WERE… BUT NOW. 1st Peter 2:25 . Only our Lord Jesus Christ is qualified to be the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls. In the local church, there are bishops (plural) raised up by the Holy Spirit to “shepherd” the Lord’s people. The Holy Spirit raises them up in every scripturally gathered assembly of believers to lead the flock and feed the church of God. Peter was a shepherd among the people of God in Jerusalem. The shepherds (elders) in a church are responsible for following the example of the Chief Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ, as leaders who serve by guiding, teaching, nurturing, caring for, and correcting believers.
There are quite a number of places in the New Testament where the Lord Jesus is referred to as the Shepherd. He leads and feeds; protects and guides; cares for and nurtures God’s people. He has provided salvation, set the example, guides, restores those who stray, and manages those who are committed to serving Him. “Returning” to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls is the last of six references to Isaiah 53 that Peter makes from verse 21 through verse 25.
The death of Christ ended our sinful lives, making it possible for us to live righteously. Now that we are healed by His stripes, we move forward in faith to live righteously. As our Shepherd, He feeds and protects us, and as the Overseer of our lives, He guides and directs us. Peter knew the words of Isaiah 53 and was not directing those Hebrew believers to the temple or even to a church, but to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. He is the Good Shepherd who gave His life for us. He now supports us with the strength of His arm and watches over us with His all-seeing eye that knows what is behind, ahead, and around us.
In the past, a lost sheep was far away and going much farther, self-willed and thinking little of a gracious heavenly Father. He was not concerned about sin’s guilt, nor taking time to bother, to seek Him while He could be found. In the dark, not realizing what real light is, walking in darkness, going deeper into sins; not looking above at the glory that is His –a sheep in a dark night is lost.
Changes have come; the lost sheep is found. The wanderer has stopped going astray; grace turned him around. Now in Beulah-land, walking on holy ground, the Shepherd has the sheep in His fold. Now, instead of darkness, he is walking in the light. Now walking by faith in the light of eternal day, no longer in the night. Realizing that living by faith is much better than sight, the Bishop tends to the needs of his soul. One time blind, but now by grace he can see. One time, an alien, now no longer an enemy. One time lost, but now saved for eternity, the wanderer is safe and secure.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Chief Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep; the Great Shepherd who continually cares for His sheep; and in this verse, He is the Chief Shepherd who is leading His sheep to permanent “green pastures,” from which no one will stray. Psalms 22, 23, and 24 give us these views of Him as they prophetically looked for Him to come.