Feed My Sheep

“Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above them; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen!’ while lifting up their hands; and they knelt down and worshiped the Lord with their faces toward the ground.

Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, explained the Law to the people, and the people remained in their places. So they read from the Book of the Law of God, translating and explaining it so that the people understood the reading.

Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the Law.

Then Ezra said to them, ‘Go [your way], eat the rich festival food, drink the sweet drink, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be worried, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and your stronghold.’

So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, ‘Be still, for the day is holy; do not be worried.’ Then all the people went on their way to eat, to drink, to send portions [of food to others] and to celebrate a great festival, because they understood the words which had been communicated to them.’” Nehemiah 8:5-12 BSB

Nehemiah was sent to rebuild Jerusalem after many years of Jerusalem lying in ruins. When the work was completed, the people asked their leaders, Nehemiah, Ezra, and the Levitical priests, to read and explain the scriptures to them. They had longed for and missed God’s word so much that, upon hearing and understanding His word again, they began to be very sad and to cry.

But God had the leaders tell them instead to eat, drink, and send portions for others who were not there. They were not to worry, for the joy of the Lord is their strength. What a word for today! Paul tells the Philippians that he can do all things through Christ Who strengthens him. The joy within that comes from the Lord’s presence in our hearts is literally our strength.

Without His joy springing up alive from understanding His word and His ways, we lose our strength, any true ability to handle our lives well. The Israelites were God’s special people, His sheep, and they had lost much strength without the feeding of the holy word, ways of worship, to hear and understand the Word of the Lord.

After His resurrection, when He appeared to the disciples, Jesus Christ fed them and then told Peter three times:

“Jesus, then, is coming and taking the bread and is giving it to them, and the food fish likewise. Now this is already the third time Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after being roused from among the dead.

When, then, they lunch, Jesus is saying to Simon Peter, ‘Simon of John, are you loving Me more than these?’ He is saying to Him, ‘Yes, Lord, Thou art aware that I am fond of Thee!’ He is saying to him, ‘Graze My lambkins!’

He is saying to him again a second time, ‘Simon of John, are you loving Me?’ He is saying to Him,‘Yes, Lord, Thou art aware that I am fond of Thee!’ He is saying to him, ‘Shepherd My sheep!’

He is saying to him the third time, ‘Simon of John, are you fond of Me? Peter was sorry that He said to him the third time ‘Are you fond of Me? and he is saying to Him, ‘Lord, Thou art aware of all things! Thou knowest that I am fond of Thee’ And Jesus is saying to him, ‘Graze My little sheep!’”

John 21:13-17 CLV

“Graze My lambkins, shepherd My sheep, graze My little lambkins.” Thus was Peter directed to do after Peter affirmed three times that he did, indeed, love the Lord. Like Peter, those who deeply love the Lord are told to feed the flock of God. Our love for our Lord is to be manifested to others He is raising in His body of believers. The Greek word translated as graze comes from “bosko,” meaning “to pasture, graze, or keep.” Shepherd comes from “poimaino,” meaning “to shepherd, supervise, or feed.”

Both of these words imply a close, caring, and committed relationship of support and protection of the Lord’s flock. A shepherd is responsible for guiding the sheep, protecting them, and attending to their needs. Shepherds, such as David with his father’s flocks, made sure the sheep had clear, fresh water, green pastures on which to feed, and protection from predators. Sheep could not find these necessities without their shepherd’s guidance.

The beloved Psalm of David, written above, passionately confesses the Lord our Shepherd’s actions in the lives of His saints. We require His guidance and leadership to find the fresh water and word we need to sustain life. Whether leaders or not, when called to feed the Lord’s sheep, we are to have a close watch over others who belong to Him and for whom He cares deeply. This calling is for lambs all the way to mature sheep. We all require God’s word, wisdom, and protection.

Sheep are an excellent metaphor for God’s people. He is so wise in the common examples He uses in the Word to teach us. Sheep cannot graze on the same pastures, nor are they safe from predators or the storms that come. Sheep also cannot, on their own, find new pastures or watering places. When the current pasture is grazed to the roots, the shepherd must move the sheep to new pastures. It is sobering to consider some of the Lord’s flock trying to graze on barren pasture.

