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The Lamb of God - Ben
Sermon Summary
Ben explores the paradox of Jesus as both the Lamb of God and the Good Shepherd, emphasising that Jesus' sheep know his voice, live out his teachings, and follow his way, even when it requires sacrifice, because through this relationship they receive abundant life and transformation.
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A paradox occurs when two seemingly opposite truths describe the same reality. Everyday sayings illustrate the point, but Scripture uses paradox to name the mystery of God: just and merciful, three and one,
Jesus was fully God and fully human. The Bible portrays Jesus both as the spotless sacrificial lamb and as the tender shepherd who seeks the lost. Ancient kings wore the image of a shepherd, and Israel’s ideal king came from a shepherd’s line (through king David); prophets promised a shepherd-king who would feed, seek, and care for the flock.
That expectation of a king warped over time into a desire for political power, so the title “king” carried heavy baggage by Jesus’ day. Jesus, however, embraced the shepherd identity. He described crowds as “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd;” told the parable of the lost sheep who is carried home rejoiced; and declared plainly; “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
Jesus’ sheep are defined by three marks: they know His voice, they live in His teaching, and they follow His way.
Knowing His voice requires attentive listening amid life’s noise—practices of silence, Scripture, and openness to varied promptings help distinguish that tone.
Living in the word uses the Greek idea of meno: to dwell in and be formed by Jesus’ teaching so it shapes habit and heart, not mere opinion.
Following His way imitates Jesus’ posture of compassion, sacrificial love, unforced dignity for the marginalised, and repeated forgiveness. It calls for surrender of control and willingness to bear cost.
The call to follow costs nothing to receive yet everything to live out: grace secures belonging, while discipleship demands the loss of comfort and patterns of self-sufficiency.
The paradox also carries promise. King David’s songs (in the Psalms) enumerate the benefits of being the shepherd’s sheep—forgiveness, healing, renewal, and abundant life. The shepherd sends the flock out to seek the one, and witnesses to Christ’s presence not merely by words but by Christlikeness lived among others.
How to be one of Jesus's sheep: pause to listen, ask for guidance, and be ready to obey. The good shepherd gives life in full to those who hear, dwell, and follow.
Key Takeaways
1. God's nature holds holy paradoxes:
God’s character resists single-category thinking: mercy and justice coexist in ways that both comfort and demand ethical response. Embracing paradox protects worship from domestication and prompts reverent awe rather than tidy answers. Holding tension cultivates patience with mystery and humility in doctrine and devotion.
2. Jesus is lamb and shepherd:
Jesus embodies sacrificial atonement and intimate guidance at once, uniting suffering-offering with pastoral care. The lamb’s blood and the shepherd’s search reveal a God who wins through vulnerability and who seeks by name. That union reframes power: redemption operates through love that risks everything for the lost.
3. Sheep know, live, and follow:
Belonging requires three habits: discernment of voice, dwelling in teaching, and imitation of Jesus’ way. Hearing without doing produces fragile faith; doing without listening produces rule-following that misses spirit. Grounded devotion integrates listening, formation, and costly obedience as a single Christian grammar.
4. Following him costs and gives:
Discipleship asks for real loss—of comfort, control, and cultural safety—while it grants deeper life: forgiveness, healing, renewal, and participation in resurrection life. Grace furnishes the relationship free of merit; the call asks total reorientation of priorities in response. The paradoxical economy of the cross trades convenience for true abundance.
Daily Hope Devotionals
Day 1: Following the Shepherd's Way of Life
Scripture:
Luke 9:23 NLT
“Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=%20Luke%209%3A23&version=NLT
Devotional:
Following Jesus means more than just adhering to a set of rules; it is about adopting His way of being in the world. It is a call to observe and emulate His compassion for the hurting, His love for the outcast, and His radical, self-sacrificing forgiveness. This path often leads away from the comfortable and easy life our culture promises and toward a cross-shaped life of surrender. It is the way of true freedom and transformation.
Reflection:
Where is Jesus, the Good Shepherd, inviting you to deny your own comfort or control in order to more closely follow His way of compassion and self-sacrifice in a specific relationship or situation?
Prayer:
Father, teach me to follow Your example of love, compassion, and forgiveness. Help me to give more than I keep, to serve others with humility, and to trust Your Spirit to transform me. Give me courage to carry my cross and follow You fully. Amen.
Day 2: Knowing the Voice of the Good Shepherd
Scripture:
John 10:27 NLT
“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2010%3A27%20&version=NLT
Devotional:
In the noise and chaos of modern life, the Good Shepherd still speaks. His sheep know His voice, distinguishing it from all others. This familiarity comes not from a single moment, but from a history of listening. It is cultivated through time spent in silence, through prayer, and through an open heart that asks, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” This is an invitation to a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him.
