This is one of my favorites!
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust."
Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place--the Most High, who is my refuge--no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plage com near your tent. Verses 1-2,9-10
Romans 13:1-2 Civil Obedience
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
We recognize that ultimate authority belongs to God. And if all authorities ultimately answer to Jesus, then we are obedient to Jesus when we obey our human rulers. It is important to notice that Paul doesn't tell us to only obey rulers who favor us. The very people that he was writing to were under oppressive Roman rule. This same government eventually put Paul to death. We are supposed to model citizens in whatever society we are in. The only exception is when these governments command what God forbids or forbid what God commands.
John 10:2-5,14-18
The shepherd walks right up to the gate. The gatekeeper opens the gate to him and the sheep recognize his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he gets them all out, he leads them and they follow because they are familiar with his voice. They won't follow a stranger's voice but will scatter because they aren't used to the sound of it...
I am the Good Shepherd. I know my own sheep and my own sheep know me. In the same way, the Father knows me and I know the Father. I put the sheep before myself, sacrificing myself if necessary. You need to know that I have other sheep in addition to those in this pen. I need to gather and bring them, too. They'll also recognize my voice. Then it will be one flock, one Shepherd. This is why the Father loves me: because I freely lay down my life. And so I am free to take it up again. No one takes it from me. I lay it down of my own free will. I have the right to lay it down; I also have the right to take it up again. I received this authority personally from my Father.
There is much made of this word "know." I'm not reading Greek here, but I'm guessing that it is a very intimate form of the word "know." So just as Jesus knows the Father and the Father knows him, he knows us and we know him. I find great comfort in the fact that Jesus compares his relationship to us, the sheep, with the relationship he has with the Father. That is a very intimate, very close relationship.
Jesus does several things for the sheep in this passage. He calls his sheep by name. He leads them out. He knows his own sheep. He puts his sheep before himself, sacrificing himself if necessary (and it was). And he gathers and brings other sheep.
Which one of those things do you need from him today?
For me, I think I need leading out. And I need him to call my name. Do you ever need to just hear Jesus call your name? There is something about someone calling your name that is very special. Unless it's because you're in trouble. Then you don't want to hear your name. Especially when your mother uses your middle name.
But I digress...
I feel the need to hear Jesus call my name and then lead me out. Where is he leading me to? Only he knows. My job is to follow. Wherever it is, though, I have confidence that it is a good place. I'm a sheep, so I want green pastures with lots of rich food. And water nearby. But it has to be still water. None of that rough, wavy stuff. So Jesus is leading me to a place of serenity.
As a sheep, I'm supposed to recognize his voice and respond by following him. How do you need to respond to him today?
I just need to follow wherever he's leading. I need to have my mind set on him and the things that he wants me to learn (I would compare that to the green grass that a sheep eats). He might be leading me away from certain things, as well. Away from some danger or some sin. I need to have discernment to recognize this.
And the big question is...how am I growing in my ability to recognize his voice? Hopefully by doing these devotions everyday (well...most days)(some days?), I am increasing that capacity to recognize the voice of Christ. I need to get to where his voice drowns out all others. It's not enough that it's louder; I need to not be able to even hear the others.
I wonder how long I could do that without a)falling asleep, or b)letting my mind wander off to things like who's winning the Red Sox game.
Speaking of Red Sox games...they're about to start. And I just happen to be done for the day.
Grace and peace, friends!