The Desire of Ages--52--The Divine Shepherd

[Beacon]

"It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward, that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Saviour's matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary's cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders.They hear His voice, and they follow Him."  

Today this is my prayer and hopefully the prayer of all who claim to love the Lord ...."Lord lay some soul upon my heart and love that soul through me and may I humbly do my part to win that soul for thee." ( Mack Weaver )

[Richard Myers]

Amen dear Brother Beacon!!  We follow Jesus because He loves us!! Even if there were no heaven we would follow Jesus! He loves all of humanity. He feels sorry that so many have been deceived regarding the truth.

Jesus thought upon the souls all over the earth who were misled by false shepherds. Those whom He longed to gather as the sheep of His pasture were scattered among wolves, and He said, "Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and they shall become one flock, one shepherd." John 10:16, R. V.   

We are to work with Jesus in bringing in the flock. There are many listening to His still small voice and seeking for more truth. We are to be His hands and loud voice in revealing His character to a world soon to perish.

I thought Jesus' Words about His Father loving Him because of His actions was important. Of course God loves His Son before this, but He loved Him more. So it is with us. He will love us more as we seek to save the lost and manifest His love and grace.

     "Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again." That is, My Father has so loved you, that He even loves Me more for giving My life to redeem you. In becoming your substitute and surety, by surrendering My life, by taking your liabilities, your transgressions, I am endeared to My Father.   

And He is endeared to us whose sins He took.

While as a member of the human family He was mortal, as God He was the fountain of life for the world. He could have withstood the advances of death, and refused to come under its dominion; but voluntarily He laid down His life, that He might bring life and immortality to light. He bore the sin of the world, endured its curse, yielded up His life as a sacrifice, that men might not eternally die. "Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. . . . He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:4-6.   


Such love!! And by His suffering we are healed. But, we must keep this in mind that we do not let our minds wander away from our sweet Jesus! That is why it is so important to spend time each day with Him. We need to constantly remember what He has done for us that we might bless Him as we labor those whom He suffered and died for!

[Pastor Sean Brizendine]

Happy Sabbath! Let us never forget the depth of love we see in Jesus coming to this earth to be our Savior! He left heaven to bring us into a union and communion with Himself that is likened to the oneness between Himself and our Heavenly Father! What wondrous love is this!

"However much a shepherd may love his sheep, he loves his sons and daughters more. Jesus is not only our shepherd; He is our 'everlasting Father.' And He says, 'I know Mine own, and Mine own know Me, even as the Father knoweth Me, and I know the Father.' John 10:14, 15, R. V. What a statement is this!--the only-begotten Son, He who is in the bosom of the Father, He whom God has declared to be 'the Man that is My fellow' (Zechariah 13:7),--the communion between Him and the eternal God is taken to represent the communion between Christ and His children on the earth!" {The Desire of Ages, page 483, paragraph 2}     

When our hearts truly experience this love by yielding to Christ fully as we behold Him continually, we experience all of the fruits of the Spirit without one missing! The blessing of intimacy with God far exceeds the temporary pleasures of sin for a season and become the lasting reason for us to abide in Christ in every experience of life, no matter how trying!

[Dorine]

"Because we are the gift of His Father, and the reward of His work, Jesus loves us. He loves us as His children. Reader, He loves you. Heaven itself can bestow nothing greater, nothing better. Therefore trust."

Amen! What reassuring words. To know He loves me as His child takes away all fear from my heart. That's what love does. Even when we are chastised we know it's because we are loved. We know we can fully trust Him.

[Beacon]

"Millions of human beings are bound down under false religions, in the bondage of slavish fear, of stolid indifference, toiling like beasts of burden, bereft of hope or joy or aspiration here, and with only a dull fear of the hereafter..

It is the gospel of the grace of God alone that can uplift the soul..

The contemplation of the love of God manifested in His Son will stir the heart and arouse the powers of the soul as nothing else can..

Christ came that He might re-create the image of God in man;..

and,whoever turns men away from Christ is turning them away from the source of true development; he is defrauding them of the hope and purpose and glory of life. He is a thief and a robber."

John 10:10 Tell us "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

But how can they hear the Invitation without a faithful laborer for God who is standing tall at his/her post of duty wherever it may be ?

"Jesus said in Luke 10:2 "Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest."

I pray that we ALL will Renew Our Commitment to the Lord of the Harvest and become more strongly committed "Laboring Laborers for the Lord."

[Pastor Sean Brizendine]

Why follow? What leads us to respond to Christ and continue to go where He invites?

"It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward, that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Saviour's matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary's cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders. They hear His voice, and they follow Him." {The Desire of Ages, page 480, paragraph 3}   

By faith today we may hear the voice of Jesus saying, "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30).

