John 10:11-21: I Am the Good Shepherd

Scripture Reading

Intro

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters (Psalm 23:1-2).

The picture of the Lord as our Shepherd is one of the most gracious and tender pictures of God in the whole Bible of His relationship to us as His flock…the Sheep of His fold.

Sheep who, left to themselves, would be hopeless and helpless.

Sheep who at every turn are in danger with no way of defending themselves against fierce wolves, thieves, robbers that seek to destroy our soul…

Sheep who on our own could never find a place of food, water, or safety…life and salvation…without the Good Shepherd leading us there…

And Sheep…who, were it not for the Good Shepherd…would wander off to our own destruction and lost to the wilderness doomed to perish in our sin.

That is, of course…if there weren’t a Shepherd who…loved us…cared for us…guarded and watched over us with a promise to keep all of His Sheep and not lose a single one.

Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

In one of the most beautiful pictures of salvation who He is as Lord, Jesus says, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11).

The Big Idea for our passage today is this…

Jesus is the Good Shepherd who loves His sheep and laid down His life to save them and give us Eternal Life.

The image of Christ as the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep, is one of our Lord’s tender love and care.

His grace, kindness, and mercy.

A wonderful glimpse into the heart of the Savior and His great love and salvation for all who believe.

That’s what I want to look at this morning.

To glory in!

To see Jesus as the Good Shepherd and all that that means, that we might all glory in Jesus…adore Him…and in seeing His great love for us…love Him and worship Him for all He’s worth.

Set Up

Allow me to remind you the overall flow of this passage.

After healing the Man Born Blind Jesus condemned the Pharisees as blind guides (Matthew 15:14).

False Shepherds who instead of loving and caring for the flock, abused the flock and scattered them for their own personal ends and benefit.

In contrast…verses 1-5…Jesus is the True Shepherd.

The One God promised would gather the flock and lead them into green pastures and still waters of eternal life (Psalm 23:1-2).

But verse 6: they did not understand what He was saying to them.

And so Jesus gives two of His famous I AM statements to explain what it means that He is the True Shepherd.

Number one, as the True Shepherd, He is the Door (John 10:7-10).

He is the only way God has provided into the sheepfold of eternal life to receive His shepherding love and care.

And from our passage today, as the True Shepherd, Jesus is the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-18).

The Loving and Faithful Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep.

We are going to have four points today looking at how Christ is the Good Shepherd and what He love and Shepherding Care looks like for the Sheep.

Let’s start with point number 1…before all else…

I. The Good Shepherd Lays Down His Life for the Sheep

John 10:11–13 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

I am the Good Shepherd.

As with all of Jesus’ I Am statements in the Gospel of John…Jesus is making a clear claim to divinity.

He is taking God’s own Name revealed to Moses in Exodus 3…I Am who I Am…and saying I Am God incarnate in human flesh.

And not only that, but in the context of Exodus 3, God is promising to deliver His people from slavery in Egypt.

So Jesus is saying I Am God incarnate and human flesh and I am the Savior…the Redeemer…the Deliverer who has come to save all my people from their sins and lead them to the Promise Land of Eternal Life

And as God incarnate in human flesh come to save us from our sins, Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

Good

Now when Jesus says the Good Shepherd, that Greek word for good carries the idea of Excellence.

As the Good Shepherd Jesus is the Excellent…Beautiful…True…Genuine…Lovely…Perfect Shepherd.

The ideal and True Shepherd who answers all of our wants…al of our needs…all of our desires…

The kind of Shepherd sheep long for…hope for…dream of being the Shepherd of their fold.

And what marks Jesus as the Good Shepherd…the Excellent Shepherd…the True and Perfect Shepherd is that He lays down His life for His sheep.

Jesus mentions this 5 times in 7 verses.

Sacrificing His life for the good and benefit of the Sheep is what makes Jesus the True and Good Shepherd.

Remember what God said about the False Shepherds in Ezekiel 34.

Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them (Ezekiel 34:2-4).

And what was the result? What happened to the sheep.

Verses 5-6 So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them (Ezekiel 34:5-6).

Without a shepherd the sheep were scattered and vulnerable.

Food for every wild beast wandering aimlessly over all the mountains and every high hill.

