In previous studies, we have seen that the Good Shepherd has a loving and living relationship with His sheep. He loved them enough to save them by His crucifixion. He laid down His life for the sheep. He loved them enough to seal them by His resurrection. We have a living Shepherd because He arose! Today, we will consider that we have a lasting relationship with the Good Shepherd, for He loves us enough to secure us by His intercession. As the writer of Hebrews says, “Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” (7:25)
But, what if we wander? According to the parable in Luke 11, Jesus will relentlessly pursue one stray sheep. Eternal life is promised and eternal means unending. Could you have it and lose it, then how might it be said to be eternal?
If we aren’t saved by good works, we can’t be lost by bad ones. Nothing can pry us from His hands! The Good Shepherd has a rod and staff. The staff will reach out to us and pull us back. Though the rod is used primarily to club the wolf that attacks and protect the flock, there are times when it becomes a chastening rod to painfully teach the sheep a lesson. That temporal pain, lovingly inflicted by the Shepherd, is for our eternal gain.
Our security doesn’t give an excuse for sin. Grace is not a justification for doing what we want, but the power for doing what God wants. If you are looking for an excuse to sin that means you aren’t one of His sheep, for Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.”
(John 10:27). That doesn’t mean we won’t ever stray away, but we cannot stay away. The Good Shepherd will see to that!
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