Daily Jewel

by Pastor Carnell, McAlester, OK
April 26, 2012

“Listen Up…and I mean it!”
”Now then, my sons, listen to me; do not turn aside from what I say.” – Proverbs 5:7

“I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep and my sheep know me.” (John 10:14)

“The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…and his sheep follow him because the sheep know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger.” (John 10:2-5)

Here we go again—reading Solomon’s instructions and being beckoned to “pay attention.” You would think by this point we would get the message but God knows by experience that we (meaning humans) have a terrible track record when it comes to following instruction—especially God’s instruction! So listen up, and hear what this is saying.
Charles Stanley tells the story of traveling with a church tour group to the Holy Land, and during one of their stops they observed a very unusual thing happen right before their eyes. Two Bedouin shepherds, along with their flocks, crossed paths on a road. The sheep mingled momentarily with sheep being led by the shepherds. The members of the tour group looked on with awe as the sheep—who looked alike on the road that day—seemed to have no problem mixing with sheep from the other flock. Until it was time for their shepherds to move in separate directions.
When one of the shepherds decided to move his flock, he spoke softly to his sheep and without hesitation they followed his voice. The other shepherd did likewise, the sheep following their shepherd. With no confusion or uncertainty about whose voice to follow, the sheep instinctively followed their own shepherd. How did this happen? The sheep recognized the voice of their shepherd, and when he spoke, they followed—with total certainty that it was the right direction to take. At the time of this writing we are in the midst of a presidential election. (I bet you did not realize that!) During the primary our phone was ringing at least five times a day with either political polls or ads. I had stopped answering them and just letting the phone ring! One night I counted—one out of every five commercials were for a political candidate, and what frustrated me even more is that a number of them were negative ads, aimed at how bad their opponent is instead of what positives they bring to the table! So—who do you trust? Which one is the right candidate?
Today there are voices from the north, south, east, and west—urging us to buy their product, attend their function, embrace their beliefs, or support their cause. What should we do? Jesus said that he “calls his own sheep by name and leads them…and his sheep follow him because the sheep know his voice.” If dumb sheep understand this principle, why are we so slow to figure it out?
So—what voice are you following? Are you confused by all that is out there, calling your name? It often comes to listening to the one that that is the loudest!
In the midst of all this, do you hear the voice of the Shepherd? The true Shepherd, or the one who often disguises himself as the shepherd? Listen carefully, and even in the midst of all the noise the real Shepherd’s voice is the One you will hear. That is the One to follow!
Pastor J. T. Carnell