Sheep and Lambs: October 2023
Table of Contents
Sheep and Lambs
God in love provided for Himself and for us a Lamb, a Lamb to be offered as a burnt offering and as a sin offering to make atonement for us, righteously removing sin and sins from His sight and reconciling us to Himself. What did the Lamb do? “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Heb. 9:14). You and I are now sheep and lambs. Our conscience has been purged from dead works so that we are now called to “serve the living God.” He, the Lamb, served by offering Himself. And we? We who now are His sheep are exhorted to act like Him who is now our Shepherd. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom. 12:1).
Who Are Christ's Sheep?
“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand” (John 10:27-28).
When the Lord Jesus spoke these words, there were religious people all around, but were they Christ’s sheep? This was the all-important question. There was “the hireling” too and “the thief”—“the stranger” and “the wolf,” but oh, how different they were from the good Shepherd! We must not forget that there are still many sheep round about us who are very dear to the heart of Jesus. He calls His sheep “His own sheep.” He said, “The good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.” What amazing love!
One characteristic of Christ’s sheep is that they hear His voice. No matter who may be the instrument, the question with them is, Is it Christ’s voice? “They know not the voice of strangers,” but the Shepherd’s voice they know well. When Paul went to Thessalonica, they received his testimony because it was God’s truth. They were not taken up with the servant, but with the message that he brought. In it they heard the voice of the good Shepherd, who laid down His life for the sheep. They therefore turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, who delivered them from the wrath to come (1 Thess. 1:9-10).
When Paul went to the polished citizens of Corinth, he did not use “enticing words of man’s wisdom.” “I determined,” said he, “not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). Thus they heard the voice of Jesus the good Shepherd through Paul.
The question is, What is the Lord Jesus, who is seated on the right hand of God in the heavens, saying now? If He were now to speak in an audible voice, would it not be, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life?” (John 5:24). The believer looks up to heaven, listens to His Word, and receives His testimony. Many know the way of salvation, but have not received Christ as their Savior. “Ye believe not,” said Jesus, “because ye are not of My sheep” (John 10:26).
Christ knows His sheep, and the acquaintance is mutual. “He knoweth them that trust in Him” (Nah. 1:7). Many a professor will come in that day, saying, “Have we not prophesied in Thy name?” But Jesus will say to them, “I never knew you: depart from Me.” They never had any acquaintance with Christ; they were never His sheep.
Another feature in Christ’s sheep is that they follow Christ. This is not following creeds or ordinances, but Christ. It is not following men, however godly they may be, but only inasmuch as they are following Christ. This Satan hates and tries to hinder, but Christ has left us an example that we should follow His steps. We are kept here for no other object than to follow Christ. This marks Christ’s sheep. Are we searching the Scriptures to find out His steps, that we may follow Him? Are we, through honor and dishonor, seeking only to please Him? It does not say we ought to do so, but that we do follow Christ. This shows us to be Christ’s sheep.
Mark the Security of Christ’s Sheep
First, they have everlasting life. “I give unto them eternal life.” “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:23). Eternal life, then, comes to us in the way of gift. It is not life for a day or a year, but forever ― eternal life. Your life is hid with Christ in God. Christ is our life. Christ is the Giver; the sinner, the receiver. “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36).
Second, “They shall never perish.” What perfect rest and peace this gives the soul! He is faithful that promised; He cannot deny Himself. The true believer need have no misgiving as to the future. He who is almighty in power and perfect in love says, “They shall never perish.” Observe, it is absolute and unconditional: “They shall never perish.” What more can we need to give us perfect rest of soul?
Third, “Neither shall any pluck them out of My hand.” The word “man” is in italics. It shows us that no power shall be able to separate us from Christ’s keeping. What perfect security this gives! Surely it is a threefold cord that can never be broken.
All dear children of God do not enter into the joy of these precious realities. They read men’s books and embrace men’s opinions, instead of going only to the Scriptures for God’s mind and resting on His precious words about Jesus, which can never pass away.
H. H. Snell, The Evangelist, Vol. 1, 1867 (adapted)
My Sheep Hear My Voice and Follow Me
If there is one lack in souls more marked than many others, it is feebleness of understanding as to these two great points — hearing and following.
