sheep | Devotionary

The Good Shepherd.

Deuteronomy 1-2, John 10

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.” – John 10:1-4 ESV

God leads. He always has. But the problem is that few want to follow Him. Even the people He chose as His own possession found it hard to follow God faithfully and fully. Theirs is a story of repeated doubt, disbelief and disobedience. In these early chapters of the book of Deuteronomy, Moses recounted for the people how God had led them all the way to the land promised to their forefather, Abraham. He reminded them how God had fulfilled His covenant to give them the land, but how they had refused to go in. Fear replaced faith and they allowed themselves to be overwhelmed by the difficulty of their circumstances rather than trust the word of their God. So God disciplined their disbelief and disobedience by denying them entry into the land and forcing them to wander around the wilderness for 40 years, until that stubborn generation died off. And yet, in spite of their rebellion, God continued to lead them and care for them. Moses reminded them, “For the Lord your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing” (Deuteronomy 2:7 ESV). God had shepherded them all throughout their time of wandering. He had never forsaken them. He had never turned His back on them. And during that time, the younger generation had been able to watch God lead and learn to obey His voice. So that by the time they found themselves standing on the edge of the Promised Land, they would be ready to not only hear the words of God, but obey them. A big part of following God is learning to listen and obey – even when it doesn’t make sense. God told the second generation, “Begin to take possession, and contend with him in battle. This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you” (Deuteronomy 2:24-25 ESV). Following God was going to require faith.

What does this passage reveal about God?

Our faith should be motivated by God’s faithfulness, because He is trustworthy. God keeps His word. He fulfills His promises. He is fully capable of accomplishing what He says He will do. But doubt in the word of God always leads us to disbelieve the faithfulness of God. To doubt what God says is to doubt who He is. It is to disparage His character. But there is not basis for questioning the character of God. His track record is impeccable. We may not always understand why or how He does things, but we cannot and should not doubt His motives or question His sovereign will for our lives. For those who truly follow God, who have allowed their lives to be led and shepherded by God, they can look back and see His hand on their lives, guiding, directing, and protecting. That was what Moses had told the Israelites as they stood on the border of the Promised Land the first time. “Do not be in dread or afraid of them. The Lord your God who goes before you will himself fight for you, just as he did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness, where you have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place” (Deuteronomy 1:29-31 ESV). God had proven Himself faithful, time and time again. “Yet in spite of this word you did not believe the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 1:32 ESV). In their case, hind sight did NOT prove to be 20-20. The sheep stiff-armed the Shepherd.

What does this passage reveal about man?

In the book of John, we read those familiar words of Jesus, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (John 10:11 ESV). In this chapter Jesus established Himself as the one who had come to lead the sheep of God. He came to provide abundant life for the sheep. He came to lead them to green pastures where they could find nourishment and security. He came to provide protection from harm. But for all of that to happen, the sheep would be required to hear His voice and follow Him. “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice” (John 10:3-4 ESV). There is a picture of intimacy and trust here. The sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd. They know Him and have learned to trust Him. They may not know exactly where He is leading them or what He has in store for them, but they trust Him. Following is an expression of faith. There were those in Jesus’ day who struggled with His claim to be the Son of God. They asked Him, “If you are the Christ, tell us plainly!” (John 10:24 ESV). “Jesus answered, ‘I told you, and you do not believe’” (John 10:25 ESV). He had shown them signs. He had performed miracles. He had given them plenty of proof. But they did not believe. Jesus told them, “You do not believe because you are not part of my flock” (John 10:26 ESV). They didn’t recognize His voice. When Jesus spoke, rather than hear the voice of God, they simply heard the words of a man. And the response of many was, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” (John 10:20 ESV).

When Jesus calls, His sheep hear His voice. There is an intimacy and familiarity between Jesus and His sheep. They recognize Him because they belong to Him. And when He calls, they follow. When Jesus called His disciples, they not only heard Him, they willingly followed Him. And yet, by all indications, they didn’t even really know Him. In almost every case, they had just met Him, and yet when He said, “Follow me,” they dropped what they were doing and obeyed. There was a recognition of relationship they didn’t even fully understand at the time. They heard His voice and did what He told them to do – as a practical expression of trust.

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

After 40 years of wandering around in the wilderness, under the steady, ever-present hand of God, the second generation developed an increasing familiarity with the voice of God. They learned to listen to His voice and do what He told them to do. He had proven Himself faithful all those years. He had been a good shepherd. Oh, they would still struggle with obedience and trust. They would still doubt His word at times. But there would be no basis for their doubt and no excuse for their distrust of God. God will always be proven faithful. He will always come out trustworthy. The problem is never God’s faithfulness, but our faithlessness. We doubt. We fear. We disbelieve. We disobey. But God is faithful. It is amazing to think that Jesus came to lay down his life for the sheep. He didn’t just come to lead us, He came to die for us. He said, “For this reason the Father love me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I received from my Father” (John 10:17-18 ESV). Ultimately, Jesus’ leadership required His own death, and He gave up His life willingly and gladly. He lead through death. He rose again so that we might understand that there is life after death. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28 ESV). He calls. We hear. He leads. We follow. And our ultimate destination is eternal, not temporal. Jesus reminds us, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (John 14:1-3 ESV). He is the Good Shepherd and He is leading us to a land of green pastures. But we must follow faithfully. We must trust His Word. In spite of what we may encounter along the way, we must believe that what He says is true and what He has promised He will fulfill.

