I'm learning as a New Pastor how to Shepherd. There are three main roles of a natural shepherd: Leading Feeding and Protecting The leading, i'm learning, is just following well. If i'm following Jesus correctly, the sheep will move in the right direction. I don't need to be overbearing or constantly correcting and redirecting... it's actually the Holy Spirit who does those tasks. For a shepherd he uses a tool called a shepherd's crook to lead and redirect but Psalms 23 says The Lord is our Shepherd and his rod and staff comfort us... but rods are used for war and staffs are used to redirect... God can even make correction comforting. Feeding is again the work of the Holy Spirit... I've had the experience of preparing a sermon and I thought it would be an encouraging message, yet the congregation says they were convicted or felt beat up by the word...but if you have a problem child and you preach on their known issue.... it's like their the only one who didn't answer the alter call, didn't respond to the message and actually preferred your previous message. Lol The Holy Spirit is the one feeding... as im seeing... Being a Shepherd is more like being the best lamb... the lamb closest to God. Protecting works like this. If i'm safe... the sheep are safe as long as they stay close and follow instructions, but the Bible says, "Strike the shepherd and the sheep will scatter." If im wounded or overwhelmed then the sheep are in danger. This is showing the importance of my dependency on Christ and not pointing to any authority or skill that I have to lead, guide, protect or feed. The paradox is im learning... to be a good shepherd... I don't need to do more, I actually need to do less. I need to trust that God is working and give him room, making sure not to interfere. No matter who you are reading this... if you have any natural or spiritual authority over another... then these points are true for you. Are you a Father, Mother, Employer or Minister? Then you have a role to play in being a sheep closest to our Shepherd, because this is the beginning of leading... learning how to follow well.

Question - Why didn’t Jonah want to minister to the people of Nineveh? Worded differently - What was it about the people of Ninevah that drove Jonah to blatantly disobey God’s instruction to minister to them? Hint - Why is this relevant to the current discussion? Answer to hint - Remember that King Sennacherib was from Nineveh.

https://lifechanginggospelchurch.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/The-law-of-faith.pdf

King Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, terrorized King Hezekiah, the King of Judah. The Lord intervened and fought King Hezekiah’s battle. King Hezekiah fought his battle by crying out to the Lord. Scriptural authority: The battle is set forth in great detail beginning in Isaiah chapter 36:1 through the end of Isaiah chapter 37. The same exact battle is also recounted, with slightly different emphasis, starting at 2 Kings 18:13 and continuing through the end of 2 Kings chapter 19.🔥 The scripture setting forth King Hezekiah’s very stressful ordeal is chocked full of rich revelation - the enemy’s clear intention was to immobilize King Hezekiah, and the people of Judah, with fear - please note in 2 Kings 19:36 (and in Isaiah 37:37) that King Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, was from Nineveh. I have heard commentators speak about Nineveh’s reputation for being brutal - I have also heard that groups like Isis have their roots in Assyria. In this regard, reflect back upon the manner in which Isis has a history of terrorizing the world during previous presidential administrations. They would film their terror and then send social media posts with videos of rows of blindfolded men kneeling in orange jumpsuits just prior to being beheaded before the rolling cameras. Are you able to recall a time in your life when the enemy of our souls sought to create terror in your life? The answer is likely yes - However, comfort and equipping, about our authority as sons and daughters of God, are found in His Word … see scripture citations in the comments below 🔥

Quick Question - Have you ever thought to yourself, I am decreeing and declaring the Word, I am trying to take authority, and I don't see the enemy leaving? Well, as a follow-up to last evening's meeting, let's examine a scriptural example of the enemy continuing to threaten (verbally terrorize) God's servant even though the enemy was already a defeated foe according to God's proclamation against him. Here goes... (1) In Isaiah 37:6 - 7, God used the Prophet Isaiah to speak a Word against King Sennacherib, the King of Assyria. (2) Unbeknownst to the King of Assyria, the Word of God against him, had already gone forth and was even starting to manifest in Isaiah 37:8-9. Notwithstanding that, the King of Assyria was sending threats to King Hezekiah, the King of Judah, from verse 9 to verse 13. (3) The threats were so intimidating that King Hezekiah went into the temple to pray directly to God, from verse 14 to verse 20. King Hezekiah had already received the previous Word from the Prophet Isaiah but he went into the Holy place for himself. (4) Because of King Hezekiah's prayer, God sent the Prophet Isaiah again starting in verse 21. We see the angel of the Lord kill in the camp of the Assyrians starting in verse 36. We see King Sennacherib return to his homeland (Ninevah) in verse 37, and we see him killed, according to the Word of the Lord, in verse 38. (5) The scripture states, in James 4:7 - Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee. It's legal, the enemy has to leave (flee) - even if he is making threats while he is leaving (fleeing), he still has to leave (flee). If the enemy has to flee, then it stands to reason that every lesser devil must flee as well (i.e., the spirit of fear, etc...) King Sennacherib's departure, as discussed above, gives us a great scriptural example of an enemy "trying" to continue to threaten even though he was a defeated foe. But we know from scripture, that the King of Assyria's rapidly approaching death, as prophesied, cut off his terrorism.