The quietness of communion is but little known, not to say enjoyed, in this busy, active day. How truly the moment speaks loudly of unrest and unreality, and how little is known, even among the saints, of that deep, personal, unexpressed joy in Christ.
The satisfaction of the heart in the personal nearness to Christ—the being in His company for the simple joy of it—is true communion. Thus it is we have common thoughts with Him, which is the meaning of communion. When this is the case, we know the mind of our Lord and Master, and this it is which qualifies us for every service as Christ’s confidential servants. It is well to bear in mind that the amount of our service or the laboriousness of our work do not of themselves constitute us confidential servants.
There is a very intimate connection between the two attitudes of soul we are considering; in fact, they wait the one on the other. It is very blessed to see the producing and maintaining power of hearing and following Christ. In a word, it is Christ, for He and He alone is the blessed source and spring of all that has its rise and satisfaction in Himself. To be a good listener, one must be both free and at rest.
Following seems to come in as a consequence of what we have had before us: “My sheep hear My voice ... and they follow Me.” As it is the Shepherd’s voice that is heard and known by the sheep, so it is the Shepherd Himself they follow. He it is who has gone before. In John 10 we find the blessed Lord, scorned and reproached, leaving the ancient fold of Judaism, and thus going before His sheep. He is the security to all His own, for His way is the true way, as well as the authority for the sheep to follow Him. He is their hiding place from danger and their safe conduct for the way.
It is very blessed to see how they know His voice (vss. 4-5). They may not know all the false voices of strangers, but their security is in knowing His voice, and they likewise follow because they know it. It is very blessed to be allowed to serve, but many a one serves who is not following. Would that there were more who were willing to follow a rejected Lord and Master, and to esteem it their holiest joy to tread the path He has walked in! Rough it may be, but it has been trodden by Himself, who has left His own mark upon every rose and every thorn.
“A little while, He’ll come again!
Let us the precious hours redeem;
Our only grief to give Him pain,
Our joy to serve and follow Him.”
W. T. Turpin (adapted)
Life More Abundantly
“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). In these words the Lord Jesus is speaking of His sheep — who know His voice and are known of Him. He laid down His life for the sheep. He came that they might have life. He died that they might live. And, whoever the sheep may be and in whatever age of the world’s history they may live, they owe the life everlasting which they possess to Jesus. This all believe and rejoice in.
But to whom, or to what time, does the Lord refer when He says that they might have this life “more abundantly”? No doubt it refers to His sheep, but do the words relate to all sheep?
These words do indeed relate to all who receive Him, and they describe the life He gives. He came, as He says, that they might have life, and have it more abundantly. There is a fullness of blessing for the sheep declared in John 10 which neither the law nor the prophets ever breathed, and this is in keeping with the Lord’s own mission and dignity. He had come to utter words that none of His messengers had ever spoken. He is the life, and the record of Him on earth is, “The life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us” (1 John 1:2). When reading the Lord’s own words, we ought to expect things more wonderful than those brought to us by the servants of God who preceded His steps. The “more abundantly” refers, without doubt, to all the sheep who know Him, since He came to this earth.
But to what time do the words refer? Do they look on to the future state when the believer, having left this world, shall in paradise abide in Christ’s presence, or to that day when, after the resurrection, he shall be clothed in Christ’s glory and shall dwell in heaven with Him? No doubt it will be then life, and life more abundantly for all. Life and glory will then be bound together. Eternal life in its fullness will then be rejoiced in. Does “more abundantly” then refer only to a day not yet present?
Surely it speaks of our own day, of this very present time, when the body is weak, when the world is strong, when temptations surround the children of God, and when their hearts sink oftentimes within them. Yes, even now, this day, in this lifetime, since He who is the life has come, it is we who possess the life He gives, have it, as He says, even “more abundantly.”
The chapter wherein the words occur helps us to lay hold of the “abundantly” Jesus connects with the life. In the words recorded in John 10:4 there is an abundance mentioned in the life before unknown. “He,” the good Shepherd Himself, “goeth before them.” Not prophets, priests, or kings, but Jesus is the Leader and the Guide, and in the presence of the life He gives, “the sheep follow Him.” This joyful nearness, this positive peace, and this personal love were never known till He came. Here, in its enjoyment, is life “more abundantly” than was known by His flock till He, the good Shepherd, came.
