Sheep in His Pasture

John 10:1-21

Reading the poetry of the Psalms paints beautiful pictures of God's care for us. In Psalms 100:3 we find, "Know that the Lord is God. It is He who made us, and we are His; we are His people, the sheep of His pasture." With that I envision the sheep I saw in Ireland. Healthy, contented, in pastures full of green grass, protected by stone walls from predators, sheep farmers ready to care for thier needs. "The Lord is my Shepherd...", I am a sheep in His pasture.

God gave overseers to care for His sheep; priests, prophets, teachers to guide and care for thier spiritual growth. Moses and David are two such leaders that cared for God's people. As we continue to read the Old Testament we find that other leaders led the people astray. Instead of staying in God's pasture where He would feed them from His Word, they were led to follow false gods and religions. These leaders left God's sheep vulnerable to predators and the disease of sin.

God saw what was happening to His sheep. "Woe to the shepherds who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!" He declared. (Jeremiah 23:1) "My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray..." (Jeremiah 50:6)

When Jesus came He looked out at a crowd of people - the sheep of God's pasture,and, "He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." (Matthew 9:36)

"I am the good shepherd." Jesus proclaims. "The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep."

 The hireling left the sheep during danger, he did not care for the sheep, "you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally." (Ezekiel 34:4) 

Time and again we see Jesus as the Good Shepherd, searching for the lost, healing the sick...

"Hirelings" exist today. Those that would lead the sheep away from God's Word, then use them for thier own selfish purposes, " ...and because my shepherds did not search for my flock but cared for themselves rather than for my flock, therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock..." (Ezekiel 34:9-10)

There is only One that can be called the Good Shepherd; Jesus, who laid down His life for us when He willingly went to the cross of Calvary and died for our sins. 

Jesus laid down His life in love for the sheep, and His sheep know Him...

Do you know the Good Shepherd?

Can Your Guide See?

John 9:35-36

Jesus said, " For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.". Some Pharisees who were with Him heard Him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?" Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains."

The physical healing of a blind man sparks the anger of the religious Pharisees. The man is thrown out of the synagogue for acknowledging Jesus as his healer. Jesus searches him out, and comes right to the point, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" The man asks who He is, so that he may believe in Him. Jesus tells him, "You have now seen Him; in fact, He is the One speaking with you." The man believes in Jesus and worships Him!

The Pharisees, who are there listening, ask if they are blind also. Interesting, because in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 23 we find Jesus calling the Pharisees blind guides, blind fools, blind men...

If you were climbing Mt. Everest, a life or death experience, would you put your trust in a guide that is blind?  No, that would most certainly result in death, especially in the case of a climber who had never been to the summit. Why then, do we trust "religious" guides who are blind?

These guides - the Pharisees - were shutting "the Kingdom of Heaven in men's faces". (Matthew 23:13) They wouldn't enter the Kingdom by trusting in Christ and following Him, nor would they allow those who wanted to enter the Kingdom to do so. Their blindness would lead others to death because, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life..." (John 3:36) Though we are referring to the Pharisees from Jesus' time in this Scripture, would you not agree that there are many  who would guide us away from belief in Christ in our own day?

Are you following a blind guide? Or, more importantly, are you following Jesus?

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3:5-6