Prophecies and Perfection of the Shepherd
There's something powerful about understanding what a shepherd actually does, not the greeting card version, but the real, dirt-under-your-fingernails kind of shepherd. Because when Jesus said, "I am the good shepherd," He was picking up centuries of prophetic weight and saying, "This is Me. This is what I've always been."
God's Plan From the Beginning
In Ezekiel 34, God called out the religious leaders of the day, the shepherds who were supposed to care for His people but instead fed themselves. They didn't strengthen the weak, heal the sick, or seek the lost. So God made a declaration: "I myself will search for my sheep and seek them out."
This wasn't plan B. This was always the plan. God was foretelling Jesus, the One who would forever be our judge, Savior, shepherd, and spotless lamb. Everything in the Old Testament was pointing to this moment when Jesus would stand up and say, "I am the good shepherd."
What Makes Him Good
Here's what blows my mind about Jesus as the shepherd: He knows you personally. And I don't mean He knows about you, I mean He knows you the way a husband knows his wife. The Greek word used is ginosko, and it's the same word used for that level of intimacy.
Think about it this way: Would you rather look at a picture of a basket of fruit, or would you rather walk through an orchard, grabbing fruit fresh off the tree and tasting it? That's the difference between knowing about Jesus and actually knowing Him. He wants you in the garden, not staring at a picture.
And here's the kicker, He chose you. In John 10:18, Jesus makes it clear: "No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own free will." When He was in that garden wrestling with what was coming, when He was carrying that cross up the hill, He was looking into eternity. He was looking at you, individually, and saying, "I choose you."
Nobody forced His hand. He could have stopped it at any moment. But He looked into your eyes and said, "You're worth it."
The Two Fights
Here's where I need to be straight with you. There are two fights we're in, and the church has done a really good job highlighting the first one while completely dropping the ball on the second.
The first fight is for your soul. Will you believe Jesus died for you? Will you accept Him as your Savior? That's critical, it's fire insurance, it's eternal life, it's everything.
But if you stop there, you've got a problem.
The second fight is daily picking up your cross and following Him. We've got a lot of people who believe in Jesus but aren't following Him. And we wonder why there's no power moving in the church. Jesus didn't just die so you could have eternal life, He lived so you would know how to live.
Not a Monster in the Sky
Listen, I get it. Maybe you had a bad father. Maybe leaders have broken you. But that's not who God is. From Genesis on, God picked up the imagery of a shepherd, and a shepherd doesn't walk around waiting for his sheep to mess up so he can beat them.
He rescues. He protects. He leads. Yes, He corrects, but it's not about punishment, it's about correction back to His heart. God loved you so much that He put His Son's life on the line for you. That's not someone who just wants a bunch of rules. That's someone who wants a relationship.
The Question
So where are you? Do you know Jesus, or are you just satisfied with the picture of the fruit basket? Have you ever actually decided to follow Him? Because believing in Him and following Him are two very different things.
The good shepherd is looking at you right now. When He was carrying that cross, He was looking at you and saying, "I'm going to do this for you."
Is He worth following?
Don't let the enemy rob you of what the Lord has done for you. The shepherd is calling. The question is, will you follow?
God's Plan From the Beginning
In Ezekiel 34, God called out the religious leaders of the day, the shepherds who were supposed to care for His people but instead fed themselves. They didn't strengthen the weak, heal the sick, or seek the lost. So God made a declaration: "I myself will search for my sheep and seek them out."
This wasn't plan B. This was always the plan. God was foretelling Jesus, the One who would forever be our judge, Savior, shepherd, and spotless lamb. Everything in the Old Testament was pointing to this moment when Jesus would stand up and say, "I am the good shepherd."
What Makes Him Good
Here's what blows my mind about Jesus as the shepherd: He knows you personally. And I don't mean He knows about you, I mean He knows you the way a husband knows his wife. The Greek word used is ginosko, and it's the same word used for that level of intimacy.
Think about it this way: Would you rather look at a picture of a basket of fruit, or would you rather walk through an orchard, grabbing fruit fresh off the tree and tasting it? That's the difference between knowing about Jesus and actually knowing Him. He wants you in the garden, not staring at a picture.
And here's the kicker, He chose you. In John 10:18, Jesus makes it clear: "No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own free will." When He was in that garden wrestling with what was coming, when He was carrying that cross up the hill, He was looking into eternity. He was looking at you, individually, and saying, "I choose you."
Nobody forced His hand. He could have stopped it at any moment. But He looked into your eyes and said, "You're worth it."
The Two Fights
Here's where I need to be straight with you. There are two fights we're in, and the church has done a really good job highlighting the first one while completely dropping the ball on the second.
The first fight is for your soul. Will you believe Jesus died for you? Will you accept Him as your Savior? That's critical, it's fire insurance, it's eternal life, it's everything.
But if you stop there, you've got a problem.
The second fight is daily picking up your cross and following Him. We've got a lot of people who believe in Jesus but aren't following Him. And we wonder why there's no power moving in the church. Jesus didn't just die so you could have eternal life, He lived so you would know how to live.
Not a Monster in the Sky
Listen, I get it. Maybe you had a bad father. Maybe leaders have broken you. But that's not who God is. From Genesis on, God picked up the imagery of a shepherd, and a shepherd doesn't walk around waiting for his sheep to mess up so he can beat them.
He rescues. He protects. He leads. Yes, He corrects, but it's not about punishment, it's about correction back to His heart. God loved you so much that He put His Son's life on the line for you. That's not someone who just wants a bunch of rules. That's someone who wants a relationship.
The Question
So where are you? Do you know Jesus, or are you just satisfied with the picture of the fruit basket? Have you ever actually decided to follow Him? Because believing in Him and following Him are two very different things.
The good shepherd is looking at you right now. When He was carrying that cross, He was looking at you and saying, "I'm going to do this for you."
Is He worth following?
Don't let the enemy rob you of what the Lord has done for you. The shepherd is calling. The question is, will you follow?
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