They “shall go in and out, and find pasture” (vs. 9). Were these gifts of liberty and of food known to the sheep till the good Shepherd came? No, they could not be, but they are ours now! He has led His sheep out of the legal fold of Judaism and brought them into the liberty of grace and into pasture of His own providing. Life “more abundantly” is thus seen as the portion of the sheep. And such as these have languished for years in the barren places of legality and know in their souls, when brought out of that barrenness into the green pastures of His grace, the meaning of a past life of spiritual distress and a present one of spiritual abundance.
One further fruit of the life more abundantly we note, as taught in His words, “I am the good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father” (John 10:14-15), for so these wonderful words of life should be read. Never, until they came from His own lips, were such words heard upon this earth! They teach the perfect intimacy which exists between the Lord and His own. No distance whatever abides between the good Shepherd and the flock, and, though experimentally, we may say, we know too little of the intimacy, yet nonetheless it does exist.
Life—and life more abundantly—is our portion, and ours today. As we draw near to Jesus our Lord, we shall hear with quickened ears His words, and so discover what is the abundance of the life.
H. F. Witherby
Sheep for the Slaughter
I would like to take up the subject of power in patience, not in a doctrinal way, but rather in a practical way, as it relates to our path during the present day.
God gave us power to become sons (John 1:12). It was His mighty power that took us out of the condition of death and seated us together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Eph. 1:3). It is this same power which is the inner enabling that will give us to live a life and walk a path that agrees with our relationship to God and our standing in Christ.
Strengthened With All Might
Let us turn to Colossians 1:11: “Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness.” How far removed from our thoughts is the precious truth presented here! “All might” and “glorious power” are coupled with the simple, unobtrusive grace of patience — that attribute of love which “suffereth long, and is kind” (1 Cor. 13:4). This is the rarest of flowers now. God is not bestowing power to make us famous and illustrious in the world or in religious circles, for a man can be all this in the energy of mere nature. To walk the solitary way, disreputable and small, unnoticed and unappreciated, will require more than the activity of pious flesh. Restless man cannot endure this; he demands the intoxicating whirl of foes vanquished and victories won. I would not discourage any, neither would I encourage a spirit of laziness. But the word for the present is, “Hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (Rev. 3:11). Alas, how few are up to this, and in grasping for more, how many have let slip what God has already made ours!
By Weakness and Defeat
Many today miss the joy they might possess simply because they do not see it is their privilege to keep, not to conquer. Where there is conquest (as a rule), victory must come out of defeat. Thus, the Lord’s followers could say, “This is an hard saying; who can hear it?” (John 6:60), when He told them that only through His death could there be blessing for them. Doubtless this is the expression of many a zealous heart. I can only reply, Look at the cross:
“By weakness and defeat,
He won the mead and crown.”
Let us look further at our path as we are on the way to His victory. I know how inspiring it is to be pressing the foe, but how few have power to “having done all, to stand” (Eph. 6:13), when enemies are pressing us. It is very easy to shout, Victory! with the foe disabled and ourselves possessor of the spoils; it is quite another thing to be able to say, “For Thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter,” and then be able to add, “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors.” But how is this? “Through Him that loved us.” (See Romans 8:36-37.) We are conquerors, though for the present we are as sheep for the slaughter. Hallelujah! Love and praise belong to Christ.
Patience in Long-Suffering
Stephen was one “full of power,” and he is the first who comes before us prominently after the ruin set in. His strength was displayed in what he endured. In the presence of the council, he wears an angel’s face, and when the brutal mob makes his body a target for stones, is there any giving way? The poor “earthen vessel” breaks, but the “treasure” — “patience and long-suffering” — is there, for I hear him say, “Lay not this sin to their charge.” The Christ in glory held his heart still (see Acts 7:55-59).
Paul and Silas are a happy illustration of this truth. Hear them singing praises to God at midnight, not in a big meeting; no, they are in prison, feet fast in the stocks and backs bleeding. But there is perfect tranquility, not even a cry for deliverance. The power that enabled them to endure was sweeter to them than escape (compare 2 Cor. 12:7-10). “Patience” so blessedly possessed them that when the doors did fly open, there was no hurry. Thus, the grace of long-suffering had already made them free; their hearts had plenty of room even if their bodies were in a prison cell. They were in communion with One who is skilled in converting prisons into palaces and in making rugged stones shine like rubies. Perhaps walls quite as real and formidable surround us: Are we in the secret of strength?
