The Great Shepherd
I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep. I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd. John 10:14-16
When growing up, my father had a distinguishing voice. I could seemingly hear it from hundreds of feet away. One of my friends was amazed at how my father could speak softly on one end of the house and I responded even though I was well on the other side of the house. Again, we are not talking ten feet away either. As I reflect on that time in my life, I wondered why I heard his voice so clearly. He hardly ever raised is voice, which is why I was so intimidated when he did. It seems that because he was the primary authority figure in the house, I made sure that I not only heard his voice but also listened intently to make sure that I heard it as a sign of respect.
This brought me to how I hear God’s voice. There are times when I feel like I do not hear it at all. Yet, there are other times when it is crystal clear, and it can be as if I am having morning coffee with him at my favorite breakfast nook. It is timely that my church spoke on the topic of contentment. That is because I do not panic as much when I do not hear God’s voice. That is because I know He is with me, and when He speaks, I hear Him. That is how I know God, and I’m humbled that he not only knows me but cares so much for me. He is truly a great shepherd.
Jesus Christ is worthy of the title ‘The Good Shepherd.’ Yes, He is so much more than that, and I spent time thinking about those titles other than the obvious one of being God. There is the light of the world (“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” - John 8:12b), Son of Man (I am. And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven. – Mark 14:62b), and of course Messiah (I am the Messiah! – John 4:26b) among others. These comments center on the words ‘I am,’ which is the same identification as God gave Moses when he asked who he should tell Israel has sent him to set them free. When I think of how Jesus defined the good shepherd in today’s verses, the words that resonate with me include ‘know,’ ‘sacrifice,’ ‘also,’ ‘listen,’ and ‘one.’ We not only know who Jesus is, but He knows who each of us are. He sacrificed His life so that we would have one with God. He is not just our God but also God over those who may not even acknowledge Him today. He listens to us when we are in need or peril to protect and guide us. And we are truly one under His dominion. All of this is good but there is a saying that a team is greater than the sum of its parts. All these attributes of our relationship with Jesus are evidence of His goodness, but the sum of them together points to something greater: His undying love for us. That is what moves Him from simply good to ultimately being great!
We are grateful for the love Jesus shows for us. There are so many things to say about how great God is. Today, it is a humble reminder of just how much He loves us freely, unconditionally, and just as we are. How great is that? Let us be thankful as Paul is of Him when he said:
I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 1:12-14)
How can you both reflect on and give thanks to how good Jesus has been in your life? What attributes of the Good Shepherd can you take on? My prayer is we take a moment to simply be grateful for our savior, Jesus Christ, The Great Shepherd. Amen.