SHEEP-LOVING JESUS - by Revd Gilbert Wong

Sripture:    John 10:11-18

Fourth Sunday of Easter

7 May 2006

SERMON IN A SENTENCE:   Jesus, who gives himself in service to the sheep even calls us to do the same.

INTRODUCTION:

HYMN STORY:  The King of Love My Shepherd Is

This hymn, written by the English musician, Sir Henry Baker, paraphrases Psalm 23 -- without question the most beloved of the psalms and one of the most beloved of all scriptures.  Families often request the reading of the 23rd Psalm at funerals, because its words offer so much comfort -- but they strengthen us also in happier moments. 

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures;

he leads me beside still waters;

he restores my soul."

These words comfort and strengthen us because they remind us that we serve a Lord who loves us -- who cares about our welfare -- who provides for our needs.  We need that reminder, because life is not always gentle.  In life's less gentle moments, Psalm 23 reminds us that God is still at work in our lives and that we have nothing to fear.

For we see the same sentiment expressed in John’s Gospel 10.

VERSES 11-13:  I AM THE GOOD SHEPHERD

"I am the good shepherd" (v. 11a). “I am” is an important phrase in this Gospel, which includes a number of "I am" sayings:

     -- "I am  he" (4:26)

     -- "I am the bread of life" (6:35).

     -- "I am  the living bread" (6:51).

     -- "I am  the light of the world" (8:12; 9:5).

     -- "Before Abraham was, I am" (8:58).

     -- "I am the door of the sheep" (10:7).

     -- "I am  the door" (10:9).

     -- "I am  the good shepherd" (10:11).

     -- "I am  the resurrection and the life" (11:25).

     -- "I am  the way, the truth, and the life" (14:6).

     -- "I am  the true vine" (15:1).

"The 'I am' sayings form the distinctive core of Jesus' language of self-revelation in the Fourth Gospel....  Through these common symbols, Jesus declares that people's religious needs and human longings are met in him" (O'Day, 601). 

"I am the good shepherd" (v. 11a).  Barclay notes that the word ‘good’, "means that a thing or a person is not only good; but in the goodness there is a quality of winsomeness, loveliness, attractiveness which makes it a lovely thing."   Barclay then likens the phrase "the good shepherd" to the phrase "the good doctor."  When people speak of the good doctor, "they are not thinking only of the doctor's efficiency and skill as a physician; they are thinking of the sympathy and the kindness and the graciousness which he brought with him, and which made him the friend of all.  In the picture of Jesus as the Good Shepherd there is loveliness as well as strength and power" (Barclay, 71). 

"The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (v. 11b).  But Jesus goes beyond that.  A good shepherd will risk his life to protect the sheep, but that is different from laying down one's life.  The shepherd who risks his life for the sheep does not expect to die, but expects to live.  Occasionally, a shepherd will die in an encounter with animals or thieves, but most will not.  People who engage in risky occupations typically believe that it will be the other person who will die.  They don't plan to lay down their own lives, but rather to make their foe to lay down his/her life.  Also, a shepherd who dies leaves the sheep defenceless, so the only good shepherd is a live shepherd -- or so it would seem. 

Jesus says otherwise.  "The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep" (v. 11b).  While a good shepherd does not go to the field intending to die, Jesus will do exactly that in obedience to the Father (v. 18).  Jesus came into the world to die on the cross, and it is the death of the Lamb of God that saves us from death (1:29; Revelation 7:17) -- or perhaps we should say that it is the Lamb's resurrection -- his victory over death -- that insures our victory over death.  His resurrection will bring him back to his disciples.  When he finally leaves them, he will not leave them comfortless but instead will give them the gift of the Comforter (14:25) and will return to take them to a place that he has prepared for them (14:2).  This is no "dead and gone" shepherd -- no absentee Lord.

"The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away -- and the wolf snatches them and scatters them" (v. 12).  If there is such a thing as a good shepherd, there must also be such a thing as a bad shepherd.  Jesus contrasts the good shepherd, not with a thief, but with a hired hand -- a mercenary who cares only for his pay check -- who has no affection for the sheep and who feels no great responsibility for them -- who sees shepherding, not as a calling, but only as a job -- who runs away from danger, allowing the wolf to snatch and scatter the sheep (vv. 12-13).  Such a hired hand will tend the sheep only until he receives a better offer.  If a sheep wanders off at night, he can easily justify staying with the flock rather than seeking the one who was lost.  If a lion stalks the sheep, the hired hand can easily justify sacrificing a lamb or two to save the flock -- and himself.

