The Shepherd loves the sheep and will give up his life for
them. John 10:11 & 15b, “I am the
good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. So I
sacrifice my life for the sheep.”
Psalm 23 illustrates the roles of the shepherd and the sheep.
Psalm 23:1 The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I
need (Sheep cannot provide for their own needs, they need the shepherd to
provide all of their needs.)
2 He lets me rest in
green meadows; (Green meadows provide good grass for the sheep as well as
providing easy terrain for walking.) he
leads me beside peaceful streams. (Sheep have such heavy, thick wool, that
if they were trying to drink from a rough, rushing stream, their wool would
soak up the water and they would fall in and be pulled down stream before the shepherd
could get to them. They would drown.)
3 He renews my
strength. He guides me along right
paths, bringing honor to his name.
(Sheep are known for their following instinct. They will follow the shepherd because they recognize
his voice and trust him. John 10:4, “After
he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him
because they know his voice.” Because
Christ is Holy, he will never lead us onto the wrong path. If we are feeling lead in the wrong
direction, we need to check the voice, it won’t be Christ! John 10:10, “The thief’s purpose is to steal
and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.”)
4 Even when I walk through
the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort
me. (The shepherd uses his staff to
guide the sheep. If they feel the tap on
their side they feel comforted. If their shepherd is leading them, they don’t
fear but simply follow, knowing he cares for them. He also uses his staff to
pull the sheep out of danger.)
5 You prepare a feast
for me in the presence of my enemies. (The
sheep eat in the meadows even though there may be danger around them. A wolf
could come at any moment but the shepherd is on the look out!) You
honor me by anointing my head with oil. (The
shepherd checks each sheep closely looking for any injury. He anoints the sheep
with oil to prevent disease and to heal injury.) My cup
overflows with blessings.
6 Surely your goodness
and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in
the house of the Lord forever. (If the sheep don’t wander off, they will
stay under the shepherd’s care their entire life and he will love and care for
them.)
Jesus said this about himself, John 10:9, "Yes, I am the
gate. Those who come in through me will be saved. They will come and go freely
and will find good pastures." As the door, Jesus is the security system
for his sheep.
The shepherd slept in the doorway (the only way in or out) of
the sheepfold. Nothing could get to his sheep unless it went through him.
In kind, nothing can touch our life unless it passes through
Christ first. If he allows it to touch us, we can rest assured that he has
already made provision (whatever is needed) for it in heaven and is waiting for
us to ask for it. Philippians 4:6,
"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what
you need, and thank him for all he has done."
Like sheep, we need a shepherd to protect and guide us. When we accept Christ as Lord we gain a
security system for our spirit. Colossians 3:3b, "your life is now hidden
with Christ in God.” No need for alarm. God
has us firmly in his grasp. John 10: 28, "I give them eternal life, and
they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me," We can choose to walk away, but no force
outside of our free will can take us out of his care.
Our shepherd is always on duty. He never sleeps or slumbers. There has never been, nor ever will be a
moment of our lives in which he was uninvolved.
We like sheep, can rest assured that we are loved, protected, and provided
for. Our Shepherd is More Than Enough!!!
All Scriptures are NLT, unless otherwise noted.
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