Tag: Shepherd

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Following the Shepherd…

shepherds staffFinding wisdom in a young heart is a cherished thing.  Often we anticipate , even expect, wise thoughts to come from our elders (elderly), but when a young person shares some solid, Biblical insights I personally find it refreshing.  Such an opportunity came to me several weeks ago.  Read the words and thoughts of a young lady who worships at Southwest church of Christ in Austin, Texas.

The Psalm, “The Lord’s my Shepherd” by Jessie Seymour Irvine (#292 in Hymns for Worship) is based off of the verse found in John 10:14-15, “I am the good shepherd, I lay down my life for the sheep.”, but it quotes the entirety of the 23rd Psalm.

This psalm is often titled “the Crook.” The psalm is a section dedicated to Christ Jesus’ identity, specifically, a psalm contributing to Jesus’ identity as a shepherd. But it also identifies us as the sheep. Let us consider three key points that are taught in this psalm.  Perhaps we’ll be able to draw a deeper, fuller understanding of this psalm (song) when we sing it in praise to our God.

Jesus the ShepherdFirst, let us notice that through His death he leads us. In Genesis 3:15 we see the first prophecy of the coming Messiah; His death and His conquering of the world of sin. Jesus came into the world with many purposes: teaching a new law, bringing equality between the nations, and giving us an example. But his overlying purpose in coming to earth was to die. He came to bring salvation through His death and set Himself up as the head of the church, and as the head of His church, to lead us. He was the perfect, spotless and innocent lamb that went to the slaughter on account of the sins of the world.

Secondly, we know that He is our shepherd because he bought us. A shepherd doesn’t just watch sheep for free. He is either paid to watch other people’s sheep as in a job, or he buys his own sheep and watches them himself. Jesus has bought us with His blood so He is the shepherd. As the shepherd He is our guide, the supplier of our needs, our protector from troubles and one of the most constant figures in our lives.

 

And finally, we are the sheep who need a shepherd.  As sheep our lives are dependent on the shepherd. As noted previously, he provides for all our needs. And yet, it is our choice as to whether or not we will have him as a constant figure in our lives. We can be the sheep that stays with the flock, the one that enjoys the comfort of lord through all the struggles. Staying with the Shepherd, we’re restored when we are sick.  When we slip on the road, our Lord brings us back to righteousness of God.  Or we can be the sheep that wanders off by himself. The sheep that may be happy for a time, but eventually realizes that being alone in life is filled with dangers and trials.  Leaving the fold, we face those trials without our shepherd’s guidance.

We have, in essence, two choices…1) we can be a active, though submissive, participant of the system that has been set up by our Lord, reap the benefits of that system and ultimately receive the reward. Or…2) we can choose not to live within the boundaries of the system He offers and chance life on our own, knowing as we do that we’ll take the punches of the world as they come. Ultimately it’s our choice.

 

                This song lets us see the results and benefits of the first option, and tells us that even if we have chosen option two, we can still come back to the fold. Jesus came and died on the cross for you and me. He bought us with his blood and now serves as the rightful leader of the flock of His sheep.  Praise be to God that he has redeemed His church.

Shelby GrayShelby Gray

The Lord’s my shepherd, I’ll not want;
He makes me down to lie
In pastures green; He leadeth me
The quiet waters by.

My soul He doth restore again,
And me to walk doth make
Within the paths of righteousness,
E’en for His own name’s sake.

Yea, though I walk in death’s dark vale,
Yet will I fear no ill:
For Thou art with me, and Thy rod
And staff me comfort still.

My table Thou hast furnished In presence of my foes;
My head Thou dost with oil anoint And my cup overflows.

Goodness and mercy all my life Shall surely follow me;
And in God’s house for evermore My dwelling-place shall be.

 

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Doing Chores…Part One

Having grown up on a farm I can clearly remember when it was time  to do the chores.  Each day we had some very specific chores. 

During the 1970’s in  a rural, farming community it was not uncommon for us to have chores that dominated our day.  The cow had to be milked and the pigs had to be fed every morning and every evening.  The eggs had to be gathered each night.  Weeding the garden and cleaning out the animal’s pens was not weird, nor was it punishment, it was our norm.  There was no option of ‘skipping out’ on the responsibility to feed the animals and taking care of them.  If a chore was shirked and we chose to do something else, the price to pay would be staggering.  Our breakfast in the morning consisted of the eggs we gathered the night before.  The 2 gallons of milk we collected daily would feed our family of six (four growing boys) daily.  The vegetables we grew in the garden would be canned or preserved for the winter months.  We did our chores because we knew there would be consequences if we didn’t obey.  But we also did our chores because our parents cared for us, and we loved our parents.  You see, our chores were important to our survival.

But before we go much further you need to know that with all the animals we had to care for, we never owned sheep.  Chickens, cattle, hogs and even an occasional horse or two, but never sheep.  And as I understand them, sheep are very precarious when it comes to raising them.  Some even say they’re stupid animals.  Again, having never raised sheep I’m not speaking from direct experience, but from what sheep farmers and those who raise sheep have told me.  Those who tend sheep know that the responsibility to care for them is intensified.  Sheep challenge your resolve when it comes to feeding them, watering them and shearing them.  Much less keeping them alive.

But have you ever noticed that the Bible calls followers of Christ ‘sheep’?  Matthew 10:16, “Behold, I send you out as SHEEP…” and Matthew 25:33, “and He will put the SHEEP on His right, and the goats on the left…” and Matthew 26:31, “I will strike down the Shepherd, and the SHEEP of the flock will be scattered…”  And no doubt you’ll remember the 23rd Psalm as it refers to us as sheep and the Lord as our Shepherd.  “The Lord’s my shepherd, I’ll not want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures.”

There is a connection between doing chores and the idea that we are sheep and Christ is our Shepherd!  Perhaps you can see the connection between doing God’s work (doing our chores) and the need to take care of the sheep when you look deeper into God’s Word.  From a Biblical point of view, the world is not in the safety of the fold.  And God calls His people (the sheep) with the help of the Shepherd (Jesus) to bring a lost people home.  (The cattle are out of the pen; there’s a fox in the hen house; there are chores to be done.)  Take out your Bible and read I Peter 2:25; “For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to your Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.” 

Next time we’ll see how to make sense of this comparison…being like a sheep, and tending the sheep.  There are always chores to be done.  We will look at a song (not a surprise) that addresses this responsibility and obligation to work in the fold.  Stay tune as we continue to look at ‘doing chores’.  Let’s work together.