CENTRAL THOUGHT
The good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.
HYMN: GUIDE ME, O THOU GREAT JEHOVAH.
TEXT: Psalm 23:1-6, John 10:1-18
INTRODUCTION In describing the Lord as the shepherd, the Psalmist wrote out of the Lord’s inspiration from his personal experience having spent his early years caring for the sheep. The Lord is the Good Shepherd of the Christian flock. The good shepherd often slept in the sheep fold to protect the sheep. Jesus the Good Shepherd, cares for His flock. In this lesson, we shall examine the relationship between Him and His flock, observing carefully His tender and loving care for His sheep.
LESSON OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this study are:
1.To understand who the Good Shepherd is.
2.To understand what is expected of the sheep.
3.To identify some blessings that God bestows on His sheep.
4.To understand the consequences of not heeding to the Shepherd’s voice.
5.To examine the relationship the Shepherd expects among the flock.
BIBLE TRUTH
Q1A. WHAT DOES THE WORD SHEPHERD MEAN?
Simply put, Shepherd is a person who takes care of sheep, leads, guides, and guards the sheep to good pastures and against any intruder or enemy.
He is also one who provides spiritual care and guidance for a group of people.
Q1B. WHO IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD?
The Lord Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, that is why He could lay down His life for the Sheep. All believers in Him constitute the sheep.
Psalm 100:3 makes us understand that it is God that made us and not we ourselves; we as His people, and the sheep of His pasture.
Q2. WHAT IS EXPECTED FROM THE SHEEP? John 10:3-5, 27, 1 Sam. 15:22
The sheep is expected to heed the voice of the Good Shepherd by following Him faithfully. The sheep should be in absolute obedience to the Shepherd who will go before it or lead it to the green pasture.
Thus, the sheep will have contentment because it is following the leadership of the Good Shepherd who understands the need of the sheep. The sheep should beware of hirelings whose ultimate motive is self and its gratification.
Q3. HOW DOES THE SHEPHERD EXPECT THE FLOCK TO RELATE TO ONE ANOTHER? Acts 2:44-47, Eph. 4:1-6, Phil. 2:1-8
The basic relationship that is expected among the flock of the Good Shepherd is Love. This love will make every believer who make up the flock to see one another as brethren in the big family of God. This will make them, like the early Christians in Jerusalem, to share all that they have so that all can benefit from the blessings of God. It will make us recognize that as part of God’s family, we have a responsibility to help one another in every way possible.
This type of relationship will create a healthy Christian community which will attract people to Christ just like it was in the early Church. The flock should be untied and not divided for any reason and be a source of encouragement one to another.
Q4. WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES OF NOT HEEDING THE SHEPHERD’S VOICE? 1 Sam. 15:22-23, John 15:6
The consequences of not heeding the Shepherd’s voice are better imagined than experienced. The sheep that does not listen would go astray and as such fall easy prey to the adversary (i.e. the devil seeking who he may devour).
He would suffer loss of all that the Good Shepherd offers the obedient sheep namely: guidance, provision, protection, counsel, peace etc.
If the sheep fails to find its way back to the Good Shepherd by repentance there is the danger of eternal separation from Him. Thus, he would spend eternity in hell.
Q5. IDENTIFY SOME BLESSINGS GOD BESTOWS ON HIS SHEEP
There are so many blessings that God bestows on His sheep. However, a few of them are highlighted here.
The first blessing that is available to the sheep is contentment. Verse 1 of Psalm 23 says “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want”. This means that as a sheep, God will supply all our needs. This is a wonderful blessing.
Secondly, He leads us in the path of righteousness this we cannot go astray as long as we remain faithful in following Him. When we allow Him lead us, we will not fall into sin, though temptations may come and at the end of our journey here on earth, we shall inherit eternal life with Him.
Thirdly, we are protected from all evil even when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. The good shepherd will bring us safely through all kind of harm and danger to the shame of the enemy.
Finally, He will cause us to dwell in His house for ever. The Good Shepherd and Bishop of our souls has promised to guide and protect us through life and bring us safely home to live with Him forever. This is the ultimate expectation of all true believers who are the sheep of the Good Shepherd.
DAILY LIVING APPLICATION
We are God’s people, the sheep of His pasture. Just as a shepherd cares for his sheep, Jesus the Good Shepherd cares for us His flock.
He loves us with an everlasting love and is committed to fulfill all that He has promised us. Let us follow Him obediently allowing His word to rule our lives daily.
MEMORY VERSE
John 10:27
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me”.
DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE
Monday: The Good Shepherd
Psa. 23:1, Jn. 10:11, 14
Tuesday: We are His sheep
Psa. 100:3, Jn 10:14-16, 21:17
Wednesday: The responsibility of the sheep.
1 Sam. 15:22, Jn 10:3-5, 27
Thursday: God’s blessings upon His sheep.
Psa. 23:1-6
Friday: Have the mind of Christ among yourselves as sheep.
Phil. 2:1-8
Saturday: Relationship among the sheepfold.
Acts 2:45-47, 4:32, Eph. 4:1-6