Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.
Jeroboam thought to himself, "The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam."
After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. And this thing became a sin; the people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there.
Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites. He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.
1 Kings 12:25-33
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
In researching for a message I was going to deliver at my parent’s church in Pennsylvania, I read about the importance of a shepherd to his sheep.
For sheep inherently can’t navigate from point to point safely without being guided. And when you couple this with the fact that sheep always stick together in a flock, you can see how they can easily become lost or fall into danger unsupervised. In fact, there are more than a few accounts of entire flocks of sheep falling to their death as one sheep walked off the edge of a cliff and was followed by his fellow flock members.
Indeed, the way a flock is led is critical to the well being of the flock.
As we draw a parallel to people and their spiritual well being, we can see how critical it is for human flocks (congregations) to have the right “shepherd” (pastor) to lead and guide them in the right way. And we can affirm this, as we should affirm all things, by looking at the scriptures. Recall these words of Jesus:
“I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice." Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”
"I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me — just as the Father knows me and I know the Father — and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life — only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father." John 10:1-18
Jesus’ words are just as important to us today as they were then. For ultimately, we are to be led by Him first and foremost and not rely fully on any man. It’s the only way we can be fully sure we are led by the proper and good shepherd…and able to “have life and have it to the full”.
Before Jesus, you’ll recall this proclamation by David:
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.”
“He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul.”
“He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.”
“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”
“Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23
David knew His shepherd and it was the Lord. He knew that with the Lord he would always be cared for and would not be in want. He knew that he had a Provider and Protector who would led him to green pastures and beside still waters…who would walk with him always, even in the midst of his enemies…even through the shadow of the valley of death…and thus he could walk in comfort and without fear. And David knew he had a Guide who would always place him on the path of righteousness so that goodness and love could indeed follow him all the “days of his life” so he could “dwell in the house of the Lord forever”.
So given the words from the Old and New Testaments, we see the importance of following the right Shepherd.
Question: Are you following the right Shepherd in your life?
For much is at stake if we choose to follow someone else. Point in case is found in our scripture today.
For as the kingdom divided, Jeroboam gained control of the majority of the kingdom of Israel.
As he “fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there” and followed by building up Peniel, we read where Jeroboam began to have some concerns about keeping the people he had jurisdiction over from moving to the tribe of Judah and reverting “revert to the house of David”.
For the people, would desire to go to the “temple of the Lord in Jerusalem” and “offer sacrifices” while “again (giving) their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah”. And if that happened, Jeroboam felt they would then try to kill him and “return to King Rehoboam”.
So “after seeking advice”, Jeroboam came up with a plan. He “made two golden calves” and then said to the people, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt." He set up one idol in Bethel and the other in Dan, places where the people could worship conveniently without having to travel to Jerusalem.
So did the people fall for the plan, suggested to them by a false shepherd?
They did and scripture tells us that their decision “became a sin” as the “people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there”. Jeroboam had won over the Israelites in his kingdom and went on to build “shrines on high places” while appointing “priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites”.
We read where Jeroboam also “instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month” making it appear “like the festival held in Judah” and “offered sacrifices on the altar…in Bethel…sacrificing to the calves he had made”.
Jeroboam had slyly made himself the shepherd of most of the people of Israel and they all fell into his trickery. And they did so because they didn’t truly know the good Shepherd…the Lord who would have exposed Jeroboam for who he truly was and led His people back to His care and worship.
Friends, there are still plenty of Jeroboams around our world today…ready to lead any flock down the wrong path and to their demise if followed. This is why we need to be proactive for the cause of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in everything we do…helping everyone we encounter find and/or stay connected to the right Shepherd.
Are you doing your part today?
For the good Shepherd is watching you as He is the rest of His flock.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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