Our Good Shepherd - January 8 Readings: John 10:11-18

We are going to "enter the year with praise." Our January readings and devotionals will all focus on the goodness and grace of God. Get a journal or notebook to write down your thoughts every day. Our passages are shorter - please don't rush through them. Take time to meditate and consider why God is worthy of your praise.

Enter 2020 with the praise of God on your lips!

Today's Praise Passage:  John 10:11-18

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. 13 This happens because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care about the sheep.

 14 “I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 But I have other sheep that are not from this sheep pen; I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. Then there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”

Through the Bible Reading: Genesis 17-18, Matthew 6:16-34, Psalm 6:1-5, Proverbs1:24-28

Some of our readers want a little more "meaty" devotional, so I am including a link to the through Through the Bible in One Year readings we did last year. 

Devotional: Our Good Shepherd 

Jesus, according to John 10, is our Good Shepherd who takes care of his sheep, even laying down his life for them. He calls us by name and we follow him. He leads us to pastures where we can find the food we need and protects us from the thieves and predators who seek our destruction. He gives life to his sheep - eternal and abundant.

And it is a good thing, because we are sheep. Being described as sheep is not something we should see as a compliment. Sheep are helpless prey without a shepherd watching over them. We need a shepherd every day and we have one who is very good.

Sheep are prey. Just about every predatory, carnivorous animal in the world loves the taste of mutton. If sheep were not watched over, they would quickly become lunch. This world is full of spiritual predators who would seek to deceive us, distract us, divert us and destroy us. False apostles and false teachers abound who seek to use the sheep for their own purposes. We need a shepherd. We need a Good Shepherd.

Sheep are wayward and not that bright. Sheep are not like other creatures, lacking sense of danger or direction. They wander off into trouble when left to themselves. It is interesting that we are so prone to seek independence when, as sheep, that is the last thing we need. We require a shepherd to guide us and keep us from harm - a Good Shepherd.

Sheep are defenseless. Most animals have a defense mechanism to protect themselves. Some can run fast to escape danger, some have sharp claws to fight. Some have hard shells or quills or, like the skunk, the ability to make predators pay through the nose. Sheep have no such defenses. They are not fast, they cannot jump and bound away. They don't have hard shells or bad smells to protect them. They are helpless. We are helpless in this world without the help of our Savior and Lord, without defense against all those spiritual predators.

Sheep need a shepherd. We need a Good Shepherd. That's the bad news. The good news is that we have one - Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord. He not only makes us fit for heaven by his shed blood, but he walks with us and shepherds us every day of our lives. You are not alone in this difficult world - you have a shepherd, a Good Shepherd for your soul.

Give thanks to God for that.

Father, thank you for my Good Shepherd who leads me to green pastures and calms me beside still waters. He protects me from the predators who would destroy me loves me enough to lay down his life for me. I need him, oh, I need him. Every hour I need him. 

Think and Pray:

Meditate on this passage and write down:

1. The character qualities of God for which you can praise him. 

2. The gracious acts of God for which you can give thanks to him. 

Take time today to give thanks for the daily care of your Good Shepherd.
Think through your life and remember times when the Savior has been your shepherd and guided you through life's hard times.