He Did Not Have Anything Left

As we sit between Palm Sunday and Good Friday, anxiously awaiting the celebration of Easter, I’ve been reflecting on the sacrifice of my Savior. He knowingly rode into a town that he knew would be the place in which he met death face to face. Unlike every other person who has walked this Earth, He was undeserving of death.

One of the many title Jesus has is Good Shepherd, but in reality he was and is the Perfect Shepherd! A Shepherd protects those that are entrusted to him. Sometimes the Shepherd would have to take a leave of absence and would hire someone to temporarily make sure that the flock stayed together. The similarities in a hireling and the shepherd end there. Inevitably a predator would attack and in this instance the Shepherd would risk his own life to save even just one of his flock. In contrast, the hireling would turn and run in the name of self preservation - he had no skin in the game.

Something to note is that we never see Jesus, the Good Shepherd, doing anything that was self serving. He never asked anybody for anything for himself. The one exception was when He asked the woman at the well for a drink of water. Even then he did so to draw her into a conversation to serve her.

Back to the topic at hand…. I wanted to share this excerpt from A. W. Tozer’s book “No Greater Love:”

This shepherd proved that He loved us even unto death. What more can you do for anybody than to die for them? Yes, you can help them, which is well and good, but it may not inconvenience you. You can five them a good deal, but it may not be at your own loss. You can sacrifice something for them, but you will still have something left. But when you give your life for them, you do not have anything left. Jesus our Lord gave His life for His flock. He did not have anything left. That is a good shepherd.

Jesus is so good. As we finish out this season of Easter, I encourage you to reflect on our Saviors’ sacrifice - the ultimate sacrifice. Not for anything that He did, but solely for what you and I have done. He loves us so much. He is so good.

Happy Easter!