Paul was speaking about David
at Ziklag. I've been right there where David
was at. He comes back and he's standing there in the ashes.
God burned that place up. Allowed his family and his children
and everybody else's family to be taken captive. Can you imagine
how he felt? Even his own men wanted to kill
him. He said, it's your fault, David. In what it says, David
encouraged himself and the Lord is God. And it says he went back
and he recovered all. What a great God. God will not
allow you to find comfort in anything in this world. He just
won't. And He will cause you to draw
near to Him. Thank God. Thank God. Turn with
me to the book of Isaiah, chapter 40. While you're turning, I appreciate
Bruce and Joe keeping us in their home for their hospitality. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen,
for the great meal last night. The best part was there was some
of that cornbread left. Me and Bruce had us a little
snack last night, sitting there at the bar. That was just such
a good time, sitting there with a good friend, eating cornbread
and sweet milk. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The reason I said sweet milk
is where I come from, originally in North Carolina, people used
to drink a lot of buttermilk with cornbread. That's why I
said sweet milk. Isaiah chapter 40. Isaiah chapter
40. Begin reading in verse 9. O Zion,
that bringeth good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength. Lift
it up, be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah,
Behold your God. Behold, the Lord God will come
with strong hand, and His arms shall rule for Him. Behold, His
reward is with Him, and His work before Him." And our text will
be verse 11. He shall feed His flock like
a shepherd. He shall gather the lambs with
His arms and carry them in His bosom. And He shall gently lead
those that are with young. In this verse, as we tried to
look at last night one of the many types of our Lord in the
Scriptures, we looked at the eagle and her young. In this verse we see a shepherd
and his sheep. Our Lord has given that many
times in the Scriptures, and to me that's one of the best
types. He says, I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd
giveth his life. For the sheep, there we have
redemption. Then he says in Hebrews chapter 13 verse 20, now the
God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus
Christ, the great shepherd of the sheep through the blood of
the everlasting covenant, there we have the resurrection. Then
we have the chief shepherd in 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 4, and
when the chief shepherd shall appear, there we have his return.
You shall receive a crown of glory that fades not away. He's
the shepherd of the sheep. A shepherd must have sheep, and
sheep must have a shepherd. Without a sheep, you don't need
a shepherd. And without a shepherd, all the sheep would perish. Before
a sheep was ever born, there was a shepherd. provided for
them because he's the lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. There are two
distinct groups of people in this world. You have Cain and
Abel, Jacob and Esau. You have those that our Lord
calls sheep, and there are those that he puts on his left hand
and he calls them goats. No matter what the world thinks,
goats don't become sheep. That's right. Goats do not become
sheep. You were just a lost sheep and
He found you. They're lost sheep, they're strange
sheep, they're wandering sheep, but they're all His sheep. They're
His sheep. That's the thing. They're His
sheep. His sheep. Goats always wanting to butt
something. And it will never change. Never
change. They will die in unbelief. Our
Lord said in John chapter 10 verse 24, Then came the Jews
round about him, and they said to him, How long dost thou make
us to doubt? If ye be the Christ, tell us
plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you. I told you. And you believe not. The works
that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me that
I'm the Christ. And here's the reason you don't
believe, but you believe not because you're not of my sheep.
As I said unto you, my sheep hear my voice and I know them
and they follow me. It couldn't be any plainer than
that. That's why goats hate it. That's
exactly right. Before God revealed Himself to
me, the scariest, you talk about fear, the scariest thing, what
if I'm not one of His? If I'm not, there's nothing I
can do about it. I can't change who I am. What if He leaves me
alone? What if He passes me by? He has
all the right. He owns all things. That scared
me to death. It ought to. It ought to. But here in verse 11 of Isaiah
40, And he mentions four things that the shepherd does for his
sheep. What Christ our Lord does for
his church. He cares for his church, his
people, his bride. The first thing he says, he shall
feed his flock like a shepherd. He will feed his flock. His fold. He has a distinct flock. They are His by right. They are
His by purchase. They are His by covenant relationship. Sheep need food. They need food. He feeds them. Psalm 23, too,
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. Turn with me over back
just one book to the Song of Solomon. Chapter 1, verse 7. Here with the bride is speaking.
She doesn't confess. She says, I'm black but comely.