When the sources of water change or dry up, it is the shepherd’s responsibility to move the flock to a new source of water so they may drink in peace. God’s people need a fresh supply of the pure water of the spirit. Father God is responsible for moving us to the best, present-day sources of spiritual food and water. We follow His lead to continually grow and be nurtured in Him.

With Our Shepherd’s watchcare over His flock, He moves us to new pastures. How we need our Shepherd!

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters.

He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.” Psalms 23:1-4 KJV

When you are called to shepherd His sheep, you must stay close to the Lord and His leading, to know how to feed, care for, and nurture the sheep He has put in your care. This goes beyond those who have a flock called a church. When the Lord places people in our care, He may put them in our hearts for intercession, for prayer, for edification, and correction. It may be for a season or last a lifetime.

Since sheep beget sheep, those of us who believe are to feed His sheep when God so leads, just as those who have an official, labeled role as a shepherd. People need a fresh word from green pastures to grow. The clear, still water of the word of life must continue to flow to, in, and through us for others. Water is needed to wash the outer and inner, to refresh the whole man.

Our Lord is so precise in the metaphors and symbols He uses in His word to help us understand Him! David well knew what sheep needed from his own years of shepherding his father’s sheep. It was his training ground, the way David was prepared to lead God’s people as their future King. He defeated Goliath the same way he had learned to protect the sheep from the lion and the bear. He could not do it with Saul’s armor, so unfamiliar to him; he did it with his slingshot and rocks, as God taught.

We can learn much about the directive to feed my sheep from the lives of sheep and those who raise them. Do you know what happens when sheep are not moved to new pastures? Those who raise sheep tell us that sheep just do not thrive without a shepherd. Sheep get into lots of trouble without a shepherd, eating things that could hurt them, and easily falling prey to predators. The condition of the sheep is directly related to the care of the shepherd.

Sheep need constant care. When those who raise sheep move them to a new pasture, it is not as easy as it may seem to those of us inexperienced in the tending of these animals. Indigenous shepherds in many countries must know the terrain around them intimately, becoming familiar with every peak and valley in that area. While the valleys of green pastures make for great feeding, the sheep also need to be moved to higher areas to avoid predators.

What wisdom this illustrates for the feeding and care of God’s own precious sheep. Don’t we know this as sheep of His pasture? Without our Shepherd, we do get into all kinds of trouble, ingest things from the world and from evil that hurt us, and are vulnerable to attack. No wonder the Lord has chosen some to be shepherds of His spiritual flock, under the leading and direction of the Great Shepherd.

Much is required, just as David spoke further about in Psalms 23:

“He refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalms 23:3-4 NIV

The word valley is literally translated as “a ravine of blackest shadows.” It is a place of darkness and danger. The Greek word is gay, a “narrow gorge”, taken from the root word gevah, meaning “exaltation, arrogance, a lifting up, pride.” Hmmm….One of the dark valleys we can wander into, bringing darkness and the threat of evil is a place where God’s light, His way, becomes hidden from us. This valley of darkness and danger is a place where we rely on our own strength, become arrogant and prideful, instead of humbly submitting to our Lord.

How we need our Shepherd and those He has called to lead and guide us out of such places! God leads us through many places of darkness, showing us the path of life so that we need not be afraid. As with David, we do not fear because our Shepherd is constantly with us, able at a moment’s notice to lift His club and His staff to protect and comfort us. When we need new pastures, He leads us to new, life-giving growth, green and lush.

Those who raise sheep know that while newborn lambs need the same food daily, the milk of the word, maturing sheep need to be moved to greener pastures or they develop parasites and problems with digestion. What does that say to Christians who settle for hearing the same word year after year, eventually lacking the life that nourishes? We can learn a lot from exploring God’s use of shepherds and sheep in His word!

