Our Shepherd Lovingly Leads Psalms 23:1-6 Genesis 49:22-25 Psalms 28:7-9 Psalms 78:52-53 Isaiah 40:11 John 10:27-30 2 Corinthians 2:14 Romans 8:12-17 Revelation 7:17 11.01.19

OUR SHEPHERD LOVINGLY LEADS

BREAD

¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. ² He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, ³ he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. ⁴ Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. ⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ⁶ Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  Psalms 23:1-6 (NIV)

²² “Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall.
²³ With bitterness archers attacked him; they shot at him with hostility. ²⁴ But his bow remained steady, his strong arms stayed limber, because of the hand of the Mighty One of Jacob, because of the Shepherd, the Rock of Israel, ²⁵ because of your father's God, who helps you, because of the Almighty, who blesses you with blessings of the heavens above, blessings of the deep that lies below, blessings of the breast and womb.  Genesis 49:22-25 (NIV)

⁷ The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song. ⁸ The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one. ⁹ Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever.  Psalms 28:7-9 (NIV)

⁵² But he brought his people out like a flock; he led them like sheep through the desert. ⁵³ He guided them safely, so they were unafraid; but the sea engulfed their enemies. Psalms 78:52-53 (NIV)

¹¹ He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young. Isaiah 40:11 (NIV)

²⁷ “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. ³⁰ I and the Father are one.”   John 10:27-30 (NIV)

¹⁴ But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.  2 Corinthians 2:14 (NIV)

¹² Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. ¹³ For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, ¹⁴ because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. ¹⁵ For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” ¹⁶ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. ¹⁷ Now if we are children, then we are heirs--heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.  Romans 8:12-17 (NIV)

¹⁷ “For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”  Revelation 7:17 (NIV)

BUTTER

“I love Him because He first loved me.  His goodness and mercy and compassion to me are new every day.  And my assurance is lodged in these aspects of His character.  My trust is in His love for me as His own.  My serenity has as its basis an implicit, unshakable reliance on His ability to do the right thing, the best thing in any given situation.  This to me is the supreme portrait of my Shepherd.  Continually there flows out to me His goodness and His mercy, which even though I do not deserve them, come unremittingly from their source of supply – His own great heart of love.”   Phillip Keller

“There is no broadminded approach when it comes to entering into the life that God has for you. God doesn't present you with a variety of doors to consider. He doesn't say, ‘Go ahead and pick the door that looks best to you, and after you decide, I will support your decision and bless all that you do.’ It is true that God does have a plan and a purpose for your life, but it can only be entered into through one door. Jesus Christ is that door. There is no other entrance. There is only one Gospel to believe; only one Truth to embrace; only one Shepherd to follow; only one Savior to trust; only one Lord to serve; only one Master to obey.”  Roy Lessin 

“He was the most balanced and perhaps the most beloved being ever to enter the society of men.  Though born amid most disgusting surroundings, the member of a modest working family, He bore Himself always with great dignity and assurance.  Though He enjoyed no special advantages as a child, either in education or employment, His entire philosophy and outlook on life were the highest standards of human conduct ever set before mankind.  Though He had no vast economic assets, political power or military might, no other person ever made such an enormous impact on the world’s history.  Because of Him……..people have come into a life of decency and honor and noble conduct………He came to set men free from their own sins, their own selves, their own fears.  Those so liberated loved Him with fierce loyalty.  It is this One who insists that He was the Good Shepherd, the understanding Shepherd, the concerned Shepherd who cares enough to seek out and save and restore lost men and women.”   Phillip Keller

“My Master is more willing to supply your needs than you are to confess them. Do not tolerate small thoughts of the Lord Jesus. When you put the crown on His head, you will only crown Him with silver when He deserves gold. My Master has riches of happiness to bestow upon you now. He can make you to lie down in green pastures and lead you beside still waters. There is no music like His music that He, the Shepherd, plays for His sheep as they lie down at His feet. There is no love like His; neither earth nor heaven can match it. To know Christ and to be found in Him is real life and true joy. My Master does not treat His servants meanly; He gives to them the way a king gives to a king. He gives them two heavens—a heaven below in serving Him here, and a heaven above in delighting in Him forever.”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“Are you in prison? You are if you feel better when you have more and worse when you have less. You are if joy is one delivery away, one transfer away, one award away, or one makeover away. If your happiness comes from something you deposit, drive, drink, or digest, then face it -- you are in prison, the prison of want.  Paul says that ‘godliness with contentment is great gain’ (1 Tim. 6:6 NIV). When we surrender to God the cumbersome sack of discontent, we don't just give up something; we gain something. God replaces it with a lightweight, tailor-made, sorrow-resistant attaché́ of gratitude.  What will you gain with contentment? You may gain your marriage. You may gain precious hours with your children. You may gain your self-respect. You may gain joy. You may gain the faith to say, ‘The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.’  Try saying it slowly. ‘The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.’  Again, ‘The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.’  Again, ‘The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.’”    Max Lucado

“We are never beyond the Shepherd’s eye. In our sorrows He observes us incessantly, and not a pang escapes Him; in our toils He sees all our weariness, and writes in His book all the struggles of His faithful ones. These thoughts of the Lord encompass us in all our paths and penetrate the innermost regions of our being. Not a nerve or tissue, valve or vessel of our bodily organization is uncared for: all the littles of your little world are thought of by our great God.”   Charles Spurgeon

“Where does your security lie? Is God your refuge, your hiding place, your stronghold, your shepherd, your counselor, your friend, your redeemer, your saviour, your guide? If He is, you don't need to search any further for security.”  Elisabeth Elliot

“Let us put our complete trust in our Leader, since we know that in prosperity or adversity, sickness or health, popularity or contempt, His purpose will be worked out, and that purpose will be pure, unmingled good to every heir of mercy. We will find it sweet to go up the bleak side of the hill with Christ; and when rain and snow blow into our faces, His dear love will make us far more blessed than those who sit at home and warm their hands at the world's fire. When Jesus draws us, we will run after Him. No matter where He leads us, we follow the Shepherd.”  Charles H. Spurgeon

“Savior like a shepherd lead us; much we need Thy tender care.”   Dorothy A. Thrupp

“He who stands today representing the interests of His people is very God of very God, to whom every knee shall bow.  Happy are we who belong to such a Shepherd, whose humanity communes with us, and whose divinity protects us.  Let us worship and bow down before Him as the people of His pasture.”    Charles H. Spurgeon

HEART SAVOR

• ·         If Christ is my Shepherd, what do I need to fear?
• ·         He ever leads me in triumphal procession.
• ·         His perfect love drives out all fears.