SCRIPTURE: John (NIV) 10: 2 The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. 3 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. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.”
OBSERVATION: For those wanting to know something about God and who start reading the Bible from Genesis chapter one, in that first chapter will discover three things. First: God is! Second: God creates! He makes things. Third: God talks! He spoke the world into existence. (Genesis 1) In reading through the Old Testament, one finds pages and pages of God speaking. Much of the Bible is giving us the spoken words of God.
God the Father sent Jesus as the Good Shepherd. (John 10:14) He leads the sheep; He guards them; He protects them; He provides for them. The sheep have but two simple things to do. Learn to recognize their shepherd’s voice and follow.
APPLICATION: How does God speak to us today? He speaks through His infallible Word, the Bible. He speaks through people and circumstances.
How do I know when the scriptures I am reading, or what I hear in the sermon, or what just happened to me is really God speaking to me? I know it because the presence of the Holy Spirit in my heart and life sparks a strong awareness of what I have just read, or heard, or seen. And the more I give attention to those “eye opening” thoughts and do what I feel strongly led to do, the better I will learn to hear and understand how God speaks to me and what He is saying to me.
PRAYER: Lord, you are my Good Shepherd! Please keep talking to me. Never stop talking to me. Keep talking until I learn to recognize Your voice and to do what you tell me to do. Live in me and live through me. Amen
Pastor Leon
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