I am the Good Shepherd (John 10:1-21)

Announcements

Don’t forget that Wednesday evening’s Bible Study & Prayer time is currently suspended until we can have those services in-person at our new location.

Speaking of the new location, renovations started last week on Friday. Work is being done at a rapid pace to allow us to move all our services there, we’re currently waiting for some contractor work to be done throughout the building, but that work should be done by the end of the week.

That means sometime during the end of this week, we might need help with painting. The ceilings are all being painted by a paint sprayer, but the walls and trim will be done with rollers and brushes. The whole interior of the building (with the exception of one restroom) is going to be repainted, so we need as much help as we can get. If you’re willing to help with painting, please contact Natalie, she’ll be able to call or text you when we know for sure what days we’ll be painting.

After the paint dries, there will still be a little bit of work—the floors will be replaced, the stage area will be built, and the screens and sound system will be wired in, but as soon as those things are done, we’ll be moving our services to that facility. That’s not the end of all the work that needs done, but it’s enough to where we’ll be able to have church in the building.

At the latest, I believe that will be on October 3rd, but depending on how quickly the work can be done and truthfully, depending on if we find anymore surprises or not, it might be a little sooner than that date.

Don’t worry, we’ll make it abundantly clear when our services will start there—we’ll post it on social media, the church’s website will be updated, we’ll contact the Philipsburg Journal, and we’ll call all our members and regular attenders to notify them. It will be hard for you to miss the announcement when we move.

There will be a quick business meeting right after this morning’s service

This evening at 5:30pm, we’ll gather for baptisms at 935 Brisbin St., Houtzdale, PA. If you’re being baptized, try to be there at least 15 minutes early so we can iron out all the details—and be sure to bring a change of clothes and a towel. If you would like to be baptized, please talk with me before leaving this morning.

Prayer of Repentance and Adoration

Call to Worship (Psalm 31:1-8)

Our Call to Worship this morning is from Psalm 31. Due to the length of the Psalm, we’re going to split it into three sections and we’ll utilize it over the next few Sundays as our Call to Worship. This is another Psalm of David during a difficult time of life. It is a prayer of David in which he found himself despised and persecuted by the people surrounding him. In this prayer, he encourages the afflicted to love the Lord and be strengthened in the LORD because God will protect them from evil men. He expresses this encouragement as he essentially resigns himself into the Lord’s hands because he thought he was about to die. Please stand and read with me Psalm 31:1-8. I’ll read the odd-numbered verses, please join me in reading the even numbered verses.

Psalm 31:title–8 ESV

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. 1 In you, O Lord, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me! 2 Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily! Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! 3 For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me; 4 you take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge. 5 Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God. 6 I hate those who pay regard to worthless idols, but I trust in the Lord. 7 I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love, because you have seen my affliction; you have known the distress of my soul, 8 and you have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy; you have set my feet in a broad place.

Congregational Singing

Mercies Anew

Good and Gracious King

By Faith

Scripture Reading (Ezekiel 34:11-24)

I’ve asked Stacey to read our Scripture reading today and today’s reading is a passage that ties into our sermon; in that the analogy utilized in Ezekiel is repeated in John 10. Ezekiel speaks of the LORD being a shepherd who will shepherd his people—that even though the undershepherds of Israel had essentially failed them, he won’t. Jesus utilizes similar imagery in John 10 to describe himself as the good shepherd. Let’s read together John 10:1-21.

Ezekiel 34:11–24 ESV

11 “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. 12 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 on a day of clouds and thick darkness. 13 And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land. And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the country. 14 I will feed them with good pasture, and on the mountain heights of Israel shall be their grazing land. There they shall lie down in good grazing land, and on rich pasture they shall feed on the mountains of Israel. 15 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God. 16 I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice. 17 “As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and male goats. 18 Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pasture; and to drink of clear water, that you must muddy the rest of the water with your feet? 19 And must my sheep eat what you have trodden with your feet, and drink what you have muddied with your feet? 20 “Therefore, thus says the Lord God to them: Behold, I, I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. 21 Because you push with side and shoulder, and thrust at all the weak with your horns, till you have scattered them abroad, 22 I will rescue my flock; they shall no longer be a prey. And I will judge between sheep and sheep. 23 And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. 24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them. I am the Lord; I have spoken.

