Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro

Welcome the church and visiting guests.

Mention two services will begin on Mother’s Day - May 8th - 9 and 10:45 - Express and Full Experience

Today, we are going to continue our Flourish series with a message entitled The Good Shepherd.

Last week we anchored this message in John 10:10

KJV 10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Journey back through the adulterous woman, the blind man, and Jesus’s frustrations prior to making this statement.

Then read John 10:1-10

Jesus addresses here that those who came before Him were robbers and thieves.

He was speaking of false teachers, not the devil.

He was sick of their attempts to lead the people without truly honoring God’s plan.

This wasn’t a new issue.

In fact, we see this in Ezekiel 34:7-10

We see it in Jeremiah 23:1-4

And then, even Paul faces it in 2 Corinthians 11:1-15

So, this problem came before Jesus, happened while he was on Earth, once He left, and still occurs today.

In reality, Jesus wanted the people to know in John 10 that there was a better way.

God’s way!

And He knew that He had the right plan for the people.

Again, He says in John 10:10

But what He unpacks afterwards is even more important.

In John 10:11-15 He introduces Himself as The Good Shepherd.

The word kalos (“good”) here is used to describe the role of Jesus in the context of self-giving (laying down his life, 10:11, 15, 17–18) and implies much more than the general meaning ascribed to the word by the philosophers, such as “beautiful,” “good,” “useful.”

The contrast is between Jesus and the employed watchers of the sheep, or hired hands (10:12), those who take care of the sheep merely in return for monetary compensation (10:13).

The term kalos (pronounced ky-los) here takes on the implications of “authentic” or “genuine.”

As such its meaning is close to alēthinos (pronounced ah-lay-the-nose) (“true”) as used by John in connection with the images of light (1:9), worship (4:23), bread (6:32), judgment (8:16), vine (15:1), God (17:3), and witness (19:35).

Moreover, in comparison to the hired hand, the relationship of the shepherd to the sheep was a personal one (10:12–13; cf.

10:3).

The shepherd’s personal investment in this relationship was the life of the shepherd.

The expression hyper tōn probatōn (pronounced hyper tone pro-baton), “for the sheep” (better “on behalf of the sheep,” 10:11, 15) implies a self-sacrificing perspective.

Indeed, the use of hyper in relation to the death of Jesus (cf.

6:51) seems in this Gospel to carry a substitutionary meaning.

Thus the ironic statement of Caiaphas undoubtedly implied for John far more theological significance than the high priest ever imagined (11:50–52; 18:14).

To shift the image to the inaugural introduction of Jesus, he was indeed the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (1:29).

The authentic shepherd in fact was the sacrificial Lamb who gave his life for the world.

Jesus is letting them know, those who came before me only wanted to TAKE from you, but I am COME to GET SOMETHING TO YOU.

LIFE AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY.

Essentially, He says to them I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and THE LIFE.

By saying I am the gate, I am the real one, and I came to give you LIFE and LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY.

It gives new life to John 14:6, where we see him say it plainly.

So, what is in the Good Shepherd’s package for you?

Truth

He came to give us access to the truth.

Truth is defined as that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality.

He acknowledges those who came before Him were robbers and thieves.

They didn’t come with the truth.

Since truth begets trust, Jesus simply wants you to know you can trust Him.

Again, John 14:6 says, “Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one can come to the Father except through me.”

Sacrifice

Sacrifice is defined as to suffer loss of, give up, renounce, injure, or destroy especially for an ideal, belief, or end.

He says in John 10:11 ““I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.”

He identifies sacrifice as a necessary component for being a good shepherd.

Any great leader should understand this.

If you aren’t sacrificing at all for the work and the people God called you to lead.

But he went on to make the ULTIMATE sacrifice for us.

Protection

He outlines the difference between the Good Shepherd and the hireling in John 10:12-13 when He says, “A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming.

He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd.

And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock.

The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.”

Protection is valuable.

It adds security and increases safety.

God wants you to know you are safe and secure when you’re in Him.

It gives new meaning to Psalms 23:4 “Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me.

Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.”

Direction

In John 10:14 He says, ““I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me,”

In John 10:5 He says, “They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice.””

This shows us how the sheep are trained to follow the voice of the Shepherd.

His direction comes with intentionality.

Which makes Psalms 37:23 make so much more sense when it says, “The Lord directs the steps of the godly.

He delights in every detail of their lives.”