Gate and Good Shepherd

Turn with me to the tenth chapter of John. We are continuing our series on the seven “I Am” statements of Jesus found in the gospel of John. This morning we are going to look at two them. That’s because they are so similar and also because they are found so close together – only three verses separate them.

To give some background information for this passage we need to know that chapter 10 follows chapter 9. That’s some technical information some of you may not have been aware of. I don’t just say that because the number 10 follows the number 9, but that the events found in chapter 10 follow immediately after the events of chapter 9 which follow the events of chapter 8.

In chapter 8 Jesus is in Jerusalem celebrating the Festival of Booths. One day while he’s at the temple teaching the religious leaders bring to him a woman caught in adultery. After she leaves Jesus makes the second “I Am” statement. With a seventy-five foot tall candelabra representing the ball of fire demonstrating God presence during their forty years of wandering, Jesus tells the crowd, “I am the light of the world.” In the remaining verses Jesus discuses just what that means with religious leaders who accuse him of being possessed by a demon.

In chapter 9 Jesus comes across a man born blind. The common explanation for the man’s condition was that either he or his parents had sinned to cause the blindness. Jesus assures his disciples that it was neither and then heals the man. Later, when the Pharisees question him about how he had been healed, the man gives glory to Jesus. They didn’t like that answer so they threw him out of the synagogue.

To be kicked out of the synagogue was a big deal. If we were to kick you out this church there are more than twenty-five more Christian churches just in this county not to mention all the denominational churches. You could easily find another church to attend. But that wasn’t true with the synagogue. If you were kicked out of one you wouldn’t be accepted by another one. That ended not just your spiritual life – your ability to worship – but also your social life. You attended synagogue with your family and friends. This was a big deal.

On the heals of this event we have the third and fourth “I Am” statements. Jesus is still in Jerusalem and everyone is still celebrating the Feast of Booths and Jesus says:

1“Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” 6Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them. (John 10:1-6)

It’s interesting that Jesus addresses this specifically to the Pharisees. This is his response to them after they’ve thrown the man he’s healed out of the synagogue. He has something to tell them and he uses language of shepherding. Shepherding was one of the three major occupations of the day (the other two being farming and fishing). Even if they weren’t shepherds themselves, everyone was familiar with shepherding.

There were two types of sheep pens: one used in the village or town and one used out on the hillside. Jesus is going to refer to both in this chapter. Most believe Jesus is referring to the first type – one found in the village – in these first five verses. This sheep pen in the village was a permanent one and would be used by all the shepherds of the village. At the end of the day all the shepherds would bring their flocks to this common pen for the evening. It had walls around with briers and thorns along the top to discourage someone from climbing over the wall to steal a sheep. The shepherds might take turns watching the sheep at night or someone might be hired for the task. That way the shepherds could get a good night’s sleep in their own homes.

Whoever kept watch was in charge of protecting the sheep during the night till the shepherd returned. Anyone who came over the wall was there because they were not his sheep. If they were his sheep all he had to do was go to the gate. In the morning that’s what the shepherd did, he would return to the pen to retrieve his sheep. How did he know which sheep were his? All he had to do was call them and the sheep which belonged to him would come out of the pen. The sheep recognized the voice of their shepherd.

That may sound strange, but we recognize each other’s voices over the phone. Even our pets can recognize our voices. Sheep recognize the voice of their master.

In the middle east sheep aren’t raised primarily for food, but for their wool. Therefore, the shepherd would have the same sheep for a long time. The shepherd came to know the sheep, name them, and could identify each one. The sheep came to know the voice of their shepherd.

I heard about a court case in Australia where one man had charged another man with stealing his sheep. After a day of trial the judge couldn’t make any ruling. There was no way to prove which sheep belonged to who since shepherds don’t brand sheep like cows or label them. On the second day of the trial the judge ordered all the sheep to be brought into the courtroom while the plaintiff and the defendant waited in out of sight in the hall. First, the judge had the plaintiff call for the sheep. When he did the sheep stood still. But when the defendant called the sheep they all came running. The case was over. The sheep recognized the voice of their shepherd.

This first section ends with the Pharisees scratching their heads. They didn’t understand what Jesus was trying to tell them. So Jesus gets more specific.

7Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. 9I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:7-10)

Now Jesus seems to be referring to the sheep pen found out on the hillside. There were times of the year when the shepherds would have to take the sheep further from home which required them to spend the night out with the sheep. At those times the shepherd would make a pen or find a cave in which to keep the sheep for the night. When I was in Israel I saw some caves at the base a cliff. Looking at the mouth of the cave it was evident someone had spent the night there. The cave wasn’t very large, but it was big enough for a small flock and the shepherd could easily keep watch over them. At those times there was no permanent pen and thus no permanent gate so the shepherd would be the gate. The shepherd would lie down across the opening and he was literally the gate. Nothing could get to the sheep without first coming through him.

The Pharisees saw themselves as the gate to God. They had shown that when they threw the man out of the synagogue. They were the arbiters of right and wrong, true and false, godly and ungodly. They saw themselves protecting the way to God so that those who didn’t belong there could get in. But Jesus says that he is the gate. No one comes to God except through him. Anyone else is a thief or robber and thieves and robbers come only to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus on the other hand came to give life. “I Am” statement number one, Jesus is the gate. The second “I Am” statement is found in the next verse.