But Jesus is the Good Shepherd who cares for the flock.

Who did not leave us or forsake us but came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).

Bring back the strayed…bind up the injured…strengthen the weak and feed them with good pasture (Ezekiel 34:14-16).

Hired Hand

And to make His point, Jesus compares Himself as the Good Shepherd to a hired hand.

Someone who does not own the sheep but watches over the sheep for an hourly wage.

The hired hand cares nothing for the sheep.

They’re a job…a Paycheck.

Their life and well-being doesn’t matter when it comes to their own.

Jesus says He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

The wolf here is not limited to false teachers as we normally think, but stands in for anything that threatens or endangers the sheep.

And when the hired hand sees the wolf, he says, “My life is not worth the life of these sheep,” and so he turns and flees.

But Jesus as the True Shepherd stands in the gap.

Where the Hired Hand says, “My life is worth more than these sheep,” the Good Shepherd says, “My Sheep are worth my life.”

The Hired Hand turns and flees…the Good Shepherd stands in the gap.

He puts Himself between the wolf and the fold.

And when the wolf runs toward the flock to devour the sheep…the Good Shepherd runs out to meet him.

He faces the teeth and the claws…the violence and the blood…and defends them to the death.

That’s exactly what Christ did for us.

We were in the jaws of a lion and ravenous wolf under the wrath and condemnation of our sin.

But Christ laid down His life for us.

He died on the cross and suffered the punishment our sins deserved.

He bore our flesh so He could bear our sins.

And He died to give us Eternal Life.

And why?

Because He cares for the sheep…loves the sheep.

They belong to Him and their well-being is His life’s work.

When the wolf comes out of His love He will not abandon their souls to death but lay down His life to save them.

David

David gives us a wonderful picture of this.

Of the holy violence and zeal that Christ had in laying down His life for us.

Of the love and care of the Good Shepherd has for every single sheep of His fold.

1 Samuel 17:34–35 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him.”

David didn’t forsake the sheep.

He chased it down.

He wrestled the lion or the bear to the ground and kill it with His bear hands.

That’s what Christ did for us on the cross in His incarnation.

He didn’t leave or abandon us because of our own sin and foolishness.

He didn’t stand idly by or turn and flee like a hired hand.

He left the glories of heaven and took on human flesh.

He chased after us, and greater than David, entered into the jaws of death Himself to deliver us out of its mouth.

He conquered death and laid down His life to give us Eternal Life.

That’s verse 10.

The verse immediately preceding Jesus saying I am the Good Shepherd in verse 11.

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10).

The picture is fat, happy, frolicking sheep.

Green pastures and still waters.

The fullness of joy with no danger or fear of any kind.

That is the life the Good Shepherd gives to us in laying down His life.

Salvation and the full forgiveness of sins.

The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

Point number 2…

II. The Good Shepherd Loves the Sheep

We’ve already seen hints of this in the Hired Hand who cared nothing for the sheep in comparison to the Good Shepherd who obviously does, but Jesus says it more explicitly here.

John 10:14–15 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

When Jesus says I know my own and my own know me, He is talking about something more than bare, intellectual knowledge.

It is a particular and personal knowledge rooted in love.

Its a special, intimate knowledge because Jesus says I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.

Well how’s that?

John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

With God is the idea of a face-to-face, deep, intimate, personal, fellowship and communion with God.

A relationship of mutual love, enjoyment, and delight.

That is the kind of love we share with Christ.

Maybe the way to think of it is the difference between someone asking if you know that person, and you saying, “Yea…I know them,” and you saying, “I love them.”

There is a knowledge, relationship, intimacy there that is sweet and precious to your soul.

So when Christ says I know my own and my own know me…there is a togetherness of love, joy, communion and fellowship we share with Christ by the sacrifice of His blood.

We are made the Bride of Christ…the people of His love, devotion, and care.

Its the “knowledge” shared between a husband and wife.

That’s the idea here.

And this love that Christ has for the sheep is the greatest love one can have.

A little later in John 15:13 Jesus says “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”

There is no greater love!

The Psalmist says For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him (Psalm 103:11).

How high are the heavens above the earth?

Forever high!…Infinite!

