Open Heaven [22 June 2018]  Friday – A Shepherd Or A Hunter

Open Heaven 22 June 2018 Memorise:
And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. 1 Peter 5:4

Bible Reading 1 Peter 5:1-4

1. To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed:

2 Be shepherds of God’s flockthat is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve;

3 not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.

4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

Open Heaven 22 June 2018 Bible in one year: 2 Kings 24-25, Acts 15:12-35

It is disheartening to note that many hunters have crept into the Body of Christ, disguising themselves as shepherds. How do we distinguish a hunter from a shepherd? A hunter is an opportunist who feeds on the flesh of animals he did not rear. He kills his game indiscriminately without consideration for the wellbeing of the animals he kills. Open Heaven 24 June 2018 (Sunday)

A Shepherd, on the other hand , knows even the smallest  details about the state of his or her flock. His disposition to the flock is captured beautifully in psalms 23. Psalms 23:1-3 says,

“The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie 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.”

All this occupying the office of Shepherd in the Body of Christ are instructed on God’s expectation of them in today’s Bible reading. They are expected to feed the flock of God and watch over them without any constraints or covetousness. Open Heaven 23 June 2018

Open Heaven 22 June 2018

Unlike a hunter that goes after a kill, the shepherd must nurture, preserve and ensure the safety of the sheep. He pampers the lambs and leads the sheep towards green pastures. The shepherd defends the flock against external aggression of wolves and other carnivores. Jesus Christ is our perfect example of a shepherd. In John 10:11, He said

“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.”

God expects us to be good shepherds just as our Lord Jesus Christ is. In the Body of Christ today, it is unfortunate that we have unsuspecting sheep who are being led by hunters instead of shepherds. Paul wrote concerning them in Philippians 3:18-19 saying:

“For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.”

Beloved, you need to identify the shepherds and the hunters in the Body of  Christ and ensure you are not being led by a hunter. Any pastor whose primary concern is what he or she can get out of you and not how you would be nurtured and built up in christ is a hunter. I pray that God will open your eyes of understanding and enable you to discern if you are under a hunter or a shepherd

Open Heaven 22 June 2018 Prayer Point
Father, please rid your Church of hunters disguising in the coat of shepherds in Jesus’ Name

We sincerely hope you’ve been blessed by today’s devotional message. Click the WhatsApp or Facebook button below the Hymn to share with your friends, families and colleagues. Please, drop a comment if you’ve truly been blessed by Pastor E A Adeboye’s message. God bless you! 

Open Heaven 22 June 2018 Hymn 12

How sweet the name of Jesus

Verse 1:
How sweet the Name of Jesus sounds
In a believer’s ear!
It soothes his sorrows, heals his wounds,
And drives away his fear.

Verse 2:
It makes the wounded spirit whole,
And calms the troubled breast;
’Tis manna to the hungry soul,
And to the weary, rest.

Verse 3:
Jesus! My Shepherd, Husband, Friend,
O Prophet, Priest and King,
My Lord, my Life, my Way, my End,
Accept the praise I bring.

Verse 4:
Weak is the effort of my heart,
And cold my warmest thought;
But when I see Thee as Thou art,
I’ll praise Thee as I ought.

Verse 5:
Till then I would Thy love proclaim
With every fleeting breath,
And may the music of Thy Name
Refresh my soul in death!