Jehovah Raah- The Lord My Shepherd

"He heard the sound of the trumpet, but

did not take warning;

his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes

warning will save his life."

Ezekiel 33:5

*************************************************************************************

The Lord My Shepherd

In studying the word of God, a recurring theme reverberates throughout: covenant.

Creation all around us reveals much about God, but not everything. He gave us Special Revelation that sets Him apart from all other beings and gods: His word.

By reading His word, our holy God...the One True God....reveals much about Himself to His children.

**********************************************

In this study, we will look into what covenant means to the believer. We will look at how our God tells us in His word that He is our shepherd who lovingly watches over us and at times has appointed earthly shepherds to watch over us.

Please read:

Ezekiel 34:11

Ezekiel 34: 1-6

Here we see the clear contrast between man's attempts at shepherding God's people and what God says He will do.

*********************************

Psalm 23

This most beloved and oft quoted chapter in the the book of Psalms reveals how King David understood the covenant he had with his Lord. We should take time to study this chapter in order to learn more about our Lord and Savior. We will begin with the first verse:

"The LORD is my shepherd,

I shall not want."

Our covenant with the Lord can be broken up into three parts:

• Provision
• Protection
• Presence

Here David begins with the first part: provision

*****************************************

Jehovah Jireh- The LORD provides

In Ezekiel 34, we have seen how the shepherds were forsaking the sheep in order to feed themselves. So, God said that He Himself will search for His scattered sheep.

Ps 95: 6-7

1 Pet 2:25

Luke 15:4-7

Here we read in the verses of Scripture about how God is our Shepherd. Because He is holy and perfect, He will meet our every need. When we are saved from His wrath by His blood, we enter into that covenant. He is our provider. As He provided for His people in the desert as they wandered, He will provide for us now that He has entered into the covenant with even the Gentile nations.

Acts 20:28

He has appointed over us earthly shepherds or "pastors" who are to be there for the church. As pastors, these men are under a heavy burden not to be taken lightly. They are to "feed" the body God's word because it is perfect. Pastors are to provide for the people and make sure they are learning and understanding what God's word says.

As our opening verse clearly states, a watchman has to sound the warning to save both himself and the people. God's word is that trumpet warning. Our pastors should be preaching God's word and only God's word to the people to warn them about their sins, God's wrath, and judgment.

When a pastor fails to do this, he is not being the watchman. He is not being the shepherd. He is failing to provide for his people whom God gave to him.

Remember, the flocks given to these pastors were purchased with Christ's blood. They belong to Him and have been given away.

Ez 33:30-33

Many people come to hear the word of the LORD but are not doing the word of the LORD. Pastors need to lead by example. Attitude reflects leadership. When a pastor is meeting the needs of his people and showing them love through actions, then the people will too!

To be appointed shepherd over God's people is a heavy burden indeed. We are like sheep. Not too bright and easily led astray!

Pray for your pastors to meet the needs of God's people by feeding them His word.

*************************************************************

"Preaching is important as a means of grace not merely because it is used of God to bring about conversions, but also because it is used for our sanctification, that is, our growth in holiness once we are born again. If you look back in your life and ask what it is that God has most used in your life to make you grow, you will find that in that vast majority of cases it is preaching."

-James Montgomery Boice (Feed My Sheep, 2002, p. 43)

*************************************************

Next time we will look more into how God provides for His sheep and also how the LORD protects His sheep.

Blessings,

Ruth