November 17

“The Way Home”

Scripture:

“Your are My flock, the sheep of My pasture. You are men, and I am your God, says the Lord God.” (Ezekiel 34:31) KJV

Observation:

These God breathed words from the prophet Ezekiel to the people of Israel are like an act of foresight when God would once again walk among His people on earth, only this time to be their Good Shepherd (John 10:11-13), calling the lost out of darkness and bringing them into the safety of His Fold. From the beginning of time the Lord has never stopped searching for the lost to gather them under His wings, where He could heal their wounds, comfort their souls, and then safely usher them Home. The LORD sees through the darkness that we find ourselves lost in and He knows how helpless we are to escape on our own, and He sees the futility in our attempts to find our way home without the guiding Light of Christ Jesus, the Greatest Shepherd of all.

Application:

In this fallen world there are many false shepherds with many strange voices that are filling our minds and stealing our hearts--voices calling for us to follow—voices of empty promises—voices of many shattered dreams. There is the voice of pride that tells us that we don’t really need the Good Shepherd to find our way Home, though many have tried and many have failed. The voice of human reason whispers into our ear; “there is more than One Shepherd with whom we could follow”—they’re many good shepherds that can heal our wounds and show us the many different paths that lead the way Home. The airways are filled with many diverse voices of Satan, promising the riches of this world when we follow his ways. We hear the voice of defeat screaming over our failures—saying we’re too lost to be found—too wounded to be healed—too far gone to be saved. But amidst all the loud voices calling out for our hearts there is but One Voice that stands out from the rest—One Voice that speaks only Truth. And the Voice we recognize is that of Christ Jesus our Lord, our God, our Savior and Good Shepherd. The Lord God no longer uses a human prophet for His Voice to be heard, because the barrier between God and man has been removed by the sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus being nailed to a wooden Cross (Mark 15:37-38). It is because of His onetime, selfless act of love and sacrifice that we are able to reconnect with God, for He lives within His flock where He speaks directly into their hearts. We can trust the Good Shepherd to be the Lord of our lives—the One who’s True Voice we can recognize and follow, especially those who are lost and in fear for their lives. And with each lost one found, He gathers them up in arms and washes them clean, heals their wounds, comforts their hearts, and then leads them Home. There is no greater Shepherd, nor One more faithful than He. There is no other Savior with whom we can trust with our lives. There is only One Lord; only One God (Deuteronomy 6:4) who knows the Way Home.

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank you for calling your people out of darkness and into Your Light. The world can only promise us temporary riches, while You offer us the richness of Your shared inheritance which is eternal. Help us drown out all voices but Yours—the Voice that comforts our souls. Amen