Glad Anticipation
Have we been looking for something great, and are we about to break down because we have not found it? Have we anticipated a brighter day for ourselves than this, and because it is not ours, are we getting to feel that we are out of the current of His will and, hence, where we cannot claim His support? Fear not, beloved ones; our very feebleness is our title to this. While we may not have the appearance of an army with banners, we may be seen leaving the wilderness leaning upon our Beloved. We must regard with suspicion that which is of large dimensions now. See in Philadelphia and Laodicea that which respectively characterizes the true and the false at the close (Rev. 3). It must be seen by all who are conversant with the course of time, as detailed in God’s Word, that only for a little longer, at most, will there be need for the exercise of “patience.” He is to be contemplated now as the Nearing One. So, let us in glad anticipation sing; it may not be an earthquake song; the bolts and bars may not jostle loose, nor the prisoners hear us, but we can make melody in our hearts to the Lord (Eph. 5:19).
We may sing just for Him. Men may not hear, but the songs of heaven will not shut out this symphony from His ear. “Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (James 5:8).
F. C. Blount (adapted)
Ninety-Nine Which Need No Repentance
From the two verses that open Luke 15, it would seem that our Lord’s words about grace and discipleship drew the publicans and sinners toward Him, while they repelled the Pharisees and scribes. He did indeed receive sinners and eat with them: Such actions are according to the very nature of grace. The Pharisees flung out the remark as a taunt, while the Lord accepted it as a compliment. He then proceeded by parables to show that He not only received sinners but positively sought them; He also demonstrated what kind of reception sinners get when they are received.
First, the parable of the lost sheep: Here we see in the shepherd a picture of the Lord Himself. The ninety-nine, who represent the Pharisee and scribe class, were left not in the fold but in the wilderness — a place of barrenness and death. The one sheep that was lost represents the publican and sinner class. They are the ones who are lost, and know it — the “sinner that repenteth” (vs. 7). The Shepherd finds the sheep; the labor and toil are His. Having found it, He secures it and brings it home. His shoulders become its security. Never does He have to say, “Sorrow with Me, for I have lost My sheep which was found.”
It is impossible to find on earth the “ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance” (vs. 7), though, sadly, it is easy to find ninety-nine who imagine themselves to be such. Yet if they could be found, there is more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than there could be over them. All the myriads of holy angels in heaven have never caused such joy as one repentant sinner. What astounding grace this is!
The parable of the lost piece of silver pursues the same general theme, but with a few special details. The woman with her operations in the house represents the subjective work of the Spirit in the souls of men, rather than the objective work of Christ. The Spirit lights a candle within the dark heart and creates the disturbance which ends in the finding of the silver. The joy is here said to be in the presence of the angels; that is, it is not the joy of the angels but of the Godhead, before whom they stand.
Then follows the parable of the “prodigal son.” The opening words are very significant. The Lord had been saying, “What man of you... doth not... go after?” (vs. 4). “What woman... doth not... seek diligently?” (vs. 8). If he has a prodigal son and he returns, He could not now say, “What man of you” will not “run and fall on his neck and kiss him”? We doubt if any man would go to the lengths of the father of this parable: The great majority of men certainly would not. This parable sets forth the grace of God the Father. Once more it is a picture of the sinner who repents, and we are now permitted to see in parabolic form the depths from which the sinner is raised and the heights to which he is lifted according to the Father’s heart, by the gospel.
In the best robe we see the symbol of our acceptance in the Beloved; in the ring, the symbol of an eternal relationship established; in the shoes, the sign of sonship, for servants entered the houses of their masters with bare feet. The fatted calf and the merriment set forth the gladness of heaven and the Father’s joy in particular. The son had been dead morally and spiritually but now he was as one risen into a new life.
