Isaiah 61:1

John 10:1-30

Psalm 34:18

In this painting three sheephead are hovering around a center pylon. All three fish are facing the viewer. Thus, making the viewer one of the focal points in the piece. The focal point has a duality because although the fish are directed toward the viewer they are also hovering around the pylon.  The pylon however points upward to yet another unseen center of attention, creating a bridge between two unpainted, unseen main subjects - you, the viewer, and that which is above. The painting fills in the rest of the story. 

So why did I choose sheephead around a pylon?

Sheephead in their natural environment hover around pylons for their food source. While sheephead are fish in the Ocean we read from the Bible references to the sheep we see on land. Did you know the stories of the Bible equate us, God's people, to sheep.  Time and time again it reminds us of the importance of listening to our shepherd. 

Jesus is our good shepherd!

So what is the message hidden in the painting? The prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 61:1 points again to a coming Messiah. He speaks for the Messiah and says that He will come to heal the broken-hearted. Again in Psalm 34:18 we read that the Lord is close to the broken-hearted. To illustrate this I included broken rocks in the foreground. Beyond the brokenness there is a clear but narrow path leading to the single post. 

In the illustration of the sheep and the shepherd, it paints a beautiful picture of the relationship of love, care and dependency. As a young man I could relate to a certain point because my family raised sheep. I would be on our family ranch in New Mexico and as a kid I loved to go out with Joe the family ranch hand and call the sheep in for the night. They would never listen to me but they HEARD the voice of Joe and knew he was their good shepherd. As an act of obedience the sheep in a single file entered through the gate to safety be inside the pen for the night. I always took that for granted as a child. Because of my childhood experience and my adult relationship with Jesus, the good shepherd, I, too, know His voice and better understand the illustration in John 10. Jesus came to give sight to the blind, to heal the broken-hearted. He came to give life in exchange for His own. It is offered to all who hear His voice. When those that are broken-hearted hear the message of hope and listen to their shepherds voice and follow Him in an act of loving obedience, only then can one be HEARD, rescued, healed and yes, counted too.

As in the painting, the sheephead are in their natural habitat feeding on the pylon. We as God's people are in our natural habitat when we stay close to our center post - the cross. There is no other way to be fed spiritually. One God. One Son, Jesus. One Holy Spirit. 

Have you HEARD the good Shepherds voice?

Written by Glenn and Heather Lamp, 2021