Father, You have led Your people faithfully for generations. And You sent Your Son to not only be our sacrificial lamb, but our Good Shepherd. He has laid down His life for us, so that we might spend eternal life with You. But for the time being, we find ourselves wandering in our own form of wilderness. Things here are not always easy. It is sometimes hard to hear His voice over the confusion and chaos of this world, but He is speaking. He is calling. Give us ears to hear and hearts to listen. As He leads, help us follow – faithfully and expectantly – with our eyes on the future reality of eternity. Amen

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org

A Shepherd For The Sheep.

Numbers 27-28, John 5

Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd. – Numbers 27:16-17 ESV

I always find it fascinating how many times God chooses to use the metaphor of sheep when referring to His people. While that idea may conjure up an idyllic image of lush pastures filled with fluffy white sheep peacefully eating their fill of green grass, the real message behind the metaphor seems a bit less flattering. Sheep are not the brightest of animals. In fact, they are quite dumb, requiring someone to lead them and protect them. Sheep are herd animals with no built-in protection mechanism, other than flight. They are driven by their appetites. There are stories about flocks of sheep so intent on grazing that they literally walked off the side of a cliff one by one, so focused on feeding that they were oblivious to the danger. Sheep are easily led astray. Sheep are easy prey to predators. They spook easily and are prone to both disease and injury. And even a cursory reading of the Scriptures will reveal that so many of the characteristics of sheep really do apply to the people of God, including those in Moses’ day all the way to the Christians living during the days of Paul’s ministry. When Moses was informed by God that he would not be allowed to enter the Promised Land because of his actions at Meribah, he asked God to appoint a successor. “Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who shall go out before them and come in before them, who shall lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of the Lord may not be as sheep that have no shepherd” (Numbers 27:16-17 ESV). HIs concern was that the people not be “as sheep that have no shepherd.” Moses knew from personal experience that the people of Israel would be helpless and hopeless without someone to lead them. They had proven themselves to be driven by their passions, prone to wander, easily spooked, and susceptible to a herd mentality. They needed a strong leader who could help guide them and, when necessary, discipline them.

What does this passage reveal about God?

God’s people have always needed strong leadership, and all along the way, God had provided men like Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, David, Samuel, and Paul. Left to our own devices, and without strong godly leadership, we are always prone to trouble. Even Jesus saw the plight of the people of God in His day. “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd” (Matthew 9:35-36 ESV). God’s people, His sheep, were in a sorry state. They were shepherdless and helpless. They needed someone to lead them. They needed a shepherd. And while they had no shortage of religious leaders, Jesus saw them as harassed and helpless. The Pharisees, priests, Scribes, and other so-called leaders of Jesus’ day were guilty of the same sin as the “shepherds” in Ezekiel’s day. Read what God had to say about those who were responsible for the care and leadership of the people of God during the prophetic ministry of Ezekiel. “The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them” (Ezekiel 34:4-6 ESV).

God was not happy. His sheep were being neglected and even abused. He expected those men who had been given the responsibility of leading His people to take their role seriously and to lead according to His terms, not their own. God cared for His sheep and He expected those whom He had appointed as shepherds to act as His undershepherds, providing the same level of care and concern as He would.

What does this passage reveal about man?

Just as sheep are prone to wander, shepherds are prone to walk away from their God-given responsibilities. It is so easy for a shepherd of God’s people to allow selfishness and self-centeredness to distract him from what God has called him to do. Far too often, the leaders appointed by God to shepherd His flock, ended up abusing their roles and neglecting those under their care. God puts a high value on good shepherding. It was written of David, “He chose David his servant and took him from the sheepfolds;from following the nursing ewes he brought him to shepherd Jacob his people, Israel his inheritance.With upright heart he shepherded them and guided them with his skillful hand” (Psalm 78:70-72 ESV). David was the kind of shepherd God was looking for. He had a heart like God’s. He cared for God’s people with the same passion that God had. He was far from perfect, but he was “a man after God’s own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14 ESV). When it came to the people under his care, he was ready to do the will of Go. He understood that God’s people needed to follow God’s will regarding their lives. They needed strong direction and steady leadership. Without it, they would find themselves in trouble. And in time, after the death of David and the demise of the kingdom of his son, Solomon, the people would suffer under a long line of insufferably poor shepherds. So that by the time Jesus showed up on the scene, He would encounter a people who were shepherdless, helpless and hopeless. Even Peter would say of those who had come to Christ in his day, “Once you were like sheep who wandered away. But now you have turned to your Shepherd, the Guardian of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25 ESV). Ultimately, God was going to have to send His Son, as the one true Shepherd, to rescue His sheep. Jesus said of Himself, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10:11, 14 ESV). Mankind has always been in need of a shepherd and God eventually sent the only one who could rescue them. Isaiah reminds us, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6 ESV).

How would I apply what I’ve read to my own life?

Jesus was the true Shepherd, the Good Shepherd, who laid down His own life for the sake of His sheep. He sacrificed Himself so that His sheep might be safe and sound. There was a selflessness and humility about Jesus that should be reflected in my own life. His life is the ultimate model of what it means to be a shepherd. Paul tells us, “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to.Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross” (Philippians 2:5-8 NLT). Humility. Sacrifice. Submission. Obedience. Those are the characteristics of a shepherd of God. May I learn to shepherd as He did. May I be willing to lead by following His example.

Father, make a shepherd like Your Son. Give me the heart of David and the passion to feed and care for Your sheep, even if it requires the ultimate sacrifice of my life. Don’t let me become selfish and driven by my own desires. Constantly remind me that I am Your shepherd and have been given the responsibility of caring for Your sheep. Amen

Ken Miller
Grow Pastor & Minister to Men
kenm@christchapelbc.org