Christ, The Shepherd And Overseer Of Our Souls

Feature 2 – May 2023 – Grace & Truth Magazine

CHRIST
The Shepherd And Overseer
Of Our Souls

We are told in the Old Testament that the Lord is our Shepherd. David clearly stated, “The L ORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want” (Ps. 23:1 KJV ). The promise in Isaiah 40:11 indicates that the Messiah will treat His people as a shepherd who cares for his sheep. Also, Zechariah prophesied that the coming Messiah would give His life like a shepherd protecting the flock: “Smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered” (13:7).

Along with these passages, we are given many examples of shepherds that remind us of the Lord Jesus Christ, beginning with Abel (Gen. 4:2). We also know that Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jacob’s sons, Moses and David were all shepherds. They provide us valuable lessons of our Savior, when they are seen favorably in Scripture. For example, with Abraham we see a shepherd’s trust and faith in action, which remind us of how the Lord walked here on earth. With Isaac we see a shepherd receiving his bride, which prompts us to think of Christ and the Church. As to Jacob, who is later called Israel, we see a shepherd ruling over his children, who became the 12 tribes of Israel, showing how Christ will rule over His people in a coming day.

When we come to the New Testament we are shown the Lord Jesus as our Shepherd. This is an interesting truth, since the Lord Jesus was a carpenter by profession (Mk. 6:3). However, we are speaking about spiritual truths, and the Lord is much more than what unbelieving man may see only on the outside. In the Gospels the Lord is seen taking on the role of a shepherd in how He trained the 12 disciples. He is the Shepherd, and He has called upon His followers to carry on the task of shepherding in His absence. Let’s explore some of these passages for our refreshment and blessing.

At The Lord’s Birth
We read the wonderful record of our Lord’s birth in Luke 2. In this setting a special announcement was made to the shepherds nearby (vv.8-14). They were told of the birth of the Savior in the city of David, meaning Bethlehem, and that He is Christ the Lord. This must have overwhelmed these shepherds. They feared greatly when they saw the angel of the Lord and were surrounded by the glory of the Lord shining around them. This was very special. Shepherds were not considered of great importance in society, but God chose these to be the first to whom He would openly declare His Son’s coming into the world. While man might think little of shepherds, God exalts them for His glory because they portray in such a lovely way the Lord Jesus Christ.

Upon hearing this announcement and the additional praise by a multitude of heavenly host praising God, the shepherds came with haste to Bethlehem to confirm the words they were told. How beautiful it must have been for the shepherds to find the Baby lying in the manger, a place where the cattle would feed. We see at the very beginning of the Lord’s life His connection with shepherds and feeding the flock. This would mark His public ministry in the years to come.

Feeding Of The 5,000
The feeding of the 5,000 is profound and is the only miracle recorded in all four gospels! This one miracle displays Christ’s divine power and His great compassion for those in need. When we look at this event in Mark 6 we have a unique expression: “And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things” (v.34 NKJV).

“Sheep not having a shepherd” reminds us of Moses’ concerns in Numbers 27:15-17. When he spoke with the Lord he expressed the need for a shepherd to lead God’s people. Although Joshua was God’s response for that need during Moses’ day, the ultimate answer from God is found in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is God’s Shepherd for leading and feeding His sheep.

The Lord fed the multitude in Mark 6 with spiritual food. It is said that His compassion caused Him to “teach them many things,” and, in addition, He met their physical needs. His concerns were to help His followers return to their homes refreshed both spiritually and physically. Praise the Lord that He continues to have compassion on each one of us by caring for our needs as well!

Like a shepherd, the Lord had the multitude “sit down” (v.39) and then used the disciples to distribute the food as He handed it to them. They in turn handed it to those sitting down. Everyone ate as much as they needed and all were fed. It was very clear that this was a display of Christ’s divine power, having used only 5 loaves and 2 fish yet able to feed 5,000 men! The miracle shows that Christ as our Shepherd can meet our needs no matter how impossible they may seem to us. Seeing Christ’s divine power in action results in our faith increasing and shows the character of our Shepherd who feeds and leads us from above.

