In today’s devotion we will share four beautiful thoughts on what it means to have Jesus as our Shepherd.
Point 1 – If you have the Shepherd, you have grace for every sin
When Jesus is your Shepherd not only are your sins judicially forgiven because of Christ’s death on the cross, but your Good Shepherd’s grace is always available to make (1 John 1:9) possible, for we read: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” You see, there are really two types of forgiveness. First, there is judicial forgiveness. This is a one-time permanent forgiveness that happens the moment we accept Christ as or Lord and Savior. The second type, is what I call familial forgiveness. This type of forgiveness relates to us as family members of Christ, and occurs when we confess our sins as we commit them as believers, in order to receive daily cleansing from sin. And it is here that God’s grace is sufficient to supply the daily cleansing that all Christians need to stay in close communion with the Lord.
Point 2 – If you have the Shepherd, you have direction for every turn
When Jesus is your Shepherd you are able to claim one of the greatest promises in all of Scripture – (Proverbs 3:5-6): “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” My friends, if you need to know how to make good decision in life, just trust in the Shepherd and He will reveal His perfect will in every decision you have to make because He will never lead you astray.
Point 3 – If you have the Shepherd, you have a candle for every corner
When Jesus is your Shepherd, He will supply you with the light you need to travel over the dark roads of life. (Psalm 119:105) tells us: “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.” And the vehicle that God most often will use is His Holy Word – The Bible. The Scriptures not only supply us with godly wisdom to light the way we need to travel, but with His perfect will, that when followed, will give us victory in every situation or trial we face.
Point 4 – If you have the Shepherd, you have an anchor for every storm
When Jesus is your Shepherd not only does He provide you with an anchor to hold you secure through the storms of life, but He, Himself, is that anchor that we can always depend on. Jesus is the hope of the world and He will never fail us. I really like how (Hebrews 6:19) describes the hope we have in Jesus: “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure…”
With all of these blessings that our Savior provides us with, is it any wonder that we can safely conclude that Jesus is all that we need!