The Great Shepard

Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing His will, and may He work in us what is pleasing to Him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21 NIV

We are called to pursue Jesus Christ and His righteousness, meaning that we are justified, declared righteous because we have had our sins cleansed by Him. Furthermore God calls each believer to the purpose of proclaiming the Gospel with our lips, spoken and written word, and with our lives, action and deeds. When we do so, God is pleased. But as much as God loves it when we do this, the enemy hates it, the flesh resists it, and the world is repulsed by it. So we must be ready to proclaim the word of God, to speak and share the true Gospel from the Bible, and stand firm in our faith. 

In Mark 2 Jesus is explaining why He came to Earth. To the surprise of many at that time, it wasn’t so that He could hang out with the spiritually stable or prominent religious leaders. It was so that He could get into the messy business of compassion and serving the down and out. Jesus came to relate to the broken, sick, and lost to lead them to eternity. Mark 2:17 NIV tells us “Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”  In this one verse, we are being challenged as believers to do the same as Jesus and we call it witnessing. It’s the very core of our mission on Earth. Many often ask what their purpose is, and if that’s you, start with this verse. Go out there and be a witness for Christ.

We can be open to Holy Spirit as He gives us opportunities to meet with the unbeliever who has no faith yet, and the long time Christian, disillusioned and wavering in their faith, or the new believer ready to share what Jesus did in His own mission on Earth, and what He continues to do year after year. 

1 Timothy 2:1 NET First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people.

What a gift our mighty God has given us! The conversation of prayer. We can speak to Him, freely, honestly, because we are chosen and beloved from the moment we take our first breath.  I know we look for outward signs that we are qualified to follow God, but Jesus, teaching us to pray, shatters that preconceived idea. He doesn’t wait for us to clean ourselves up, He finds us where we are and calls us to follow Him. No job application or qualifications needed. It’s grace. 

And Jesus’ message was grace. It was and is salvation for all who believe in Him. It is mercy and compassion and forgiveness for all who would put their faith in Him. Jesus is the personification and the embodiment of grace. In other words, Jesus Himself was and is the message. The Gospel. He is the purpose and the point. The message isn’t mere doctrine. It isn’t behavioural change. The message is that no matter who you are or how badly you’ve messed up, grace and forgiveness are available in and through Jesus Christ. That’s why Jesus came to earth in physical, tangible, human form. He came not to just tell us about grace but to literally be grace. His life was His message, and His message gives life.

The more we follow Jesus, and follow His ways of prayer, mercy, forgiveness, the more we find our lives defined and transformed by the love and grace of God. 

When they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted. Then Jesus came up and said to them, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age. Matthew 28:17-20 NET

Be Strong And Courageous. The baton is now in your hand. Is this now the time to go all in for God’s job offer? For His kingdom’s employment? The Lord’s promise is in front of you and the emergency brake has been released. The expansive resources of this land are now available... to you and to His people.  That’s right.. we are chosen. We are not forsaken. We are who He says we are.

God speaks, "I want you to step out; to march into uncertainty with the confidence that every place is yours. It’s yours because it’s Mine. The fire that I ignited in your soul when you scouted the land can now be fanned into a blaze. Move forward. Occupy the land. Occupy the streets. No dream is too big. No territory too untamed. I’m here: not just for tomorrow or the next day, but for all of the days of your life.  Set your heart, your mind, and your soul on the things that I have communicated to you. Don’t just use them as a reference book, but as a guide for life.” 

God’s purpose and promises have not changed.

Maybe our circumstances have, or our employment situation, but His word is unchanging. It’s time to occupy the promises of God. It’s time to cross the river of doubt and take possession of what He has already given to us.  The Lord our God is strong and mighty. He has not lost His power to do more than we could ask or imagine.  God is stirring, now as He always has. Be strong and courageous.  This is our mission, our divine appointment, to be ambassadors of Christ. In all of the stress, and worry of attempting to find our personal “calling,” we have moved right past our responsibility as adopted sons and daughters of the Holy One.

We’ve been brought to life. Rescued from death, and now must share the message of God’s reconciliation. How each of us does this will look different. Some of us will lead families, others businesses, and others churches. 

All of us playing our part in the reconciliation, revival,  of the world. All of its many parts gathered as one body, pointing the world towards Jesus Christ.

Our mission is this, that we would live lives worthy of the Gospel, that we would allow ourselves to be internally changed, that we would create external effect, and in His way, reconcile the world to His word. There is no formula that leads to a transformed life. God changes lives with the precision of an architect, but the mystery of the wind. When we lift our sails, He fills them, invisibly, but unmistakably, He fills them.