As we unlearn the ways of the world with its false theories, standards and expectations and come under the tender care of Jesus, we can know that He will lead us in the way that is best to save our souls and to use us as witnesses of His loveliness to those around us! When we surrender the whole heart to Him, He comes and makes it His abiding place, forgiving our sins by His shed blood, filling us the Holy Spirit so that not one of the fruits of the Spirit is missing, and gladly leading us to obey the definition of loving freedom found in the Ten Commandments. Let us keep listening the Savior-Shepherd each moment of this day and invite others to do the same. If everyone in the world would but listen to Jesus in His word, He could come VERY SOON!

[Dorine]

"Of all creatures the sheep is one of the most timid and helpless, and in the East the shepherd's care for his flock is untiring and incessant. Anciently as now there was little security outside of the walled towns. Marauders from the roving border tribes, or beasts of prey from their hiding places in the rocks, lay in wait to plunder the flocks. The shepherd watched his charge, knowing that it was at the peril of his own life. Jacob, who kept the flocks of Laban in the pasture grounds of Haran, describing his own unwearied labor, said, "In the day the drought consumed me, and the frost by night; and my sleep departed from mine eyes." Genesis 31:40. And it was while guarding his father's sheep that the boy David, single-handed, encountered the lion and the bear, and rescued from their teeth the stolen lamb."

This description of the responsibilities of the shepherd shows the perils they were willing to endure to keep their flock safe. It reminds us of the risk that heaven took when Jesus came to this cruel world. From the manger to the time He returned to heaven He was plagued by the harassment of Satan while He tenderly cared for His sheep eventually laying down His life for them. My heart gratefully responds again today to this unspeakable love. As we follow in His footsteps we too are to have the same urgency to seek the lost and helpless and bring them to Jesus their only safety and way to eternal salvation.

[Richard Myers]

Amen Sister Dorine and Pastor Sean! It is not the reward nor fear that causes us to follow our Savior, it is His grace. Grace is more than a word, it is the power that transforms sinners into saints. Satan has worked hard to keep this truth from the world and the church. How often do we hear this truth? I am at a loss to remember ever hearing this from human lips. God wants to transform you from a sinner to a saint. Believe it no matter who objects. His love is powerful to the pulling down of strongholds. When we come to learn that our heavenly Father risked losing His innocent Son that we might live, how can we sin against Him? We will not if we keep this in mind.
   In all ages, philosophers and teachers have been presenting to the world theories by which to satisfy the soul's need. Every heathen nation has had its great teachers and religious systems offering some other means of redemption than Christ, turning the eyes of men away from the Father's face, and filling their hearts with fear of Him who has given them only blessing. The trend of their work is to rob God of that which is His own, both by creation and by redemption. And these false teachers rob man as well. Millions of human beings are bound down under false religions, in the bondage of slavish fear, of stolid indifference, toiling like beasts of burden, bereft of hope or joy or aspiration here, and with only a dull fear of the hereafter. It is the gospel of the grace of God alone that can uplift the soul. The contemplation of the love of God manifested in His Son will stir the heart and arouse the powers of the soul as nothing else can. Christ came that He might re-create the image of God in man; and whoever turns men away from Christ is turning them away from the source of true development; he is defrauding them of the hope and purpose and glory of life. He is a thief and a robber.   

[Beacon]

"As the shepherd goes before his sheep, himself first encountering the perils of the way, so does Jesus with His people. "When He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them." The way to heaven is consecrated by the Saviour's footprints. The path may be steep and rugged, but Jesus has traveled that way; His feet have pressed down the cruel thorns, to make the pathway easier for us. Every burden that we are called to bear He Himself has borne...The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom.

He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast.

Oh Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee, I give thee back the life I owe, That in Thine ocean depths its flow, May richer fuller be. Hymn # 76

"Though now He is hidden from mortal sight, the ear of faith can hear His voice saying, Fear not; I am with you. "I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore." Revelation 1:18. I have endured your sorrows, experienced your struggles, encountered your temptations. I know your tears; I also have wept.

The griefs that lie too deep to be breathed into any human ear, I know. Think not that you are desolate and forsaken.

Though your pain touch no responsive chord in any heart on earth, look unto Me, and live. "The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee." Isaiah 54:10.

OH THE WONDER OF IT ALL, JUST TO THINK THAT GOD LOVES ME!! Hymn # 75

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - Look Full in His Wonderful Face & the Things of Earth will Grow Strangely Dim in the Light of His Glory & Grace.

[Richard Myers]

Amen Brother Beacon, God loves us!!! We just need to continue to look upon Him.

Generally we share a paragraph, but today I cannot do just one paragraph. There is a thought that I cannot break up. Jesus loves you and it is expressed so well in the following.

