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Shepherding has changed little over the centuries. While more modern methods are used in the work-even trained dogs are used to direct and round up the sheep-it’s still pretty much a lonely life: just the sheep and their shepherd.<\/p>\nby Zeke Flores<\/p>\n
Shepherding has changed little over the centuries. While more modern methods are used in the work-even trained dogs are used to direct and round up the sheep-it’s still pretty much a lonely life: just the sheep and their shepherd.<\/p>\n
In Jesus’ time, the shepherds kept their sheep safe for the night in a pen or enclosure. The shepherd called out to them, and they followed him into the pen.<\/p>\n
Why? Because they knew his voice. The shepherd spent all his time with them, so he learned each one’s special markings and habits. And the sheep came to know him, too. They knew his appearance, his movements, and his voice.<\/p>\nOf course, there’s a spiritual element here. Jesus, the ultimate Shepherd, knows each of us; there’s no question. The question is, do we really know Him<\/strong>? Do we trust His leading even when it takes us into unfamiliar and scary places? Do we listen for His voice when we need to make difficult decisions? Do we trust that He’s leading us for our own good and because He cares? “When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice<\/em>” (John 10:4).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Zeke Flores Shepherding has changed little over the centuries. While more modern methods are used in the work-even trained dogs are used to direct and round up the sheep-it’s still pretty much a lonely life: just the sheep and their shepherd. In Jesus’ time, the shepherds kept their sheep safe for the night in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[54],"class_list":["post-85300","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-obedience"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":67144,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/jesus-the-good-shepherd\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":0},"title":"Jesus, the Good Shepherd","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 22, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer One of the great figures for the Messiah is that of the Good Shepherd. Jesus refers to Himself as the \"door of the sheep,\" but He is more than that. \"I am the good shepherd,\" He claimed (John 10:11). We will consider more in that context, but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":85776,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/implications-of-the-23rd-psalm\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":1},"title":"Implications of the 23rd Psalm","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 20, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by David Gibson We cannot make it without the Shepherd. Sheep need their shepherd. So do we (Ezekiel 34:11-16, 23). What a Palestinian shepherd did for his flock, Jesus does for His sheep: He leads, provides, and protects (Isaiah 40:11). Self-reliance is folly. It takes humility to admit we can't\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20848,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-did-jesus-expect-of-peter-when-he-said-to-feed-his-sheep\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":2},"title":"What did Jesus expect of Peter when he said to feed his sheep?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 16, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Our Lord Jesus in John 21 tells\u00a0the apostle Peter to feed His sheep three times. What role was Peter being told to assume? Is it that of an elder? \u00a0Which sheep was our Lord talking about? Is it the other apostles and disciples or the church that was going\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2107,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/elders-as-shepherds\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":3},"title":"Elders as Shepherds","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 1, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Charles Brackett A shepherd is literally one who feeds. He is a pastor. In Bible times, the typical shepherd tended his own flock or delegated the work to his children or close relatives. By virtue of ownership, he was highly motivated to the work. No sacrifice was too great\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":53245,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-other-sheep-of-john-1016\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":4},"title":"The Other Sheep of John 10:16","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 10, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Matt Allen via The Jackson Drive Reporter, Sept. 6, 2009. John 10:16\u00a0has served as a major claim for the legitimacy of Mormon teaching for many years. Upon reading the passage of Scripture -- by itself -- it first appears that they (Mormons) could have a point. \"And other sheep\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/sheep-300x225.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":90561,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/compassion-for-the-lost-in-this-world\/","url_meta":{"origin":85300,"position":5},"title":"Compassion for the Lost in This World","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer With so much turmoil in the world, so much chaos and confusion, we should be reminded of how disciples should think of and respond to the world. This passage in Matthew 9:36-38 captures a very important principle. \"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85300","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=85300"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85300\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=85300"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=85300"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=85300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nDo we know Him?\n