The Lord is my Shepherd

Believers, see image of the sheep on its back? It is called a "cast sheep." Shepherds dread this sight as it is impossible for sheep that get into this position- all four legs in the air - to right themselves. So they always keep an eye on their sheep to help any that gets cast.

Of course sheep do not deliberately roll over into a cast position. When they lie down to rest, which they will at some point, and there just happens to be a depression or hollow in the ground, they could slide in and end up on their backs with all of their feet up in the air. With nothing to push against and most of their weight in their body, the sheep will remain in this position until help comes....or until it dies.

This phenomenon is more likely to happen to a very woolly or pregnant sheep since she is wider and heavier. Even when the ground is flat with no hollow to slide into, the pregnant tummy sticking out on both sides makes it impossible for her to roll on her side and get up. Even non-pregnant sheep can get cast on level ground. Any wild animal (aka the devourer) that comes across it in this position devours it alive as no amount of struggling can right it.

What does this have to do with our lives in Christ today? It is no coincidence that Christ used the illustration of The Good Shepherd and His sheep A LOT to describe His relationship with us. It is no coincidence that Psalm 23 - The Lord is my Shepherd- is the most popular of all the Psalms.

As believers in Christ, we are Christ's sheep and sometimes find ourselves cast (falling into sin, making silly mistakes, getting sick, whatever position a Christian should not be in that you find yourself in, even sinning) just like real life sheep. Remember heavily pregnant sheep (believers that are really close to bearing fruit to God) are more likely to get cast.

But in Christ, we do not remain cast because "The Lord is our Shepherd." He blesses us with His abundance of Grace and leads us on the path of righteousness where we reign over getting cast (sins) and death at the hand of the devourer. You can read up on the life of sheep and their shepherd and see how hopelessly helpless we are without Him...and how wonderfully protected and provided for we are with Him as our Shepherd.

No matter how many times a sheep get cast (aka believers sinning or getting in trouble,) whether five times a day or fifty, it still belongs to the Good Shepherd Who is the only One that can right if from its cast position. It remains a member of the flock. When the sheep is cast, neither itself nor its fellow sheep can do anything to help it. It is the work of the Shepherd to set it on its feet and make sure that it does not miss its purpose. See our Saviour's word in John 6:

"43-46 Jesus said, “Don’t bicker among yourselves over Me. You’re not in charge here. The Father who sent Me is in charge. He draws people to Me—that’s the only way you’ll ever come. Only then do I do my work, putting people together, setting them on their feet, ready for the End.""

Also see Matt. 1:21- "She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Those who tell you that you can save yourself from your sins and be godly (be like God) by obeying the law are lying after the example of Satan who deceived Eve into thinking that one can be godly by human effort.

A sheep that is cast is akin to a believer who has fallen (fallen into sin, trouble, worry, fear, depression, anxiety, lack, sickness, silly mistakes, trials, whatever, even the troubles of our own making.) Christ saves from all and freely too. His Word tells us in Proverbs 28:26-

"Self-confident know-it-alls will prove to be fools. But when you lean on the wisdom from above, you will have a way to escape the troubles of your own making."

Christ is our wisdom from above. See 1 Corinthians 1:30- “But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—“

Christ does all the work, even of getting you back on your feet and on the path of righteousness if you get cast by falling into sins, sickness, lack or trouble. Because of wrong teachings, many people try to right themselves by trying obeying the Ten Commandments more, paying tithes more and doing restitution all in a bid to right themselves to get into God's good books. But beloved of God, wonderful as these things are, you cannot right yourself before God by doing them. Romans 3:20 says "For no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands..."

Trying to get right with God by human effort at obeying the law and doing its works after you have messed up are as hopeless and useless as a cast sheep wiggling its feet in the air! Doing them to get right with God has only one effect:

"For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God's grace."

This verse was written to believers in Galatia who were deceived into believing that they had to obey the Law of Moses in order to be godly after they received and believed Christ.

The one who is trying to be godly by his own effort at obeying the law or make himself right with God by the law after he sins rejects Christ as his righteousness. He is cut off from the Good Shepherd. When such get cast (when they fall into a "depression," which they will because sin has dominion over those who are under law according to Romans 6:14) wild animals aka devourers eat them alive! This is a picture of what is going on in many places of worship today:

Satan the devourer knows that law-keeping to get right with God is the way to get cut off from Christ. So he has his seemingly holy "ministers" behind some pulpits preaching that you, a sheep, by your own effort, must do all you can to be godly (be like God) by doing works of the law. Such tell you that you must right yourself when you fall into a cast position (get depressed,sick, lack, make silly mistakes) by doing all sorts of things by human effort- fast, measure your righteousness with how well you are obeying the Ten Commandments, sow seed, check yourself for sins, do deliverance, etc.

Such say "Yes, you are saved by Grace but you still have to do your best to not sin and obey the law in order to be godly, enjoy God's blessings and make heaven." Believers, beware of such false teachers! They are trying to put the sheep in a position where they are cut off from the Good Shepherd and Satan can devour. Their teaching is akin to someone telling a real sheep that "Now that you are a member of the flock, you have to make sure that you don't wander off and get cast or else the Shepherd will leave you to perish."

