Have we ever enjoyed a holiday, a respite from work, from normal day-to-day life ONLY to need a follow-up holiday from our tiredness gained during our vacation?  I have, and maybe you have, too.  The LORD knows this about us, His creation, and maybe that is why His Word speaks of His perfect rest.

In the well-known psalm, David writes, reminding us where we will find the LORD’S rest.

Many farmers are changing and allowing sheep to become part of their work.  In our congregation at church, I can think of at least three who have added sheep to their farms.  Rather than continuing as cattlemen only, they are now herdsmen (shepherds) for a variety of reasons, one being the diversity these animals bring to their farming operations.  However, sheep are different from cattle.  Sheep need safety; they need satisfaction; and they need sufficiency that only their shepherd can give to them.

In Jesus’ day, the people of Israel were shepherds (men who watched over their flocks), and they would have understood sheep herding.  The shepherds of the ancient world led their sheep and their sheep followed because the sheep knew their voice.  That may be why Jesus used that analogy when He said—

• Do we know the Good Shepherd?  &  Do we recognize His voice when He calls us by our name?
• Do we follow the Good Shepherd, Jesus?  &  Do we go wherever He leads us because we know He cares for us and wants what’s best for us?

Yes, sheep need to feel the safety of their shepherd, and they also need the satisfaction that only the shepherd can bring to them.  Read literature about raising sheep, and you will see that sheep lay down when their little bellies are full.  The shepherd has led them to the green pastures and to the springs of water where they have taken their fill, and then these tiny creatures lay down and find sweet rest.

Jesus spoke of the difference between a good shepherd and the hired man, who does not care for his sheep, when He said—