In a sense, having a hired hand as a shepherd is worse than having no shepherd at all.  The hired hand gives the illusion of protection without protecting.  If the owner has no shepherd, he will work to find one.  If he has a hired hand, the owner will relax, thinking that the sheep are safe.

On a morality scale of one to ten, the hired hand is somewhere in the middle.  He intends to be neither a hero nor a villain, but becomes a villain because of what happens to the sheep in his care.  He fails to recognize (or perhaps to care) that his work is important -- literally a matter of life or death for the sheep.  His indifference is likely to result in the death of the sheep in his care.  His attitude is important, because lives are at stake.

There is a lesson here for us.  It is not enough to go through the motions as a Christian. Christ wants more than lip service -- he wants our hearts.  In the letters to the seven churches, the warning to the church at Laodicea is:   "I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth" (Revelation 3:15-16).  The  reason is simple.  Christ calls us, in ways great or small, to proclaim the Good News of the salvation available through him.  Indifference is bad, because lives are at stake.

Jesus takes the metaphor of good and bad shepherds from Ezekiel 34, which speaks of the shepherds of Israel -- religious leaders -- "who have been feeding yourselves!  Should not shepherds feed the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings; but you do not feed the sheep" (34:2-3).  It contrasts these bad shepherds with God, the true shepherd (34:11-31).  The passage concludes with God promising Israel, "You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture and I am your God, says the Lord God" (34:31). 

There are good and bad shepherds today, both clergy and laypeople.  The difference is in the shepherd's heart.  The good shepherd cares about the people in his/her care, whether they are a diocese, a congregation, or just a few children in a Sunday school class.  The good shepherd seeks ways to lead faithfully, and stands for what is right -- even in the face of opposition or danger.  Bad shepherds care only about their own welfare.  A bad shepherd might preach false doctrine -- or care more for programmes or building campaigns than for people but it is bad enough for a shepherd simply not to care about the sheep.  Fortunately, Christ has many more good shepherds than bad.

VERSES 14-16:  I KNOW MY OWN AND MY OWN KNOW ME

"I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me" (v. 14).  In v. 11, the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.  In v. 14, the good shepherd knows the sheep and the sheep know him.  Know is more than superficial knowledge -- it involves experience -- relationship.  The Old Testament talks of a man knowing his wife in the sense of sexual intimacy, a relationship that has significance beyond the physical act.  When Jesus says that the good shepherd knows the sheep, he is not implying anything sexual, but is nevertheless talking about a very significant relationship.

The shepherd (Jesus) knows the sheep (people) because he "became flesh and lived among us" (1:14).  "Though he was in the form of God, (he) did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death -- even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8).  Jesus knows his own, because he has lived in our skin and has experienced our joys and sorrows.

Jesus says that he knows his own and his own know him "just as the Father knows me and I know the Father" (v. 15).  The unity of Father and Son is a major theme of this Gospel: 

-- "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (1:1). 

-- Jesus tells the Jewish leaders, "The Father and I are one" (10:30).

-- When the Jews reject Jesus, he challenges them, "even though you do not believe me, believe (my) works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father" (10:38). 

-- In his high priestly prayer, Jesus prays for the disciples, "that they may all be one.  As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me" (17:21). 

In vv. 14-15a, Jesus gives us the sense of an all-encompassing intimacy that begins in his relationship with the Father and extends to those whom the Father has given to him (17:6) and to all "who will believe in me through their word" (17:20).  What Jesus is describing, then, is a grand extended family that begins with the loving Father and, through the love of the Son, embraces all believers. 

In 15b, Jesus reminds us once again that he lays down his life for the sheep, a theme that he will pick up again in v. 17. 

"I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.  I must bring them also" (v. 16a).  A sheepfold is an enclosure or a corral where the sheep live when they are not grazing for food.  It provides security and fosters a sense of community.  Jesus says that he will bring these other sheep also, and there will be one flock, one shepherd. 