Christ the Good Shepherd knows that we His sheep might wander off and get cast. He knows how screwed up we can be. So He's always on the lookout for such incidents so that He can save us. His eyes never leave us. If the sheep could avoid getting cast or right itself whenever it is cast, it does not need the Good Shepherd. Matt. 1:21 tells us this is why Christ came:

She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”

Just look at the way of our Saviour in the gospels. Even the cast sheep that was the woman caught in adultery who was accused by mouthpieces of the Accuser/Devourer (the Pharisees and teachers of religious law) and was about to be devoured received a "no questions asked" rescuing from her cast position from our Saviour. He did not first ask her "have you been paying your tithe?" or "go and fast for three days first and obey the Ten Commandments" before He saved her from certain death.

He is the Way of escape from even troubles of our own making. All glory is His. But there is something about the arm of flesh that wants to be relevant in the story of our salvation. Just imagine a sheep trying to shear itself and distribute its own wool in order to please the Shepherd. It cannot. Even our giving is ordained by Him.

Believer, let's not be found trying to put ourselves in the right with God or be godly (be like God) with the knowledge of good and evil which comes from the law. This is as futile as a sheep trying to right itself from a cast position, the way to get cut off from Christ the Good Shepherd and the way for Satan the devourer to devour helpless sheep.

Satan's ministers on the pulpit encourage you to do things to right yourself with God and tell you that your salvation, including getting back on your feet from a cast position (when you fall into sins and consequently depression) is contingent on what YOU must do and not what CHRIST has done. But this is the way for the devourer to devour- when you try to get right with God or save yourself from your sins and troubles by human effort at obeying the law, you reject Christ's salvation. See Isaiah 30: 15-17:

"God, the Master, The Holy of Israel,

has this solemn counsel:

“Your salvation requires you to turn back to Me

and stop your silly efforts to save yourselves.

Your strength will come from settling down

in complete dependence on Me—

The very thing

you’ve been unwilling to do.

You’ve said, ‘Nothing doing! We’ll rush off on horseback!’

You’ll rush off, all right! Just not far enough!

You’ve said, ‘We’ll ride off on fast horses!’

Do you think your pursuers ride old nags?

Think again: A thousand of you will scatter before one attacker.

Before a mere five you’ll all run off.

There’ll be nothing left of you—

a flagpole on a hill with no flag,

a signpost on a roadside with the sign torn off.”"

But many still try to earn their salvation from sin and death by human effort! This is why many in the church are running from pillar to post looking for salvation by doing all sorts of works of the law only to find themselves in greater trouble. This way seems right to man but it only leads to death. See Proverbs 14:12- "There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death."

The letter kills. The letter is the law. There is no salvation in trying to do its works to get "righted" before God. Only here can the devil devour. See Galatians 3:10-

"But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under His curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.”

There is a reason why the illustration of a shepherd with his sheep was used so often by our Saviour Jesus Christ. It is to show us that we who believe are all under His care. He saves us every time we get cast and prevents us from getting cast. Even when we fall, we are still His and righteous in God's sight because in Christ, we have His righteousness as a gift! Romans 5:9 says of our Heavenly Father:

“And there is still much more to say of His unfailing love for us! For through the blood of Jesus we have heard the powerful declaration, “You are now righteous in My sight.” And because of the sacrifice of Jesus, you will never experience the wrath of God.”

Christ our Shepherd gave Himself to set us right with God. He Himself has said: "for without Me you can do nothing." This is grace - undeserved, unearned, unmerited favour.

Psalms 37:24 says of the righteous: "When he falleth, he is not cast down, For Jehovah is sustaining his hand."

Bear in mind Romans 3:10 "There is none righteous, not even one;" so the sheep who will not be cast down is the one who is made righteous by "one Man's obedience," Christ's. See Romans 5:19.

Remember 1 Peter 5: "7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

These verses are often quoted separately so when we hear verse 8 alone, we think it's up to us sheep to save ourselves from being devoured! We who can do nothing without Christ. The way to escape this devouring is to cast all of our cares on Jesus our Shepherd.

Consider the New Covenant realities of Psalm 23 that we have in Christ today. Did you notice that Christ our Shepherd does ALL that is required for we His sheep to have rest and live right, even causing us to be so relaxed as to eat in the presence of our enemies (every single challenge?) Every victory that we have is totally contingent on His provision, for instance, "I will fear no evil" because even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He never leaves us nor forsakes us. His rod is always there to protect us; His staff always there to guide us and rein us in when we are going astray. We can NEVER be lost because He is our Shepherd.

This ties in with Isaiah 35 that speaks of the Lord's "Highway of Holiness" on which is found only the redeemed of the Lord. Verse 8 says of His redeemed, you and I in Him today:

"Whoever walks the road, although a fool, Shall not go astray."

The one who is believing Jesus Christ can NEVER be cast out of the flock. Christ saves even the vilest offender who believes from his sins. His Spirit transforms us "to the image of the glory of the Lord, from glory to glory”. 2 Cor. 3:18.

What a blessing for believers. In Christ, there is no escaping the Lord's goodness and mercy which hunt us down all the days of our lives!