The Bible says, ‘For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God’ (Romans 8:14).
As my Shepherd, the Lord leads me through the journey of life.
It takes some measure of processing for sons to be raised. We are all born as babes or children, and thereafter we begin to grow through the stages of life into ‘sonship’.
Growth into sonship is a process which entails spiritual grooming and capacity enhancement. It’s neither a product of wishful thinking, nor is it obtained by mere confession. It involves yielding yourself totally for God to work on you and do as He wills to you, trusting that the end result will bring forth praise, glory and honour to His name (1 Peter 1:6-7).
Jesus said, ‘My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me’ (John 10:27).
‘Our children and their children will get in on this as the word is passed along from parent to child. Babies not yet conceived will hear the good news - that God does what He says’ (Psalm 22:30-31) – The Message.
In John 19:27-30, in response to Jesus’ request, a voice came down from heaven. Different people had different perspectives to this voice. They all seemed to hear different things…
Some heard thunder, some others believed an angel had spoken (perhaps in a strange language which they couldn’t understand) while His own disciples could hear audibly.
Apostle Paul had an encounter similar to this in Acts 9 and it changed the entire course of his life.
Through Him, we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for His name (Romans 1:5).
When we yield in total obedience to the leading of the Lord and allow His will to be done in our lives, the gates of the nations will be thrown open (Psalm 24:7-10) and Christ will reign as the Governor among the nations (Psalm 22:28).
Some of the attributes of those who follow the Shepherd:
1. They subject themselves to divine processing.
The sheep are submissive to any grooming exercise the Shepherd takes them through (Romans 12:1-2). They follow the Lord wherever He goes (Rev. 14:4; 2 Kings 2:2-8).
What have you learnt from Him?
Can you sincerely identify some of the attributes of the ‘old man’ that you have done away with, as a result of your relationship with the good Shepherd (Gal. 2:20)?
2. They are teachable.
These are men/women of wisdom, people who develop capacity and enhance their God-given gifts and skillsets (Prov. 1:5; 9:9; Matt. 13:10-12).
3. They are sons, yet they are servants of the Most High!
(Please note that ‘sonship’ is not gender exclusive.)
They have no agenda of their own, they are completely sold out to Christ. Their motive is just to serve and advance the kingdom of God, not to propagate self (Matt. 6:33; John 10:30).
Do you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your Shepherd? If you do, I want you to take these prayer points:
Shepherd of my soul, I give You total control over my life. Take me as I am, Have Your way in my life, oh Lord…
Reign in me, sovereign Lord, reign in me… captivate my heart, let Your kingdom come, establish Your throne in my heart, and let Your will be done in my life…
