"My sheep . . . . follow me." John 10:27
Some time ago I saw a picture of trained pigs who had been taught by the owner to follow his commands. The acts were very simple. Any dog, even a mutt, could be taught these things, and no one would think them unusual. Then why the oh's and ah's and thunderous applause from the gallery when a pig stood on its hind legs to reach an ear of corn? Simply because these were not normal pigs. They did not act like pigs. Ordinary pigs cannot be led - they must be driven to the slaughter. How different a sheep - it follows the shepherd. The shepherd "leadeth them out" (John 10:3), and "he goeth before them" (John 10:4).
A sheep not only follows the shepherd but looks up into the shepherd's face. You have all seen the beautiful painting of a shepherd holding a lamb in his arm, while the mother sheep with lifted head looks up at the lamb and the shepherd's face. But how different is the pig; it has no neck - so cannot lift its head. Its eyes are set so they look toward the ground. While a sheep grazes and browses, a pig only roots and grubs. The only way a pig can be made to look up is to turn him on his back. I visited a sick friend and told him this comparison of pigs and sheep. "Yes," he said, "I'm learning my lesson on my back in bed. I have been so busy with material things - my business, my civic duties - that I haven't been looking up as I should. And now on my back, the only way I can look is up. I've been so piggish, but thank God, He is turning me over." Are you on your back today, and wondering why? Maybe He is trying to teach you to look up, and not be so busy with earthly cares that you neglect spiritual things!
"Bread For Each Day"
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