Of Sheep & Shepherds – week 2
John 10:7-18
Images can be packed with meaning. We have such images in our cultural setting. The American flag… a bald eagle… Uncle Sam looking you in the eyes with index finger thrust in your direction. Those images carry meaning. Those images are about us as a nation. They mean something to us because we’re part of the United States. If I include those images in a story or a video or a collection of pictures, they will conjure thoughts about our nation, our government, our place as citizens. We may not share all the same reactions or emotions, but those images will bring out a response connected to our nation.
For Israelites at the time of Jesus, there were images which carried meaning as well. They had symbols of national pride, and they knew images which spoke to their identity as God’s people. They had also been given images through which they knew God. Israelites knew that their God was a shepherd, and they were his sheep. They knew this image – this metaphor – from references scattered throughout the Old Testament.
Last week we read Psalm 23. Israelites knew David’s prayer, “The Lord is my shepherd…”; “Yahweh is my shepherd…” They also knew how God had spoken through Ezekiel:
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)
They also knew the promise we read earlier from Micah, a promise about the Messiah to come:
“And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.” (Micah 5:4)
You see, the image of shepherd and sheep was part of the cultural identity of Israel. They knew God was their shepherd. Israelites knew they were his sheep. So, Jesus’ words in our gospel reading were packed with meaning for Jews who heard his declaration.
I am the good shepherd.(John 10:11)
Jesus has taken this image packed with meaning, and he’s pointed it at himself. This is one of Jesus’ “I am” statements found throughout John’s gospel. “I am” was the name by which God identified himself to Moses at the burning bush. God’s name is “I am.” Jesus connects “I am” to himself. He places the image of the shepherd on himself. “I am the good shepherd.” Jesus is the protector of God’s people. He is the guide for the sheep. He fills this role which describes God. He is filling the role of the Messiah promised by God.
If anyone listening was surprised by Jesus’ claim, John doesn’t tell us about it. He doesn’t want to distract us at this point. He records the words of Jesus so that we can hear them and know their truth. John brings this claim to us so that we can know it is credible.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. (John 10:11)
Now that second part was unexpected. If pulling this imagery of shepherd and sheep from Israel’s history brought to mind aspects of a special relationship with God, sacrifice was not included in pictures of that relationship.
Think about the image apart from its application to God. Shepherds protect sheep. They may sacrifice comforts for the sake of serving as caretakers, but would a shepherd die for the sheep? That wouldn’t be expected of any shepherd. Now, apply the image of sheep and shepherd to God and his people and it seems even more outlandish. God is a protector for his people. God has been through some awkward and uncomfortable situations for the sake of his people. But, God would die for them? That’s not on anyone’s radar.
Yet, Jesus contrasts his role as the good shepherd with another he calls a “hired hand.” The shepherd for hire would not give his life for the sheep. That shepherd takes care of sheep, but his goal is something else. He does the work for a paycheck. He does the job of caretaking for other compensation. In contrast, the good shepherd takes care of the sheep because he actually cares for the sheep. The hired hand cares for the sheep as long as serving in that role gets him something. There’s a limit to the sacrifice a hired hand will make. However, there is no limit to the sacrifice of the good shepherd.
I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me… (John 10:14)
Jesus cares for the sheep. Jesus shepherds the sheep, but not as a means to some other end. Jesus shepherds the sheep because he loves them. He knows them, and his sheep know their shepherd. You know Jesus, and your knowledge goes beyond the image of shepherd and sheep.
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. (John 10:14-15)
When Jesus first said that, did people understand? I doubt it. But John records these words with the expectation that you and I can receive them with greater insight. You know that Jesus is the Son of God. You know that Father, Son, and Spirit are three-in-one. The Son of God is your shepherd and you are his sheep. That’s an image used to describe your relationship, but the relationship goes far beyond what’s conveyed by the image. Jesus brings you close to him – as close as he is to the Father. He knows you like he is known by the Father. You’re invited to know Jesus like the Son of God knows his own Father!
