THE GOOD SHEPHERD
Jesus tells us that He is the Good Shepherd twice. Once to show His total commitment to the human family in saying that “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep” and again in the same chapter in to say that He knows those that follow Him and they know Him in saying “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine” (John 10:11 , 14). This is all in a dialogue about two things. The first is to show the relationship between the sheep and the Shepherd, that the sheep follow the Shepherd, that they know His voice. The second is that He is the True Shepherd, the owner of the sheep, and that we should ever be aware of the hireling that does not care as He does.
Now there are great lessons here but the most important is that He is telling us of His sheep that follow Him. We are His sheep when we agree that He is our Shepherd. Then do we hear His voice and willingly follow and go wheresoever He leads us. The sheep only get the benefit and the protection of the Shepherd when they follow Him; if they are wandering or inattentive to the Master’s voice they are moving about life on their own. Now we should all know that following Him means that we follow His word; we act as the Shepherd tells us to act and we do as the Shepherd tells us to do. The only way that He is truly our Shepherd is when we follow Him and this is clear in His saying: “But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:26-27).
Jesus adds something here that is not necessary to the dialogue; “And other sheep I have , which are not of this fold: them also I must bring , and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd” (John 10:16). This saying has many interpretations but it does not really matter how you think of it. Whether as for the non-Jewish people of the time, the Gentiles, or as it were for the entire world (also the Gentiles), it is a statement of future promise in that they shall hear my voice and for us, this is the voice of the Christ within. Gentiles can be a very broad term with a variety of meanings based on the comparison of other peoples to the Jews and later to the Christians. It’s Christian intent seems to be people of other nations who do not worship as Christians; its gospel intent was strictly non-Jewish.
In other reference to Himself as the Shepherd we have ” And Jesus saith unto them , All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written , I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered” (Mark 14:27 and Matthew 26:31). This He says to His followers and disciples on the Mount of Olives in prediction of what was to come. The point in this all is that He is the Shepherd and we are the sheep, which is what the verses do say, and that by following Him we are known as His and we hear His voice. Now there is a great promise from the Lord in the Old Testament called the Twenty Third Psalm. It is filled with the blessings of the Lord and repeated by millions in prayer. These promises are for us all as Christians or as Jews or whatever we choose to be; there is but one criteria and that is that we must not only say it we must do it….Make the Lord our Shepherd. And if we do, then we can say that the promises in this great prayer can be ours.
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“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want .
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He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
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He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
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Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
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Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
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Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever“.
When the Lord is your Shepherd, you are in His Presence. When the Lord is your Shepherd, you are following Him. When the Lord is your Shepherd, you are seeking the Kingdom of God first and His righteousness.
When the Lord is your Shepherd, you can truly say that you love Him in the context that He placed that love; “If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him” (John 14:23). When the Lord is your Shepherd, all the promises of this prayer can by yours.
So what are these promises? Like much in the bible the words of this psalm are subject to many levels of understanding and interpretation. Let us begin looking at the great promises and truths that are contained.
◊I shall not want is the first of the great promises. It covers nearly everything imaginable in life and means literally that you shall want for nothing. That the Lord will provide for everything that is required by you to live an happy and a healthy life. Now this does not mean that you get the new Mercedes or the big house, though these things may come your way. If we are looking to the Lord, to Christ Jesus, as our Shepherd and thereby we are doing His word, then we are seeking the Kingdom of God first and not giving any thought to the things of luxury. Perhaps the lessen here is to be like Solomon who asked only for an understanding heart and was rewarded by the Lord with a wise and understanding heart and with both riches and honor that he did not ask for. (see 1 Kings 3:9-13)
Seek first the Kingdom.
Note on the Quote of the Day
This daily blog also has a Quote of the Day which may not be in any way related to the essay. Many of these will be from the Bible and some just prayers or meditations that may have an influence on you and are in line with the subject matter of this blog. As the quote will change daily and will not store with the post, it is repeated in this section with the book reference and comment.
If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am , there shall also my servant be : if any man serve me, him will my Father honour (John 12:26) Much like the quote above, If a man love me, he will keep my words, this quote of the day has similar impact and meaning. If we are where we belong spiritually, and most of us like to think we are, then we should be serving the Master and what He is saying here is that if you want to serve Him then you should follow Him which is the same as saying keep His words.
