heartstrings

Sheep relieve themselves wherever they happen to be when the need arises. They do so while they are eating as well. When they do so, in the grass for instance, they will invariably avoid eating near that spot. Therefore when I place piles of hay on the ground, I'm careful to avoid putting it on manure piles. I also place the hay piles about 7 to 8 feet apart, which exceeds the length of a sheep's body, so that they don't defecate into the next pile as they are eating. I don't just put out a roll of hay; I pitchfork it out in numerous piles. They waste far less of it this way. I don't know of any way to motivate sheep to defecate in a certain place; they just go where they please. But I have my land cross-fenced into 8 pastures for the purpose of rotating the sheep into a clean pasture after a few days; ideally 3 or 4 days. But as to the lying down, they tend to lie down in the same area of any given pasture each night. So they foul that area up pretty quickly as they do relieve themselves when they arise every morning. My point was that, for a shepherd in a semi-arid region of sparse/scarce grass, it would be foolish for him to allow his sheep to lie down and foul up perfectly viable "food" knowing that it would be rendered useless by the next morning. I don't believe that psalm 23 can be compared, at least not entirely, to how an earthly shepherd cares for sheep. I believe that an ancient Middle Eastern shepherd, upon hearing this Psalm read, would have been dumbfounded by the realization that this was something extraordinarily different.

True

Revelation 12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. What we commonly refer to as a "star", is a "sun". So if just one of those were to collide with earth, it would take one and only one and the planet would be completely engulfed and melted. One collision and there would nothing left for any additional "stars" (plural) to fall onto. So methinks that the "stars" mentioned in the Bible include the massive asteroids and comets which astronomers call "NEO's", "NEA's" and "NEC's" and they're getting mighty close. What say ye? https://www.nasa.gov/feature/nasa-s-first-asteroid-deflection-mission-enters-next-design-phase

Also, I don;t have time right now to go into detail but sheep are not defenseless either. For example, a ram can severely injure or kill a person. They are not dependent and can survive quite well on their own in their natural habitat because sheep's natural home is the "hills and mountains" where they can climb to higher elevations to escape predators.

I'm not too familiar with Philip Keller's book but, I disagree with these points; I will admit that sheep are not as intelligent as human beings but, on intelligence, I would place sheep on about the same level as cows. Cows aren't singled out for their stupidity are they? I have been around cows all of my life and have observed some which were pretty smart and others which were dumb as a sack full of rocks. Actually, I have observed some sheep which are apparently smarter than others too. See my illustration below. Now to most sheep, the closest distance between two points is a straight line a "fence" of any kind is no exception to that rule. But I've seen some sheep which, instead of standing at the fence bleating for their feed with no idea how to get there, look down at the GATE at the other end of the field and say to themselves "hmmmm, I'll just go around". I've known ALOT of people who seem to be like the ones standing at the fence and bleating.

I don't believe Islam had been invented yet at the time of Jesus. What Jesus said was "beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees". They were twisting and misrepresenting the true God into something He wasn't. They were using scripture to teach a religion of works and were counting on their "good deeds" to make them acceptable with God. They were also using religion to abuse and control people who were not as "holy" as they perceived themselves to be. The actions and teachings of present-day Islamists would be pretty close to that, seeing that they look down on non-muslims as unclean "infidels" and often kill them. "Allah" is a false representation of the true God, some say a holdover from "moon god" worship, quite a sadistic, selfish and evil 'god' actually. At any rate it's a man-made representation of God no better than the one the Pharisees portrayed. In other words, if a religious zealot is a greedy, selfish, lecherous, prideful cut-throat like Mohammed was, his concept of god will be the same. Again, the Pharisees and Sadducees made their own false religion too, but theirs was by misrepresenting and misinterpreting the Word of God; not by any fault of the Word of God itself. Romans 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man.......

There are fossils of sea creatures in the rocks on some of the highest mountains, but the mountains were created within DAYS. Dinosaurs once roamed the earth, and now they're gone. I haven't figured that out, you haven't either, and we likely never will. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. Proverbs 3:5

Yes, as far as intelligence goes, we are far inferior to God. I get that. But what is the purpose of teaching about the "dumbness" of sheep when that is not what is emphasized in the Bible? Some even take the sheep are dumb/you are sheep/I am the under-shepherd/I am God's anointed, stuff to such an extreme that they're leaning just the least little bit of starting to sound kind of "wolfy", and remember; sheep know the Shepherd's voice, and they "know not the voice of strangers" John 10:4,5

Yes, they absolutely know a shepherd's voice; I believe that. They can distinguish the sound of their mother's or lamb's bleating from a whole herd of others bleating as well. (I've seen that with my own eyes). My own sheep even know the sound of my truck motor when I am yet a mile from home.( a customer, waiting for me at my house told me that one) Likewise we, as "sheep", know the voice of our "Shepherd" through His word and His Spirit living within us. The verses about us being "sheep" are metaphors so, of course, we are not literal sheep. The Bible calls us things like "sheep of His pasture" and God told Peter (one of those "sheep of His pasture") to "feed my sheep". I take issue with none of that; it's Biblical. What I find UNbiblical is this thing about calling sheep the dumbest animals, and saying things like "God didn't do us any favors by comparing us to sheep". The Bible says nowhere that sheep are the dumbest animals or even that they are "dumb"(stupid) at all. Preachers/teachers get this from hearing other preachers say it and nothing else: They certainly didn't get it from the Bible. What the Bible DOES say about sheep, is that they "go astray". Incidentally, one is "straying" from the Word of God when they teach stuff which they personally know nothing about and which isn't in the Bible.

yes

It was meant "in general". If the whatever the clothes make one look "provocative", especially with intent, then yeah, I'm saying it's wrong to dress in such a way as to knowingly look provocative to the opposite sex. But as to what Bro Scott just mentioned; it is a different matter. I say that if, in our culture, "pants" have been historically men's wear and "skirts" or dresses were traditionally women's then yes, wearing the clothes of the opposite sex is "cross dressing" or whatever you want to call it. In my opinion, that has contributed to the feminization of our men and the masculinization of our women because this and other factors have caused the distinctions of what it means to live, look, dress and act like a man to be blurred to say the least,. No wonder we have so many effeminates and homosexuals. But, again, that's another subject.

1 Timothy 2 6Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. 7Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity. 8I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 9In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; 10But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 11Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. In other words, "modest and shamefaced" involves not intentionally drawing attention to one's appearance. What kind of apparel does that? We all should know. So men are to help the ladies by "praying and lifting up holy hands without wrath and doubting", regardless of what the ladies do, and ladies likewise are to help the men by doing their specified part as well. So, yeah, knowing do do good and doing it not is sin.

Another; Matthew 2:16 “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men.” All for a few fleeting moments of "power"; Now he is burning in Hell with the likes of Stalin, Pol Pot, Mao, Lenin and Hitler

36 And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace. 37 But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. 38 And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans. 39 And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city. So, this bunch of tyrant thugs who had trampled all over Brother Paul's human rights, now had their hats in their hands as they "besought them" to depart. Here's another: 2 Samuel 11 12 And David said to Uriah, Tarry here to day also, and to morrow I will let thee depart. So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow. 13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk: and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house. 14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 And he wrote in the letter, saying, Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.

There are already plenty of police who would do a socialist/communist government's every bidding, even to the point of totally disregarding the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. When said government proceeds to implement totalitarianism, they will just fire any officers who dissent and there will be an unlimited supply of thugs eager to take their places.