Tag: good shepherd

Categories
Mark Devotionals

Come away

Sailing

[Jesus] said to [his disciples], “Come away by yourselves to a remote place and rest for a while.” …

He saw them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Very early in the morning he came toward them… (Mark 6:31, 48)

I was thinking today about what a good shepherd Jesus is.

He doesn’t simply ask us to serve, serve, serve. He’s not merely interested in what we do for him.

He cares about us.

So there are times when he says to us, Hey, stop working a bit. Come away with me and rest a while.”

Not only that, during those times when he sees us “straining at the oars”, when the wind is against us, he doesn’t callously ignore our struggles. He comes out to us and aids us.

I was thinking of verses 51-52.

They were completely astounded, because they had not understood about the loaves. Instead, their hearts were hardened.

Yes, Jesus’ disciples were probably primarily astounded by his power.

But the lesson about the loaves was not simply that Jesus has the power to help us. The lesson about the loaves is that like a good shepherd, Jesus cares about us.

And that’s what touches me most about this passage.

My Shepherd cares for me.

Categories
John Devotionals

My prayer to the Shepherd

He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. (John 10:3-4)

Somehow, Jesus, this resonates in my heart.

I’m not some nameless, faceless sheep to you. You call me by name saying, “Come on! Let’s go!”

You go ahead of us. You lead us. You clear the road for us. You protect us from harm. You take us where there is good pasture.

Lord Jesus, go ahead of me. Let me not go ahead of you. You go ahead of me. And I will follow.

Categories
Judges Devotionals

Following our Shepherd’s example

Judges

The Ephraimites were definitely arrogant hotheads. We saw this already in chapter 8.

And arrogant hotheads can say stupid, hurtful things. We can’t control their actions.

But we can control our responses.

How should we respond? By following our Shepherd’s example. Peter wrote,

But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God.

For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.

He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth; when he was insulted, he did not insult in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. (1 Peter 2:20-23)

Like Jephthah, Jesus did good, and yet suffered threats and accusations.

But unlike Jephthah, who in his anger destroyed his enemies, Jesus didn’t sin in his response. Instead, he entrusted himself to his heavenly Father, going to the cross, praying for his enemies, and purchasing our salvation. (1 Peter 2:24)

We were like sheep going astray, but by his grace our Shepherd brought us back (1 Peter 2:25). Let us strive to do the same with those who hurt us.

Categories
Genesis Devotions

The God who has been my shepherd all my life

Genesis

At our church, we are going through a series on God as our shepherd. I suppose you saw a glimpse of that in yesterday’s blog.

Today, I’m meditating on Genesis 48:15. These were Jacob’s words to Joseph at the end of his life:

The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked,
the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day…

Think about those words a bit.

I’m kind of guessing that Jacob saw Abraham and Isaac as “good sheep,” although both of them had their moments as black sheep. But in Jacob’s eyes, they “walked with God.”

How did Jacob see himself? I think he kind of saw himself as a black sheep for the first half of his life.

Although he had been raised by a God-fearing father in Isaac, Jacob had definitely had problems calling God, “My God.” (Genesis 28:20-22)

It took many years before he could say, “God, you are my God.” (Genesis 32:28, Genesis 33:20 footnote)

Put another way, for the first half of his life, Jacob had been a lost sheep who had wandered far from God.

And yet, Jacob in looking back at his life could say, “God has been my shepherd all my life.”

In other words, “I may have been a lost sheep. I may have wandered from him. I may not have always acknowledged him as my shepherd.

“But even so, God was my shepherd from the time I was born all the way until now.

When I was lost and hurting and scared, he sought hard after me.

“When I went through trials, some of my own making, and some not, he led me out of the darkest valleys.

“Through everything I have ever gone through, I have never been out of his care.”

My life has not been nearly as dramatic as Jacob’s. I never had a real rebellious stage, growing up in a Christian family.

But I can see all the ways he has been my shepherd from the time I was born until now.

He put me in a family that was seeking after God.

He called my name when I was 7 or 8 and I became a Christian.

At a time when I wasn’t particularly faithful to him, he remained faithful to me and truly revealed himself to me.

He then brought me into children’s ministry. And then into ministry with my peers.

When I was fighting hard to avoid coming here to Japan as a missionary, he gently directed my stubborn heart and brought me into far greener pastures here in Japan than I’d ever had in Hawaii.

At a time when I was seeking a wife, he brought me one.

After some terrible struggles, God gave us a beautiful daughter.

And to this day, I see all my stubbornness (and can I say outright disobedience at times?) and yet he never lost patience with me. He kept on leading me.

Looking back, his grace towards me has been amazing.

And so I say with Jacob in amazement and wonder, “God has been my shepherd all my life.”

Not because I’m such a good sheep. But because he is such a good shepherd. And by his grace, he chose to call me his own.

Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

–John Newton

Categories
Ezekiel

Godly leadership?

Ezekiel

In this passage, God really comes down hard on the people who had been the political and spiritual leaders of Judah. What was their problem?

God told them,

Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? (Ezekiel 34:2)

The main problem of these “shepherds” was that they were looking to be served, rather than to serve.

They used their positions to gain power, money, and prestige, but cared nothing for the people they were placed over. Rather, they took advantage of them.

God said,

You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but 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 34:3–4)

In other words, they took everything they could from the sheep but gave nothing back.

They did not take care of the weak or heal the sick or search for those that went astray. Rather, they ruled over them like tyrants.

What was the result? With no protector, the sheep were left to the wolves.

So they were scattered because there was no shepherd, and when they were scattered they became food for all the wild animals. (Ezekiel 34:5)

So God told the shepherds, “I hold you accountable for what’s happened to my flock, the people of Israel. I hold you responsible for the fall of Jerusalem, and all the people who have now been scattered among the nations.

“I will remove you from your position, and I myself will become their shepherd.”

And that’s what God did. He brought all of the Israelites back to their own land by his own power and might.

And then Jesus came. When Jesus came down to this earth, he was God in human form. But when he came, he said,

[I] did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Mark 10:45)

Jesus came as a servant. A good shepherd. As such, he loved us so much that he died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins.

And now, by his blood, we who were scattered and separated from God have now been brought near to him. He heals our scars and our wounds, and makes us whole again.

But the question you need to ask yourself is, “What kind of leader are you?”

You might say to me, “Me? A leader? I’m no leader.”

But if you have children, you’re a leader to them.

If you have a wife, God calls you to be a leader to her.

If you’re a boss, you’re a leader to the people under you.

And if there are people following you in whatever ministry you do at church, you are definitely a leader.

But whether you’re a leader at church, at home, or at work, Jesus calls us to follow his example.

To care for the people under you. To put their needs above your own. To help bring healing where they need healing and give guidance where they need guidance.

That’s what Jesus did for us. Let us do it for each other.