“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life . . .” (Psalm 23:6)
Drama programs on television sometimes have a person being
pursued. That person usually knows it and shivers in apprehension. But when I was
lost and being pursued by the Lord, I didn’t know He was following me. I never realized
His relentless love and determination until after He caught me. Then, instead
of shivering in fear, my heart overflowed with incredible joy.
Jesus told this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them,
does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that
is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his
shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and
his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that
was lost.’ Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one
sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no
repentance.” (Luke 15:3–7)
Those of us who are His sheep know the joy of being found
and the joy of seeing Jesus bringing others to repentance and carrying them
into the fold. We know that “the eyes of
the Lord run to and fro throughout
the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless
toward him.” (2 Chronicles 16:9) We know that our Shepherd cares for us and
never abandons us.
Our daughter lives near a dairy farm. I hate looking at
it. The farmer feeds the cows, but their barn is in a low spot, a pit that is always
wet with muck. The ‘pasture’ where they go out to rest is filthy also, with no
bedding, no dry footing, and no grass. They are muddy all the time and for a
farm girl whose father would never let that happen, I am appalled. If these
cows were sheep, this farmer would be a poor excuse for a shepherd. If I were
one of his animals and could fight back, I’d stop producing milk and go on
strike!
Yet I am not. I’m only one of God’s lambs who is well
aware of myself and my sin. If I were to get what I deserve from God, my
conditions would be worse than that of those cows. I’d not even get the food
and water that these animals receive. Yet the Lord does not care for me based
on what I deserve or even based on what He expects me to produce. His care for
His sheep totally reflects who He is, the Good Shepherd.
I will extol you, O Lord,
for you have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me. O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
and you have healed me. O Lord,
you have brought up my soul from Sheol; you restored me to life from among
those who go down to the pit. (Psalm 30:1–3)
Here the “pit” is far worse than a mucky barn. It is a word
for dungeon that points to the awful end of those who do not belong to the
Shepherd, those who would rather be lost than repent and rejoice. All I can say
is that I am thankful for His persistence in pursuit and thankful that I was
oblivious to what He was doing until He found me and brought me into His strong
support and care.
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