She said, I've kept other people's vineyards and neglected my own
vineyard. But she says, tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth. Where thou feedest. Where thou feedest. Where thou
makest thy flock. Don't you see this? Where thou
makest thy flock to rest at noon. For why should I be as one that
turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions? They weren't
his companions. They were his rivals. But you know what she's
asking? Tell me where you feed your flock.
And where you feed your flock They're going to lay down and
rest at noon. In the heat of the day. Noon
could represent persecution, trials, and afflictions. And
we deal with them. God's sheep are not exempt. But
you know what He causes them to do? And she knew it! Make
me to lay down and rest. You know how I can lay down and
rest? Because I'm content. And I've been fed. Why is it,
especially on Sunday afternoon, you come to church and God enables
you to worship and you go home and you eat something, why do
you want to go down and just go to sleep? Rest. She said, why should I turn aside
by some other flocks? There's a lot of other so-called
flocks and they say they're His companions and they're not. Listen,
there's only ever been one flock. He said, there'll be one flock
and one foal. Whether they are in New Castle,
Indiana, Lexington, Kentucky, or wherever they are at, in Cottageville,
West Virginia, they are His sheep and they are of one fold and
they have one shepherd. That's what we have in common.
We come from different backgrounds, different personalities. Like
you said, how in the world did all them animals get along in
that ark? That's why. One shepherd. We all eat the same food. Oh,
that was so good. He shall feed His flock like
a shepherd." Then verse 9, He speaks to her. She asks the question,
He's going to answer it. If thou know not or since you
don't know. Did she not know where they fed?
Did she not know where He fed His sheep? He said, since you
don't know. O thou fairest among women. He
didn't rebuke her. O thou fairest among women. Go
thy way forth. by the footsteps of the flock,
and feed thy kids beside the shepherd's tent." Go thy way
by the footsteps of the flock. That's the path that all the
sheep trod. Abraham, Isaac, Isaiah, David. I looked at this this past Wednesday
night over in Song of Solomon. And I said, where I'm from in
North Carolina, you can go up on the mountains and people would
raise cattle. These are real steep hills. But you can see
on the side of those mountains little paths on the side of the
mountain. And you know why those paths
are there? That is the path where those cattle walk. They're a
distinct path. They're a plain path. And those
paths Pictured in those cows is like we're God's people, His
sheep. They all walk the same path. And they follow the shepherd
in those paths. And you know what he does? You
know why they follow him? Because he calls their name and he feeds
them. If your soul gets fed today,
he must feed you. He must. And if you're His, He does. He
said He shall feed His sheep. No question about it. Where there are sheep, they're
going to be a pastor. They're going to be a shepherd.
He will send them one. He said He'll give you pastors
according to my own heart. You think about that, according
to the heart of God? My heart! And they shall feed
you with knowledge and with understanding. Sometimes our heads can just
be filled with knowledge. God give me an understanding
of who I am and who you are. You know why you know that? God gave you a pastor, an under-shepherd. That's how He works. He feeds
His sheep. He feeds them. You go, how does He feed them?
We'll just turn back to the first part of this chapter. How are we instructed to feed
His people? Verse 1, comfort ye, comfort
ye, my people. You say, well, the message we
just heard, He spoke about backsliding. How can there be any comfort
in that? Because here's the backslider. Is there any comfort for a backslider?
Is there any comfort for a sinner? Comfort ye, comfort ye my people,
saith your God, speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem." That's his sheep. And what am I to say unto her?
Her warfare is accomplished. Oh, I can feed upon that. Her iniquity
is pardoned. And she hath received of the
Lord's hand double for her sin. The first time I read that, I'm
going, he's going to give me double for my sin. That's a little
unfair. Or I thought he was going to
punish me twice for my sin. That's not what that means. He paid my debt fully and completely. I thought about this. It'd be
like me owing several millions of dollars and somebody woke
up and they said, I'm going to pay your debt. Well, they paid
my debt, but I'm still in poverty. I still have nothing. I'm not
only going to pay your debt, I'm going to give you unsearchable
riches. Isn't that it? He that was rich became poor
that I may be rich. Now can you feed on that? What food for a weary soul? The gospel that glorifies and
magnifies the shepherd Then He says, He will gather
the lambs, those weak ones, in His arms. And I try to distinguish,
but all the sheep I know are weak ones. I know that we think
some people have a stronger faith and some have a weaker faith,
but we're all lambs, we're all weak. Totally dependent upon
Him. Like you already said, prone
to wonder, Lord, we feel it, prone to leave the God we love.
