SUNDAY CHOICE – God is the Good Shepherd – By Charles Schokman
In the New Testament, Christians are referred to as sheep, and God is the Good Shepherd, and we are the sheep of His pastures. Sheep depend on the shepherds to care, protect, and guide them along life’s journey, bringing them to a safe place to graze. In this season, the sounds of the world are beginning to weigh us down, causing even the strongest ones to grow weary, and if we aren’t mindful, we’ll become downcast. The devil wants to keep us turned upside down in our circumstances. However, in Jesus Christ, we can find rest for our weary souls. If you find yourself in a season of heaviness, lost with feelings of hopelessness, the Lord says, “I want to shepherd the hearts of My people.” We encourage you to stir your faith up in the Lord, allowing the voice of the Good Shepherd to drown out the sounds of the world. He alone can replenish your weary soul.
So let go and allow God to bring us to a safe place beside still waters and green pastures.
What does it mean that the Lord is my Shepherd?
The clause “the Lord is my shepherd” comes from one of the most beloved of all passages of Scripture, the 23rd Psalm. In this passage and throughout the New Testament we learn that the Lord is our Shepherd in two ways. First, as the Good Shepherd, He laid down His life for His sheep and, second, His sheep know His voice and follow Him. (John 10:11, 14).
The answer is simple. Jesus Christ, as the Good Shepherd, appears as the guide, the protector, the healer and shepherd of his sheep, who need spiritual food, healing, care and mercy. Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, finds joy in seeing the weak and suffering sheep to find their way towards spiritual healing.–Courtesy Philip Cameran.