If the younger son pictures the repentant sinner, the elder son accurately represents the spirit of the Pharisee. The one was hungry and went in; the other was angry and stayed out. The arrival of grace always divides men into these two classes — those who know they are worthy of nothing, and those who imagine themselves to be worthy of more than they have got. Said the elder son, “Thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends” (vs. 29). So he too found his society and pleasure in a circle of friends outside his father’s circle. The only difference was in the character of the friends — the younger son’s were disreputable, while the older’s, presumably, were respectable. The self-righteous religionist is no more in real communion with the heart of the Father than is the prodigal, and he ends up outside while the prodigal is brought within.
F. B. Hole (adapted)
Four Aspects of the Lamb
Let us look at four different aspects of the Lord Jesus Christ under His title of “Lamb.” John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God” (John 1:29). A lamb is the symbol of meekness, gentleness and lowliness, so the blessed Lord Jesus was characterized by these qualities. Listen to His own words, “I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” (Matt. 11:29). More than this, the Lord could challenge His enemies with the question, “Which of you convinceth Me of sin?” There was absolute perfection in Him.
The Walk of the Lamb
To trace the Lord’s pathway draws forth the heart in praise and worship. It was “looking on Jesus as He walked” that drew forth from John the exclamation, “Behold the Lamb of God.” He saw the dignity and moral beauty of His walk and His ways proclaimed His divinity. In ministry, to hold forth the person of the Lord Jesus always brings a blessing with it.
We have Him first as dwelling with the Father from all eternity. Then, in view of the work of redemption, He became a man. He did not despise the virgin’s womb, nor the manger at Bethlehem, nor the circumstances of shame and suffering incidental to His path of self-renouncing love. He is recognized by aged Simeon in the memorable words, “Mine eyes have seen Thy salvation.”
Again we see Jesus at 12 years of age, in the presence of the elders, “hearing them, and asking them questions.” Years elapse, and we find Him baptized of John in Jordan, and a voice from heaven saying to Him, “Thou art My beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.” And lastly, we have His wonderful testimony of three and a half years, in which He continually went about doing good. He became a man that He might reveal the Father.
The Work of the Lamb
In the second aspect it is the same introduction, only another element is brought in — that of sin-bearer. He was God’s Lamb, the Lamb provided by God in order to meet God’s claims. We may think of our sins as bringing Him, but it was God who gave Him. The love is on God’s side, and He gave His Son.
Sacrifice attaches to the word “lamb” in Scripture, and the Lamb of God became the sin-bearer. The Lord Jesus bore the sins of believers, but here we read of the “sin of the world” ― a wider thought than the sins of believers. Thus we read in Colossians 1:20, “Having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.” So, in Hebrews 9:23, “things in the heavens should be purified.” This helps to explain the expression “sin of the world.” The work to accomplish this has been done, but in the new heaven and the new earth righteousness will dwell. Then we shall see the full results of the cross ― the everlasting expulsion of sin from that new creation where “all things are of God.”
Meanwhile, through the work of the Lamb of God, the forgiveness of sins is preached, and whosoever believes in Him is justified from all things.
The Worship of the Lamb
In Revelation 5:11-12 we find the third aspect of the Lamb: “I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory, and blessing.”
This is a different scene; it is not a Lamb on the altar, but a Lamb worshipped by the hosts of heaven, yet the same Lamb. Once the object of scorn and hatred, He is now the center of universal adoration!
Once they bowed the knee before Him in mockery and proud contempt; now they fall before Him in adoring worship. Once when on Calvary’s cross “sitting down they watched Him there”; now concentric circles of living creatures, elders and myriad hosts of angels prostrate themselves before the enthroned Lamb of God. He was in weakness here, but He exercises power there. What a change for the Lamb! From the cross of shame to the throne of glory; He deserves such exaltation!
Some may not know what worship is. Do you think it is merely going on your knees and saying your prayers, or coming to hear the gospel preached? In prayer you ask for the supply of need, and in hearing you come for instruction. But in worship the soul gives to God that of which He is worthy. Christians can act more like beggars than worshippers. We may have our needs, but worship is the enjoyment of God’s company — giving back to Him what He has first given me. The Father knows our need, but He seeks worshippers. Dear fellow Christians, may our hearts flow over with streams of gratitude.
