Sometimes
what a verse does not say is just as important as what it does say. Take 1 Peter 2:25 for example. It says, “For you were like sheep going
astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls”. In context, the “shepherd and overseer” to
whom they have returned is Jesus, or, more broadly, God. That is important, but so also is what Peter
does not say.
For
instance, he does not say that the lost sheep were returned to a certain
preacher or teacher. Unfortunately, that
sometimes happens. People go to a
certain church because they like the leader, but when he leaves, so do the
people. Sometimes people are so devoted
to a certain author that they quote him as if they were quoting the very word
of God. This, however, is a
problem. When people in the church in
Corinth started aligning themselves with certain teachers (Paul, Peter or
Apollos - 1 Corinthians 1:10-17), Paul was horrified! We are never to be followers of people. The only real shepherd is God!
Another
mistake people make is to become a follower of the Bible. How can that be a bad thing? Well, let me put it this way. Suppose I have the owner’s manual from a 2014
GMC truck. From that manual, I can learn
all sorts of things like what size the tires are, what coolant it uses and even
what windshield wipers it is supposed to have.
However, if I want to go from Estevan to Vancouver, I am going to need
the truck, not the book about the truck. Similarly, we can read a lot about God
without actually knowing God and that is not good enough.
Sometimes
people act as if the church is the shepherd.
They think that if they worship with the right group then they must be
ok. However, in Matthew 7:15-23, Jesus
says “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of
heaven”. He goes on to say that even
though some of them will do great things like preaching and healing, they will
be left out because Jesus does not know them.
The truth is that you can do Godly things and not really be a Godly
person. As the old saying goes, “Sitting
in the chicken coup doesn’t make you a chicken”.
Now, do not
hear me saying that Christian people, the Bible or the church are
unimportant! They are supremely
important! In fact, I would argue that
you cannot be a Christian without them.
However, they are the means, not the goal!
Knowing the
real shepherd is the goal.
Do not
settle for anything less.
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