Spiritually, the parasites and problems in digesting the Word are described this way by Peter:

“Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.” 1 Peter 2:1-3 BSB

Expanding our understanding of this passage of scripture, consider the Concordant Literal’s version:

“Putting off, then, all malice and all guile and hypocrisies and envies and all vilifications, as recently born babes, long for the unadulterated milk of the word that by it you may be growing into salvation, if so be that you taste that the Lord is kind:

Whom approaching, a living Stone, having been rejected indeed by men, yet chosen by God, held in honor, you, also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, into a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, most acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:1-5 CLV

The parasites of malice, deceit, guile, hypocrisy, envy, slander, and vilification—how they adulterate the milk of the Word fed to His lambs! It is always a matter of the heart, and, as God’s living stones, we are to be built up, as well as build others up, through this pure milk of the word. But these evil, parasitical attitudes of the heart will hinder the digestion of His word. The same spiritual food, grown old, dried up and stale, simply does not digest anymore!

There is no life left in such dark places of the heart hidden from the light and life of the Lord, no nurturing and growth to maturity when the Lord’s people do not move on as He directs. But how we love a fresh, new word, a delightful outpouring of the presence of God through His holy spirit! Those raising sheep tell us that they love going out onto pasture in the spring, after a winter of dry hay and fodder.

Sheep and lambs frolic with joy when the weather allows this again! The grass is sweet, growing so quickly in the spring, and the sheep are happy to eat and will even overeat. Learning more from the raising of sheep, we find that sheep cannot easily digest this new, luscious food. Let us learn more from the words of a 21st-century shepherd:

“We also follow the old-timers’ adage, ‘Never put dry sheep onto wet grass.’ If the sheep are dry and the grass is wet, it isn’t wet due to rain (otherwise, the sheep would be wet!), but instead is wet because of the morning dew.

Putting sheep onto lush pasture in the early morning will mean that they will get all of their nutrition that day from the new pasture, which is asking for trouble, creating digestive upset, with the grass going right through them instead of building them up…

Instead, we let them fill up in the early morning on what is left in the old pasture (the less palatable and less nutritious plants that they have left) before moving them later in the day to the new field…

[Eventually] they are no longer eating the hay in the barn, even if we offer it. They are fully on the lush pasture...” Adapted from Pine Knoll Sheep and Wool 2020)

What precise wisdom God is teaching with the use of these references to sheep. As the Great Shepherd, He is teaching us how carefully we are to feed His own sheep. Just as the shepherd starts with the familiar barn hay he knows the sheep can digest, a wise teacher does not rush into sharing of the new Word of understanding, a deeper Word of meat beyond milk. Instead, the feeder of God’s flock introduces it along with foundational truths the believers have already been able to digest.

Newborn spiritual lambs need the pure milk of the Word. They cannot be nourished yet on the lush pastures of deep revelation; they simply cannot understand or digest it yet. It will go right through them; it may even upset or distress them. They need to grow and develop on the foundation laid by Jesus Christ through His word. The deeper, richer pastures of this Word will then nourish them by bringing His life to their hearts.

We as God’s sheep cannot grow and thrive on the same pasture, the same Word, but must also be led to move on, no matter how much that current pasture fed us and caused us to grow. How critical it is to be led by the Spirit in feeding His sheep! It takes a wise shepherd of His sheep to know how the spirit would lead to nurture, grow, and protect His flock.

“Tell me, O Thou whom my soul loveth, where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flocks to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of Thy companions?” Song of Solomon 1:2;7;8 KJV

A wise and skillful teacher of God’s word knows how to speak to the people where they are at while lifting them to higher and higher places in God. Throughout our walk with the Lord, we may be called to shepherd many of His own, directly through interaction in fellowship and worship, and indirectly, even invisibly, through prayer and intercession.

We are the light of the world, so, even in our daily activities, we can drop a word of kindness, encouragement, and truth to others we meet. God moves people into our spiritual path when we walk together as fellow believers. He is continually mindful of the needs of His sheep, feeding, caring for, and protecting all of His flock. May God cause us to obey the directive to feed His sheep as He does, through His power and anointing from within us. He promises to feed us, His people who hear His voice.

“With good pasture I do feed them, and on mountains of the high place of Israel is their habitation. There do they lie down in a good habitation, and fat pastures they enjoy on the mountains of Israel.

I feed My flock, and cause them to lie down, an affirmation of the Lord Yahweh." Ezekiel 34:14-15 CLV