I Hear the Footsteps of the Shepherd
Luke 15:1-7 (NKJV)
The Parable of the Lost Sheep
15 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying:
4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.
This week as I laid my head on the Altar I heard footsteps of the shepherd.
Jesus said (John 10:27): My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
Jesus said (John 10:11-16):
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12 But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. 13 The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep and am known by My own. 15 As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.
Until you have found yourself lost you don’t know how good it is to hear the footsteps of the shepherd.
Throughout Scripture, we hear the footsteps of the Shepherd pursuing wandering sheep. Luke 15 is not merely a parable about a lost sheep; it is the story of God’s dealings with humanity from Genesis to Revelation.
The Shepherd has always been searching for those who wandered away. His pursuit is one of the great themes of the Bible.
David in his Failure
David was a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22), yet even David wandered into sin with Bathsheba and the murder of Uriah (2 Samuel 11). For a season he attempted to hide his condition, but the Shepherd would not leave him lost in the wilderness of guilt and compromise.
God sent Nathan the prophet to confront him (2 Samuel 12:1-13). Under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, David cried, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me” (Psalm 51:10).
The Shepherd did not abandon David in his failure. He pursued him through conviction, repentance, and restoration. David heard the footsteps of the Shepherd in the voice of a prophet.
Moses in his Frustration
Moses also heard the footsteps of the Shepherd. Though called by God and entrusted with leading Israel, Moses allowed frustration and anger to overcome him when he struck the rock instead of speaking to it as God commanded (Numbers 20:7-12).
The consequences were severe, yet the Shepherd did not cast Moses aside. The same God who met him at the burning bush continued to walk with him through the remainder of his journey. Centuries later, Moses stood with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-3).
Though Moses stumbled, the Shepherd never stopped loving him, teaching us that God’s correction is not rejection.
Saul in his Rebellion
Saul of Tarsus may have appeared to be the least likely candidate for grace. He persecuted the church, imprisoned believers, and consented to the death of Stephen (Acts 7:58; Acts 8:1-3). Yet while Saul was breathing threats against the people of God, the Shepherd was already pursuing him.
On the road to Damascus, Jesus interrupted his journey and asked, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” (Acts 9:4). In that moment, the Shepherd found a lost sheep. The man who once hunted Christians became one of Christianity’s greatest apostles. Only the Shepherd can transform a wolf into a shepherd.
Peter in his Denial
Peter heard the footsteps of the Shepherd as well. Though he boldly declared that he would never deny Christ (Matthew 26:33), before the night was over, he denied knowing Jesus three times (Luke 22:54-62). Broken by his failure, Peter wept bitterly. Yet after the resurrection, Jesus sought him out. Beside the Sea of Galilee,
Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love Me?” (John 21:15-17). The same number of times Peter denied Christ became the number of times Jesus reaffirmed and restored him. The Shepherd came looking for His wounded sheep and restored him to ministry.
Jonah in his Disobedience
Jonah also heard the footsteps of the Shepherd. Unlike others who drifted, Jonah deliberately ran from the will of God (Jonah 1:1-3). He boarded a ship headed in the opposite direction of God’s command.
Yet the Shepherd pursued him through a storm, through a fish, and through mercy. After Jonah’s rebellion, the Bible records these beautiful words: “Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time” (Jonah 3:1). What grace! What mercy! The Shepherd specializes in second chances.
The story of Luke 15 is really the story of David in his failure, Moses in his frustration, Saul in his rebellion, Peter in his denial, and Jonah in his disobedience.
If we are honest, it is also our story. The beauty of Luke 15 is not that the sheep found the Shepherd. The beauty of the Gospel is that the Shepherd found the sheep. The sheep did not know the way home. The sheep could not defend itself. The sheep could not heal itself. The sheep could not save itself. Yet Jesus said the shepherd went after the lost sheep “until he finds it” (Luke 15:4).
Notice that Jesus did not say the shepherd searched for a little while or made a brief attempt. He searched until he found it. That one word reveals the relentless love of God.
He pursued David until he repented.
He pursued Moses until his race was finished.
He pursued Saul until he surrendered.
He pursued Peter until he was restored.
He pursued Jonah until he obeyed.
And He is still pursuing wandering sheep today.
That is why the title of this message speaks so deeply to my heart: “I Hear the Footsteps of the Shepherd.” Before David heard Nathan, before Moses felt God’s correction, before Saul saw the light from heaven, before Peter heard, “Do you love Me?” they first heard the footsteps of the Shepherd coming after them. And when a wandering sheep hears those footsteps, hope is born, mercy is near, and recovery is on the way.
The beauty of Luke 15 is found in what happens after the shepherd finds the sheep. Jesus said, “And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing” (Luke 15:5).
Notice that the sheep did not walk itself home. The sheep was exhausted. The sheep was wounded. The sheep was lost. The sheep was incapable of saving itself. So the shepherd did what the sheep could not do for itself; he carried it home.
David could not restore David.
Moses could not repair Moses.
Saul could not save Saul.
Peter could not heal Peter.
Jonah could not rescue Jonah.
The Shepherd carried them all through their failures, weaknesses, fears, and mistakes.
The same Shepherd is still carrying people today.
Forty-three years ago, Jesus found me. I was a hot mess. I was lost. I was sick. I was trapped in addiction and destruction. I was like a sheep standing in the mouth of a rattlesnake. Death had its grip on my life.
Hopelessness and despair had taken control of my heart. I did not know how to get home. I did not know how to fix myself. I did not know how to save myself.
But the Shepherd was looking for me.
When no one else seemed to care, Jesus cared. When I could not find my way to Him, He came looking for me. When I was too weak to carry myself, He lifted me onto His shoulders and carried me home. He saved my soul. He healed my broken condition. He changed my life.
Everything I am today is because the Shepherd found me when I was lost.
As I look back over forty-three years of serving Jesus, I can still hear the footsteps of the Shepherd. They are the footsteps that came into my darkness. They are the footsteps that broke the chains of sin. They are the footsteps that pursued me when I was running from Him. They are the footsteps of mercy, grace, forgiveness, and restoration.
Oh, how beautiful are the footsteps of the Shepherd.
Today there may be someone listening who has wandered from the flock. Perhaps you have drifted. Perhaps you have grown weary. Perhaps you have become wounded by life. Perhaps you feel trapped in a place you never intended to be. The good news of Luke 15 is that the Shepherd is still searching. He is still calling. He is still pursuing. And if you listen carefully, you can hear the footsteps of the Shepherd coming after you.
The footsteps are not the sound of judgment coming to destroy you.
- They are the sound of mercy coming to recover you.
- They are the sound of grace coming to restore you.
- They are the sound of the Shepherd who loves you too much to leave you lost.
I hear the footsteps of the Shepherd.