Sermon

Introduction and Recap

This morning, we’re returning to our fall and spring series, which we’ve been working on for quite some time. When we started the church, I thought that the best place for us to start would be with a Gospel; and since the Gospel according to John was written for a specific purpose, I thought that going verse-by-verse and thought-by-thought through the text would provide a good starting point for us. I didn’t know where everyone was in their spiritual journey and I didn’t know where everyone was in their knowledge of the life of Christ. So, the best place, in my opinion, was to start in a book that would show us the life of Christ in a way that would convince us that Jesus is truly the Son of God.

The Gospel according to John happens to be one of the few books that outrightly tells us the purpose of the book. In John 20:30-31, John writes, “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” The whole purpose of the Gospel according to John is to convince the reader that Jesus is the Messiah and that by understanding who Jesus is and believing in him, they might have life.

And what we’ve seen as we’ve worked through the book so far, is that John the Apostle takes this purpose statement for his account of the Gospel seriously. Everything he records in his book leads the reader to understand who Jesus is and then proves to the reader that what Jesus says is truth by recording the miracle that was performed to confirm the message of God through Jesus.

So, we see the testimony of John the Baptist in which he testifies of the Holy Spirit descending like a dove on Jesus and the voice from heaven declaring Jesus to be God’s Son, which confirmed who Jesus claimed to be. We see the wedding of Cana in which Jesus changes water into wine, which “manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.” And this pattern continues with Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman, various healings, and the feeding of the multitude. Jesus does these miraculous events to confirm that he truly is the Messiah.

And as he does these miraculous events and lays claim to the title of Christ or Messiah, the people react in one of three ways: (1) the minority repent and believe in Jesus as the Messiah, and the rest are either (2) skeptical and unsure, or (3) they vehemently oppose what Jesus says.

This morning’s passage in John 10 is similar in that Jesus is about to teach something significant. What he’s about to say is extremely important and should result in people following him; and its significance lies in the fact that he’s laying claim to a title given to someone in the Old Testament. In other words, what he’s about to say should connect with something that is said in the Old Testament, which adds to his validity as the Messiah.

Let’s read the text for this morning and I’ll explain this in more detail as we dig into God’s Word.

John 10:1–21 ESV

1 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 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. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 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. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” 19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

As we study this passage together, we’re going to break it into three parts: (1) The Parable of the Good Shepherd (1-6) gives us the parable itself and quite frankly, parable might not be the best word here, maybe a figure of speech would be better. Jesus gives them a figure of speech about a sheep and their shepherd. (2) Because of their lack of understanding, Jesus then expounds on that figure of speech in Vs. 7-18 with an Explanation of the Good Shepherd. In this explanation he differentiates between thieves, hirelings, sheep, and the shepherd and he makes it very clear that he is the good shepherd. And as we wrap up the text, we’ll see in Vs. 19-21, the resulting division caused by Jesus statement. This passage of Scripture will help us to understand the meaning behind Jesus being the good shepherd, it should cause us to see the interrelatedness between the Old and New Testament, and it should cause us to praise and worship Jesus for being our good shepherd who laid down his own life for us.

Prayer for Illumination

The Parable of the Good Shepherd (1-6)

John 10 is inherently connected with the previous passage of Scripture. Remember with me, prior to Jesus’ statements here in John 10, he had just healed a man born blind.

That miraculous event performed by God confirmed to that man that Jesus is the Messiah

We see that towards the end of chapter 9, in which Jesus asks the man “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” And when the man asks him who the Son of Man is, Jesus says that the Son of Man is speaking to him and he believes and worships Jesus.

We ended chapter 9 and then we spent the past few months working through a series on Jonah and Nahum and then another series on the Purpose of the Church, but if you look carefully at Vs. 40 into Vs. 1 of chapter 10, you’ll notice that while the man is no longer in the picture, the conversation between Jesus and the Pharisees continues.

Jesus accuses them of being guilty of breaking the law, that’s what he’s saying when he says to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.”

Because they claim to know the truth, they’re guilty of not keeping the truth.

And then this conversation continues in our passage today with what’s often referred to as a parable or a figure of speech.

A parable is a simple story utilizing different imagery to help the listener or reader understand the point that’s being made.

A parable is a certain type of a figure of speech, so sometimes parables are misunderstood; and people think that the parables are legitimate events that occurred—and while they could sometimes be legitimate cases, the majority of time they’re illustrations.

Sometimes parables are rather long, but other times (like today), they’re rather short. Today’s brief parable or figure of speech only covers Vs. 1-5, and then Jesus spends Vs. 7-18, explaining this parable.

