THE GOOD SHEPHERD

And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. -[1Pe 5:4]

[Joh 10:14] "I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, [Joh 10:27-28] "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; (28) and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

Sheep. What do we know about sheep? Why do you suppose the Lord elected to use the sheep as His relational example or emblem of you and I? Let's take a look at what we can discover about the character and behavior of sheep. CAUTION: This might get a bit uncomfortable for some.....Just keeping it real!

SHEEP 101: Sheep are FOLLOWERS. If one sheep wanders off somewhere, you can bet others will follow. No matter if the place they roam is good or bad, safe or dangerous. They think they are bright. Reality is that they are not. Sheep are hard-wired from birth to be followers. Once in a while a leader sheep can rise to the top. (did you catch that?--Leader Sheep vs. Leadership?) Most do not do well in that realm. Leaders-in-the-sheep often get the flock into trouble, the outcome is generally bad.  Once in a while, a Leader-sheep will excel but generally are few and far between. These successful Leader-sheeps follow the voice of the Good Shepherd.

Sheep are social animals, they flock together, they need companionship. They don't do well alone. Sheep never walk a straight line. Sheep are scared of just about everything that moves, are easily influenced and panic quickly.

Sheep like routines. They don't react well to sudden change. Sheep will always move toward other sheep, or, things that look like sheep!

Sheep have no depth perception, and they fear new visual objects. They have blind spots in vision that can be problematic. They like things to be unchanging. Sheep are not very discerning, if it looks like a sheep or smells like a sheep they will probably follow it. (right off a cliff)

If they fall onto their backs in an indention of the ground, they cannot get back up on their feet. If not discovered and helped, the sheep can die, or become another animals lunch.

Sheep know the shepherd who constantly leads them. They will follow his voice. If there is trouble to be gotten into, sheep will be there.

We, you and I, are the sheep. That is why we need a shepherd.

[Psa 23:1-3] The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. (2) He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. (3) He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. [Isa 53:6] All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.

The Lord God made us. He knows our ways. He knows if we are left to our own devices, we will fail. Sin does that. We are born with the curse of sin. The Chief Shepherd is the only antidote, the only door.

[Joh 10:11] "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. [Eze 34:16] "I will seek the lost, bring back the scattered, bind up the broken and strengthen the sick; but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with judgment. [1Pe2:25] For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls.

Do you know your Shepherd's voice. Do you follow HIM? Will you follow HIM?

HAVE YOU READ YOUR BIBLE TODAY?