That’s the love Christ has for His sheep.

Let’s make it more personal…that’s the love Christ has for you!

How do I know?

Because earlier in verse 3: The Good Shepherd calls his own sheep out by name.

Christ called you by name.

And like any kind and loving shepherd, Jesus as the True and Perfect intimately knows and loves every sheep of His fold.

He knows which ones like to wander.

Which ones are timid and fearful.

Which ones are prone to sickness or injury and He cares for each and every one appropriately.

Here’s what that means for us…

As the Sheep of His fold under the love and care of our Savior Jesus knows all of our individual needs and weaknesses.

He knows all of our temptations.

All of our doubts, struggles, and fears.

He knows what we need when we need it and as our Good Shepherd…He is always there.

And not only that…but because He knows His sheep, He knows their perfect number.

He doesn’t forget a single one.

He doesn’t forget you.

The Good Shepherd doesn’t lose a sheep and wonder, “Oh…where did that one go?”

Because Christ knows the sheep, not a single one is forgotten…ignored…forsaken or abandoned…or left out in the cold.

Isaiah 40:11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.

No matter what trial or tribulation you face…

No matter your weakness…your failures…your temptation and struggles.

The Good Shepherd is there to carry you in His arms.

Like Isaiah 40:11 says He tends every sheep in His fold.

He loves them.

Cares for them…carries them in His bosom.

He binds up their wounds and carries them when they are weak.

Guards and protects them from wolves, thieves and robbers…

And makes sure they don’t wander off.

The Lord knows those who are His (2 Timothy 2:19).

And as the Good Shepherd He knows them…loves them…treasures them…provides for all their needs…and ensures by Himself that not a single one of them will be lost.

And that takes us to point number 3…

The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.

The Good Shepherd Loves the Sheep.

And…

III. The Good Shepherd Will Gather All His Sheep and Not Lose a Single One

John 10:16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

The other sheep Jesus is talking about about here are the Gentiles…non Jews.

This is good news.

God in His kindness, mercy and grace did not limit salvation to the just the Jews but opened it to anyone who would repent and believe.

Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world…all people from every tongue, tribe, and nation (John 1:29, Revelation 5:9-10).

In a prophesy about the Messiah in Isaiah 49:6 God said, “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

And Jew and Gentile together in Christ are the people of God.

Paul said Christ in His death has torn down the dividing wall of hostility and created in Himself one knew man in the place of two (Ephesians 2:14-15).

And Gentiles, the wild branches, through faith in Christ are grafted into the Olive Tree…true spiritual Israel (Romans 11:17).

A Jew is not one who is merely one outwardly…But a Jew is one inwardly and circumcision is a matter of the heart (Romans 2:28-29).

Galatians 3:7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.

That’s why Jesus says there will be one flock, one shepherd.

There is one people of God…those who have faith in the Messiah.

Jew and Gentile together united under the One Shepherd Jesus Christ.

The Jews…ethnic Israel…were God’s chosen people to bring about the Messiah.

And now that Christ has come all those who believe in Him are grafted into true spiritual Israel and are the chosen people of God under the New Covenant.

In fact, Caiaphas, the High Priest unknowingly prophesied about this very fact when he said in John 11 it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish (John 11:50).

And John explained this prophesy saying John 11:51–52 He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

Now does this mean God has abandoned the Jews?

By no means!

He has kept for himself a remnant ever since the time of Christ for example the disciples, Paul, and the early church were all Jews.

And God still has plans for Jews.

In saving the Gentiles, God plans to use the Gentiles to provoke the Jews to jealousy and graft them in again…the natural branches back into the Olive Tree…to save ethnic Israel (Romans 11:11-12).

And in doing so, Christ, the Good Shepherd will gather all His sheep…Jew and Gentile…every tribe, tongue and nation…into His fold.

Exactly God had promised in Ezekiel 34: For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered…(Ezekiel 34:11-12).

And here’s what I want you to notice…Jesus says I have other sheep who are not part of this fold, and I must go get them.

I have them but I don’t have them.

BIG IDEA God will save all his people and not lose a single one.

IV. The Good Shepherd Laid Down His Life as a Sacrificial Lamb

John 10:17-21.

Psalm 23