He will gather the lambs with His arms. Who does the gathering?
He does the gathering. He brings those that are scattered.
He says in 1 Peter 1, verse 1, the strangers scattered throughout
Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia. Who are those
that are scattered? The elect according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father. He gathers those that are scattered
with His arm. Why does He gather them? Why
didn't He just leave one sheep over here by itself? Sheep need
each other. We were talking yesterday when
He sent out the 70. He didn't send them out one at
a time. He sent them out two and two. I need you. Exhort one another daily. He
gathered the sheep. Were two or three gathered together
in My name, I'll be in the midst. Thank God for the times that
He gathers His sheep together. He's the only one that can. Turn
with me just over to the next book, Ezekiel chapter 34. Ezekiel
34 verse 11. For thus saith the Lord God."
Ezekiel 34, verse 11. For thus saith the Lord God,
Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep and seek them
out. As a shepherd seeketh out his
flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered,
so will I seek out my sheep and will deliver them out of all
places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. So who's doing the searching?
He is. And I will bring them out from
the people and gather them from the countries. And I will bring
them into their own land and feed them upon the mountains
of Israel, by the rivers, and in all the inhabited places of
the country. He's going to gather them. And
He is. That means He is going to find
every sheep. He knows exactly where they are.
And in time, He will cross their path. He will cause them to hear
the gospel and give them faith to believe. And He will gather
them in. As He gathered them, it says,
with His arm. His arm represents His strength. His power, His
sovereign power. You said His arm is not shortened
and He can't save. He just reaches in. I can see Him hanging over
a cleft of a cliff or something and that arm, He knows where
He comes and He just reaches down and brings them to Himself. He gathers them to Him. He gathers them with the arm
of His power, with the gospel of His grace. It is the power
of God unto salvation. As we mentioned last night in
Deuteronomy 26a, and the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt
with a mighty hand and with a stretched out arm. Isaiah 52.10, the Lord
hath made bare His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations.
Who hath believed our report? Who hath believed our report?
Who believes this gospel? Well, he answers the question.
To whom the arm of the Lord is revealed. Isn't that right? Who's going to believe it? He will make you in the day of
His power, you will know, He will teach you that you didn't
save yourself, He gathered you. And when He reveals His mighty
power, you just bow to Him. Christ is the arm of the Lord
by which, by His sovereign power, He gathers all His chosen sinners
to Himself and He will never lose one. Then I love this next point,
He will gather them, He will carry them in His bosom. Those that are fed, they were
gathered by His mighty arm and that same arm that feeds them,
will gather them up and lift them up and bring them to His
bosom. I was glad we sang that song
called, Draw Me Nearer. Nearer, nearer, blessed Lord.
You can't get any nearer than His bosom. He will carry them in His bosom. I thought about John. Where did
he? He was always laying in his head. from the Lord's bosom. The bosom lies near the heart
and upon the heart. To carry something in the bosom
denotes the most intimate communion with Him and you are privy to
all His secrets. To carry something in the bosom
implies enjoyment of rest and safety. Who can hurt you when
you're sheltered in His arms? Listen to this song. Charles
Wesley wrote, Jesus, lover of my soul, let me to thy bosom
fly. Why the nearer waters roll, why
the tempest still is high? Hide me, O my Savior, hide till
the storm of life is past. Safe unto thy haven, God, O receive
my soul at last. Other refuge have I none, hangs
my helpless soul on thee. Leave, O leave me not alone,
still support and comfort me. All my trust on thee is stayed,
all my help from thee I bring. Cover my defenseless head with
the shadow of thy wing. And listen to this song. We sung
this a while back at our church. It's in page 56 in the great
hymns of the faith. And it's entitled, I Am His,
and He Is Mine. Now listen, things that once
were wild alarms, scared you to death, cannot now disturb
my peace. The old nut-shelter laid on his
bosom. You ain't worried about nothing. Isn't that it? Clothed in everlasting arms and
pillowed on his loving breast, Oh, to lie forever here. Doubts
and care and self-resign. Now listen to this. You picture
this picture. You laying there on his bosom
while he whispers in my ear. I am His, and He is mine. When He whispers in your ear,
His whispers tell you. And at the end of it, all I'm
yours, and you're mine. He will carry me. We must be carried because we
are so weak. He carries us so we will trust
him. One place he said, fear not little flock. Fear not little
flock. How long has he carried these
sheep? Turn over to page 46, I mean Isaiah 46, I'm sorry,
chapter 46. I said, 46, when Baal bowed down,
Nebo stoopeth. Their idols were upon the beast
and upon the cattle. Your carriages were heavy laden.
