12/02/2026
๐ ๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐ฅ๐ | ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฅ ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ก๐ | ๐๐๐ก. ๐ฎ๐ฎ, ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฒ
๐๐ด๐ข๐ญ๐ฎ 23:1 (๐๐๐๐)
โ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ด ๐ฎ๐บ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฅ; ๐ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ต ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต.โ
In the Bible, the Lord is described as a Shepherd, and we, His children, are characterized as sheep. Sheep are known to be very dependent on their shepherd. Without a shepherd, they wander, become easy prey, and eventually die from neglect because they require constant care and attention to stay healthy. In short, sheep cannot live without a shepherdโjust as we cannot live without God.
In John 10:2, another shepherd is mentionedโa pastor.
๐๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ช๐ข๐ฉ 3:15 ๐๐๐
๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐จ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฑ๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ด ๐ข๐ค๐ค๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ฎ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ๐ต, ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ช๐ค๐ฉ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ.
๐๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ช๐ข๐ฉ 3:15 (๐๐๐๐)
โ๐๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐จ๐ช๐ท๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฑ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ด ๐ข๐ค๐ค๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐๐บ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ๐ต, ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ฐ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ.โ
God has given us pastorsโshepherds after His own heartโwho are called to lead us to the safest place we could ever be: His presence. In John 10:1, Jesus speaks about the sheepfoldโa place built to protect the sheep from predators and thieves, especially during the night when they are most vulnerable. In the same way, this world is covered in darkness (Isaiah 60:2), and the enemy is constantly plotting ways to sn**ch us from Godโs care. But praise God for the pastors who faithfully watch over our souls, helping to keep us safe, grounded, and secure in Him.
However, just as a hungry predator will attempt to climb over a sheepfoldโs fence to capture a sheep, we must remain vigilant. The devil seeks to deceive. He disguises himself as someone who appears to know and serve the Lordโeven as someone who teaches Godโs Wordโbut his purpose is to corrupt and mislead. We can discern him through his words: he twists Scripture, and instead of giving glory to God, he seeks glory for himself. Therefore, we must be watchful and discerning so we are not deceived. Listen carefully to the true voice of our shepherd.
How do we know if a pastor is from the Lord?
John 10:2 says that the true shepherd enters through the gate. A sheepfold has a narrow gate through which both the shepherd and the sheep must enter. In Matthew 7:13โ14, Jesus speaks of the narrow gate that leads to eternal life. Its narrowness reminds us that we cannot live however we please; there are boundaries and obedience required to enter the Kingdom of God.
In John 10:7, Jesus declares, โI am the gate.โ This confirms His words that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. We must go through Himโby believing in Him and in the Good News He proclaims. Only through Jesus can we enter into Godโs presenceโour true refuge and safe haven (John 10:9).
Therefore, to recognize a pastor according to Godโs heart, we must ask: Does he enter through the Gate? Is his life rooted in faith in Jesus Christ? Does he live according to the Word of God and model obedience, humility, and integrity? A true shepherd does not lead people to himself, but through Christ. His life and teaching align with Scripture, and he sets an example for others to follow.
Indeed, we are blessed to have pastors who lead us toward Godโs presence. True shepherds feed us, teach us, and help us understand Jesus and the Good News. They guide us in living according to Godโs will so that we may receive the promises He has prepared for us. Reminder to not trade the blessings of God for the fleeting pleasures of this world.
๐ง๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ, ๐๐๐ฆ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ๐ง, ๐ฆ๐ข๐ก ๐ข๐ ๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐! Blessing and glory and wisdom, thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever.
Preacher: Pastora Gracelle Del Puerto Canon
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๐๐ผ๐ถ๐ป ๐๐ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ผ๐๐ฟ ๐ฃ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฅ ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ก๐, ๐ง๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฆ, ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐บ.