{"product_id":"2940013933200","title":"Shepherd Among the Sheep","description":"When God spoke of His relationship with His people or of the appointed leaders’ relationship with God’s people in the Old Testament He frequently spoke with pastoral language, using words such as shepherd, sheep, pasture, and fold. He probably used this kind of language for two reasons:\u003cbr\u003eGod’s people in the Old Testament were predominantly nomadic shepherds with a long and rich pastoral history or they lived in pastoral cultures.\u003cbr\u003eA shepherd’s care of the known needs of sheep was so characteristic and picturesque of God’s care of Israel and His expectations of His appointed leaders.\u003cbr\u003eIn the New Testament Jesus continued the “shepherd language” to describe His person and work. He clearly drew His language from the shepherd passages of the Old Testament. Although the Church moved out in conquest of a world with more diverse occupations, leadership styles, and designations, the New Testament writers continued the shepherd descriptions of church leaders.\u003cbr\u003eThe twenty-first century society of today is even more diverse in occupations and distant in leadership expectations. Yet, shepherding is still sufficiently known and still clearly describes the continuing expectations that God has of His spiritual leaders. So great is the descriptive fullness and history of the shepherd language that it may best serve the present generation by encompassing all other discussions of the broad subject of spiritual leadership. This is especially true since the terms “bishop,” “pastor,” and even “elder” have been so religiously abused as to hinder accurate understanding and use.","brand":"Sunset Institute Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47070578278640,"sku":"2940013933200","price":6.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013933200_p0.jpg?v=1763597389","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013933200","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}