The Good Shepherd Knows Your Name
Sunday’s Verse:
From John 10:11 ESV
Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
Jesus paints a picture of a shepherd and sheep. Simple enough. A shepherd looks after sheep. He guides them. He shelters them. He walks alongside them.
Jesus adds detail. Jesus is not just any shepherd. He is the good shepherd. The shepherd who doesn’t abandon his post when it gets tough. The shepherd who stays with his sheep.
Luther draws our attention to this because it reveals Christ’s identity to us. He is not merely a teacher sending us away to figure life out on our own. He is not some moral example we hope to follow. He works on our behalf. He lays down His life for us.
For us sheep.
Jesus says His sheep hear His voice, and He knows them. He knows His sheep by name. All of your fears. All of your sins. All of your doubts. All of your longings. He knows.
And Jesus doesn’t run from any of it. He heads straight toward it.
The Good Shepherd finds the lost.
This is Gospel. We cannot save ourselves by finding our way to Him. We are saved because He finds us. He gathers us. He shelters us. He lays down His life for us. He rises again. For you.
So when the drought stretches on, and your faith feels small, remember that you are loved. The Shepherd of your soul bore the Father’s wrath in your place, and He is still leading you.
✝️ A Prayer for Today:
Lord Jesus, my Good Shepherd, knows me by name. When I feel most lost and most afraid, remind me that You have found me and continue to keep me in Your pasture. Help me to follow Your voice above all others. Amen.
Apostles’ Creed:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer:
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Luther’s Morning Prayer:
I thank You, my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, that You have kept me this night from all harm and danger; and I pray that You would keep me this day also from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please You. For into Your hands, I commend myself, my body and soul, and all things. Let Your holy angel be with me, that the evil foe may have no power over me. Amen.
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