The Good Shepherd
In John 10 the Lord described Himself as the Good Shepherd. He began by showing He was the Shepherd of the sheep because He entered through the door (vv.1-2). There would be only One Shepherd, and He could be identified by this simple truth. Christ entered through the door because He was the only One who could do God the Father’s will and fulfill all He requested. He entered through the door, as shown by His words, walk and ways. He fulfilled all the predictions of the coming Messiah foretold in the Old Testament, which were required to show who was the true Shepherd.

Christ also would lead the Jewish sheep out of the sheepfold of Judaism, a picture of being under the law, into the grace of Christianity. How lovely to see Him gently call His own, and they would follow Him. The Lord went on to say He would have other sheep He would call; they would know His voice and follow Him. These sheep would not only be of the house of Israel (vv.3-5), but later they would also be from among the Gentiles (v.16).

The Lord then explained why He alone is the Good Shepherd: “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep” (v.11 ESV). This truth is repeated in verses 15, 17 and 18, telling again and again that Christ would lay down His life for us. How precious to see that as our Shepherd the Lord Jesus was willing to give His life for us on the cross of Calvary. It was there where He laid down His life as the Good Shepherd. This truth is also the fulfillment of Zechariah 13:7, as mentioned earlier. It cost the Lord everything to save us! Glory to His Name!

The Chief Shepherd
We read in 1 Peter 5:4 (NKJV): “When the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.” Here, the apostle Peter identified the Lord Jesus as the Shepherd above all the other shepherds. He is the Chief Shepherd!

This implies that all of us must be under the authority and leadership of Christ, even those who may be used as shepherds among God’s people. In this sense, we are only subordinate shepherds, looking to the Chief Shepherd for direction, understanding and wisdom. Christ is to receive the honor and glory of our acknowledging His supremacy in this matter of shepherding.

Along with this we are encouraged to know that our Lord, the Chief Shepherd, will reward us in a coming day with a crown of glory for faithful service in shepherding. This goes along with the fact that we shall all appear before the judgment seat of Christ to receive rewards for the things we did in obedience to His Word and will (see 1 Cor. 3:9-15, 4:5; 2 Cor. 5:9-10). May we be encouraged to serve as shepherds in dependence on the Lord, with humility, knowing that our labor is not in vain in the Lord (1 Cor. 15:58).

The Great Shepherd
The Lord is also our Great Shepherd. Hebrews 13:20-21 says, “Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.”

The Lord is compared to many things and many others in the book of Hebrews. In every comparison we see that He is the only One described as greater or great. A few shepherds are mentioned in Hebrews 11, including: Abel (v.4), Abraham (v.8), Isaac (v.9), Jacob (v.9), Moses (v.23) and David (v.32). All these shepherds, although listed in the passage as examples of faithfulness, fall short in their greatness compared to our Lord. The Lord Jesus is far above any other, and the expression “Great Shepherd” is reserved only for Him! This is so beautiful! The epistle ends with this last statement of His greatness and is the final conclusion of the letter. May we acknowledge His greatness as the Great Shepherd everyday.

The Shepherd As Judge
At any moment the Lord may come and take us home to Himself (1 Th. 4:13-17). About seven years later, the Lord will return with us, which is called “His appearing.” He will establish His kingdom on earth and reign 1,000 years (Mt. 25:31-46). The entire world will be brought before the Lord and separated, like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. We believe this, the judging of nations, will be immediately after the tribulation and right before the beginning of Christ’s reign over the earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, which was foretold in the Old and New Testaments.

This act of separating is His alone. He will judge righteously. One key lesson from this passage is the discernment that a shepherd must have to know the difference between those who are real sheep and the ones who are only goats, even though they are mingled with the sheep. In 2 Timothy 2:19 we read, “Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal, ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.’” This is true regardless of the time period.

We pray that each one reading this article is trusting in the Good Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, as his or her personal Savior.

Peter’s Call To Shepherd
In John 21:15-23 the Lord restored Peter publicly after His resurrection. Before the Lord’s sacrifice, Peter denied that he knew the Lord. This touching restoration shows the Lord’s tender mercy toward Peter and, in fact, to all the disciples who had fled following the Lord’s arrest and condemnation to death. After Christ’s resurrection, in shepherding His own, He regathered them to Himself. In this passage He focused on Peter and gave him a very practical way of showing his love to the Lord.

