In my reading yesterday, I came to Psalm 23; a very common Bible passage for many people who have grown up in the church like myself. When I was reading it, God brought a very huge problem to my attention. For a very long time, I had been reading over scripture without really understanding and digging into what God's word actually meant and how it should/could be applied to my life. The very first verse of this passage really stood out to me and as I probed, I learned so much about myself and whose I am. It says, "The Lord is my shepard, I shall not want." Just reading over this in the past, I have missed so much. First, it is a declaration about whose I am. I am the Lord's, and I am making bold that statement. So what is Lordship? Being a lord means one has authority, control, and/or powers over others; a master, chief or ruler. So if I am making that declaration about Jesus Christ, I am commiting to him all authority, control, and power over who I am and what I do. I am essentially giving Him complete reign over my life. As a growing Christian and future leader, am I daily submitting to His Lordship and everything that entails, or am I living for myself as a hypocrite?
Secondly, acknowledging that He is my shepard, means that I am a sheep. Sheep know their master's voice and trust him in all situations. So am I actively listening to hear Jesus' voice and do I trust him in all situations? These are two very difficult questions. One can only know another's voice by listening to it and spending a long time getting to know that person so they can differentiate between all the other voices in the world. Having so many "voices" calling out for my attention, it is very difficult to concentrate on the most important voice: Jesus'. Just like a shepard takes care of his sheep and protects them from all the evils that lurk, especially in the darkness, Jesus promises to protect, care for, and provide for His sheep!! What a joy comes from knowing and living in this hope and promise.
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