The Good Shepherd


Prayer: Dear Lord God, Heavenly Father. Into Your hands I bring my day. Into Your hands I surrender my life. Please fill my day with Your love and blessing, and cause me to share those gifts with others. Fill up my heart during our time together, that I might go out and be a bearer of Your great love. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

Read: Ezekiel 34:11-24
http://www.esvbible.org/Ezekiel 34:11-24

Think about It: In 597 BC, the prophet / priest Ezekiel was exiled into Babylon with 10,000 fellow Jews. As the world power-houses of the day used the Palestinian area as a battle ground, the Jewish nation was decimated. Thus Ezekiel finds himself and his family in a foreign land, separated from the Temple and from all of the trappings that made up their religion. But this did not cause Ezekiel to stop telling the people about their God, nor did he cease to speak hopefully about the future of God’s people. As God’s message continues to be shared in desperate times, the image of the Good Shepherd emerges as one of Ezekiel’s  favorite pictures of our Father’s love.

While many of the nuances of what a shepherd does have been lost in our urban culture, it is a beautiful concept that well describes our relationship with an all-powerful God. Jesus appropriates the role of Good Shepherd as He ministers among the people while on the earth. (See Matthew 25:32–46; Luke 15:3–7; John 10:7–18; Hebrews 13:20 and 1 Peter 2:25.) And here, in our reading for today, Ezekiel shares a picture that brings a sense of security into a troubled world. The role of shepherd is that of someone who cares for the sheep above all else, intentionally and sacrificially.

Now read the first few verses of the passage again. Here is the Good Shepherd, promising to bring His sheep back home to the land where they belong. Imagine you were living in exile, away from all that you know and love. Your family may no longer be able to live together. You may have lost friends, or wonder what will happen to you. Into that struggle come these Words that the Shepherd will restore order and justice to your life. He will bring you home and take care of You. It’s what we all want – even today. We may not be living in exile. We may not have been stripped of home and family. But we are all in need of the Good Shepherd’s loving care. We are in need of His rescue from our own stubborn sinfulness. His Words come into our situation and bring us peace, just as they brought peace 2500 years ago to a people in trouble.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, my Good Shepherd. I thank You for knowing me perfectly. Thank You for always providing for my every need and for loving me so gently and kindly. Please make me aware of Your great care and help me to always come when I hear Your voice to that I   follow my Good Shepherd. In Your name I pray. Amen.

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