They are a burden to the weary beast to just carry those false
gods. She said they had to carry their
gods. They stoop. They bow down together. They
could not deliver the burden, but themselves are gone into
captivity. Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob.
and all the remnant of the house of Israel, which are born, carried
by me." How long? From the belly. What did he tell
Jeremiah? Before I formed you in the belly,
I knew you. Before that came forth out of the womb, I ordained
you. I have borne you from the belly,
which are carried from the womb. And how long is He going to carry
you? Even to your old age. I am He, and even to your poor
hair, your gray hair, will I carry you. Religion has to carry their
God. Our God carries us. That's the
difference. I have made and I will bear,
even I will carry and will deliver you. A while back I saw David and Elizabeth
Wright and their little baby, I don't think was much older
than about a month old. And I walked up and was talking
to Elizabeth and she was standing there holding that little baby.
And I was looking at her and I was looking at that baby, but
that baby wasn't looking at me. Everything that she said, that
little baby, it looked right up in the face of his mom. She held it right to her breast.
That's what God does to His people. He picks up that little weak
lamb. He said, you're mine. Listen to me. Even when you were
a lost sheep wandering in this world, He always carried you. I don't care what the little
sign says that people like and put on their wall about one set
of footprints. They've never been but one set
of footprints and those are His. If He ever lets you down, you're
in a mess. And we don't carry Him. We don't
let Him. He carries us. And He always
has. Where did He carry us? I'll tell
you exactly where He carried us. Like the great high priest on that
vesture, on that breastplate that had the twelve stones. Where
was it at? Near His heart! Near His heart. He will care for His people.
He cares for His sheep because they cost Him so dearly. In the last point He said, He
shall gently lead those that are with you. He will gently and carefully
lead those nursing their young ones. What is this saying? He doesn't drive his sheep. He
leads them. He leads me besides the still
waters. And he leads me and he leads us in the paths of righteousness
for His namesake. I picture this, I picture a shepherd
getting ready to take his sheep down through the town. They're
the prettiest sheep you've ever saw. Their coats are not matted. He leads them in the paths of
righteousness for whose namesake? His namesake. And He leads us. He leads us
in the way that we should go. He gently leads those with young.
And as I thought about this, you remember when Jacob, he came
back and had to face Esau? They're getting ready to depart.
Here's what Jacob says to Esau. And he said unto him, My Lord
knoweth that the children are tender. Talking about all of
his family. They're tender in the flocks
and the herd. They're with young, they're with me. If a man should
overdrive them one day, listen, if a man should overdrive them,
you can't drive them, all the flock would die. Not just one,
all the flock would die. We're felt with the feelings
of each other's infirmities. When you feel pain, we feel pain. When that little lamb suffers
and it feels pain, we feel pain. He leads them. He leads them. He knows exactly what we are
able to endure. He said, no, you can't push them
any more than that. They can't take it. You can't
stand it. You can't. He don't drive them. He said, come on, little sheep. Come on, little sheep. Our God is a great, gentle, compassionate
shepherd. He knows our frame. He remembers
that we're dust. He doesn't drive his sheep with
the law. He gently leads them with his gracious hand. If he loses one of those sheep,
he's not a good shepherd. He will never lose one. He leads
all His soulless sheep, all His little ones, in the same path. Those are the paths of righteousness. And what he said, a bruised reed
I won't break, and smoking flax I won't quench. And what we'd
do, we'd break it in a heartbeat, say it's useless. Human nature
said, let's drive them. He said, no, I'm going to lead
them. Oh, how I pray that our great God, if you don't know
Him, that He would gather you to Himself. And that He would
keep gathering us and bringing us to Him. And He will. And He
does. If you're one of His, He'll find you and He will bring you
to Himself. And He does it all for His honor and for His glory.
And He will not lose one little one. Amen.