Sheep are mentioned throughout the Bible. Jesus is called a good shepherd and the lamb of God. So I decided to read up on sheep. I found that they cannot survive without a shepherd. For one thing they will not drink from moving waters, it must be still waters. The shepherd drove them to still waters where they could drink. You might remember in Psalm 23 where it states, He leads me to sill waters. And His staff and rod guide me. This refers to the soul of a Christ follower who has died. It denotes a time of great peace and security knowing that we have an omnipotent protector accompanying us through the valley of death all the way to heaven.
The shepherd protected sheep from bears, wolves, lions, and other predators. Sheep have little ability in which to defend themselves. Often they will die from panic even if they survive an initial attack. The shepherd was a protector of sheep. He not only protected them from wild animals, but he made sure they got plenty of grass to eat and cool water to quench their thirst. So why is He referred to as the “lamb of God” and the “good shepherd”? Lambs were commonly offered as sacrifices. Jesus sacrificed Himself to appease God for all the sins of the world. It isn’t odd to describe Him as the perfect lamb of God.
Sheep were indispensable in commerce and thus were valuable. Wool and fleece were used by the populace and their byproducts ranged from making sutures from lamb intestines to casings for sausage. Jesus values us above all creation. We are valuable to Him. If we weren’t then He wouldn’t have gone to the cross. God wants righteous people to follow Jesus and to enjoy His gift to the world. We were created to serve God. I believe we will be assigned work and will rule over His universe with him. It is interesting to know that God already sees us in heaven. He already knows what work will be assigned to us and I think this life prepares us for that.
The perfect Lamb of God gave His life in order that we might live. Jesus didn’t come to make bad people good, but to make dead people alive.
John 10:11
I lay down my life for the sheep