Jesus starts this parable with two words that he’s utilized a handful of times already through this book that brings solemnity to what he’s about to tell them. He says in Vs. 1, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” We first have to look at this in two ways:

First off, there’s the most obvious metaphor of first-century sheep farming. The details of sheep farming in the first century would be familiar to John’s readers. But since we aren’t living in the first-century and most of us have very little knowledge of sheep farming, let me explain a bit of the scenario.

In the first century in this particular scenario, don’t think of this in terms of people with hundreds of sheep living in wide open spaces with plenty of space for the sheep to roam.

Think of this as in them still living within a suburban area—so while there is some room for their sheep to graze, there isn’t a ton of space, so those that live closer together, would utilize the same land and the same pen for all their sheep—even people of different families.

Because there were multiple families with different flocks of sheep within the same enclosure, they would hire an undershepherd or what the ESV calls a gatekeeper—and the gatekeeper would sit at the gate to guard people who weren’t supposed to come into the enclosure from coming into the pen.

Those who were authorized by the families to enter would do so by going through the gate, but those who weren’t authorized to enter would have to find another way in.

Those whose interest is in stealing or wounding the sheep would avoid the gate and climb in by another way.

The point being that those who are unauthorized would enter in by some other means and either steal the sheep or hurt the sheep

But the true shepherd knows his sheep, is recognized by the gatekeeper, and calls his own sheep by name and leads them.

So in the most immediate sense of the metaphor, Jesus is explaining that the good shepherd should be like.

Secondly, there’s another metaphor happening here concerning the passage that we read in Ezekiel 34, which Jesus is aware of when he makes the statement “I am the good shepherd.”

Ezekiel 34 contains a prophecy against what the Bible calls the shepherds of Israel. In the Ancient Near East, it was common to call the kings and leaders of a nation the shepherds of the nation.

In the case of Ezekiel 34, God accuses the leaders of Israel of gorging themselves while neglecting the sheep or the Jewish people.

And God makes this proclamation against them that “No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep.”

God says that he will search for his sheep and seek them out. He will rescue them from exile, he will feed them the good food, and strengthen the weak.

And of course, Jesus knows what Ezekiel 34 says when he utilizes the sheep and shepherd metaphors in John 10; and I’m going to argue that he’s doing this intentionally with the hope that the people connect the dots between Ezekiel 34 and John 10.

But here’s the issue, Jesus speaks about the sheepfold, the shepherd, the sheep, and the gatekeeper—and he speaks about how there are some that are thieves and robbers trying to take or hurt the sheep

And there is a shepherd who knows his sheep by name and leads them, which describes this good shepherd that is prophesied about in Ezekiel 34

But Vs. 6, tells us “This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.”

They didn’t get it, they completely miss what he’s saying, which let’s be fair, what he says in Vs. 1-5, is a little bit cryptic. He doesn’t give a lot of details and it seems as if he’s essentially changing topics

But remember, this is inherently connected with Chapter 9. Who are the leaders of the Jews in John 9? And shepherds when utilized in this context in the Ancient Near East often spoke of the leadership.

Who are the leaders of the Jewish people in John 10? The Pharisees.

Jesus is utilizing the parable of the good shepherd to contrast the poor leadership that Israel had with the good leadership that he provides.

But since they’re not quite understanding what he’s saying, he goes more in-depth in vs. 7-18. Read with me Vs. 7-18:

The Explanation of the Good Shepherd (7-18)

John 10:7–18 ESV

7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 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. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 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. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Jesus again utilizes the phrase “Truly, truly” to emphasize the importance of what he’s about to say, and then he makes the claim, “I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.”

So Jesus makes a claim, first and foremost that he is the door; and since this is metaphoric language, we know that Jesus isn’t making the claim to be a literal door

But rather he’s referring to the idea that salvation is through him alone—where do I get that idea? in Vs. 9, “If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.”

He is the one way to find salvation, to find pasture, to find life and have it abundantly.

Which is a notion that our post-modern philosophical world today rejects—we live in a world and society that makes the claim that any path to heaven is acceptable, but statements that Jesus makes like this clearly state otherwise. He is the only way for salvation, he is the only way to find pasture, he is the only way to find life and have it abundantly.

And he contrasts himself to those who came before him. Vs. 10, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

Considering the fact that Jesus is utilizing these figures of speech to describe himself in contrast to previous religious and even national leaders of Israel, we have a better idea of what Jesus is saying.