The Wrath of the Lamb
The fourth aspect is in Revelation 6:12-17. It is not the walk, nor the work, nor the worship, but the wrath of the Lamb that we find here. “The kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” What? The wrath of the Lamb? Yes, a paradox, but an awful fact; a seeming contradiction, but a terrible truth! That hand which men nailed to the cross shall wield the scepter. That brow which men tore by the crown of thorns shall wear the diadem of glory. He who was led as a Lamb to the slaughter shall sit as a Judge on the throne.
Meekness is not weakness; gentleness is not feebleness; lowliness is not impotence. He who in the days of His flesh displayed the grace of the Lamb will exhibit then the omnipotence of the Judge of all. Futile will be their call to the mountains, vain their cry to the rocks! The mountains will not fall and the rocks will not hide; the fearful vision of the Lamb’s righteous wrath must be seen by all. “Every eye shall see Him, and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him” (Rev. 1:7). Those who look to Him now will find Him a Savior, but those who refuse Him now will find Him a Judge.
J. W. S. (adapted)
The Cloudy- and Dark-Day Shepherd
In Ezekiel 34, the Lord takes up the question of the shepherds of Israel, who had evidently misused their trust and authority over the people and who had fed themselves instead of feeding the flock. As a result, the sheep “were scattered, because there is no shepherd” (vs. 5). It seems that there were at least three reasons why the sheep had been scattered.
First of all, as I have already noted, the shepherds had been self-seeking, so that the Lord had to say that they “fed themselves, and fed not My flock” (vs. 8). The neglect of the flock had resulted in the sheep wandering away, probably to seek pasture. They had “wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill” (vs. 6), and none searched after them.
Second, some of the sheep were sick or broken or “driven away,” and the shepherds had not given them the special care that they needed. They had not taken the time to seek those that were lost and to bring them back.
Third, the sheep had been scattered “in the cloudy and dark day” (vs. 12). If the weather had been bright and sunny, they might have remained as a complete flock, but when their vision was blurred under clouds and darkness, it was easy for them to stray away and to get lost.
The Lord was very displeased with the shepherds who had treated His flock like this, and He could say, “I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock” (vs. 10). Then the Lord Himself would seek His flock, bring them back, and “feed them in a good pasture,” upon the “mountains of Israel” (vs. 14).
There is no doubt that all this refers to God’s initial judgment on Israel for their unfaithfulness, and then His gathering of them together again in millennial blessing. God’s indignation here is mainly against the shepherds, but as we know from Israel’s history, the sheep were not better than the shepherds in most cases, and they were very susceptible to being lead astray. The sheep had to bear some of the responsibility themselves for being lost.
I would suggest that all this has a parallel in our day, in the history of the church. God raises up leaders among His people and gives them responsibility and authority as “under-shepherds,” to feed His flock, to care for those who are sick, and to seek for those who may have wandered away. Their responsibilities are brought before us particularly in 1 Peter 5, but also in other scriptures. In Acts 20:28, Paul exhorts the elders of the church at Ephesus to “shepherd the assembly of God, which He hath purchased with the blood of His own” (Acts 20:28 JND). As He did in Israel, so in the church the Lord holds the shepherds responsible for the way they have done the work given to them.
In particular, we need to realize that the shepherds can be the ones who cause the “cloudy and dark day” and who leave the sheep in a position of not knowing which way to turn. Another has described this very well:
“While leaders are busy darkening the sky with their controversies, the enemy is busy scattering the sheep. While the shepherds wrangle, the sheep wander. We can scatter, but what little power we have to deliver!” (H.S.)
The question then arises, Do the sheep not have any resource when they find themselves in the cloudy and dark day? Must they be at the mercy of shepherds who do not care for them? No, they are not without a resource, for the Lord Himself, the Chief Shepherd, never ceases to care for His sheep. If leaders have darkened the sky and clouds make the way difficult, there is always One who is above it all. Just as the Lord will step in and re-gather Israel and will “deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day” (vs. 12), so the Lord’s eye is ever on His sheep. Not only will He seek them and bring them back, but He is able to prevent their being scattered, even in the darkness.
