Sheep

If sheep do not have the constant care of a shepherd, they will go the wrong way, unaware of the dangers at hand. They have been known to nibble themselves right off the side of a mountain. And so, because sheep are sheep, they need shepherds to care for them. The welfare of sheep depends solely upon the care they get from their shepherd. Therefore, the better the shepherd, the healthier the sheep.  Kay Arthur

I love to read the parables of Jesus.  There are times when I don’t understand verses in the Bible and it takes a great deal of studying and asking God to reveal the truth to me before the light finally goes off. 

I was reading the parable about the Shepherd and his sheep.  Jesus tells the Pharisees that anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the gate but climbs in another way is a thief and a robber.  If you take this sentence at face value, you would probably think what difference does it make how I get in the pen as long as I do eventually.  But, if you read further Jesus explains why it is so important to go in through the gate. 

This whole parable is about salvation.  Jesus is the Gatekeeper who gave his life on a cross so that we may live.  The only way we will get to heaven is through Him, the Gatekeeper.  His sacrifice is why God made Him the Keeper at the gate. 

The next part of the parable is interesting too.  Jesus talks about how the sheep know His voice and they listen for it.  If we want to know Jesus' voice as our Shepherd we must know what it sounds like and when He is speaking to us.  If I don’t spend time reading His Word I will not be able to distinguish Jesus’ voice from Satan’s.  Sheep are followers and they need a Leader. 

Jesus then talks about how all who came before Him are thieves and robbers.  If we listen to Satan he will rob us of our salvation.  Jesus goes on to talk about the hired hand who doesn’t care about the sheep. When times of trouble come, (like the wolf), the hired hand will abandon them.

I love the verse where he says, “I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. Jesus is talking about those who are not saved.  There still are many that have never heard the Savior’s voice.  Each of us has the responsibility as Christians to help bring lost sheep home.  To help others to know and hear the sound of the Shepherd’s voice. 

Prayer for the Day: Heavenly Father, I have heard the Shepherd’s voice and gladly follow Him.  I want to show other’s Your glory and help them to know when the Shepherd speaks. Jesus laid down His life to save His sheep.  He gave up everything willingly even though the cost was His life for ours.  I want to take up the cross and follow Jesus.  Thank you for providing me a way home. 

     

Scripture: The Good Shepherd and His Sheep

“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to 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 authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” John 10:1-18