The false shepherds only cared about themselves and thus, he stole the sheep and killed the sheep. Keeping in mind Ezekiel 34, we’re reminded of the leaders who cared more for their own prosperity than the well-being of the people.

Keeping in mind the previous religious leadership of the sadducees and Pharisees who utilized the Law for their own benefit we start to understand how drastic of a difference there is between who Jesus is and what he offers compared to the earthly human leadership that cared only for themselves.

The true shepherd cares for his sheep, and that mindset continues in vs. 11-18. Not only is Jesus the door through which someone enters to be saved, to find pasture, and to find life, but he’s also the shepherd who protects, takes care of, and sacrifices for the sheep.

Vs. 11, “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. 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.” Jesus defines himself as the good shepherd and then describes the good shepherd in contrast to those who came before him or what he calls the hired hand:

The hired hand sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees—why? Because they aren’t actually his sheep. The hired hand only cares as much as his own life isn’t in danger

But the moment his own life is in danger, the hired hand abandons the sheep and runs

Which allows the wolf to snatch them and scatter them

In contrast, the good shepherd cares for his sheep so much that he knows them and they know him.

Just like the Father knows Jesus and Jesus knows the Father

Those who are his sheep know Jesus and Jesus knows them

And Jesus cares so much for his sheep that he’s willing to die for them, which is precisely what he does during the end of his 33 year ministry on earth.

Jesus ends this figure of speech with Vs 16-18, which explains the extent of the salvation that he offers as the door and as the shepherd. Vs. 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.”

This might sound confusing at first, but remember that at this moment, he’s speaking primarily to Jewish people. And the Jewish people knew themselves to be God’s chosen people.

In light of this, Jesus points out that difference—the Jewish people are one flock, but the Gentiles are of another fold or flock.

Jesus makes it clear that this distinction will be no more. I have other sheep that aren’t Jewish, I must bring them also.

And then there will be one flock, one shepherd.

This is what Paul calls the mystery of the Gospel—Ephesians 3:6, “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise of Christ Jesus through the Gospel.”

Sometimes, people get the impression that the Gentile people were more of an afterthought when it came to salvation. That God intended for the Jewish people to be chosen and saved, but he didn’t necessarily mean for the Gentile people to be saved

Let me explain, that that is a complete misunderstanding. Jesus makes the point in John 10, that he intended to save the Gentile people and make the Jews and Gentiles one flock under one shepherd.

Paul makes it clear in Romans 3:29 that God is not just the God of the Jewish people, but the God of the Gentile people as well.

And the inclusion of the Gentile people as part of the spread of the church in Acts shows us that God intended for the Gentile people to be saved.

Even throughout the Old Testament, it’s clear that those who aren’t Jewish can repent and believe in God—consider Rahab, consider the Egyptians who left Egypt with the Israelites, consider the multitudes of Gentiles who left their idolatrous nations and followed Yahweh.

Consider those who came to believe in God prior to the Jewish people existing—Abraham believed in faith and it was counted to him as righteousness—have you ever considered that Abraham was technically the start of the Israelites, and he himself was originally not Jewish—he was from Ur of the Chaldeans. He wasn’t Jewish to start with, he was Chaldean.

Consider Job who lived before the Jewish people were a people, he was counted as righteous

Consider all throughout Genesis who were alive prior to the birth of the Jewish people who believed and God included them as part of his people.

God intended to save all who would repent and believe in him regardless of their ethnicity

And let me posit that the idea of the Jewish people being God’s chosen people wasn’t just for the Jewish people—it was for the other nations to see Israel, to recognize them as different from their own, and to see that the reason for that difference was due to their belief in Yahweh.

They were to do what the church is to do in the New Testament—to live a life that brings glory and honor to God, which should convict those around them to want to believe in God as well.

God always intended to save those who would repent and believe regardless of ethnicity; and he always intended to make one flock of all who repented under his leadership.

Vs. 17-18, “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

The extent of God’s salvation through Jesus Christ includes all who would repent and believe—the plan was always to make one flock under one Shepherd

This was planned by God through Jesus Christ—and it was accomplished by Jesus Christ. Note that Vs. 17-18 is very firm on the fact that Jesus gave his own life, Jesus laid down his own life, no one took it from him, he sacrificed of himself for his sheep.

And this was a charge given by him from the Father.

