The Fathers Food for His lambs

One of the oft repeated images is that of a shepherd with his sheep. The prophets spoke of good shepherds and corrupt shepherds. God is referred to as our Shepherd. One of the most beloved of all psalms, by both Christians and Jews, is Psalm I memorized it as a child, as I am sure many of you did. It communicates the great care that the Lord has for His people. What can we learn from this ancient occupation? Leaders are frequently referred to as shepherds in Scripture.

Since shepherds were responsible for the well-being of the sheep and, in every way, guarded and provided for them, this is an apt analogy, and one which would have communicated graphically to the people of the Bible who lived close to the land. Using an image such as a shepherd, the biblical writers communicated much more than the simple words we read.

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Instantly, the original hearers of the Word thought of the all-encompassing care that a shepherd took for this flock. In Israel, the shepherd acted in every way as a leader. The shepherd led the sheep to food and water; he protected against wild animals, inclement weather, and unscrupulous individuals. Recently, while on a walk with my husband Tom in northern Israel, we observed a shepherd walking up a hillside. His sheep followed behind him; he expected them to follow.

He rarely turned around to look at the sheep; he just steadily climbed the steep, rocky hillside. We stood and watched for some time, as most of the sheep kept their eyes on the shepherd and docilely followed along. To our amusement, there were four sheep that had other ideas in mind. They seemed to be going their own way. I became a little concerned for them that they would be lost, but Tom told me to just keep watching.

Sure enough, after some time, they suddenly turned their heads toward the shepherd. Running and leaping over rocks, they caught up with the flock. It was fascinating to watch. At one point, the shepherd stopped walking and faced the flock.

The Shepherd and His Sheep

When the sheep saw he was standing still, they earnestly began to eat every green morsel in sight. In Israel, it does not rain for more than half the year. Many of us come from countries where our mental images of sheep are of lush meadows with beautiful white, fluffy sheep dotting the landscape. In my travels to Wales and New Zealand, I have seen many such pastoral places. These scenes are beautiful and very peaceful. When standing there, I have immediately thought of the 23 rd Psalm. However, that is not the type of scene the biblical writers envisioned when they thought about sheep and shepherds.

You see, sheep in Israel do not graze in lush green pastures. There are some lovely green valleys in Israel, but these valleys are reserved for growing crops. Sheep are led to graze in areas not suitable for growing crops, including the rocky, barren hilltops. This is an entirely different picture from the lush green fields in Wales, but this is exactly the conditions that are normal for Israel, now and in biblical times. Readers of the day would have understood this to be a promise of extravagant blessings from the good shepherd.

The Shepherd of Psalm 23 not only provides for the needs of the sheep, He provides them with abundant blessings, beyond what they could expect.

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A good shepherd strengthens the weak, heals the sick, binds up the broken, searches for lost sheep, delivers the captive sheep, gathers the dispersed sheep, and feeds the hungry sheep vv. A good shepherd puts the welfare of the sheep above his own well-being. Repeatedly, throughout Scripture, we see the Lord described as a shepherd. Probably the most famous passage is the 23 rd Psalm, but there are many other references as well. When the children of Israel left Egypt, they were totally dependent on the Lord.

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When He moved, they moved. When He stood still, they stayed camped. By day, He led them with a cloud and by night with a pillar of fire. God provided their daily food, the miracle food manna. He provided water in the wilderness. He protected them from Pharaoh and his armies and subsequent armies who attacked them. The Bible says that He even took care of the details of their lives. That is truly a miracle of provision.

Imagine yourself in their situation. They had only the possessions they could carry. They had no transportation. They had left behind the only homes they had ever known, their occupations, and their livelihood. They could not even provide their most basic needs of food, water, and shelter. The children of Israel were totally vulnerable. When you read the biblical accounts, you see how they struggled with this total reliance on the Lord.

Often, we find them complaining to Moses. Even so, God was leading them, providing for them, and protecting them. Other Scriptures show that God continues to act as a shepherd. Passages which speak of the return of the Jewish people to Israel from the lands of their dispersion, which is happening in our own times, speak of the Lord bringing them back and caring for them as a shepherd.

