July 4th - John 10:14-15

John 10:14-15

“I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep.” Years ago, I read a book about Eleanor Philby, who was married to the spy Kim Philby. I was stunned to discover that Eleanor never had any idea her husband was a spy. That seemed incredible to me at the time, but the truth is that our knowledge of even our nearest and dearest is always very limited. We know much about them, but there are always aspects of their lives of which we know nothing. That is not the case when it comes to the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows us completely. There are no dark corners of our lives that he does not know. This could sound thoroughly intimidating were it not for his love for us. His willingness to die for us shows the full extent of his love, so we can feel not only safe but affirmed and encouraged by his knowledge of us. In the Old Testament, God is often compared to a shepherd, most famously in Psalm 23. “The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honour to his name.” The psalm describes God’s shepherd-like care of us even when we pass through the most threatening times, and assures us that his love will go on forever. No wonder that many of the psalms encourage us to worship God because of his care for us. Psalm 100:3 commands: “Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” In Jesus, we see all the good shepherding qualities of God his Father. The word ‘good’ in Greek is richer than our word and has the sense of beautiful, attractive and noble. He is in every way worthy of our worship and praise. Given that we have such a wonderful and all-knowing shepherd to guide us through life, the challenge for us is to get to know him better. Nothing in life could be more important than this.

Question In what way are you seeking to get to know Jesus better?

Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, thank you that you were willing to lay down your life for me. Help me to get to know you better each day. Amen