Sheep without a Shepherd.

It is 3AM and I woke up from a very vivid dream and could not return to sleep so here I am to write about it. As I lay in my bed trying to get back to sleep the reason for the dream and the message it contained just kept going through my mind and I knew it was no random dream.

Over the past several weeks I have been experiencing an increasing sense of foreboding coupled with a feeling of depression that is uncharacteristic for me and I have been puzzled by it. I believe this dream gave me the answer.

In my dream I am in what seems to be an informal church meeting or maybe it was just a gathering of Christian people that I knew in a plain large room. Anyway I was hearing people telling their troubles and some had really big ones and some were quite minor but everyone had spoken and received comfort from others or had been prayed over by the pastor. The I suddenly realize it is my turn and I cannot speak. I have a very sad countenance and I am surrounded by people who are trying to comfort me. I was especially aware of a couple of young pre-teen girls that were clinging to me and hugging me and telling me they loved me (very much in a father/daughter way) and were trying to encourage me. Suddenly I found my voice and began to speak and here's what I said. "I am grieved and broken hearted because these sheep have no shepherd. I hear their cries for help in the midst of their troubles but there is no one to help them. They go to their friends and they do not have answers, they go to their pastors and talk for hours and they do not have answers but they do willingly devote their time to listen to them and offer prayers on their behalf but this only shows how shallow their religion is. I do not blame the sheep for they do not know better, I blame the shepherds who are but hirelings because they will not tell the people the truth of the Word. There is but one true Shepherd and God has provided surrogate shepherds for the purpose of directing the sheep to the true Shepherd who can deliver them from their troubles and can give them true peace. The people were looking at me in astonishment and saying Amen amen and even the pastor was nodding his head and then I woke up. What I have written so far was written with much difficulty because I had to keep editing because I found myself writing as though I was God speaking. I do not want anyone to think that I said I am speaking for God or speaking His very words, I am merely relating what I dreamed and what I have to say concerning the dream after this point I speak on the authority of the written Word. It is there and you can check it out for yourself.

Irresponsible Shepherds Ezekiel 34:1-10
1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? 3 You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. 4 The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them. 5 So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them.”
7 ‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8 “As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock”— 9 therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the LORD! 10 Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.”

Where are the shepherds who speak the Word of God? they sit in their offices all day long and listen to the cries of the troubled ones but why do they not teach them how to have a relationship with the One who can fix them and also equip them to comfort and guide others. I just heard of a man who told a Christian man of long standing that he needed God in his life. The Christian man replied, "you need to contact pastor so and so". You know what I mean "the professional Christian". There are no professional Christians, only true Christians and any true Christian knows Christ well enough that he or she can lead another person to Him.

Jesus said if anyone is burdened, has heavy heart and needs help should come to Him for it. Matthew 11.33 28"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Many of God's people are sick and some are dieing but all they get is human comfort and generic prayers. Here is what the Word of God says.
The Prayer of Faith
13Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. 14Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
17Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. 18Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. 19My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, 20remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins.

I cannot even remember the last time I heard anyone refer to this portion of scripture much less claim it's promises. Why did Jesus gather so many followers?
Here again is what scripture tells us.Matthew 7:28-29 (New King James Version)
28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
We have exactly the same problem today. The shepherds act as though they have authority but they believe it is authority in their church which is authority given by man. Jesus spoke with authority because He knew the Father and knew His authority did not come from man but from the revealed Word of God and the presence of the Holy Spirit in His life. When He departed earth He imparted His authority to His Apostles who were to train and pass it on to others. What is that authority that should still be with us today? The authority of the written Word of God as revealed and performed by the Holy Spirit Who is still among us today but is no longer given His rightful place and recognition. I have been a pastor, I know these things, I have had people beating a path to my door to seek my council or to get me to pray for them. It feels good to be needed by so many but that was never God's plan. We are robbing God and fleecing the sheep when we do not direct them to Him. I know that many pastors will tell me that they do but I never hear these messages from the pulpit. They should be teaching the people to know the promises of God are to them personally but they can only be obtained personally. There is no substitute or go between for them. Here again is the scripture to prove that.1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,
Your pastor can pray for you and yes we are instructed to pray for each other but if you read the Word you will find out that it is written mostly to individuals as sheep. Not to shepherds. It is a personal book written to us by our true Shepherd. But if the shepherds would teach it in that manner they would work themselves out of a job or so they think but the truth of the matter is that they would have so many more lambs being born that they would never run out of a job, they would simply be helping the sheep to mature so they could go out and procreate.

The truth of the matter is that they have no authority from God because they have gutted the Word. That means that they either ignore certain passages or explain them away instead of accepting that it is the eternal Word given for all time until the return of the Living Word, Jesus Christ.

I will bring this to a close but I must say that this has helped to explain the feeling of depression I have been struggling with for a while. As a councilor I learned that underneath most depression is lurking unresolved anger. Now I can admit that I am feeling anger over the failure of pastors to perform their God given duties because I see the suffering of the people. As for the sense foreboding I think the last portion of Ezekiel 34 tells the story. Here it is.
11 " 'For this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12 As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. 13 I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. 14 I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign LORD. 16 I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.

17 " 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? 19 Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

20 " 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says to them: See, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you shove with flank and shoulder, butting all the weak sheep with your horns until you have driven them away, 22 I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another. 23 I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. 24 I the LORD will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the LORD have spoken.

25 " 'I will make a covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live in the desert and sleep in the forests in safety. 26 I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill. [a] I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing. 27 The trees of the field will yield their fruit and the ground will yield its crops; the people will be secure in their land. They will know that I am the LORD, when I break the bars of their yoke and rescue them from the hands of those who enslaved them. 28 They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid. 29 I will provide for them a land renowned for its crops, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land or bear the scorn of the nations. 30 Then they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them and that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Sovereign LORD. 31 You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign LORD.' "

There is coming and soon disaster that will shake every person on earth to the very roots of their being. Those who know God and are being fleeced by the hireling shepherds will be rescued by God and they will come into a new close intimate relationship with the true Shepherd and never again will they look to man for their help. Then there are those who's hearts are not right, they know God but are filled with guile. They will receive severe discipline and if they repent they will be forgiven and restored. Others who are called goats in the above scripture will find themselves on the outside looking in and unable to enter because they have been defiling the body and will no longer be tolerated.
At this point I can only plead with everyone to ask God to search your heart and bring His fire to burn up whatever is not holy.

God bless you all.
Your replies and comments are welcome. I encourage everyone to forward these messages to anyone who might be helped by them.
email acts2216@eoni.com or justjohn@eoni.com