“The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing”
We might imagine a shepherd only as a sentimental caretaker of sheep. We might picture a Precious Moments bible story where all that shepherds seem to do is lovingly cradle their sheep. The image of a shepherd in the bible, however, is far more encompassing and demanding. A shepherd is “a manager, an owner, a protector, and a provider.” In other words, to say that the LORD is my shepherd is to say that we are in the care of someone else. We are not the ones in charge. We have taken our small kingdoms and surrendered it to the Kingdom of God. It is only when the LORD is our shepherd that we can truly say, I shall not be in want or lack anything. There are, however, false shepherds and hired hands who do not seek our good, but seek to “abandon the sheep” into trouble. So it really matters who or what we are entrusting the care of our lives too. Do we know who our shepherd is? Is it money? Is it fame? Is it our material possessions? Is it ourselves? Many of us go through life experiencing the disappointments of false shepherds who leave us wanting. It is to a people who have gone astray that Jesus says that he alone is “the good shepherd”. He alone is the shepherd that can provide a life without lack. What would it mean to follow this Good Shepherd today?
Home Church Questions:
1. Greg Boyd once wrote that, “The quality of our love for God can never outrun the beauty of the God we mentally envision.” How does seeing the LORD as your shepherd shape what you believe about God? What do you notice in yourself as you mentally envision God as a shepherd?
2. What does it look like to be so content in God that you can say, “I lack nothing”?
3. Philip Keller writes that, “Sheep do not just take care of themselves as some might suppose. They require, more than any other class of livestock, endless attention and meticulous care. To say that the LORD is my shepherd is to say that we are in the care of someone else.” How are sheep a good picture of us? How does the metaphor of sheep relate to your personal experiences?
4. When is a time the Lord led you like a shepherd? How does remembering that help you to trust in Him more? How does that cause you to follow Him better where He leads?
5. What might it mean for you and your home church to follow the Good Shepherd today? How can you avoid being led by false shepherds, thieves, and wolves?