Safe and Secure Sheep

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.  John 10:27-29

One of the most beloved images in the Scriptures is that of Shepherd and sheep.  The LORD is the Good Shepherd who provides for His sheep, individually and for all who make up His entire flock.  We live in a world of competing voices full of anger and division, confusion and contempt.  However, those sheep who hear the Shepherd’s voice live in the joyful certainty that no one can snatch them out of His hands.

For the parents who bring their child to the baptismal font to the adult children who admit a parent to a nursing home, there is a great comfort in knowing that these beloved sheep cannot be snatched out of the Shepherd’s hands.  The Church’s work is helping sheep to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd as the Word is preached in congregations and taught in schools and spoken by Christians in their daily lives.  Everything that we do is for the sake of helping people to hear the Shepherd’s voice.

Our hope and prayer for each congregation is that people are regularly hearing Christ’s voice and that more and more people are hearing.  For “faith comes from hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ (Romans 10:17).”  Our LORD indeed gives eternal to all who believe, but also provides the security of life within the Shepherd’s flock.  In a world where children endure abuse, where seniors live in isolation, where people struggle with depression, and through so many other hardships in this life, our Lord’s promises to His flock remain sure.  So we cling to the promises of our baptism, absolution, and His abiding presence with us.  And for the person who might waver in their faith, they need never doubt the Good Shepherd and His precious promises.

Prayer - Lord Jesus, You are the Good Shepherd, without whom nothing is secure. Rescue and preserve us that we may not be lost forever but follow You, rejoicing in the way that leads to eternal life; for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen. 

Fraternally in Christ,

President Lee Hagan