In this figure of speech, Jesus makes it clear that he is the one way for salvation, for sustenance, and for life; and he makes it clear that he knows his people, he cares for them, and he protects them, which is seen in his willingness to lay down his own life for his people. Which of course, causes a response from the people in Vs. 19-21. We see the people responding in one of two ways, Read with me Vs. 19-21:

The Resulting Division (19-21)

John 10:19–21 ESV

19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

The response of the people to Jesus claiming to be the door to salvation and life as well as the good shepherd is division:

Many of them said, “‘He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?’ Others said, ‘These are not the words of one who is oppressed . . . can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’”

This division amongst the people is a reoccurring theme throughout the book of John; and really, it’s a reoccurring theme throughout history—there have literally been wars fought over the identity of Jesus Christ. Families sometimes break apart when one person believes and the rest reject that belief. Communities become embittered between those who believe and those who don’t.

Just the same, in John, the question of who Jesus is brings about division—and rightly so, there should be a divide between believers and unbelievers because believers view the world from a biblical perspective; and unbelievers view the world from an unbelieving perspective.

In John 10, the very fact that Jesus claims to be the door to salvation and the Good Shepherd leads many to assume that he is demon possessed

But not everyone thinks Jesus to be demon possessed. And I wouldn’t necessarily say that these people believe in Jesus as the Son of God because it’s clear that they are still a little skeptical.

But I would say that they’re receptive and open to the possibility that Jesus might just be the Messiah. But you’ll have to wait until next week to dig into that possibility because this division leads to the Jews flat out asking him if he is the Christ, the Anointed One.

So, what we see in John 10:1-21, is Jesus utilizing the analogy of him being the door and him being the good shepherd to describe his relationship to his people. In doing so, he also contrasts himself to those who came before him—both concerning the leaders of Israel being the shepherds of Israel and the Pharisees and Sadduccees being the spiritual shepherds of the people. The question then is, how do we apply this text to our lives today?

Application

The Parable of the Good Shepherd (1-6)—in the first section, we’re introduced to the idea of a the true shepherd and those who want to do harm to the sheep. The true shepherd enters by the door and the gatekeeper opens the door, the sheep know the shepherd and follow him. Unfortunately, this figure of speech wasn’t understood by the people whatsoever. My application for this has nothing to do with the illustration that Jesus utilizes, because my application for the illustration is found in Vs. 7-18, rather, what I’m going to suggest for application for Vs. 1-6 is quite simple:

There will be things in your Christian walk that you don’t quite understand.

God created us as curious beings and occasionally we assume that we ought to be able to find answers for everything that confuses us and causes misunderstandings, in this scenario, Jesus clarifies his figure of speech, but there are a plethora of times in which God doesn’t clarify certain things. What are we to do if we don’t understand?

First off, seek understanding from the LORD. The Bible clearly states that we ought to seek understanding; and in fact, Proverbs teaches us that only fools don’t want to gain understanding.

So, what should we do if we don’t understand?

We should admit that we don’t understand something

We should seek to understand it

And we should recognize that not everything will be understood.

A good example for this would be the doctrine of the Trinity—we know that God is one being in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that each person of the Trinity is equal in power and authority; and we know that despite being three persons, God is one.

It would be foolish for us to claim that we understood the complexity of the Trinity—because the very idea of three beings being one being in three persons is already confounding.

However, that shouldn’t stop us from seeking truth in Scripture to see what God has said about the Trinity—doing so provides great information about what each member of the Trinity does, how each member of the Trinity interacts with creation, and how we can worship each member of the Trinity.

But we do need to know that we will never quite fully comprehend how the Trinity works, it isn’t meant for us to know, if it was meant for us to know, God would have revealed it in his Scriptures.

When we find ourselves in a situation in life in which we don’t understand something, it is right to seek understanding.

That means opening your Bible and seeking out what the Bible says about what you don’t understand

That might mean asking your pastor, asking your elders, asking those who you know to be spiritually mature how to better understand something

That might mean seeking a mentor, seeking a friend, or even reaching out to someone who you don’t really know with the intent of gleaning wisdom and knowledge from them

But ultimately it means seeking understanding from the LORD; and realizing that God didn’t intend for us to know all things, he intentionally left some things as a mystery for us.

