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The Good Shepherd
By Peace | June 5, 2008
I am the Lost and Found Sheep of Jesus. Jesus is my Master and I am a servant of God.
The life of Jesus was all about caring for people and bringing them back to God. He especially spent time helping those who knew they were trapped by sin and shame. The Pharisees complained,”This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” (Luke 15:2). In reply, Jesus showed how He is like a shepherd. He does not want one sheep (one person) to be left in danger. Even if only one sheep is lost, He keeps searching for that one until He finds it. (Luke 15:1-7). What about very bad people, who have willfully left God? Jesus told a parable showing that God is like a father. The father watches for his child who has gone away into a life of sin. When the child comes home, the father welcomes Him with open arms. (Luke 15:11-24)
The Good Shepherd John 10: 1-18
“I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock; the gatekeeper lets him in, the sheep hear his voice, one by one he calls his own sheep and leads them out. When he has brought out his flock, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow because they know his voice. They never follow a stranger but run away from him: they do not recognise the voice of strangers.”
Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them. So Jesus spoke to them again:”I tell you most solemnly, I am the gate of the sheepfold. All others who have come are thieves and brigands; but the sheep took no notice of them. I am the gate. Anyone who enters through me will be safe; and be sure of finding pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd is one who lays down his life for his sheep. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and the sheep do not belong to him, abandons the sheep and runs away as soon as he sees a wolf coming, and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep; this is because he is only a hired man and has no concern 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 my sheep. And there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and these I have to lead as well. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be only one flock, and one shepherd. The Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me; I lay it down of my own free will, and as it is in my power to lay it down, so it is in my power to take it up again; and this is the command I have been given by my Father.”
I am a baby sheepdog, learning to care for the flock, just like Jesus.
At the time of Jesus, sheep were important providers of wool and meat, milk and cheese. They were in demand as temple offerings too. Pasture was poor on the hills, so the shepherd had to move the flock from place to place. Unlike most shepherds today, he did not drive the flock, but led it; he knew each of his sheep, and they knew and answered to his call. He searched for any sheep that strayed, and rescued them from dangerous places. He protected the sheep from wild animals and from thieves, using his catapult or wooden club. At night, he led the sheep into a stone-walled sheepfold, topped with thorns — and lay across the entrance himself to keep them safe.
Topics: God, Jesus, Teachings, View All |
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