The Good Shepherd

 

1 Kings 3; Psalms 83–84; Ezekiel 34; Ephesians 1

For some time I’ve been concerned about the people of God and our future in a world that has lost its senses. Not only that, many who claim to be Christian seem to use that ‘status’ to justify themselves but forgetting our responsibility toward one another. This was a particular problem in the OT family of God in that those given charge to take care of God’s people were not doing their job. The prophets constantly warned these ‘shepherds’ to take care of God’s ‘sheep’ but . . .

“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them.” (Ezekiel 34:2–6)

God not only promised to right these wrongs but to give them one shepherd who would do as He required. He spoke of David, yet the prophecy points to Jesus Christ, who became the Savior of all who believe and our caring, guiding Shepherd.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. (Ephesians 1:3–10)

That is the Shepherd that God wanted! I’m truly thankful for the power of Christ to take care of His people, I’m to trust Him to do just that, not worry about the children of God but be thankful for the hope we have in Him. I’m to do my part but I cannot do it all. He will make good things happen because He is the Great Shepherd and I am just one of many under His care.

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (Ephesians 1:15–23)

APPLY: This chapter in Ephesians is so rich that reading it is cause for great delight and for deep confidence. The One who died so we could have eternal life is head over all and fills each of His people with what we need to become the people He wants us to be. I can trust Him. I must still pray and care for the needs around me but with thanksgiving and with assurance that He will build His church just as He promised.

 

Praying God’s thoughts . . .

One of my friends prays specific requests using Scripture in her prayers. She shares how God has specifically answered, just as she asked. We agree that this isn’t about being specific as much as it is about praying God’s will, praying His thoughts as they are expressed in His Word.

And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. (1 John 5:14–15)

This isn’t about word for word praying, like repeating the Lord’s prayer from Matthew or memorizing the prayers of Paul. It is having the same heart, the same desires as God and expressed in those prayers. Today’s devotional reading gives examples of the way to pray God’s thoughts . . .

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. (Ephesians 1:15–23)

Paul hears of those with faith proven by their love for other Christians so he gives thanks for them and remembers to pray for them, not the opposites such as criticism for their worship habits and other differences or expressing impatience with their lack of maturity.

Instead, he asks God to give them these things because these are the things God wants them to have:

·         The Spirit of wisdom (wisdom is the skillful use of knowledge in life’s situations)

·         Knowledge of God that is known only by revelation from the Holy Spirit

·         Enlightenment so they are assured concerning their eternal hope

·         A full realization of all that they have in Christ

·         The understanding of God’s power toward them, power as used to raise Jesus from the dead.

By praying what God wants, we can be certain He will answer those prayers.

This passage shows how Paul cannot help himself as he prays because as he speaks of Christ, he moves from requests for the Ephesians to ways God demonstrated that resurrection power and begins to praise Him. He seated Christ at His right hand, above all others and over all rule and authority — forever. He put all under the feet of Jesus and made Him head over the church which is His body. He is the fullness of God and fills the earth with His glory.

This is how prayer should be. It might start out with what I need or what other Christians need, but soon moves to worship and praise for the Lord Jesus Christ. This morning, we did just that with other people in the Body of Christ. We praised Him for His supply, including wisdom and the knowledge of Him. We expressed our gratitude for the hope we have of eternal life with Him and all that He has done for us in this life.

God answered Paul’s prayer for the Christians at Ephesus, yet also for Christians all over the world and for centuries later. This is the way I want to pray as well.

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Lord Jesus may your thoughts be my thoughts each time I join Your people in worship and prayer. May each of us realize more fully what we have in You — your grace and power and the promises that You give us because You rose from the dead and live forever. May You also give us greater wisdom each day as we need it for the challenges of life here and until You come again . . .

Today’s thankful list . . .

Wonderful time of worship, prayer, singing, listening to Your Word.

Fellowship with Your people.

An afternoon at the horse races watching them run (we don’t bet, just love their beauty).

Unexpectedly meeting two cousins and their spouses in a crowd of hundreds.

Laughing at our son trying to pick winners on criteria like their color and size (his first time watching them run).

No rain when the weather forecast said 50% chance

Waffles and crispy chicken.

A warm home on a cold evening.