ICS Daily Devotions
God Will Never Leave nor Forsake Us
John 10:10a, 12-13 (NKJV) The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy… But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.
Jesus made a comparison between the good shepherd and the hireling. The hireling is paid to watch over the sheep therefore he will not have any ownership over them neither will he lay down his life for the sheep. He will not feel the pinch if one sheep were to be taken away by the wolf, bear or lion because it does not belong to him. The hireling will run away the moment the predator appears because he fears for his own life.
Jesus also reminded us regarding the work of the devil in the area of killing, stealing and destroying our lives. One common tactic that the devil uses is to INSTILL FEAR in our lives. Christians are not spared from fear in their lives because it begins in the mind, which is the last frontier to be overcome and conquered. Fears include the fear of losing control over our lives, losing our current social status, not having enough, people not respecting us or not succeeding in our lives etc. The world constantly bombards us with messages that we need to succeed in life and what success looks like in worldly terms. Many have prioritized success regardless of the price they need to pay and therefore compromising their worship of God.
In fact, parents should journey with their children especially from young in order to inculcate the right values and principles in them. The Bible instructs us to bring up our children in the way of the Lord so that when they are grown-ups, they will not depart from Him. There is immense pressure to be molded by worldly values (the critical age being 18-35 years as they are either studying or working abroad) but if they have the right foundation, they will have security in Jesus Christ. They need to know that they have a Good Shepherd who has their interests at heart.
The message that we should have is that God will never leave us nor forsake us no matter what our situation is. God still loves and fellowships with us even when the world forsakes us when we do not meet up to the worldly definition of success.
Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
We can be content with the things that we have because God has given us everything! God did not spare His own son but gave Him up for us. Therefore, we know He cares for us and will never leave nor forsake us. He will definitely lead us to green pastures for us to have sufficient at all times.
Sermon Series: Who is Shepherding You