Who are these other sheep?  Most scholars believe that Jesus is referring to Gentiles.  When Jesus says, "I have," he implies that these sheep already belong to him, but he has yet to bring them to the fold.  He must do so. 

"and they will listen to my voice" (v. 16a).  Earlier Jesus said, "the sheep follow (the shepherd) because they know his voice" (v. 4).  Borchert, who lived for a time in Israel, recounts two incidents that reflect this truth.  In the first, a shepherd led his sheep through the busy traffic in Jerusalem, singing and whistling to keep the sheep together.  In the second, four shepherds shared a sheepfold.  In the morning, each shepherd in turn would sing and call his sheep, who "dutifully separated from the larger flock and began to follow him to the hills for their daylight feeding" (Borchert, 330).

Jesus concludes, "So there will be one flock, one shepherd" (v. 16b). Today the barriers that separate us are likely to be national, racial, educational, vocational, or financial.  Such barriers are inappropriate among Christians.  Christ calls us to be "one flock" (v. 16).  Jesus is speaking here of the church, the people of God.  We might not all be corralled in one enclosure, but we are all one flock.

VERSES 17-18:  I HAVE OTHER SHEEP NOT OF THIS FOLD

"For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again" (v. 17).  This is difficult to understand -- doesn't the Father love the Son because he is his Son?  "For the fourth gospel, neither God's love for the Son nor Jesus' love for his disciples is unconditional.  It is expressly and clearly grounded in the willingness of the beloved to witness to their faith by laying down their lives and trusting that they will be received again" (Howard-Brook, 241). 

The Son lays down his life "in order to take it up again" (v. 17).  John's Gospel views the cross and resurrection differently from the Synoptics (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) and Acts (also written by Luke).  Let us focus on John’s perspective: 

-- In John, the Son acts in obedience to the Father but of his own accord.

-- In John's Gospel he lays down his life himself -- but only so that he might take it up again.  In John's Gospel, Jesus' death, resurrection, and ascension together constitute a single salvation action.  Jesus is not a reluctant martyr but a willing saviour carrying out the purpose for which he came.  We should not see his death "as an accident of fate or…as a tragedy perpetrated by misguided men, but as the Father's plan" (Carson, 389). "The mutual love of the Father and Son thus was seen in a deed of love for the world, in which the Father in love willed to save all and the Son in love freely gave his all" (Beasley-Murray, 171).

-- In John's Gospel, Jesus takes his life up again (v. 17).  Not only does he take up his own life again, but he also makes our resurrection possible -- "No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day" (6:44).

"No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again.  I have received this command from my Father" (v. 18).  "While Peter accuses the Sanhedrin of putting Jesus to death (Acts 4:10) and, with Paul and the other apostles, affirms that God raised him from the dead (Acts 2:32; 4:10b), John's Jesus insists that he lays down his life of his own accord, and in his own power takes it up again" (Williamson, 121).

"In the convention about a noble death not only is such a death voluntary but those who suffer it can also be said to be unconquered and to triumph....  Jesus in his death is not the vanquished but the vanquisher and so, contrary to normal evaluation, his crucifixion is not a matter of shame or disgrace but a noble or honourable death" (Lincoln, 299).

Conclusion:

Philip Schaff, the great historian, said this about Jesus.  He said:

"Jesus of  Nazareth, without money or arms,

conquered more millions  than Alexander, Caesar, Mohammed, and Napoleon.

Without  science and learning,

he shed more light on things human and  divine

than all the philosophers and scholars combined.

Without  the eloquence of the school,

he spoke words of life such as  were never spoken before or since,

and produced effects  which lie beyond the reach of orator or poet.

Without writing a  single line,

he has set more pens in motion

and furnished  themes for more sermons, orations, discussions,

works of art,  learned volumes and songs of praise

than the whole army of  great men of ancient and modern times.

Born in a manger and crucified as a malefactor,

he now controls the destinies of the  civilized world

and rules a spiritual empire

which embraces one  third of the inhabitants of the globe."

This sheep-loving Jesus calls us to love others in the same way.  This sheep-loving Jesus -- who gave himself in service to the undeserving -- calls us to go and do likewise.

I invite you to search your heart during this coming week to see how Jesus, the good shepherd, might be calling you to join in his mission to serve those in need.