Three times, in slightly different wording, the Lord questioned Peter’s love for Him. This corresponded with the three denials that Peter had made prior to the Lord going to the cross. Peter responded with a feeble acknowledgment of his love for the Lord each time, showing he had learned his lesson not to boast of his allegiance due to the possibility of future failure.

The Lord then instructed Peter, each time using shepherding terms, to prove his love by his actions going forward. Peter was to “feed My lambs” (v.15), “tend My sheep” (v.16) and “feed My sheep” (v.17). All three are shepherding responsibilities. Notice that in each instruction the Lord calls His people “My,” indicating that no one can call the Lord’s people their own flock or congregation. God’s people are simply entrusted to others temporarily during this short lifetime.

“Feed My lambs” is to provide spiritual food for the young in faith. “Tend My sheep” is to care about their wellbeing and help them get along in their pathway of faith. “Feed My sheep” is to instruct with deeper spiritual truth by sharing from the Word of God things more difficult to understand, requiring spiritual maturity. All these things are part of a shepherd’s calling.

In one way it can be said that this instruction was unique to Peter. However, we should all consider the exhortation and apply it to ourselves. Those who would take up a role, whether big or small, in shepherding care should know the Word of God and serve as a way to show their love for Christ. Ministering the Word from the pulpit should be an act of love for the Savior, with the desire to have His sheep follow the Lord and not man.

We should also be humble enough to know that we are no better than Peter. We too may fail, and this is highlighted in 1 Peter 2:25: “For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” We need the Lord’s shepherding care to help us and then to be able to help others. This dependency is vital for fruitful service. May the Lord help us.

In this last verse we also see that Christ our Shepherd is also the Overseer of our souls. He continues to lead, guide and feed us from heaven above, where He is now. What a blessing each of us has for such a wonderful Overseer, who knows all about us: our problems, our desires, our needs and our failures. He knows exactly what we need and how to provide.

Final Challenge
Peter wrote much about shepherding after his restoration, and he displayed shepherding care in many ways throughout the early chapters of Acts. The apostle also led many to Christ and then participated in baptizing them. In one instance Peter and John were used together to bless a lame man and lead him to Christ (Acts 3). The two were willing to be jailed for their firm stand for Christ. Filled with the Holy Spirit, we see a new Peter and a new John following the Lord Jesus with much boldness.

Peter also had to learn God’s new ways of grace and be delivered from being under the law. A shepherd must be subject to the Word of God in order to shepherd others. We see this wonderful transformation in Acts 10. From this point, interestingly, Paul became more prominent and Peter less. A shepherd must be willing to take a lower position or role than others whom the Lord may raise up in service, if that is His will. This is also a very humble stage in life.

In 1 Peter 5:2-3 we are exhorted to serve as shepherds. It is the flock of God, not our flock, that we are called to shepherd. The shepherding is among God’s believing people around us. He brings individuals into our lives so that we can help them in their spiritual pathway by being an example and sharing things from the Word of God.

There are several warnings to us in shepherding others. We are to do this willingly, not by compulsion. The motive and manner in which shepherding is done is important. We are not to shepherd with the hope of financial gain, but eagerly, knowing our reward will be in heaven and not here on earth. We are also warned not to shepherd in a way that is overbearing. The expression is “not to lord over them,” implying we act like dictators rather than being humble. This style of leadership is not appropriate and, in fact, is warned against in Acts 20:28-35. One must be delivered from themself before they can be used in this way for the Lord.

How sad it is when we see a brother or sister think they are doing shepherding care when they are simply nosy and busybodies, meddling in other people’s business (1 Pet. 4:15). Be careful if you have a tendency to get involved whenever problems surface with others. Our first thought should be to pray for one another and then ask the Lord whether it is His will that we do more. Many have defiled themselves by learning the details of sin in others, only to fail and fall into the same struggles (Gal. 6:1).

Finally, it is worth saying we need more shepherds among God’s people. It is a neglected gift, and this shows in the many wandering sheep no one goes after to restore to the Lord. Shepherding may require many tears, and perhaps this is why so few desire to serve in this capacity. It is a work done behind the scenes for the most part; there is little public glory in shepherding that is done according to God’s Word. Oh, may the Lord raise up more shepherds!

By Bill Kulkens