Sheep are docile; they follow one another, and follow whatever familiar voice they hear leading them. They are not known for their strength. The Bible uses sheep as an analogy for human beings. Thousands of years ago, everyone understood this analogy; sheep were a part of the culture.
Job owned 14,000 sheep; Solomon sacrificed 120,000 on one occasion; Psalm 100:3 refers to God's children as the sheep of God's pasture. Isaiah 53:6 reminds us that "All we like sheep have gone astray;" alluding to the fact that sheep are prone to wander.
Phillip Keller writes "Sheep do not 'just take care of themselves' as some might suppose. They require, more than any other class of livestock, endless attention and meticulous care. It is no accident that God has chosen to call us sheep. The behavior of sheep and human beings is similar in many ways ... Our mass mind and mob instincts, our fears and timidity, our stubbornness and lack of awareness, our perverse habits are all parallels of profound importance." The quality of life for the sheep depends on the shepherd who takes care of it.
Our text this Sunday from John 10 is one of the most beloved passages to be found anywhere in Scripture. But it's not a stand-alone passage: The healing of the blind man in chapter 9 was more than a miracle. It was part of the process of Jesus forming His flock. The leadership had cast the healed man out of the synagogue. Jesus found him, accepted him, restored him, and placed him in His fold.
I offer you this week a video recording of one of my best loved settings of Psalm 23, by one of my favorite composer / arrangers, Mack Wilberg, Music Director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Nothing more needs to be said beyond this setting and beautiful translation of the cherished 23rd Psalm.
1. My Shepherd will supply my need; Jehovah is His Name;
In pastures fresh He makes me feed Beside the living stream.
He brings my wand'ring spirit back When I forsake His ways,
And leads me, for His mercy's sake, In paths of truth and grace.
2. When I walk thru the shades of death, Thy presence is my stay;
A word of Thy supporting breath Drives all my fears away.
Thy hand, in sight of all my foes, Doth still my table spread;
My cup with blessings overflows; Thine oil anoints my head.
3. The sure provisions of my God Attend me all my days;
O may Thy house be mine abode, And all my work be praise!
There would I find a settled rest (While others go and come),
No more a stranger or a guest, But like a child at home.