John 10 22-30

God’s Unsnatchable Sheep

John 10:22-30

What does Jesus mean when He talks about “My sheep?” Consider the possibility of not being one of His sheep. That would mean being outside of the kingdom of God. It would mean that we would exist in the false security of thinking we are right with God while really being His enemy. It would mean that whoever, or whatever we might follow, if it is not Jesus there is no connection to God. Thus Jesus refers to his own people in terms easily understood, that is, a shepherd and his sheep.

          You see, a shepherd has great depth of knowledge of his sheep. In order to know what they need at any particular time he must be quite intimate with them.

The office of pastor is like that of a shepherd. The shepherd must take enough time to be with the sheep to learn about them. He must have more than a merely superficial knowledge of them to be able to tend to their greatest needs. That requires knowledge of what sheep are like by nature, and what they need in order to thrive. That’s a lot of responsibility. And it would be overwhelming except for one thing: Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd of God’s sheep.

Nobody knows each one of the sheep better than Jesus. He knows the depths of the human heart. He knows what each one of the sheep think and how they feel.

That’s why pastors talk to the sheep, not only in earthly terms, but also in heavenly, spiritual terms, as God enables them by His Spirit. You see, the pastor is not concerned about mere externals any more than the Good Shepherd is. He wants to know the spirit of the person so he can better direct the care God gives through His Word. If there is sin involved, God wants the sheep to be absolved and freed from it. That’s why God sent His only Son into the world. And that’s why pastors tend to get rather personal.

          And that’s okay because sheep also know their shepherd. A person who is sick and desires wellness follows the doctor’s recommendations and orders because they have developed trust in the doctor. I can’t tell you how many times I have heard people say how important it is to know their doctor. Scientific analysis also shows that people who trust their doctor have a better and usually faster recovery. The same kind of thing happens spiritually with God’s sheep.

          They follow the shepherd whose voice they have come to know and trust. And when the word of that voice is sounded out clearly and honestly by the pastor, the sheep hear the Good Shepherd, Jesus, and they listen to Him.

          Sheep also know that to have a life, it must come from the shepherd’s expertise, just like the patient must depend on the doctor’s expertise. Who among us would go to a chiropractor for a heart operation? I can tell you, I would not! Neither would I ever recommend it. That is why no one who seeks spiritual safety should go where God is not.

          Sheep are totally dependent on the strength of the shepherd. If the shepherd truly cares about the sheep it only makes good sense that the sheep would seek an intimate relationship with him. This is why parents point their children in the direction of the Savior.

          If Jesus is not our shepherd it is not possible to receive the gifts and the benefits He brings to one’s life. That’s the point Jesus wants to make with unbelievers. And He does make it clear, because He wants all to know the truth. He wants everyone to be saved. He wants everyone to be made whole and free of sin.

          To help people come to this knowledge of the truth, Jesus, knowing that everybody has a shepherd, reveals the truth of the relationship people have with Him. That point is made very clear when Jesus says, “You are not my sheep.” The question for us is this: If we are not the sheep of Jesus, then whose sheep are we?

          Note how unbelief never disagrees with this pointed declaration. In fact, some actually prefer not to be identified with Jesus at all. Of course, if you don’t know who Jesus is, if you do not know the physician, then, why profess a faith in Him?

          Not everybody knows The Good Shepherd of God’s Sheep because not everybody knows Jesus.

          But those who have the prompting of the Father, they know. What is that prompting? It is the Written Word God has given that identifies Jesus. It is the work that Jesus does that convinces a person of who He is. That work agrees with the scriptural identity of the Christ, the promised Messiah, and it is clearly a part of all who believe.

          This is why only those who know Him follow Him. It is not enough to know what the Bible says, however. The people to whom Jesus is speaking made it a practice of being able to quote and expound on large sections of the biblical scroll. But they still do not know the Shepherd who saves, to whom the Scriptures point. You see, the Father’s guidance has convinced the sheep that Jesus is the one to follow because only He is the way the truth and the life. There is no other, even though many profess to be such.

          Thus, all who follow Jesus are kept safe unto eternal life. How? The Father has given Him life in Himself in order that He may also give life to whom He wills. And to whom does He will to give life? To all! And that life will last because Jesus is not dead. He is alive never to die again. It is God’s Spirit who makes this truth plain. And, in fact, it is God’s Spirit who keeps a person coming back to God’s Word, as if for treatment of a lengthy disease. God knows everything about us. Nothing is hidden from His sight. Even so, He comes to save, and not condemn. That’s why he tells the truth to the people who are not His sheep.

          You see, there is no healing, no recovery, no life apart from God. It is not a person’s spiritual talk or behavior that saves him. What really saves is the direct result of who Jesus really is. There is no substitute, for there is no other God. That is why He says, “I and the Father are one.” One God, that is.

This is the truth that our departed brother in the faith came to realize during his lifetime. That’s what drew him to church. That’s what drew him to the written Word and the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. And yet, it is not that that saves him. Albert knew that. I know he knew that. I talked with him about it. So even if a little temperamental during his last days, he remained confident in the knowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord and God. And that is what saves sinners like you and me from eternal disaster. That’s what makes us God’s unsnatchable sheep. Amen.