John 10:11-16 NKJV
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. 13The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. 14I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. 15As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.”
We who believe in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our
lives, who have denied self, died with Christ to sin, and are now living in
obedience to his commands, in practice, in the power of God, are Jesus’ sheep.
And he is our shepherd. And we follow him wherever he leads us in doing what he
has for us to do as his followers. And he leads us in the way that we should
go. He tells us that to be his followers we must deny self, die to sin, and
obey him. So we must forfeit our former lives of living in sin and for self to
follow him.
The Hirelings
We now have pastors (elders, shepherds) who are over the
sheep within the gatherings of the church, or what are falsely being called “the
church.” Many of them are being paid to be over the sheep (the Christians) in
leadership, so they are hirelings. But not all who are pastors of church
congregations are dedicated to leading the sheep in the right direction, which
is for their good. Not many of them would literally lay down their lives for
the welfare of the sheep. Many are looking at what’s in it for them, for what
they can gain.
So many of them today have been trained in marketing schemes
and in business techniques on how to “grow their churches,” i.e. on how to draw
in large crowds of people from the world into their gatherings. And they have
been trained in who they want in their gatherings and who they want to get rid
of, too, and on how to attract the world to their gatherings. And so they
dilute the gospel and entertain the world, and many preach canned sermons which
are intended to attract the world so that the world will like them.
So, they are not thinking of the welfare of the sheep. But
they are thinking about how they can grow their businesses and be successful in
drawing in large crowds of people from the world into their gatherings. And
they are more interested in people liking them than they care about whether or
not anyone who professes faith in Jesus Christ is literally living for the Lord
in submission to his will, in obedience to his commands. So they would rather
do what is popular even if it sends people to hell on the promise of heaven.
The Good Shepherd
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is God, the second person
of our triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – loved us so much that he
literally gave his life up for us on a cross so as to put our sins to death
with him. And he was raised victorious over the grave in victory over sin,
death, hell and Satan. And all of this was on our behalf that we might deny
self, die to sin, and follow our Lord in obedience to his commands so that, by
faith in him, we might have the hope of salvation from sin and eternal life
with God.
Then he gave us the Holy Spirit to live within us to teach
us all things pertaining to Jesus Christ and to his will and purpose for our lives.
And he gave us his written word in the Scriptures to teach us his ways so we
will now walk in his truth and righteousness in holy living. And he counsels us
in the ways of the Lord, and in the ways that we should go, and he warns us
against Satan’s lies and his tricks, and against false shepherds who lie to the
people, so that we will not fall for the lies but so we will obey the truth.
One Flock One Shepherd
And he also taught us that, since his death on that cross,
there is no longer any division between Jew and Gentile. For we are one people
of God by faith in Jesus Christ. And all who do not believe in Jesus are one
people, too, but they are not God’s people, but they are antichrist. So all Jews
who do not believe in Jesus are not God’s chosen people, and all Gentiles who
believe in Jesus are one people with believing Jews as one nation, one sheep
fold, and one flock under one shepherd, no longer two different groups of
people.
So, not every pastor of a church congregation is a man of
God preaching the truth that Jesus taught, leading the people to follow Jesus
Christ in obedience to his commands. And not every “church” congregation is the
body of Christ, the people of genuine biblical faith in Jesus Christ, God’s
true church, following Jesus in obedience, doing what he commands us to do.
Many of them are just businesses incorporated under the state being marketed to
the people of the world just like any other worldly business.
And not all Jews are God’s chosen people. Only those who
believe in Jesus Christ. And the physical and political nation called “Israel”
is also not God’s chosen people, because, as a nation, they have denied Jesus
as the Christ, their Messiah, and so they are antichrist (1 John 2:22). So only
those who are followers of Jesus Christ are biblical Israel and are God’s
chosen people, and we are not two separate groups. We are one flock with one
shepherd, Jesus Christ, who follow our shepherd in obedience to his commands.
[Genesis 17:7-9; Genesis 18:19;
Matthew 21:43; John 8:18-19,38-47; John 10:16; Romans 2:28-29; Romans 6:1-23;
Romans 8:1-14; Romans 9:4-8,25-28; Romans 11:1-36; 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 1
Corinthians 10:1-22; 2
Corinthians 6:14-18; Galatians 3:16,26-29; Galatians 4:22-31; Ephesians
2:11-22; Ephesians 3:1-6; Colossians 3:12-15; Titus 2:14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews
4:1-16; Hebrews 8:6-13; 1
Peter 2:9-10,24; 1 John 2:22; Jude 1:5; Revelation 2:9; Revelation
3:9]
Here is Your God!
Based off Isaiah 40:9-31 NIV
An Original Work /
July 18, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
You who bring good
tidings to Zion,
Lift up your voice;
raise with a shout,
And do not be afraid
of the people.
Say, “Here is your
God!”
See how the Lord God
comes now with power.
His arm rules for
Him; His reward with Him.
He tends His flock
just like a shepherd,
His lambs in His
arms.
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told
you from beginning?
Our Lord sits
enthroned above all things.
None to Him compare.
Lift up your eyes
and look to the heavens.
Who made all of
these? Who calls them by name?
Because of His great
power and strength,
All accounted for.
Why do you say, “My
way is hidden
From the Lord, and
my cause forgotten”?
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord, He is your
God.
He will not weary.
He gives us power.
Those who trust in
Him will renew their strength.
They will soar on
wings just like eagles;
Walk and do faint
not.
One Shepherd One
Flock
An Original Work / May 18, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
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