Sheep are very important to man because they provide both food and clothing. They are raised in every part of the world, and in Australia and New Zealand there are more sheep than people. In Palestine they follow the shepherd. They know his voice and will not follow a stranger. In the Bible, we read that sheep and lambs were offered in sacrifice. The Passover lambs were a type of the Lord Jesus, who was called “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Sheep are quite defenseless and are dependent upon the shepherd for safety and for good pasture. Did you know that Job had seven thousand sheep that were stolen, but then the Lord gave him fourteen thousand sheep at the end of his trial? Sheep, like people, like to wander and are easily misled. Like sheep, how easily are we overcome by evil, so it is necessary to keep close to the Good Shepherd. Many people know Psalm 23 but forget that the Lord had to die for them as mentioned in Psalm 22. We must know Him as our Saviour before we can have Him as our Shepherd. In the future judgment of the nations (Matthew 25:31-46), the saved ones are called “sheep” and the lost ones are called “goats.”
1. Cain was a tiller of the ground, but what did Abel do? Genesis 4:___
2. What would a good shepherd give for his sheep? John 10:___
3. How many sheep and oxen were sacrificed by Solomon and the congregation of Israel? 2 Chronicles 5:___
4. When all things are put under the Lord’s feet, what land animals will be given to Him? Psalm 8:___
5. What do we read of believers who were as sheep going astray? 1 Peter 2:___