The Bible has many references to the Lord as our Shepherd. Jesus, during His walk here on earth, referred to Himself many times as a Shepherd. In John 10, Jesus refers to Himself as the Good Shepherd. As believers in Him, He knows us, His sheep, and we also know Him.
John 10:14 I am the good shepherd, and I know My sheep and am known by My own.
In Psalms 100, the great psalmist, King David, tells us that we are the sheep of His pasture.
Psalms 100:3 Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
I think that is a very interesting way to state our relationship with Jesus. As the Good Shepherd, He cares for His sheep. He protects them. He comforts them. When they are hurt, He tends their wounds. When they are thirsty, He provides water. When they are hungry, He provides food.
King David, in another psalm, paints a beautiful picture of how the Good Shepherd cares for the sheep of His pasture:
Psalms 23:1-2 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.
The sheep of His pasture do not lack anything. Everything is provided in His pasture! They have still waters to drink from. They have green grass to eat. They have enough that they are full and contented and rest in calm and peace.
Jesus, in Mark 6, provides us with a self-portrait of that same picture David painted:
Mark 6:34 And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.
He saw the multitude was spiritually hungry with no one to feed them. He was moved with compassion to teach them. And Mark 6 says He taught them many things. As King David said in the 23rd Psalm, when the Lord is our shepherd, we do not lack anything! He always supplies in abundance.
If you read further in Mark 6, you will find that He did not just meet their spiritual needs. When it was getting late in the day and the people were hungry, He fed them physically as well. From five small loaves of bread and two small fishes, He fed everyone in the multitude until they were full. And there was plenty left over!
When you look at all the references to the Good Shepherd in the Word, it becomes very apparent that it is good to be a sheep of His pasture! Again, in John 10, He gives us a wonderful promise for being one of His sheep (believing in Him):
John 10:27-28 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
In His hand, we are safe and secure. In His hand, we find rest and restoration. No one or nothing can ever take us from Him. On top of that, He gives us eternal life. So, we encourage you to be a sheep. Hear His voice and follow Him. He has promised that He will lead us to green pastures and still waters!
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