Letters to the Family of God

Dear friends.

We all have problems. We do. But every Christian has a Shepherd.

It was customary for Jesus to step away from His public ministry to refresh Himself in private prayer. He taught the disciples to do the same. Mark, chapter six, was such an occasion. However, come away with me to rest, became, stop everything, and help these dear people.

Jesus responds to the crowds as the Good Shepherd. It is all incredibly moving. For this reason, when Mark writes, He (Jesus) had compassion on them. Literally, it means Jesus’s stomach was aching in concern for them. This is not theater. He is not simply doing His duty. He is, loving them into His fold.

The crowd moved Jesus to the depths of His being. Why? They were sheep who had no shepherd. (As many people there dressed in light-colored clothing dealing with heat, they may have looked like sheep.) Nevertheless, having been mistaught for so long, their souls needed care. They needed to know the way through life and the security Jesus gave past death. And Jesus, as the Good Shepherd had, come for this exact reason, looking for the lost sheep looking for you, and looking for me.

On that day, Jesus would feed the crowd physically because He cares about humanity's practical needs, and He would feed the crowd spiritually because He knows we could never meet this need ourselves. In all, He proved Himself to be the shepherd, who, as the psalmist said, makes us lie down in green pastures, leads us beside still waters, and restores our souls. Psalm 23:1-3.

The disciples were ready to send the crowds away. Too many people. Too costly. Too many needs. But Jesus said very plainly, sit them down. And this is what Jesus does for us. He sees us. He sees our needs. He sees how vexed and strained we can become and how lost we may think we are. Yet He gently shepherds us even to the point of giving His own life. Is there ever a love that has ever been so true?

If you are confused about which way to go. If you have problems too big and too numerous. If you are just plain worn out, trust Jesus to be what He said. He is your shepherd. Listen well to His teachings from the Scriptures. He will care for you perfectly in this life and lead you securely to the next life. As we often say, all you need is need.