What do you know about tending a flock of sheep? I don’t know first hand what it’s like, but I know that God tells us that sheep NEED a shepherd! They need a GOOD SHEPHERD! They are vulnerable and valuable livestock that need the protection and guidance of their shepherd.

We are also valuable in God’s eyes, and we are oh so vulnerable! Because of these similarities God compares a flock of sheep needing a shepherd, to us, and what we need.

When reading scripture, we can understand why a flock of sheep need a shepherd.

Sheep tend to wander off and get lost; Matthew 9:36, Luke 15:4
Sheep were dependent on the shepherd to protect them from wild animals; John 10:12
Sheep depended on their shepherd to lead them to food and water; Genesis 29:13

Verses from God’s Holy and True Scripture.

A shepherd needed to constantly look after his flock! They tend to wander off, straying from the flock, having no knowledge of the dangers that await them. When they did this they had no protection from the wild animals that sought to kill them, and no sense of direction to search for food and water. The shepherd provides them with food, water, and protection. He provides them with what they need even though they may not realize it.

There are many verses throughout scripture that describe us as sheep, and Jesus as our good shepherd.

The Lord is my shepherd; Psalm 23,
A sheep needs a shepherd; Matthew 9:36,
House of Israel is His flock; Ezekiel 34:31,
You were straying like sheep; I Peter 2:25.
We are the sheep of God’s pasture; Psalm 79:13

Verses from God’s Holy and True Scripture.

Just like sheep we tend to stray from the flock (christian fellowship) and the Good Shepherd (God; the Father, Son and Holy Spirit). When we do this, our Good Shepherd always comes and gets us! He watches over us, provides us with what we need, leads us to where we need to go (in this life and the next), and is always by our side.

Sometimes, just like those sheep, we stray without the intention of leaving. We get caught up in what we are doing, and before we know it His presence is no where to be found, because we have left His side. But, sometimes we don’t stray, we leave intentionally. We get scare because we see so much danger in the distance that we run and hide. When we do this, we are not just hiding from the danger, we are also hiding from our Good Shepherd, who wants to help us!

OUR FINAL DESTINATION WHEN THE GOOD SHEPHERD LEADS US.

We need the guidance and protection that only God can give us! We need to fully depend on our Good Shepherd to lead us to the still waters and perfect pastures. The journey might have rough paths, narrow ledges, close calls, and some sleepless nights that will make us want to run and hide, but He will get us to that perfect pasture if we let Him! It may be a rough road, but He wants to guide us and keep us close to Him along the way.

That perfect pasture is not in this current life, but the next! Yes, there is life after death! It is a place of perfection, the perfect pasture that only Jesus can lead us to!

We hope you search our website, Christian Fellowshipping, for more encouraging ways to fellowship with God and other believes.

References:
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.