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Date of message: 08 September 2002
Subject: The Names of God - YHVH Rohi
Shalom, Boker-tov ( good morning ),
The LORD is my Shepherd, I shall not want - Psalms 23: 1. Most of us know
this Bible verse almost by rote; some even have posters, bookmarks, screen-savers
and computer wallpapers with pictures of a shepherd and his sheep. So
the concept of a shepherd is not new even to city folks in Singapore.
But what exact does the Psalmist mean when he penned the Shepherd Psalm
and declared YHVH Rohi - the LORD is my Shepherd?
Sure, the shepherd tends his sheep. We are only too familiar with the
modern day shepherd tending hundreds of sheep with his trusted sheep-dog
friend or friends. There is the sense of professionalism in whatever he
and his dogs are doing. All that the shepherd is interested in such sheep
farms is the harvest of good wool and possibly the succulent juicy mutton.
My family and I have been on a few farms in New Zealand and Australia
and most of these times, it was in mid Spring and early Summer and we
saw the farmers racing each other to shear the sheep of their heavy wool.
Early Summer is the best time to see these hard-working farmers holding
sheep-shearing competitions to see how many sheep each competitor can
sheer within a given time period or how fast he can shear a fixed number
of sheep in the pen.
So that impression was imprinted on my mind and when the scriptures speak
of the shepherd tending his sheep, immediately the picture of the sheep
shearing springs to my mind. Now that is a gross misrepresentation of
what the Author of the scriptures really want us to have.
In the Middle East, the shepherd ( during Bible times as well as in modern
day ) looks after a much smaller herd - possibly twelve to fifteen sheep.
He does not have the modern day tools like his compatriots in the western
countries and so he has to rely on himself to fend for his herd. It is
not common to find dogs in the Middle East, let alone sheep dogs. Also
the land is more arid and dry and therefore good green pastures are hard
to come by.
Usually the shepherd has to bring his sheep over vast distances just to
look for good grass for grazing.
When I was in Israel in mid-February this year, I was particularly drawn
to the Bible Resource Garden in Ein Karem ( Karem Springs ) in Jerusalem.
Here the scholars attempt to reconstruct scenes from the Bible that depict
everyday living in Bible times and among the exhibits, there was one sheepfold
tucked away in a section of the gardens. I was surprised to find that
the sheepfold used in the days of young David the shepherd right until
the time of Jesus was nothing more than a small cave with a narrow opening
and which the shepherd would use at night to shelter his fold. These caves
can be easily found through Israel because of the rocky terrain that is
Israel today.
Another important lesson, which I picked up from the guides of the Garden,
is the way the shepherd cares for his sheep. The shepherd would personally
groom the wool of each sheep every evening before they retire, being careful
to pick out all the lice and ticks embedded among the wool especially
around the face area. Another place that he would pay much attention to
is around the nose area. Because the nose is usually moist and tender,
it would usually be the first place the parasites would attack and multiply
themselves. The shepherd would apply olive oil to anoint the head of the
sheep after delousing them and as a result, there is much bonding between
the shepherd and his sheep. It has been said that the pain inflicted by
the parasites is so unbearable that had the sheep not received the daily
tender loving treatment from the shepherd, they would be so agitated that
they become vicious and start to attack and bite each other.
In John 10: 1 - 15, Jesus gave the parable of the Good Shepherd and proclaimed
that He is the Good Shepherd. Twice in verses 11 and 14, He made that
emphatic statement, "I am the good shepherd." After hearing
the guides in the Garden of Ein Karem and having seen the sheep-fold exhibit,
I now have a better understanding of what our Lord really meant by Himself
being the Good Shepherd. The only way into and out of the sheepfold is
via the door and that is also where the shepherd would lie down and rest
- at the doorway. He is always on guard watching over His flock and naturally
the sheep feel very much at ease seeing the shepherd at the doorway. By
being at the opening of the cave, the shepherd would also be blocking
out the cold and often biting winds of the desert thus ensuring that the
interior of the cave is warm and so the sheep would be able to have a
good rest.
Our Lord Jesus, our Good Shepherd, is the door of the sheep ( John 10:
7 ) and He wards off all the marauding scavengers of the night. He will
defend us whenever a wolf or a wild animal was to come and try to snatch
away His sheep. And His Presence in our midst warms our spirits and our
hearts. Our Good Shepherd not only protects us from harm, He anoints our
heads with the anointing oil of His Holy Spirit and takes away our sicknesses
and diseases.