Many years ago, some of the Lord’s people were scattered in the “cloudy and dark day,” and the Lord graciously enabled one of them to be brought back through a faithful under-shepherd who sought him out and was a help to him. Some years later, when another serious difficulty confronted God’s people, the brother who had been brought back was asked by his son, “Father, what are we going to do?” The father, having profited by his previous experience, answered wisely, “Son, at this point I don’t know. But let us pray that when the time comes to make a decision, we are near enough to the Shepherd to hear His voice.”
Yes, those who are in positions of responsibility must answer to God, if they have been the instruments used to darken the sky, but the sheep need not be scattered, if they look to the One who never forgets them and who will always lead and guide, no matter how dark the day may be.
W. J. Prost
The Sheep Gate
There is a beautiful picture in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah of God’s people Israel, and how they valued the place where He had put His name. Jerusalem was the city which He had chosen. We know that because of their failure, God had allowed them to be carried into captivity, and they had been in Babylon for 70 years. When that time was up, God in His goodness raised up those who cared about His name and about Jerusalem. In the book of Ezra we have a group of these people coming back and building the house (the temple). In Nehemiah we have the building of the wall. God stirred up the heart of Nehemiah, and others too, to build the wall because the enemy would never leave the people of God alone. He would always seek to attack, so Nehemiah and others were stirred up to rebuild the wall. More than 130 years before, it had all had been broken down, and it took real energy of faith to rebuild.
The first thing they did (in the first verse) was, “They builded the sheep gate.” I’m sure all of us can see the significance of this because the Lord Jesus is the good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep. There were no locks and bars on this gate. How wonderful it is that the gospel message goes out to whosoever will, telling sinners the way of salvation and how they may enter by the sheep gate. They may come as lost sheep and be claimed and brought into blessing by the One who is the good Shepherd. So we see them building the sheep gate.
Perhaps that would bring before us, brethren, the great importance of gospel work, because all of us who are here tonight that are saved (and I trust we all are saved) had to make that start. What was the start? It was to enter by the sheep gate, to come as lost sheep to the good Shepherd who gave His life for the sheep. So they built this sheep gate and then it says, “They sanctified it unto the tower of Hananeel. And next unto him builded the men of Jericho.” We know that Jericho in the Bible was the city of the curse and God pronounced a curse upon the one who rebuilt that city after the children of Israel had entered Canaan and destroyed Jericho. God brought a curse on this world too, and it is under the judgment of God. When the Lord Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, He pronounced judgment upon this world. He said, “Now is the judgment of this world” (John 12:31). The judgment has been pronounced. The judge has been appointed. “He [God] has appointed a day, in the which He will judge the world in righteousness by that Man whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance unto all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead” (Acts 17:31).
But thank God the message of grace still goes out, and just as in that city of Jericho before it fell, there was a place of shelter for anyone who wanted to enter. It is beautiful that in Joshua we read that in the home of Rahab the harlot, where the scarlet line was, whosoever was there would be safe. Whosoever was not there would be exposed to the judgment that fell upon the city (Josh. 2:18). So, it says in our chapter, the men of Jericho builded it. That is what you and I were, but God has saved us. He has brought us from darkness to light, from the power of Satan unto God. Isn’t it wonderful those words: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1)? It doesn’t say there are any locks and bars in that particular gate because God is always willing and desiring the blessing of all. “Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely” (Rev. 22:17).
G. H. Hayhoe (adapted)
Lambs Among Wolves
“Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves.” You cannot turn a lamb into a wolf to defend itself. ... The testimony is brighter ... when I take things quietly and submit, not desiring to be a wolf among wolves. It is exceedingly difficult for one’s heart to bow and say, “I will be nothing but a lamb,” but that is our place, for the Lord says, “Vengeance is Mine.”
J. G. Bellett
Feed the Lambs
What a volume of love in those words of the Lord to poor Peter, “Feed My lambs!” as if He would say, “I am going to make a channel of you for love to flow through, and I am breaking you down that you may be able to feed My lambs. You thought to be a strong disciple, but I am making you see your weakness, giving you a broken heart, that you may be strong.” Ah! there is nothing like a broken heart for a shepherd, for there will be room in it for the lambs when he has got to the end of self. The Lord must always be breaking down a shepherd to enable him to feed His lambs.
Christian Truth, Vol. 33
Wandering Sheep
We have heard the plea for trying to keep
The lambs in the narrow way,
And well we may, but what of the sheep —
Shall they be allowed to stray?
