BYM ONLINE DESK Nov 2018 Blessing English Emagazine | Page 11

bymonline.org | November 2018
Today we need men of such caliber who will
reject vain glories. But sadly, our Churches and
Institutions are filled with people who scramble for
posts and positions. Let us make a conscious effort so
that we might decrease and let Him increase.
bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the
lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness
you have ruled them.”
From the above verse, we find the ministry of a
shepherd to be:
5. Serving with a Shepherd's Heart
1. Strengthening the weak
Finally, in order to serve God with integrity of
heart, we need a shepherd's heart. David served God in
a similar fashion.
1Ki 9:4,5 - “And as for you, if you will walk
before me, as David your father walked, with integrity
of heart and uprightness ... you shall not lack a man on
the throne of Israel.”
David was a shepherd. He was ready to give his
life for the sheep. God took him from tending the sheep
to be the king of Israel. It was the heart of the shepherd
in David which God liked the most. No wonder he
penned the beautiful words of Psalm 23.
In order to minister to God's people, we need a
tender heart like that of a shepherd. Sheep are soft
creatures. They are not like wild animals which need to
be fought against. To serve the sheep of God's pasture,
we need patience, love and longsuffering. Sheep need
leading and feeding. We need to feed the sheep (teach
God's Word) and also lead them (guide God's people).
Many in Christendom today lord over the sheep. They
control and manipulate. And they feed themselves
instead of their sheep. No wonder they will be repaid in
full when the Chief Shepherd comes.
This was what Ezekiel wrote in 34th chapter,
Eze 34:2 - “Son of man, prophesy against the
shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to
the shepherds, Thus says the Lord God: Ah, shepherds
of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not
shepherds feed the sheep?”
He writes about the ministry of a shepherd in the
following verse:
Eze 34:4 “The weak you have not strengthened,
the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not
2. Healing the sick
3. Binding up the injured
4. Bringing back the strayed
5. Seeking the lost
Oh, that God might raise such shepherd-hearted
people in every organisation and church! A good
shepherd will lay down his life for the sheep. It is in this
34th chapter of Ezekiel we find the promise that was
given to Blessing Youth Mission, “There shall be
showers of blessings” (Ver 26). There can be no
revival blessings in the Church of God until the
ministry of shepherding is restored.
Are you ready to shepherd God's people? They
may be 2, 3, 5, 50 or 1000. Are you ready to give time
for people? Let us not be programme-oriented and
result-oriented. Let us be people-oriented. With
integrity of heart, let us shepherd the sheep that God
has given us. God's children are the redeemed ones of
God. They belong to God. Let us love them as God
loves them. Let us accept them as God accepts them.
Let us not find fault with them. Let us lead them with
gentle hands. Let us labour for them and be ready to die
for them.
Even when we are sincere and minister with a
shepherd's heart, some may not accept us. Some may
speak against us. Some may stone us. But let us not be
bothered. Jesus came to his own, but His own did not
accept Him. Rather they killed Him. Jesus gave His
life for the selfish and the ungrateful people. He died
for the criminals. He took the place of the sinners. But
none recognized Him. He was a man familiar with
suffering. Yet He fulfilled God's calling in His life. He
served His Father.
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