We lived on a farm when I was small, and my father had a number of sheep. When we came home from school, my sisters and I, it was one of our chores to go to the field and look after the sheep.
There was one sheep that was always missing. It would wander away from the rest, and join up with another flock in a field where there was very little grass. It looked so thin and ill-fed compared with the rest of our sheep, and we got tired chasing it back to its own pasture.
On one occasion we caught it and after getting it away from its stranger companions, we pushed it along tard our own field; but we found this was very tiresome work. While we were pushing and pulling and doing our best, my father came up and seeing our difficulty he took off his scarf, put it around the sheep’s neck, and led it gently back to the flock.
When we reached the field, Father took some grain in his hand and held it out toward this unruly, unworthy sheep. At once it began to eat out of his hand. Then he said to us gently, “Did you ever try this way with it?” No, we hadn’t, but we learned a good lesson that day.
By nature we love the world, and the company of worldly companions. Now, how does God separate us from the world? By holding up before us Jesus, the Saviour of sinners, and the joys which He has to give. By this He seeks to win the sinner’s heart from the follies of the world which do not satisfy. Oh, it is so wonderful to have Christ, to be saved, and to be feeding in the green pastures of His Word, in the company of His own sheep, who are fed and led by His hand.
Dear boy or girl, are you one of His blood-bought flock? “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.”
ML 03/07/1965