This personal relationship is grounded in the action the Shepherd took for his sheep. He said it once, earlier. Now, as Jesus reveals the intimacy of this relationship, he returns to what he will do for his sheep. He grounds this relationship in what he’s done for you.
“I lay down my life for the sheep.” (John 10:15)
Jesus will not lose his life in the heat of battle. He will not be overcome by some great challenge. He will not be outdueled by an enemy or outmaneuvered by an adversary. He will not lose his life in defeat. He will lay down his life in sacrifice.
At the Jewish Passover, lambs were killed year-after-year. In this way, God’s people remembered how God had led them from Egypt as a shepherd leads his sheep. When the final plague came upon Egypt, God’s people were protected. The firstborn child in each home died as the angel of death moved over the land. But God had told his people to take a lamb and kill it – one for each household. The lamb’s blood was painted on the doorframe of each home. The family gathered inside for a special meal, and when the angel of death saw the blood of the lamb, the angel passed over that home. All inside were kept safe.
Israelites remembered that first Passover by gathering each year for that same meal. They would roast a lamb and remember how those animals were sacrificed to keep families safe. It was during the Passover celebration that Jesus would be arrested. He would submit himself to Jewish and Roman authorities. While God’s people killed young sheep in commemoration of the Passover, the shepherd would lay down his life.
Jesus gave his life to protect his sheep, but not from one night of death moving across a land. He gave his life to protect and rescue from an eternity of death. The shepherd laid down his life so that you could have a life forever – unstained by death, untouched by sin, unblemished by pain and grief.
Jesus did not have his life taken from him. The shepherd laid down his life for his sheep. Jesus laid down his life for you. Jesus did this for you… and Jesus did this for more than just you. He explained it in this way:
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. (John 10:16)
Who are the “other sheep”?
I overheard a conversation the other day. I don’t think I was eavesdropping. I was working on my computer in a quiet room while three people were talking with each other just 8 feet from me. They knew I could hear them, but they were probably unaware that I am a pastor. Over the course of 45 minutes or so, I heard about frustrations at work. I heard about struggles in parenting. I heard about sexual activities and pregnancies in their past – some resulted in children born, some ended early, and some were aborted. I heard about alcohol and drug use, and friends who went overboard at a recent party. I also heard about why they were going to church now. I heard about trust and respect they had for their pastors. I heard a new identity as a follower of Jesus beginning to form. I heard about how this new community of the church was becoming part of their world, and how Jesus was beginning to change their lives. These women used to be “other sheep.” Jesus came for them too, and they’re beginning to realize what that means.
Who are the “other sheep”? They are the sheep who don’t know the shepherd. They are the people around you whose lives have been shaped by our culture more than they’re shaped by the community of God’s people. They are people Jesus loves. They are people who don’t yet know what it means that Jesus laid down his life for them. They are your neighbors, and your coworkers, and maybe your family members as well.
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. (John 10:16)
One flock and one shepherd – that’s the image. You’re part of that one flock. Your shepherd is gathering more sheep. They come from different backgrounds. We all come with our own histories. We’re all included by the shepherd, and that has nothing to do with what we bring. We have a place in this family because of blood which protects against the threat of death. We are one flock because of the shepherd who laid down his life.
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.” (John 10:17-18)
Jesus laid down his life to guard you from an eternal death. Jesus laid down his life, and he desires to share that sacrifice with more and more of your neighbors and friends and family. Jesus also rose to new life, and his life is yours. As you receive his life you are brought near to him. You are as close to your Savior as he is to his Father. This is the work of your good shepherd. This is what Jesus has done for you. This is what Jesus is offering others through you. The shepherd has gathered you to himself, and he’s not finished yet. Jesus, your good shepherd, keeps gathering his sheep. “There will be one flock, one shepherd.”
Amen.
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