TEXT: John 10:1-21

SUBJECT: Exposition of John #24: The Good Shepherd

This chapter collects three stories our Lord Jesus told, each using the illustration of sheep and their shepherd. Today, we'll study the first two. The keys to understanding an illustration are these: (1) You must not assign a figurative meaning to every detail; and (2) You must look for--and be satisfied--with its "big idea".

The "big idea" of these stories is obvious: Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd. He so portrays Himself, both absolutely and in comparison to other shepherds of His day.

The first story is told in vv.1-6.

It opens with the solemn formula--"Most assuredly I say to you". What He's got to say is true and must be taken seriously. It is one of those "weightier matters of the Law".

He has a problem with the shepherds of Israel. Who are they? The Pharisees who suppress the truth and cruelly mistreat the people of God. They claimed to be tending the Flock; they were, in fact, rustling it. This didn't surprise God of course; centuries before, He described their attitude and actions. The reference is Ezekiel 34.

The shepherds had it backward. The sheep don't exist for the sake of the shepherds, but shepherds exist for the sake of the sheep. The rulers of God's people--both rabbis and pastors--are prone to forget this. When they do, they cease being shepherds and become "thieves and robbers".

The damage they do is great. It would be much worse, however, if it weren't for this, v.5: "They (i.e., the sheep of God) will by no means follow the stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers".

Sheep are notorious for their stupidity, but one thing they know: the voice of their shepherd. Let a sheep rustler call them, and they'll pay him no mind. Let his staff direct them, and they'll run the other way. To only one voice they respond--the shepherd's voice.

"He Makes them to lie down in green pastures,

He leads them beside the still waters;

He restores their soul".

He. And no one else. The Pharisees tried to rule the Flock of God by intimidation and force. But sheep can't be beaten into submission; only the voice of love can make them obey. When that Voice called, they quit those bloody butchers for the Good Shepherd.

Having denounced the false shepherds, our Lord goes on to describe the True Shepherd of God's Flock. Three traits stand out: (1) He "leads" the flock--rather than driving them; (2) He leads them with His "voice"--not with a rod; and (3) He leads them "by name" (or one-by-one) not as a faceless mob.

Who do these words better describe than our Lord Jesus? Does He lead or drive? He commands us to "take up our crosses daily". But didn't He take up a much heavier cross Himself? Does He rule by voice or violence? David knew: "Your gentleness has made me great". Does He know us personally or are we lost in the teeming masses? He knows us more intimately than we know ourselves. His "eyes saw our substance, being yet unformed. And in [His] book they were all written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them". This is not hyperbole! Though He preached to the myriads, He always found time for the individual. Nicodemus at night; Zacchaeus up a tree; the Pharisee on the Road to Damascus.

How fraught with comfort this story is! God's people needn't be butchered. Not by the Pharisees of old or by their counterparts of today. We have a Good Shepherd--Jesus Christ. And because,

"The LORD is our Shepherd,

We shall not want".

And because He is the Good Shepherd, let's listen for His voice and follow Him wherever He leads us.

The response to this first story is less than encouraging. Although its point is obvious, the people don't quite "get it". And so, ever patient, our Lord tries again.

The second story, vv.7-21.

In vv.7-9, our Lord changes the figure. This is not to confuse, but to address a related question. Before, He answered this one: "Who is the shepherd of God's Flock?" Now, He turns to this: "How does one join the Flock of God?" Think about it. How does one sheep join the others in the pen? By walking through its door. And so, how does a person join the Flock of God? By coming through Jesus Christ! When he does, he'll be "saved" and well provided for. Is there any other way of joining the people of God? There is not! There is but one way of coming into fellowship with God; but one way of coming into fellowship with His people; and that one way is Christ.

In vv.10-18, the Lord returns to His previous figure of speech; He is, no longer "the door", but once again, He's "the good shepherd".

What is the Good Shepherd's goal? The welfare of His sheep. What kind of life does He want them to have? A meager life--half-starved, filthy and tick-infested? Of course not! That would ill-reflect on His shepherding skills. He comes "that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly". More abundantly than what? More abundantly than any other flock!

Christ's people are better taken care of than any other. Take away their money, their health, their families and friends, and what do they have left? Everything! Why? Because

"Neither death, nor life, nor angels,

Nor principalities, nor powers,

Nor things present nor things to come,

Nor height, nor depth, nor any creature,

Shall be able to separate us from the

Love of God, which is in Christ Jesus

Our Lord".

The Shepherd wants the best for His flock. But how far is He willing to go to see that they have it? This far: "The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep". He'd rather die himself than to lose one of His sheep. And that's what Christ did for His sheep--for all of them--and for every last one of them.

"Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree". That cross was built and set up for us. But it wasn't we who were nailed to it. It was Jesus Christ. Long ago, on a hill far away, "The Good Shepherd gave his life for the sheep".

Our Lord's self-giving love stands in sharp contrast to the self-interest that ruled the Pharisees. "Hirelings" all, they cared more for themselves than they did for the Flock. But Christ "esteemed others better than Himself".

Why is the Good Shepherd willing to "lay down His life for the sheep?" Because--He says--"I know them and am known by them". Theirs in an itimate relationship; Christ and His people dearly love each other. The only relationship He can compare it to is that between Himself and His Father. Is there anything Christ won't do for His Father? If not, there is nothing He won't do for His sheep.

Who are His sheep? He tells us, v.16: "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear my voice and they will be one flock and one shepherd". At the time, His sheep were few and exclusively Jewish. But Christ is no "small time shepherd". He has more sheep to come. And come they will--from every "nation, kindred, tribe, and tongue". They won't remain scattered; they'll be "one flock". What will hold them together? F.F. Bruce knows:

How willing is the Good Shepherd to die for His sheep? He's nothing short of eager. "No one takes My life from Me, but I lay it down of Myself". In His last months, our Lord is not looking to avoid the cross, but is "setting His face to go to Jerusalem". And He's done this, not on His own, but by "the command [He] received from [His] Father".

The Aftermath, vv.19-21.

What do the people make of all this? They're split. Some think He's mad or possessed by devils; others are more favorably impressed. But no one--it seems--has grasped the full meaning of this sermon. Why not? Because--like the Sadduccees--they "Greatly err, not knowing the Scriptures or the power of God".

By calling Himself "the Good Shepherd" our Lord was equating Himself--not with Moses, Joshua, David, or other outstanding leaders of the past--but with Someone else. Who? Ezekiel 34 tells us. One day, the prophet foresaw, God would remove the faithless shepherds and replace them with...Himself! "For thus says the LORD God: `Indeed, I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out, as a shepherd seeks out His flock..."

The promise of God was fulfilled in the coming of our Lord. In Jesus Christ, God takes control of His Sheep--personal control. Therefore, "Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God".

And if this is true, then you can safely entrust your life, your death, and your eternal destiny to Jesus Christ. Trust Him and Your "cup will run over" now and You'll "dwell in the house of the LORD forever".

I pray the Good Shepherd will gather you into His fold. I pray He will do it today. Amen.