The Good Shepherd

“You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture. You are my people, and I am your God.  I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”   (Ezekiel 34:31)
 
In the prophet Ezekiel’s day, the nation of Israel was in a bad situation. As a result of years of spiritual and cultural compromise, God had allowed judgment to fall on His people. Jerusalem, the Holy City that had served as a source of pride for the Jewish people, had fallen to the Babylonian conquerors. The best and the brightest people of Israel had been carried away from their homeland to be resettled in Babylon.

God spoke through the prophet, Ezekiel, specifically to the religious leaders of Israel. Using the illustration of shepherds caring for their flocks, the prophet condemned those leaders as bad shepherds. Instead of caring for those they had been called to lead, they were taking advantage of those under their care. The Bible says,
“You have not taken care of the weak. You have not tended the sick or bound up the injured. You have not gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. So my sheep have been scattered without a shepherd and no one has gone to search for them.”  (Ezekiel 34:4)
That was not the end of the story. Again, through the voice of the prophet, God says,
“I myself will search and find my sheep. I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day. I will search for my lost ones who strayed away, and I will bring them safely home again. I will bandage the injured and strengthen the weak.”  (Ezekiel 34:15-16)

That promise was fulfilled in the coming of Jesus, the Messiah. Identifying Himself as the Good Shepherd, Jesus said that He came to give abundant life to His sheep; to bring Good News to the poor, to set the captives free, open the eyes of the blind, lift up the oppressed, and proclaim that the time of the Lord’s favor had come. Now that is Good News!
Posted in
Tagged with , ,

2 Comments


Betty Jane Laughlin - January 26th, 2023 at 8:47am

I'm so thankful 🙏 that He can find me wherever I am. And be with me always ❤

James W. Howell - January 26th, 2023 at 1:47pm

JESUS is My LORD And Savior. I PRAISE him and Thank YOU FATHER for Your Grace And MERCY sending JESUS down to bring A WAY to You ! GLORY

Recent

Archive

 2023

Categories

Tags

Kingdom ability accepted accomplish admit advancing afraid align allowed allow amazing anxious appeared apply assures attention attentive attitude baptized beaituful beliefs believed believers believer believes believe believing belong benefits blessed blessings blessing bless bond brokenhearted burden burial buried capable care caring challenges change changing charge churches church comfortable commandment commitment committed communicate communion community comparisons complete compromise concerns confessed confess confidence confident conflict connected connection context control conviction convince corrected created create creation crucifixation culture daily decide delivers description deserved deserve desie desired desires desire desrtuction destiny direction directly direct disappeared discouraged discovered embrace embracing emotions emotion encounter encouraged encouragement encouragers encourages encourage encouraging engaged engage engaging enjoyed enjoys enjoy enslaved equip eternal eternity evaluate everlasting excitement expand express faithfulness faithful faith favor fear feelings feeling fellowship focus followed followers follower following follow forgave forgiveness forgive foundation freedom free fresh friendship friends fulfilled gave generous gifts given givers giver give giving glad glimpse glorfiy glorify glorious glory goodness gospel grace grateful grieve guidance happy hardship healed healing hearing hearts heart heaven help holy honors honor hopeful hopeless hopes hope humbly impact importance important innocent interest invitation journey joy knowing knowledge known leadership lead learning learn lonely loved love loving marriage meditate memeber mercy message minds ministry miracle missing mission moment obedience obedient obey observer operate opportunities oppressed overwhelmed passion pastors patient peace peae perfect plan pleasing powerful power praised praise praising prayers prayer praying pray preacher preaching preach presence prevent primary principle probelm problem process proclaim produce promised promises promise prosperous prosper protecting protect proud proved provide purity purpose pursuing raise receive recieved redemption refuse reignite rejected relationship remember reminds repentance repent respect responsibility resurrection return reveals royalty running sacrifice safe salvation satisfy saved save scriptual secured seeking seek sermon servant server serve share sharing significance sinners sin soul speak spirirt spiritually spiritual spirit spread strength stress struggle struggling substain suffering surrender surround talents teaches teach tears temptation tempted thoughtful tradition troubling true truly trusting trust truth trutyh unbelievers unshamed valuable values value violated wants willing wisdom wise witnessed witness worrying worshipping worship