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Day 57: Feed Your Goats (SoS 1:8c)

“If you do not know, O fairest among women, Follow in the footsteps of the flock, And feed your little goats beside the shepherds’ tents.”

Song of Songs 1:8

In verse 6, the Bride spoke about how her brothers overworked her in their vineyards. However, the second instruction the Beloved gave the Bride is to come feed her little goats.  One would think the Beloved's answer to her request for rest would be to do nothing, but instead, he directs her to work.

Idleness is another temptation we face as believers especially when we realize the amount of work required to be carried out in the body or when we have experienced exhaustion or burnout. But as previously stated in lesson 53, it's not about what you do or how much you do but how you do it.

A life of intimacy with Jesus is a life of tireless service and partnership with Him. Jesus tells Peter in John 21 that the way to show that He loves Him is to feed His sheep. The same principle applies to us. One of the crucial ways we show our love for Jesus is a passion for what His heart beats for: the salvation of men and His Bride (the church).

The Bride was asked by the Beloved to feed her little goats. Jesus in Matthew 25:31-34,41 said about goats:

“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: "

Little goats represent those who do not believe or walk in the way of the Lord. But we as Christ's Brides are tasked with telling them about the Lord and bringing them into the Lord's fold. 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 tells us that the ministry of reconciling men to God has been given to us believers. We have been committed with the message of reconciliation: tasked with preaching Christ's sacrificial love through which all men are now forgiven and accepted by God.

It is this task we have termed the Great Commission. Jesus gave it in Matthew 28:18-19. He said:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Our work is not just to preach to unsaved men and get them m to come to Jesus, we must teach them all that Jesus commands in His word. Our task is not complete if we do not teach the ones we bring to Christ and get them integrated into a local church where they will learn sound doctrine.

Colossians 3:16 (Amplified Version) says to us:

“Let the [spoken] word of Christ have its home within you [dwelling in your heart and mind—permeating every aspect of your being] as you teach [spiritual things] and admonish and train one another with all wisdom...”

We are also expected to care for all of Christ's flock as much as we can. It's a show of our love for God expressed through our love for men as John instructs us in his first letter.

There is incomparable joy and satisfaction in being engaged with our Beloved Jesus' business. He says in Matthew 6:33 to seek first His kingdom and righteousness and every other thing we need will be freely given to us.

PRAY WITH ME:
Thank you, Lord, for trusting me with the gospel. Renew my passion to see souls saved and integrated into your flock. Grant me grace, strength, courage, and wisdom to carry out this great task you have entrusted to me. Amen.

REFLECT AND ACT:
  • How committed are you to seeing souls saved and brought into the church to learn sound doctrine and be transformed?
  • Set a goal for how many souls you want to be saved through you before the end of this year. Make a plan on how you want to achieve this goal.
  • How do you contribute to the spiritual growth and welfare of believers around you both in and outside the church?

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