”A song of David. The Lord is my shepherd” Psalm 23:1a

I ended my last blog entry with an exhortation for each of us to make sure that we have made The Lord the Shepherd of our lives.  The process of accepting the Lordship of our Messiah can be hard and painful, as it requires us to die to ourselves, follow Him, and live in accordance to His will every day.

When Kind David wrote the words, “The Lord is my shepherd”, it was not just a simple saying filled with empty words. It was a declaration of faith based on personal experience; David had a personal knowledge of the Lord. In fact, he knew the Lord intimately and deeply.

It’s interesting to note the name of God that David used in the original Hebrew.  God has many names in the Hebrew Scriptures.  One of the most common names for God is “Elohim”, which refers to God in a general sense.  David did not use this name to refer to God; he instead the word יְהוָ֥ה , which translates to “The Lord”.  This was a rather personal way to call our Lord.  The word יְהוָ֥ה refers to the One who was, and who is, and who is to come. It is the sacred name of the Lord, which is clearly pointing to redemption, just like the name “Yeshua” in Hebrew points to salvation.

Many times Yeshua referred to his disciples as sheep. This is an important metaphor and we can learn much about the believer’s relationship with the Messiah from it.  Sheep know their shepherd; sheep listen to him, trust him for protection and guidance, and depend on him to lead them.  A sheep separated from its shepherd is lost, and there is little chance for a sheep to survive on its own, without its shepherd.

I would like to encourage each one of us to search our hearts and ask if we have made The Lord our Shepherd; do we know Him, do we listen to Him, do we trust Him and do we follow Him?

Shabbat Shalom,

Moran