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THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER VOLUME 4, NUMBER 41, OCTOBER 10, 2004 THE STORY OF THE LAMB One day a little white lamb was taking a walk with his mother, and as they walked around the farm they came to the pigpen. A big old pig was stretched out, grunting contentedly as he wallowed in the muck and the mud of the pen. He looked absolutely happy and comfortable – so much so that the little lamb was really quite impressed. So impressed was he that he began to think that he might be missing something here. So he turned to his mother, a little breathlessly because of the excitement and the wonderful idea that he had, and he asked, “Mother, may I wallow?” Her son’s question set the old mother sheep back on her heels a bit. She was both shocked and surprised to think that a son of hers would ask such a question. When she had regained her composure, she answered him very firmly, “Certainly not! Sheep don’t wallow!” Well, the little lamb wasn’t convinced, and the minute his mother turned her back – zoom, there he went. He ran over to the pigpen, slipped between the rails of the fence, and felt his feet sink into the cool mud. But it was deeper than he had thought, and to tell the truth, it smelled terrible. He tried to back out, but found the mud clinging to his feet and he could not move. He began to be frightened, and he jerked and tugged frantically, but that only got him in deeper. By now he was terrified. He wished with all of his heart that he hadn’t come – that he had obeyed his mother. He thrashed and thrashed about in desperation, lost his balance, and sprawled over on his side in the evil, foul smelling muck and mire. The pig looked over at him and grunted in a very friendly manner, but the little lamb was frantic. He couldn’t move. He could only roll his eyes, and he thought that each breath he took would be his last. Then, finally, just as he had bleated weakly for the last time and given up, the farmer came along and tenderly lifted the little lamb from his death trap, cleansed him thoroughly, and restored him to his mother. As any parent can imagine, his mother had mixed emotions. She was so thankful that he was all right, but terribly hurt that he had chosen to so blatantly disobey her. She was even more distressed to think that her own son, a beautiful white lamb, had decided to wallow. She said to him, “I feel that you have learned your lesson. Only pigs wallow. As a sheep you are the one animal that sets the pattern of behavior above all other animals. Hogs are born to wallow, but sheep are different creatures from hogs, and SHEEP DON’T WALLOW!” The moral of the story is obvious. As a Christian we are part of the Lord’s flock. He is the Shepherd, we are the sheep – and we all need to know that SHEEP DON’T WALLOW! This little story is pure imagination, because no sheep, ever, ever wallows. Just so, the Christian will remain apart from the wickedness of the world. The wicked things of the world should hold no more appeal to the Christian than the hog wallow does for a sheep. How many times do people who are Christians find themselves asking the “Why Can’t I” questions? You know what I mean. Why can’t I dance the modern dances of today? Why can’t I drink alcoholic beverages? Why can’t I gamble at the boats or buy a lottery ticket? Why can’t I go mixed swimming? Why can’t I watch any television program that I want? Why can’t I rent or go to any movie that I would like to? Why can’t I wear anything that I want to? Why can’t I miss services to engage in some sort of worldly activity? The answer is the same as the mother sheep gave to her lamb. SHEEP DON’T WALLOW! Christians are not worldly people. We are new creatures. Paul wrote in 2 Cor. 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away: behold, all things are become new.” A Christian has the mind of Christ, or he should have according to Philippians 2:5. Would Christ engage in modern dancing? Would Jesus drink intoxicating alcoholic beverages? Do you think Jesus would go to “the boat” or stand in line to buy a lottery ticket? Do you think that Jesus would be at the pool or The Beach in a swimming suit? Do you think He would watch the same television shows that you watch? Do we really think that Jesus would miss services of His own church for anything? The new creature in Christ has put to death the desires of the flesh. It doesn’t mean he will never have those desires come into his mind again, but it does mean that he won’t let them stay there when they do. Remember Paul’s words of Romans 6:6 – 7. “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.” Again, from the pen of Paul, we find in Gal. 5:24, “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. When a person becomes a Christian, truly putting to death the evil desires of the world, then the wicked things of the world will hold no more appeal to him or her than the hog wallow does to the sheep. We are sheep in the flock of Jesus, and SHEEP DON’T WALLOW! Greg Litmer A man may be evil though he has done nothing he shouldn’t – he may have done nothing he should.
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