Thursday, April 28, 2005

Shepherd

Moses when he prayed for a leader, he asked God for a shepherd for the sheep and military commander who will lead the battle. God told him to appoint Joshua. God assured Moses that Joshua had the Holy Spirit in Him (Numbers 27: 15-18). Joshua had distinguished himself as a humble servant of God, serving Moses with strength and honor in battle against Amalek and in faith when he reported that Canaan could be overcome against the report of the cowardly spies. Joshua had proved beyond a doubt that he believed in a God of grace who inspires us by the working of his Spirit in our hearts and minds to express ourselves through works of faith. 

Why was the role of a Shepherd critical for the children of Israel?

Canaan was a hostile nation whose culture and values were totally alien to the Israelites. If they entered, their faith would be embroiled in differences and would have found themselves in a similar predicament as they did with the Egyptians with conflicting religious values. When two different religions merge, the natural course of action is to find those values that the two have in common. This leads to the dilution of the faith of both religions. Christ said if the salt looses its saltiness, it is only good to be discarded. Thus they needed the watchful eyes of a strong spiritual leader who could guide them through the transition. God promised Joshua the land flowing with milk and honey was going to be theirs. He promised them of his presence, that he would never fail or abandon them. God encouraged them to be strong and courageous. God told them to follow the path set for them through obedience to the laws given through Moses, and to read the scriptures day and night. He assured them that they would succeed (Joshua 1:6-9). Here God was revealing to Joshua the strength and power that came from reading, listening and obeying the word of God.

Psalm 23 is the model Psalm for the role of a Good Shepherd. 

This is probably one of the psalms many Christians today know by heart. It has a ring of the voice of our Lord Jesus to it. We can almost sense Him softly whispering these words to our heart, except when we get a hard knock with the rod and staff. This is one of the psalms of David. It is a psalm of abundant living in green pastures. We can sense the watchful eyes of the good shepherd upon us as he leads us through the paths of righteousness. The Good Shepherd anoints our heads with His Holy Spirit and our cup salvation is overflowing. The Good Shepherd assures us of His presence in the shadow of death.

Christ said that He was the good shepherd who lay down his life for his sheep. 

He was the good shepherd who was the role model for all those who wanted to be shepherds for his flock. The role of a shepherd (John 10:9-15) is critical, as it is the shepherd that protects the sheep from thieves who kill and destroy. St. Paul warns us to watch out for savage wolves who will come to distort the truth and entice people away from the flock (Acts 20:17-38). They are ones that cause divisions in the church. It is this gift of discernment that must be always active in the role of a shepherd. Without this discernment it is very difficult to shepherd the flock.

Do you hear the voice of Jesus asking you if you love Him? Do you hear the voice of the Jesus asking you nourish the needs of someone you know? Have you ever denied or felt ashamed to acknowledge your faith in a loving saviour? Jesus after his resurrection met Peter by the Sea of Galilee (John 21:15-19). He asked Peter three times, “do you love me?” Each time Peter said he did. Jesus told Peter feed (tend) his lambs. It was as if Jesus was going through Peter’s repentance for having denied him three times. This spiritual exercise had a major impact on Peter. Peter who retraced his steps to fishing returned to the ministry of fishing for men and feeding his sheep.

Let us affirm our faith with these simple words, 

"Lord I love you, empower me with the Holy Spirit to strive to be a good shepherd."

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

It is nice and peaceful to be under the supervision and in the
atmosphere created by the sheperd. We become conscious of his presence only
when we are pulled up or when we deviate into dangerous areas. A nice thought very realistic.

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