November 26: Ezekiel 34:11-16
Key Verse: Ezekiel 34:15
I myself will tend my sheep and make them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord.
Devotion:
Ezekiel was sent by God to talk to various people; here being sent to talk to the shepherds of Israel. They were warned they should be looking after their sheep better so they would grow up being well fed. The shepherds had seemingly been a bit slack in making sure the sheep were fed but did not slack in making sure they were fed properly themselves.
The parallels drawn here with the leaders of Israel really stands out when we read about this later, but at the time God was trying to get the leaders to listen by other means because they did not listen to the Prophets at the time! The Lord is declaring the people of Israel to be His and to show people He is still looking our for them.
But if the sheep do not listen they are not going to come to the shepherd. In the day time this is not too much of a problem because the shepherd can see the sheep from far off. But when it grows dark their eyes are not as good as the animals which sought to kill them for food; thus the sheep would be in danger!
This is what it is like for us. If we stay close to God and stay in His light we will be a lot safer because we shall be seen. But when we wander off into the darkness and follow sinful ways, others do not see what we get up to and cannot help us back to God. He will have to come looking for us in all the dark and sinful places!
Points to Ponder:
Would you rather God found you in a good place?
Or would you be ok if He found you in a dark and sinful place?