’Twas a sheep, not a lamb, that wandered away,
In the parable Jesus told;
A grown-up sheep that had gone far astray
From the “ninety and nine” less bold.
Out in the wilderness, out in the cold,
’Twas a sheep the good Shepherd sought,
And back to the flock, with love untold,
’Twas a sheep the good Shepherd brought.
And why for the sheep should we earnestly long,
And as earnestly hope and pray?
Because there is danger, if they go wrong,
They will lead the young lambs away.
For the lambs will follow the sheep, you know,
Wherever the sheep may stray;
If the sheep go wrong, it will not be long
Till the lambs are as wrong as they.
And so with the sheep we earnestly plead,
For the sake of the lambs today:
If the lambs are lost, what a terrible cost
Some sheep will have to pay!
Young Christian, Vol. 27, 1937
Animals Used Symbolically in Scripture
Every animal that is typical of the believer is also in some way typical of Christ. There are seven animals that are used in this double way: the lamb, the calf, the dove, the hart, the lion, the sheep, and the serpent. We will just look at each briefly.
The lamb is typical of Christ in suffering (as led to the slaughter) in death (the Lamb slain), and in glory (the Lamb is the light thereof). It is typical of the believer in feebleness and dependence (as lambs among wolves), also of young believers specially (Feed my lambs).
The calf is typical generally of Christ in death, and specially of Him as the best thing our Father's heart can give us for food. It is also typical of the prosperity of those who form the Jewish remnant, and who fear the Lord, to whom Christ shall arise with “ healing in His wings.”
The dove is typical of Christ in death, being the offering provided for the one who was too poor to buy an ox or a sheep. The believer is also called upon to be as harmless as a dove, while the turtle dove in Psalm 74:19 is emblematical of God's people in affliction.
The hart (male deer) is beautifully used in the Song of Solomon as figurative of Christ, and in the Psalms as figurative of the earnest longing of the believer's soul. It is further typical of the believer's joy, and of the security and sure footedness of those who trust in God.
The lion is one of the titles of Christ in the Apocalypse, symbolical of strength and power, doubtless also alluding to the description of Judah in Gen. 49 It is also used by the prophet Micah to show the strength of the faithful remnant of God's people when surrounded by their enemies. No other animal is used in such varied similes as this, which is typical not only of God, of Christ, of Judah, and of the faithful remnant, but also of the wicked cities of Nineveh and Babylon, of rebellious Israel, of Christ's crucifiers, and even of Satan himself.
The sheep in her dumbness and patience at shearing time is typical of our Lord in His sufferings. It is also typical of all believers, once lost, now found.
The serpent (the last of the seven) made in brass and lifted upon a pole is typical of Christ as the only saving object for the eye of faith to rest on, while believers are to be “ wise as serpents,” though “ guileless as doves.”
In our natural state it is not so. The unconverted man is compared in value to an ass, the ransom money for both being the same; also to a dog in his uncleanness and shamelessness, but to neither of these is Christ ever compared.
Monthly Subjects
Seeing I Am Jesus' Lamb
A school, made up chiefly of Jewish children, was in the charge of a Christian lady. Among the hymns that she taught her students was a sweet one beginning, “Seeing I am Jesus’ lamb.” Most of the students learned it in a short time, and they were very fond of singing it.
One day in the middle of summer, one of the students met the teacher and told her that the day before, one of the students of the school had fallen into the river and came very near being drowned.
The next Sunday this little fellow was in school again. The teacher spoke to him kindly and asked him how it happened that he fell into the water.
He said he was walking on a plank by the edge of the river, when he stumbled and fell into the water.
“Were you not very frightened when you found yourself in the water?”
“No, ma’am.”
“But what did you think about when the water closed over your head?”
“Why,” said the little boy, and his eyes sparkled as he spoke, “I thought over the words of the beautiful hymn you taught us:
“Seeing I am Jesus’ lamb,
He, I know, will lose me never;
When I stray, He seeketh me—
Death is but new life forever;
Father, to Thy home on high
Take me, for Christ’s lamb am I.”
“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.... and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.”
“My Father, which gave them Me is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one” (John 10:11,28-30).
Messages of God’s Love, 8/22/1965 (adapted)