The Explanation of the Good Shepherd (7-18)—From the second section of the passage, which is the main point of the passage, what we see is Jesus explaining what he means by his shepherd analogy; and he explains it more by making the claim that he is the door and he is the shepherd. I explained that this figure of speech has roots in the Ancient Near East and those familiar with the Old Testament would have connected this illustration in two ways, which is how we’ll seek to understand our application as well:

From the simplest understanding of the illustration—Jesus is the door and Jesus is the good shepherd

This emphatically states that salvation comes through Jesus Christ alone. So, my application here is simple:

Reject any ideology that makes the claim that there are multiple ways for salvation—there aren’t multiple ways, Scripture is clear that Jesus is the way. He is the only way because he is the only door.

That means being good enough is not good enough to go to heaven, being morally upright is not good enough for salvation, following whatever religious beliefs that you like (whether that’s Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, or Taoism) isn’t good enough for salvation.

Salvation is by grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ.

So, don’t adopt the universalist ideology of our day, which is rooted in a post-modern concept of truth. Truth is found in Scripture and Scripture teaches that Jesus is the only way for salvation.

Thus, repent of your sin and believe in Jesus Christ; and stop supporting ideologies that differ from Scripture.

By obtaining salvation through your repentance and belief in Jesus Christ, you then enter into his sheepfold. You are his sheep—he knows you and you know him.

That means everything that Jesus says about his sheep in this passage, then applies to you.

As a sheep that’s being shepherded by Jesus Christ, you are shepherded by the good shepherd who provides salvation, who provides sustenance, who protects you, cares for you, and lays down his life for you.

You have a good shepherd—so praise him and worship him, seek sustenance from him, find protection in him, realize he loves and cares for you, and rest in him.

From the realization that Israel’s kings and leaders were often called shepherds—Jesus is the good King

We live in a society in which our politicians seem to be on the forefront of every news outlet and everywhere on social media—everyone has an opinion whether that’s in support of a particular politician or against a particular politician.

Let me assure you, that that is not unique to American culture, in every society people has opinions about their politicians and governments—we just happen to live during a time period in which social media provides an outlet for the average person to showcase their viewpoint—and as a side note, let me encourage you in one thing—you have a right to your opinions about government and politicians, but ultimately your citizenship is a spiritual citizenship—you are a believer in Jesus Christ, first and foremost; so don’t let everyone’s first opinion of you be one of political disdain or support, but let their first opinion of you be based on your belief in Jesus Christ—or in other words, if the first thing someone thinks when your name comes up is that you’re a Republican, Democrat, or Independent—you’ve missed the mark, you are a citizen of the Kingdom of God; and you’re just a pilgrim passing through the United States.

Because you are just a pilgrim passing through the United States, that means that your King isn’t an earthly king—whatever the president does, while it can and does effect your earthly life, is of little effect in light of eternity. However, your spiritual King, has all authority and all power. Jesus is your spiritual King, he reigns over all things including the United States and the president.

Israel had it’s share of terrible kings and leaders, the United States has had its share of terrible presidents and politicians

But 1,000 years from now it won’t matter if you were a Democrat, Republican, or Independent; what will matter is whether or not you submitted yourself to King Jesus during this life.

What will matter is whether or not you loved him during this life

What will matter is whether or not you showed your love for him by obeying him.

What will matter is whether or not you submitted to Jesus as the King who provides salvation for you, who provides sustenance, who protects you, cares for you, and lays down his life for you.

What will matter is whether or not you praise him and worship him, seek sustenance from him, find protection in him, realize he loves and cares for you, and rest in him.

The Resulting Division (19-21)—much like the division that we see throughout the book of John concerning the people’s opinions about Jesus, we’re in a world with differing opinions about him. I’ve often quoted from CS Lewis’ book Mere Christianity, particularly from what is often referred to as his Trilemma and I think it’s suitable to close up today’s sermon. You have a choice to make here, just like the Jewish people in John 10, you can either worship Jesus or you can reject Jesus.

CS Lewis, “I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic—on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg—or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to . . . Now it seems to me obvious that he was neither a lunatic nor a fiend: and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem, I have to accept the view that He was and is God.”

John 10:1-21, makes it clear that Jesus is the good shepherd and Jesus is the good King.

Put simply, that means that you have a choice to make: you need to submit to Jesus because he is your King, you need to praise him and worship him for being good, and then you need to seek sustenance from him, find protection in him, and rest in him.

Or in other words, understand the illustration of Jesus being the good shepherd to mean that if you’ve repented and called on him, you’ve entered his sheepfold—you are his and he is yours and he knows you. As your shepherd, he loves you, cares for you, provides for you, protects you; and as your King, he leads you.

Pastoral Prayer

Congregational Singing

The Solid Rock