The Tenderness of His Love . . . OR . . . The Heart of a True Shepherd


Sabbath School Class—Life as Discovery and Hope
May 31, 2008
Larry R Evans

Quiz for Reflection

[To get the most from the quiz read the passages in brackets and look for a thread of thought which will give more depth and understanding to the question being asked.]


1. The example of the woman caught in adultery teaches that the Scribes and Pharisees were more concerned about sin than Jesus was. [Jn 8:2-11; 3:17; Lk 13:34-35; 15:1-8] True or False?

2. The Bible says that little children suffered when they went to Jesus. [See Mt 19:14,15 in KJV and NIV and The Desire of Ages, p.511-517] True or False?

3. Jesus made it clear that “kitchen work” was not important. [Lk 10:38-42; 9:57-62; 10:5; 10:23,24] True or False?

4. Jesus demonstrated how to love one’s enemies. [Lev 19:18; Mt 5:44-48; Lk 6:25-31; 22:49-51; 23:34; Rom 5:6-8] True or False?

5. God lacks patience with the rebellious. [Isa 5:1-5; Dan 9:20-27; Mt 23:25-35] True or False?

Introductory Reflections

It has been said, “There is no human being who will not eventually respond to love if only he can realize that he is loved. On the other hand, if the life and the world of a person is marked by the absence of love, the reality of God’s love will hardly evoke the response of his whole heart, soul and mind.” (John Powell in Why Am I Afraid to Love?, p.12) Do you believe it? Is it possible that we must first feel loved before we can give love? This week we are given an opportunity to reflect about the tenderness of Christ’s love for those who felt unloved and even rejected. Over and over again Jesus went about restoring hope simply by loving the unlovely and the unloved. He changed history through His love of a sinful world. In the midst of condemnation He loved the adulterous woman. The simple but costly act of bathing his feet in perfume was accepted as a worship experience coming from the heart of one whose self-worth had been shattered but now restored. Jesus even showed us how to love our enemies—those who use and abuse us. He understood the rebellion of sinful natures so well that he saw beneath the crusty layers of arrogance to the heart yearning for acceptance. Even while hanging upon the cross He sought to reach out to those who blindly insulted the Son of God by praying for them—Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing! There is something about the tenderness of Jesus that was an invitation to children to come and play at His feet. Tenderness . . . there is something about that word that calms the anxious heart, that reassures the elderly who reminisce about opportunities missed and mistakes made, and it conveys understanding to those who have been warring with their conscience. In every case, the tender love of the Good Shepherd speaks loud and clear: “Come home! You are mine. No matter where you have been, come home! You are loved. I have made room for you.”

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