Shepherd

Have you read Psalms 23 lately?  David, the man who wrote this Psalm, knew about sheep because he was a shepherd in his early days.  He spent a lot time with the sheep and he was concerned about the sheep.  Sheep are basically pretty dumb animals and without the shepherd they would get into very dangerous situations.  They may drown or be killed by other animals, probably die of starvation and would be completely lost, wandering away from the fold and get themselves into all kinds of trouble.  Their only hope was the shepherd but many shepherds didn’t even care for the sheep, it was just a job for them, a means to make a living.  As I said before, David was a very concerned shepherd and cared for them, he even protected them from wild animals.  Sheep are very dependent on the shepherd.

How do I know he protected them?  Read 1 Samuel 17:32-37, “Then David said to Saul, ‘Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.’

And Saul said to David, ‘You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.’

But David said to Saul, ‘Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.’ Moreover David said, ‘The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.’

And Saul said to David, ‘Go, and the Lord be with you!’”

Now read Psalms 23:1-6,

“The Lord is my shepherd;

I shall not want.

He makes me to lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside the still waters.

He restores my soul;

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

For His name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil;

For You are with me;

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil;

My cup runs over.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord

Forever.”

We can focus on the animal like qualities, but we should focus on the qualities of disciples who obediently follow Jesus, the good Shepherd, as He is spoken of in John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”

Now read 12-18, “But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.”

Here Jesus is called the good Shepherd and He also cares for the sheep which relates to those who have trusted in Him, or will someday.  Just like the sheep in David’s day were blessed to have him as a shepherd, we who are God’s children through re-birth, are doubly blessed to have Jesus as our true Shepherd because He truly cares for us, watching over us, protecting us, providing for us and meeting our every need and many times even our wants, praise the Lord!

There are many things Jesus could do for us that David couldn’t do, the most important one was to lay down His life for us and reconcile us to God, the Father, through His shed blood for the forgiveness of our sins and for all that will put their trust in Him.  Jesus will guide and lead us into paths of righteousness and protect us from the enemy of our souls!!  He will lead us into green pastures and restore our souls.  We can fully trust Him, regardless of where we are in life because He is always looking out for our best interest and in the end we will dwell with the Lord forever.

Something to think about!  May the good Lord bless you and yours!  Have a great day!!  PS don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord today and every day!!