The Sheep Of His Pasture
By Pastor Mitch
May 20, 2016
THE SHEEP OF HIS PASTURE
This was a picture taken on the road to Augusta from Perth, Western Australia. As I was driving along this road, I saw this flock of sheep grazing on this field of luscious grass. According to the website sheep 101.info, sheep have a strong instinct to follow the sheep in front of them. When one sheep decides to go somewhere, the rest will follow. That is one of the reasons why there is a need for a shepherd to look after them. This idea of God as Shepherd and we as His sheep is reflected in Psalm 100. This is a Psalm of praise and thanksgiving to God. It is about coming to the Lord with joyful worship because He is our wonderful God.
Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” Psalm 100:3
Knowledge of God and joyful worship go together. We are meant to know the Lord as truly our personal God. It is the Lord who has made us as His people and not because of our own abilities and strength. It is indeed a great privilege and honour to be called His people. We are the sheep of His pasture and He makes us to lie down in green pastures (Psalm 23:2) . Even as a shepherd would always provide his sheep with green pastures, even so the Lord would also lead and provide for our need.
BE THANKFUL TO HIM
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him and bless His name; for the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.” Psalm 100:4-5
The Psalmist finds tremendous reasons to give thanks to God as His shepherd. Firstly, the Lord God is a good shepherd. He has the best for us in mind. Secondly, His mercy is from everlasting to everlasting. There is no end to His mercies to be given to us. Thirdly, His truth endures from one generation to another. They are timeless. God is truly a faithful and loving God to us. How can we not be filled with thanksgiving in our heart! Truly, we can enter into His presence with much exaltation and praise. Our hearts should be filled with joy and thanksgiving. As we come to worship Him each Sunday, let’s serve the Lord with gladness and let’s come before his presence with singing. Let’s love Him as our God. Let’s be thankful to Him and bless His name.
