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STUDY 16: GOD THE GOOD SHEPHERD

©Rosemary Bardsley 2023

In this study we look at selected biblical references to God as the Shepherd – a shepherd who is good, in distinction to others who might call themselves ‘shepherds’ or inadequately occupy roles that involve the responsibilities of a shepherd.

In this image of the shepherd we see the kind, compassionate, self-sacrificing love of God for those who are his ‘sheep’, his flock.

A. PSALM 23

This is without doubt the most popular and most loved Psalm. Here David finds both comfort and joy in the truth that God is his Shepherd. And it is not because David’s life was without danger, pain and suffering. His life was characterised by suffering, from years of suffering contempt from his father and brothers, to the acute danger of various threats to his life. And it was not that he had never incurred God’s rebuke. Yet in all of this – in both physical danger and spiritual failure – he rested and rejoiced in the God who was his Shepherd.

Read through the Psalm. Discuss and answer these questions:
Verse 1: Who does David say is his shepherd? (Look at Exodus 3:14 to see what this title means.)

Verse 1: What confidence does having this divine Shepherd give to David?

Verse 2: What do you think David is referring to by the phrases ‘green pastures’ and ‘still waters’?

Verse 3: What spiritual truth is referred to by the phrase ‘restores my soul’?

Verse 3: How does God guide us ‘in the paths of righteousness’?

Verse 3: Why does God do this ‘for his name’s sake’?

Verse 4: What enabled David to live through dark and dangerous circumstances?

Verse 4: Suggest why God’s ‘rod and staff’ were a comfort to David?

Verse 5: How does this verse reflect the loving relationship between David and God?

Verse 6: What two things was David sure of?

The God who is David’s Shepherd, and ours, is ‘the LORD’, that is, the God who revealed himself to Moses as ‘I AM’ – the ever-present, self-existing, self-sufficient One, who is also for us always there, always able to address our needs whatever those needs are. David meditates on this: God’s presence and supply of his needs, particularly his spiritual, emotional and relational needs: God gives him peace; God restores his soul – refreshing him in his heart and mind; God shows him how to live a life that honours God’s name; God keeps him safe from the evil that threatens him; God welcomes him as a well-loved friend to a lavish feast. With this goodness of God encompassing his past and his present, he has utter confidence that that goodness, that mercy, will continue with him through this life and into the next.

 

B. ISAIAH 40:11

It is only one verse at the end of a section anticipating the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah has just drawn attention to the almighty power of the God who is coming after the one who would prepare his way. Verse 9 has commanded ‘say to the towns of Judah “Here is your God!”’and verse 10 has spoken of him as ‘the Sovereign LORD’ who ‘comes with power’. And then we have verse eleven, which takes our gaze away from the awesome power of God to this beautiful picture of God as a shepherd.

Here we see that although Jesus Christ is the Almighty God, all-powerful, sovereign, yet he is not a harsh tyrant, he is not an unfeeling dictator. He is tender, gentle, compassionate. He knows our needs; he knows our weakness; he understands our vulnerability.

Read Isaiah 40:11.
What four things does our Shepherd God do?

 

How do these shepherd images make you feel about God’s goodness towards you when you are weak and vulnerable?

 

How could you use this verse to encourage someone else to trust God’s goodness?

 

C. EZEKIEL 34

In Ezekiel 34 God speaks of himself, and of Christ, as the good Shepherd, in contrast to the ‘shepherds’ of Israel’ – the kings and priests whom he had charged with the care of his people, but who had failed as shepherds.

Read these verses from Ezekiel 34. How had the shepherds of Israel failed? These negative facts about the failed shepherds will help you to understand the goodness of God as our Shepherd.
Verse 2:

Verse 3:

Verse 4:

Verse 5:

Verse 6:

Verse 8:

God, the shepherd, also rebukes the ‘sheep’ and their careless unconcern for others in his flock (34:17 – 19, 21).

In contrast to both the failed ‘shepherds’ and the lack of compassion in some of the ‘sheep’, what does God, the good Shepherd, do for his flock?
Verse 10:

Verses 11, 12, 16:

Verse 14:

Verse 15, 23, 24:

Verse 16:

Question: How does this ‘shepherd’ image help you to understand the goodness of God?

 

D. LUKE 15:3 – 7

The Parable of the Lost Sheep reveals the heart of our Lord Jesus Christ. He seeks and saves the lost. Not in an abstract way. Not in a generalized way but in a personal, individual way. He goes out seeking the individual. He cares about the individual. That means you. That means me. Not only does he care about us each as individuals – he is also persistent in his care, persistent in his seeking. And when he finds us and brings us safely home, he rejoices. This parable about the lost sheep is a parable about the heart of the Shepherd towards each one of us individually. It is a parable that should fill us, even in our straying, with an immense and overwhelming confident hope – because our Shepherd is good.

Question: How does this parable answer the doubts that people have about the goodness of God?

 

 

 

E. JOHN 10 – JESUS THE GOOD SHEPHERD

Jesus taught that he is the good Shepherd, and in this shepherd image we see the amazing goodness of God:

He knows us each personally – he calls us by name – verses 3, 14, 27. His sheep know and recognize his voice and follow him – 4,5,14,16, 27.

He provides both protection and pasture – verses 7 – 9.

He gives his sheep life – verse 10, 28.

He lays down his life to save his sheep – verses 11, 15, 17, 18.

He keeps his sheep secure and safe forever – verses 28, 29.

All of this is in contrast to false shepherds (1 – 5, 8, 10) and uncaring and lazy hired hands who have no love or concern for the sheep (12, 13).

Knowing that what Jesus said in this chapter – that the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep – is what Jesus actually did on the cross, affirms how good God really is. Never again, seeing Jesus on the cross, can we reasonably doubt the goodness of God.

For additional insights on Jesus the good Shepherd read this study.

Study these verses which teach that the death of Christ for us demonstrates the love of God for us. What do they say about how much God loves us, and how do they confirm the goodness of God?
John 3:16

Romans 5:6 – 8

 

Romans 8:32 – 39

 

Galatians 2:20

Ephesians 5:2, 25

1John 3:16

1John 4:8 – 10

Questions:
How does Jesus’ teaching in John 10 affirm the incredible goodness of God?

 

How do the verses about the love of God demonstrated in the death of Christ give you confidence that God is indeed good?

 

How could you use the concept of the good Shepherd laying down his life to save us to help someone understand the goodness of God?

 

 

F. 1PETER 2:25; 5:4

Peter calls Jesus ‘the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls’ and ‘the Chief Shepherd’. In both of these references Peter is teaching about the submissive, servant heart that Christians and Christian leaders should have, modelled on the sacrificial, submissive, servant heart of Jesus, who, for our sake, silently endured human insult and ridicule as he bore our sins in his body on the cross. This is the heart of the Shepherd, this is the heart of God, this is the goodness of God the Son: that for our sake, for our salvation, he suffered all of this to bring us back into relationship with God.

 

REVIEW QUESTIONS:
How much does the idea of God that you have in your head have these qualities of loving, compassionate, self-sacrificing, servant leadership that we have seen in the selected Bible passages?

 

How much do you need to alter your perception of God to bring your ideas into line with the good Shepherd picture?

 

Which of these passages about God, the good Shepherd, helps you most to be certain of the goodness of God?
Why?

 

On the basis of these pictures of God as the Good Shepherd, how could you answer a person who was having difficulty believing God is good?