     Because we are the gift of His Father, and the reward of His work, Jesus loves us. He loves us as His children. Reader, He loves you. Heaven itself can bestow nothing greater, nothing better. Therefore trust.   
     Jesus thought upon the souls all over the earth who were misled by false shepherds. Those whom He longed to gather as the sheep of His pasture were scattered among wolves, and He said, "Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and they shall become one flock, one shepherd." John 10:16, R. V.   
     "Therefore doth My Father love Me, because I lay down My life, that I might take it again." That is, My Father has so loved you, that He even loves Me more for giving My life to redeem you. In becoming your substitute and surety, by surrendering My life, by taking your liabilities, your transgressions, I am endeared to My Father.   
     "I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." While as a member of the human family He was mortal, as God He was the fountain of life for the world. He could have withstood the advances of death, and refused to come under its dominion; but voluntarily He laid down His life, that He might bring life and immortality to light. He bore the sin of the world, endured its curse, yielded up His life as a sacrifice, that men might not eternally die. "Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. . . . He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:4-6.   

Because there are precious souls all over the earth, we have a work to do. They have been "misled by false shepherds." They are not as the noble Bereans who after being taught opened their Bibles to see if what was taught was true. Many of the pastors have not been faithful watchmen warning about the wages of sin is death. Warning that our only hope is to behold the flogging of Jesus, to drink His blood and eat His flesh. He is the Manna which came down from heaven. It is by beholding Him that we are transformed. By His stripes we are healed. This is the power of grace.

[Dorine]

..."Though now He has ascended to the presence of God, and shares the throne of the universe, Jesus has lost none of His compassionate nature. Today the same tender, sympathizing heart is open to all the woes of humanity. Today the hand that was pierced is reached forth to bless more abundantly His people that are in the world. "And they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand." The soul that has given himself to Christ is more precious in His sight than the whole world. The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom. He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast."

While cheap grace is preached and believed by many this paragraph portrays true love and grace. Choosing to leave Him does not necessarily mean an aggressive turning away on our part but by taking our eyes off Jesus for any amount of time is the same as leaving Him. Daily conversion is vital to remaining connected to Jesus. When Jesus reigns in the heart we don't want to wound Him. I love the promises in this passage and the description of what His love is like. The universe must be in astonishment to see the indifference of so many professed Christians. But when Jesus speaks the sheep know His voice and follow Him. As the sheep follow Jesus along the way many sheep who are lost and scattered will join the flock and find safety. A beautiful picture.

[Beacon]

"Millions of human beings are bound down under false religions, in the bondage of slavish fear, of stolid indifference, toiling like beasts of burden, bereft of hope or joy or aspiration here, and with only a dull fear of the hereafter..

It is the gospel of the grace of God alone that can uplift the soul..

The contemplation of the love of God manifested in His Son will stir the heart and arouse the powers of the soul as nothing else can..

Christ came that He might re-create the image of God in man;..

..and,whoever turns men away from Christ is turning them away from the source of true development; he is defrauding them of the hope and purpose and glory of life. He is a thief and a robber."

John 10:10 Tell us "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly."

But how can they hear the Invitation without a faithful laborer for God who is standing at his/her post of duty wherever it may be ?

"Jesus said in Luke 10:2 "Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest."

I pray that we ALL will Renew Our Commitment to the Lord of the Harvest and become more strongly committed "Laboring Laborers for the Lord."

[Philip T]

Every soul is as fully known to Jesus as if he were the only one for whom the Saviour died. The distress of every one touches His heart. The cry for aid reaches His ear. He came to draw all men unto Himself. He bids them, "Follow Me," and His Spirit moves upon their hearts to draw them to come to Him. Many refuse to be drawn. Jesus knows who they are. He also knows who gladly hear His call, and are ready to come under His pastoral care. He says, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." He cares for each one as if there were not another on the face of the earth.   

Such love, he know each one of us individually, our suffering, our pain, our need of Him, and he care for each one of us on those needs as if we were the only ones on earth, such love. "For God so loved the World, He gave His only begotten Son, the whosoever believeth in Him should have everlasting life". All of our suffering touches His hear, he is waiting for us to call on Him and he will hear, and in that instant be at our sides, helping us through our needs, troubles, and pain. He will be there for our Joy and happiness as well.

[Pastor Sean Brizendine]

God is so good to us! Love awakens in the hearts of those who behold the loveliness of Jesus!

"It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward, that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Saviour's matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary's cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders. They hear His voice, and they follow Him." {The Desire of Ages, page 480, paragraph 3}

Let the love of Christ constrain you and allow the fruits of the Spirit, not one missing, to be in your life by having Christ in you in the hope of glory!

[Beacon]

"Today the hand that was pierced is reached forth to bless more abundantly His people that are in the world. And they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.

