The Upper Room Daily Devotional "Christ Our Shepherd" Saturday, 8 March 2014 - Read John 10:7-16

The Upper Room Daily Devotional "Christ Our Shepherd" Saturday, 8 March 2014 - Read John 10:7 Jesus therefore said to them again, “Most certainly, I tell you, I am the sheep’s door. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out, and will find pasture. 10 The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd.[a] The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who doesn’t own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and flees. The wolf snatches the sheep, and scatters them. 13 The hired hand flees because he is a hired hand, and doesn’t care for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and I’m known by my own; 15 even as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep, which are not of this fold.[b] I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice. They will become one flock with one shepherd.
Footnotes:
a. John 10:11 Isaiah 40:11; Ezekiel 34:11-12,15,22
b. John 10:16 Isaiah 56:8
As [Jesus] went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd.--Mark 6:34 (NRSV)
Early one morning, I walked along a rural road, enjoying the cool air before the summer sun rose. Suddenly, I became aware of a rustling in the pasture beside me. I peered into the darkness and saw the dim outlines of perhaps a hundred sheep. Apparently mistaking me for their shepherd, the sheep had decided to follow me. As I strode along the road, the sheep trotted in the pasture beside me until a fence stopped them. They could still see me, but they could no longer follow me. I heard their plaintive bleats growing fainter and fainter as I continued my walk. The Bible often compares us to sheep. Like sheep, we may go astray by following someone who is not our shepherd. Like sheep, we are easily frightened when venturing into unfamiliar territory. Like sheep, we need a shepherd to guide us, to protect us, to lead us to clean water and green pastures. Christ is our shepherd. He does not walk away from us, leaving us bewildered and forlorn. He does not wait for us to come to him, but comes to us and teaches us his ways: kindness, compassion, and courage in the face of opposition and adversity. Listening to Jesus, we find our way.
--The Author: Mark M. Redfearn (California, USA)
Thought for the Day: Since Christ is my shepherd, I will follow him closely.
Prayer: O Christ, our shepherd, guide us through each day. Keep us from straying from the path you set before us. Amen.
Prayer focus: Those who are confused and afraid
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