The personal grooming given by the shepherd to each of his charge at the
end of each day is so refreshing to the sheep that it endears itself to
the shepherd and here the bonding develops. The shepherd would probably
talk to the sheep as he rubs the olive oil into the soft and tender skin
around the nose area. Today, our Lord Jesus is doing the same things in
our lives. He anoints us by helping us grow in discernment ( for the nose
is the most important sensory part of our body; for with our nose, we
can smell out trouble supernaturally ) and He reminds us that our sins
have been forgiven us at the cross and that we are to forgive one another
of their sins. It is one thing to be forgiven of our sins by Jesus but
we would also appropriate this forgiveness to those around us. If we do
not forgive others their sins, there will be much hurt and hurtful people
do hurt others.
The shepherd grooms the sheep in the evening before the sheep retires
for the night. We are in a much better position than those sheep. Our
Lord Jesus is the Master Groom - His grooming is for all day and for all
time. Just like the shepherd in the Middle East who knows each of his
own sheep by name, Our Lord Jesus knows each one of us ( and here we are
talking about hundreds of millions of believers ) by name. In spite of
the large numbers of born-again believers, He calls us by name and He
grooms us individually. What privilege and honor that has been installed
in us!
Jesus told the Parable of the Lost Sheep in Luke 15: 3 - 7: -
3. So He told them this parable, saying,
4. "What man among you, if he has a hundred sheep and has lost one
of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open pasture and go after
the one which is lost until he finds it?
5. When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.
6. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors,
saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was
lost!'
7. I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over
one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need
no repentance.
Since a shepherd would only be looking after between twelve and fifteen
sheep, the shepherd in this parable would then be the chief shepherd overseeing
a group of about seven or eight shepherds hired by him to tend his sheep.
It is not as if the shepherd is looking after the hundred sheep single-handed;
he has hired hands to help him. And so the chief shepherd goes out and
scour the hills, the streams, the bushes and the cliffs to locate his
lost sheep and when he had found his lost sheep, he rejoiced over it and
brought it home over his shoulders. He threw a party to celebrate the
finding of his lost sheep.
Today Jesus is that Shepherd out looking for all the lost sheep from his
sheepfolds. And when He has found one, He rejoices over that one lost
sheep found and places him/ her over His strong shoulders and He celebrates
over the returning home of that one lost soul who has come home. Are you
home yet? Are you ready to come home to the Lord, to be with Him and be
part of His big extended family? Why not allow Jesus to find you and when
you are found, to allow Him to love you and to care for you?
Allowing Jesus to love you is a very simple act of faith but it will stand
for eternity. Our Lord Jesus had paid the price and all that is required
of us is to invite Him into our lives and He will begin His work of changing
and grooming us. Pray this prayer to invite Him and you will begin your
journey with Him.
Our Heavenly Father, thank you for Your great love for us in that You
gave us Your best gift, Your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, to die for
all our sins. Thank you that He rose from the dead on the third day and
He is now reigning with You in Heaven and that He will return soon to
receive us and we be with Him forever. Thank you that because of that
one death on the cross, our Lord Jesus was able to satisfy all the demands
of the Law and as a result, all power and authority and dominion is now
given to Him.
Lord Jesus, thank you that You love me and because You died, I am now
forever forgiven of all my sins - past, present and future. Come into
my life and live in my heart, Lord Jesus and grant me Your Shalom Peace;
peace in my heart knowing that I am Your child and that I am a joint-heir
with You of all the riches in Heaven.
Thank you that I am greatly blessed, highly favored and deeply loved because
of what You have accomplished for us on the cross. I ask and pray all
these in the precious Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Name that is
above all names, Yeshua Ha' Mashiarch Adonai. Amen.
If you have said the prayer above for the first time, welcome to the Lord's
family. Know for a certainty that your sins are completely forgiven and
that you are now a child of the Heavenly Father. As you grow in the Lord
each day, spend time reading the Bible to help you understand the extent
of His love for us. I encourage you to join a local church so that you
can receive good teaching and grow in all spiritual things.
The Lord blesses you and keeps you,
The Lord makes His face shine upon you and be gracious to you and all
your loved ones,
The Lord lifts up His countenance upon you and gives you His shalom peace.
Numbers 6: 24 - 26
Have a blessed week ahead, Shavrou-tov
Shalom,
Andrew L W Lee
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