The soul that has given himself to Christ is more precious in His sight than the whole world.

The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom.

He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast."

This is why Jesus is called  "The Rock of Ages" and in a world that seems to be falling apart at a very rapid pace we need now more the ever to Turn our Eyes upon Jesus and experience a peace that only He can provide. Psalm 23 says...

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

[Philip T]

  Through all our trials we have a never-failing Helper. He does not leave us alone to struggle with temptation, to battle with evil, and be finally crushed with burdens and sorrow. Though now He is hidden from mortal sight, the ear of faith can hear His voice saying, Fear not; I am with you. "I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore." Revelation 1:18. I have endured your sorrows, experienced your struggles, encountered your temptations. I know your tears; I also have wept. The griefs that lie too deep to be breathed into any human ear, I know. Think not that you are desolate and forsaken. Though your pain touch no responsive chord in any heart on earth, look unto Me, and live. "The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee." Isaiah 54:10.   

What a statement this is! No matter our trial, temptations, sorrows, or even our times of joy, Jesus is there, His love is there, His care is there, His never-ending love is ours, how could one not love Him in return, and surrender all to Him.

[Dorine]

"I lay down My life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." While as a member of the human family He was mortal, as God He was the fountain of life for the world. He could have withstood the advances of death, and refused to come under its dominion; but voluntarily He laid down His life, that He might bring life and immortality to light. He bore the sin of the world, endured its curse, yielded up His life as a sacrifice, that men might not eternally die. "Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows. . . . He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all." Isaiah 53:4-6. 

Do we really appreciate and comprehend what these words are saying. We could meditate on them for ever and never say we understand. I'm so thankful that Jesus loves me so much that He was willing to take the punishment that I deserve that I may enjoy the eternal reward that only He deserves. May we hear His voice and follow the path He has trod bringing all who will come to Him along the way.

[Pastor Sean Brizendine]

Amen, Brother Beacon, Brother Philip and Sister Dorine!

What moves you? What drives you? Are you afraid to be lost or are you hoping for a heavenly reward? While it is true that following Christ means that we have a hell to shun and a heaven to win, we must realize the only LASTING motivation that will sustain a converted soul in all circumstances is the love of Christ. It was love that led Jesus to endure Gethsemane and Calvary, and it is His self-sacrificing love that will constrain us to be truly converted witnesses of His who allow Him to manifest through us all of the fruits of the Spirit without one missing!

"It is not the fear of punishment, or the hope of everlasting reward, that leads the disciples of Christ to follow Him. They behold the Saviour's matchless love, revealed throughout His pilgrimage on earth, from the manger of Bethlehem to Calvary's cross, and the sight of Him attracts, it softens and subdues the soul. Love awakens in the heart of the beholders. They hear His voice, and they follow Him." {The Desire of Ages, page 480, paragraph 3}   

May we every hear the voice of Jesus today and follow where our gracious Shepherd leads!

[Beacon]

"As the shepherd goes before his sheep, himself first encountering the perils of the way, so does Jesus with His people."

"When He putteth forth His own sheep, He goeth before them." The way to heaven is consecrated by the Saviour's footprints. The path may be steep and rugged, but Jesus has traveled that way; His feet have pressed down the cruel thorns, to make the pathway easier for us."

"Every burden that we are called to bear He Himself has borne."

"The Saviour would have passed through the agony of Calvary that one might be saved in His kingdom."

"He will never abandon one for whom He has died. Unless His followers choose to leave Him, He will hold them fast."

"Though now He is hidden from mortal sight, the ear of faith can hear His voice saying, "Fear not; I am with you. I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore." Revelation 1:18. I have endured your sorrows, experienced your struggles, encountered your temptations. I know your tears; I also have wept."

"The griefs that lie too deep to be breathed into any human ear, I know. Think not that you are desolate and forsaken."

Though your pain touch no responsive chord in any heart on earth, look unto Me, and live. "The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant of My peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee." Isaiah 54:10.

"Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus - Look Full in His Wonderful Face & the Things of Earth will Grow Strangely Dim in the Light of His Glory & Grace." You Are Loved"

[Pastor Sean Brizendine]

Praise the Lord, Brother Beacon! Let us look and live! Jesus knows what we most need and is able to heal our hearts!

"Jesus knows us individually, and is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows us all by name. He knows the very house in which we live, the name of each occupant. He has at times given directions to His servants to go to a certain street in a certain city, to such a house, to find one of His sheep." {The Desire of Ages, page 479, paragraph 3}

Jesus is finding His sheep all around the world and guiding us to surrender fully to His grace! He renews the heart and mind by the Holy Spirit so all of the fruits of the Spirit will be seen in the life--without one missing! Then we gladly can obey the law of God from a heart made new!