Reflection:
When you set aside time to be still before God, what distractions most often pull your attention away?
What is one practical step you could take this week to create a quieter space to listen for His voice?
Prayer:
Father, help me to know Your voice clearly amid the noise of life. Teach me to listen patiently and recognise Your call. Give me the grace to pause and wait for Your voice. Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening. Amen.
Day 3: Living In and Living Out His Word
Scripture:
John 8:31-32 NLT
Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%208%3A31-32&version=NLT
Devotional:
True discipleship moves beyond simply hearing or even agreeing with Jesus’ teaching. It is about dwelling in His words, allowing them to become the very atmosphere we live in. This marination in His truth then shapes our actions, our decisions, and our character from the inside out.
Reflection:
Is there a specific teaching of Jesus that you find easy to agree with but difficult to live out?
What would it look like to take one small, concrete step toward obedience in that area this week?
Prayer:
Dear Lord, help me not just to hear Your words but to live in them and let them shape my life every day. May Your truth take root deep in my heart. Help me to do what You say, not just know it. Amen.
Day 4: The Paradox of the Lamb and the Shepherd
Scripture:
John 10:11 NLT
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%2010%3A11&version=NLT
The scriptures present Jesus in a beautiful, complex paradox: He is both the Lamb of God and the Good Shepherd. As the Lamb, He is the perfect sacrifice, offered for the world. As the Shepherd, He is the one who guides, protects, and lays down His life for the sheep. This profound mystery reveals a God who is both the gift and the giver, the sacrifice and the priest, the one who serves and the one who saves. In this, we see the depth of His love and the breadth of His care for us.
Reflection:
In what area of your life do you most need to trust Jesus as your Good Shepherd, and how might recognising Him as the sacrificed Lamb deepen that trust?
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, thank You for laying down Your life for me, the lost sheep, and for seeking me when I wander. Give me the courage to lay down my own desires and to trust fully in Your loving care. Amen.
Day 5: The Cost and Benefit of Being His Sheep
Scriptures:
Psalm 103:2-5 NLT
Let all that I am praise the Lord; may I never forget the good things he does for me. He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20103%3A2-5&version=NLT
Matthew 16:24-25 NLT
“Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew%2016%3A24-25&version=NLT
Devotional:
Being a sheep of the Good Shepherd is both a free gift and a call to total surrender. It costs us nothing, for we cannot earn His grace, and it costs us everything, as we are asked to lay down our lives in response. In this beautiful exchange, we find the profound benefits of following Him: forgiveness, healing, redemption, and a life of satisfaction and renewal. This abundant life is found not in self-preservation, but in giving ourselves away.
Reflection:
As you consider the benefits of forgiveness, redemption, and renewal that God offers, what is one area of your past or present that you need to fully receive His love and healing for today?
Prayer:
Lord, thank You for the forgiveness that covers all my iniquity, the redemption that rescues my life from the pit, and the renewal that restores my strength. Teach me to follow Your way, even when it costs me comfort or control. Amen
Day 6: Building on the Rock
Scripture:
Matthew 7:24-27
Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=%20Matthew%207%3A24-27&version=NLT
Devotional:
Jesus teaches us in the Sermon on the Mount that there are two kinds of people who hear His words: those who put them into practice and those who don’t. He compares those who obey His words to a person who builds their house on a rock. When storms come, their house stands firm. But those who hear His words and don’t obey are like someone who builds their house on sand, and when the storms come, their house collapses.
The storms of life will come to all of us, but those who live in obedience to Jesus will stand strong.
Reflection:
Are you building your life on the rock of Jesus’ teaching? Or are you building on shifting sand?
What parts of your life do you currently have on sand that you need to build on the rock of Jesus instead?
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, teach me to build my life on the solid rock of Your truth, so when the storms of life come, I will stand firm and unshaken. Amen.
Day 7: Led Beside Still Waters
Scripture:
Psalm 23:1-2 NIV
The Lord is my shepherd; I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Peter%203%3A15&version=NIV
Devotional:
Psalm 23 paints a beautiful picture of God as our shepherd, leading us beside still waters. This image reminds us that in the midst of life’s noise and chaos, God desires to bring us peace and rest. Just like sheep who know their shepherd’s voice and follow him, we are invited to listen carefully for God’s guidance and trust Him to lead us to places of calm and refreshment.
Reflection:
Are you making space to hear the Shepherd’s voice?
Are you dwelling in His word and following His example?
How will you lay down your own desires to walk in His way today?
Prayer:
Lord, in the busyness and noise of life, help me to hear Your voice clearly. Open my ears and soften my heart so I can listen and follow as You to lead me beside still waters. Amen.
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