The Good Shepherd.
Reading: John
10:11 “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”
The Lord
here tells us that He is a Shepherd; He exercises all the offices of a
Shepherd:
1. HE IS THE
GOOD SHEPHERD.
John
10:14 “I am the good shepherd.”
That is, He is both effective, good at
His work, and kind, good and loving at heart. It was love that led the Lord to
die for the sheep.
2. HE IS THE
GREAT SHEPHERD.
Hebrews
13:20 “That great Shepherd of the sheep.”
Whom God the Father brought again from
the dead. “Great in Majesty, great in Power, and great in Wisdom.” We sing!
3. HE IS THE
CHIEF SHEPHERD.
1 Peter
5:4 “When the Chief Shepherd appears.”
Who will at His coming, will reward
the faithful, and the good servants who have fed and tended His flock well.
THE ROLE OF
THE SHEPHERD.
1. “HE
SEEKS US!”
Matthew
18:12 “If a man has a hundred sheep, and one of them goes astray, does he not
leave the ninety-nine and go to the mountains to seek the one that is
straying?”
Sheep often
go astray and follow one another into danger, like the lost sheep of the
parable. We were “as sheep going astray.” The first duty of the Shepherd
is to seek out the lost and to gather the scatted sheep together. “For the
Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost” Luke 19:10.
2. “HE
KNOWS US!”
John
10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”
A good shepherd calls his own sheep by
name; they know his voice and follow him.
The
personal and individual interest in the care of the sheep, is the work of a
good shepherd, as set against a worker who but does his job.
3. “HE
GUARDS US!”
John
10:29 “No one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.”
The good shepherd will defend the
sheep at the cost of his life. So David faced the lion and the bear, risking
his own life in order to save the sheep. So the Lord gave His life to save the
sheep.
4. “HE
FEEDS US!”
1
Chronicles 4:39-40 “They went...to seek pasture for their flocks. And they
found rich, good pasture, and the land was broad, quiet, and peaceful.”
The good shepherd must seek and find
green pastures, and quiet waters for the sheep, that they may be well feed and
watered, so that they may lie down contented and be well nourished.
5. “HE
LEADS US!”
Psalm
23:4 “He leads me in the paths of righteousness.”
The Eastern shepherd did not drive the
sheep, nor did he use a dog to the sheep, but he went before them and called
any straying ones by name, or used the crook or staff to bring them back to
himself if they strayed.
6. “HE
RESTORES US!”
Ezekiel
34:4 “The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were
sick, nor bound up the neither broken, nor brought back what was driven away.”
Sheep sometimes fall and break their
legs on the steep or dangerous mountain sides. It is the shepherd's duty to
rescue them and bind up the broken.
7. “HE
HEALS US!"
Matthew
10:8 “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and raise the dead.”
Sheep are not free from diseases, and
suffer from the cold and the heat, and even from being over-driving. Such must
be tended and healed of their wounds.
8. “HE
LOVES US!”
Psalm
139:10 “Even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.”
The good shepherd needs to go gently
and kind with the young. In the lambing season this is important; to over-drive
the ewes, the expecting mothers, may mean that they will lose their young.
9. “HE
CARRY'S US!”
Psalm
55:22” Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you.”
Either the older sheep upon the
shoulders when they are wounded, sick or wearied or the young lambs in his
arms.
10. “HE
ACCOUNTS FOR US!”
Romans
14:12 “So each of us shall give account of himself to God.”
A good shepherd will not lose his
sheep, or hurt them, or lead them astray. So our Good Shepherd says to His
Father of His sheep, “Not one of them is lost” John 17:12.
CONCLUSION:
Let us follow our Good Shepherd,
hearing His voice, and yielding to His control.