As far as I can see, there are three main responsibilities of sheep. They must know the shepherd, recognize his voice, and follow him. However, the biblical idea of knowing God has a much deeper level, an intimate knowledge that comes from spending time with Him. Intimate relationships between husband and wife are described using this word, as: Theoretical knowledge is not enough. We must know God with our heart, not just our mind. I grew up in a Christian home with parents who loved God and the Bible. They instilled the Word in us. I had a good knowledge base of the Bible.

In fact, at age eight, I read the Bible through for the first time. But the knowledge alone was not enough. I needed a personal relationship with the Lord. That requires spending time with the Shepherd and really getting to know Him, through prayer, worship, and times reading the Bible and meditating on it.

As we spend time with the Lord, we learn to recognize when He is speaking. Yeshua said that sheep recognize the voice of their shepherd. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. A true shepherd — a good shepherd — would voluntarily defend his sheep even to the point of death. Instead, Jesus says that he will voluntarily die. He will lay down his life for the sheep on His own accord. But even more, He has authority to rise from the dead! He tells us that he will make the ultimate sacrifice — giving His life for His sheep — but after He has guaranteed the safety of His sheep by that death, He will return for His sheep.

He will continue to care for them. We began today by talking about the problem with sheep. How dumb they are. How helpless they are. How they need constant care. How they absolutely must have a shepherd to guard and tend and care for them — because on their own, they will die. But do you want to know what is the real — the ultimate — problem with sheep? The real problem is — we are the sheep! We spend all of our days looking downward, gorging ourselves on the sin of this world. We follow the paths of this world, the paths of evil, and fall over the cliffs that lead us into the depths of hell.

We are helpless — absolutely helpless —to defend ourselves from the great predator Satan and all of his demons who threaten to consume us by the same evil that consumes them. When Satan turns us on our backs — when sin leads us to that place where we cannot turn over and turn away — we suffocate and die. Even before the creation of the world, God knew that His beloved creation — mankind formed by His loving hands and formed in His perfect image — would sin.

He knew that after mankind sinned, His people would be no more than helpless, pitiful, dumb sheep. That never stopped Him from being our good shepherd. God the Father sent God the Son to be our shepherd, to lay down His life for you and me and every one of His helpless — and otherwise hopeless — sheep. Our good shepherd knows that we could not live without Him, so He did all of the work!

He assured our lives with His holy life, His innocent suffering, His sacrificial death and His resurrection form the grave. We are His lambs, because he has bought us at a heavy price — His suffering and death on the cross. He is the one who knows His sheep, who calls us by name as the Holy Spirit brings us to faith through His Word. He is the good shepherd who lovingly feeds us through His Sacraments. Jesus paid the ultimate price for us. He suffered the wrath of God against each and every one of our sins. Our salvation cost Jesus everything, but it costs us nothing.

1. The Problem with Sheep.
2. Sleep Deprivation, Stimulant Medications, and Cognition (Cambridge Medicine (Hardcover)).
3. Heaven for Nonbelievers (Heavens Message Book 1).
4. Responsibilities of a Shepherd.
5. Circle of Lies?

Jesus gives this precious, precious salvation to us as a free gift. Since we are His lambs, He leads us on the path of everlasting life. We know this because He rose from the dead. Just as He rose from the dead, so also the day will come when God will raise all people from the dead. On that day all those who believe in Jesus will be united body and soul in the eternal joys of heaven. A famous actor was a guest of honor at a large gathering where he received many requests to recite favorite excerpts from various literary works.

An elderly pastor who was in the audience asked the actor to recite the 23rd Psalm. The actor agreed — but only on the condition that that pastor would also recite it. The actor went first, and his recitation was everything that you might expect — it was beautifully intoned, with great dramatic emphasis added to the words. When he was done, he received a thunderous round of applause. The elderly pastor went next. Age had taken a toll on his voice, and his diction was anything but polished. But when he finished there was not a dry eye in the room.

When someone asked the actor what made the difference, he replied: I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. But the flock represents all of mankind — Jews and Gentiles alike. All of mankind that needs to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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