven by self, suffers long without quitting, patient instead of reacting, serves without seeking attention, walks in humility instead of pride, refuses to be easily offended, chooses truth over compromise, and remains faithful without quitting even when tested, stretched, or misunderstood.
Jesus began His teaching on the Kingdom with poverty of spirit (Matthew 5:3). Peter warned against “lording it over” the flock (1 Peter 5). Harshness often reinforces resistance, while gentleness opens doors. This is why Paul tells us. “Restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness” (Galatians 6:1).
Trust That God Is Working Beneath the Surface in a Variety of Areas
You may not see immediate results, but that does not mean nothing is happening. God is always “working things together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:26-28). He is at work in both the shepherds and the sheep to give a will to move towards His purpose.
- Philippians 2:13 For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose.
God is working in ways you cannot measure, working patience is us, softening hearts, stirring conviction, and arranging circumstances, and like the story of Joseph, is working in a variety of unforseen ways (some of which took 17 years for Joseph to see Genesis 45:5-8, 50:20). Your role as a leader is to remain faithful even when the evidence is not visible.
Refuse to Be Offended
When people reject your counsel, it’s easy to take it personally. But offense will quietly poison your heart and distort your response. Love “suffers long” (1 Corinthians 13:4). A true shepherd does not say, “Fine, have it your way.” Instead, love compels us to remain engaged without becoming bitter.
Don’t withdraw. Don’t pout. Stay present with a heart anchored in God and His love.
Listen More Than You Speak
One of the most overlooked aspects of shepherding is listening.
- James 1:19 Be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.
People are far more open to correction when they feel understood. Listening does more than gather information, it communicates care. And often, the Holy Spirit will speak as you listen, giving insight that no argument could produce. Your authority is not just in what you say, but in how you hear.
Pray Without Losing Heart
At the end of the day, prayer is not a last resort, it is the primary work. Jesus taught us “to always pray and not give up” (Luke 18:1).
Prayer does two critical things:
- It invites God’s power into the situation
- It guards your heart with His peace
“The peace of God… will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). You carry the burden because you care, but you release the outcome because you trust Him.
The Bottom Line
Shepherding/leading people who resist correction is one of the clearest places where our dependence on God is tested. We are called to:
- Walk in obedience
- Lead with humility and gentleness
- Refuse offense
- Listen deeply
- Pray persistently
And then, we leave the results with Him. Because in the end, transformation does not come from pressure, persuasion, or even perfect counsel. It comes from a heart that responds to God.