11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. 13The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. (John 10:11-13)

Jesus is not only the gate; he is also the good shepherd – the good shepherd as opposed to the hired hand.

My first semester at seminary in Louisville, KY, I worked as a security guard. It was a great job. It didn’t pay much, but I could have asked for a better job to have while at school. I only worked two days a week – Saturday and Sunday nights from 6:00 pm to 6:00 am. My only responsibility was to stay awake. I sat at a small metal desk at the front door and stayed awake. I could do anything I wanted, so I studied. I got all my homework done for the week on those two nights.

I’m still not sure why they hired me. They’d never had a security guard before, and when I left in December they didn’t hire another one. As I said, I sat at the front door. Because of the reflective lens on the doors to keep the sun out I couldn’t see out the doors at night. If someone had wanted in – and the doors stayed unlocked – I wouldn’t have seen them till the doors opened. The only thing I can figure is it made the dozen or so women who worked there at night (I rarely saw them) feel a little more comfortable. But if someone had come in yelling I would have just hit the ground. There was nothing I could have done. I didn’t have a gun. I didn’t even have a phone to call the police. I would have just done whatever was necessary to protect myself.

And that’s what the hired hand did. He would keep the sheep from wandering off, but if it was a matter of his life or the sheep’s life – nice knowing you sheep. The hired hand would protect his own life.

According to national statistics there are nearly a quarter of a million sheep that die each year because of predatory animals in the United States. I didn’t realize there were that many sheep in the country. But that tells you that even today there’s a danger for sheep. Sheep need protection, but the hired hand takes care of himself first. Jesus isn’t a hired hand. Jesus is the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep.

14“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me – 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father – and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 17The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life – only to take it up again. 18No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” (John 10:14-18)

Once again Jesus refers to himself as the good shepherd. This time he adds the fact that he has sheep that are not of this pen – he has sheep that are not Jews. The Jews believed that only they would be saved. In fact, the only purpose of the Gentiles was to make the fires of hell hotter as they burned. But Jesus says that not all of the Jews are a part of his flock and not all of flock are Jews.

Additionally, Jesus says that he lays down his life for his sheep. Jesus didn’t have his life taken from him, he willingly gave it up for his sheep – he willingly died for us because he is the good shepherd.

For Jesus to refer to himself as not just a shepherd but the good shepherd was pretty bold. God was the shepherd. Think about David’s 23rd Psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd.” The Messiah was referred to as being a shepherd. Jesus is claiming to be that shepherd. And how did the Jews react to this? They weren’t sure what to think.

19The Jews who heard these words were again divided. 20Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?” 21But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” (John 10:19-20)

Some think Jesus is crazy. Imagine someone making those claims today. But others believe that Jesus may just be the Messiah. Who else could heal a man born blind? Certainly not a crazy man or a man possessed by a demon. Jesus must be the Messiah.

To say that Jesus is the shepherd means that we are the sheep. What do you think about that? Do you like being referred to as sheep? Some people aren’t very excited. I’ve been told that sheep are not very smart animals. In fact, they are among the dumbest of the domesticated animals. They have almost no defensive mechanisms. They must depend completely on the shepherd for their protection. They wander off easily and get lost. They are incapable of finding their own food. They’re easily freightned. If a sheep puts its head through a fence it needs help getting its head back through even if it’s not stuck. Sheep are pretty helpless and dumb. Who wants to be compared to sheep?

But when David refers to God as his shepherd I think he’s pretty proud of that fact. David is glad to know that God is taking care of him. God leads him to green pastures and still waters. And when there’s danger God is there to protect him.

How many of you have ever been a pet owner. There are some good pet owners and there are some bad pet owners. Hopefully you’ve not been a bad owner, but you know what I mean. Bad pet owners are the ones who get a dog, tie it up in the back yard, and leave it. They’ll throw some food out eat day and make sure there’s water in the bowl, but beyond that they just ignore the dog. Worse, some will abuse the animal if it makes too much noise or gets in the way. That’s what dogs do, but some people take out their frustration on the dog.

I think most are probably good. They take their dog to the vet. They give their pet attention and care.

When David says that God is his shepherd he’s referring to this second kind of pet owner. David wants to boast about his relationship to God and the care God gives him.

Jesus is the good shepherd that provides for his sheep. Jesus is the gate that protects his sheep. He is the good shepherd that lay down his life for his sheep.

The great lesson we need to know is that sheep need a shepherd. Sheep without a shepherd are either lost or dead. Sheep cannot survive out on their own without a shepherd.

Similarly, we need a shepherd. We may not like to admit it, but we are a lot like sheep in need of a shepherd. We’re told how Jesus had compassion on the crowds because they were like sheep without a shepherd. Jesus is our shepherd who has come to protect us and lay down his life for us. This should give us comfort.

But that comfort is found only in a close relationship with Jesus. The closer to the shepherd the sheep stay the better off they will be. The problem is the sheep keep wandering off. The question is do we recognize our need for him? Even sheep recognize the voice of the master; do we recognize the voice of the good shepherd? How close are you to Jesus? Have you wandered off.

We need to remember the purpose of the gate. The purpose is to protect the sheep. The gate keeps those who want to harm the sheep out. Jesus says the sheep come in for protection and go out to green pastures. In Jesus we have protection and freedom. He is our gate.