Introduction
Last week we spent our time on the whole of chapter 10 which was about the healing of the man born blind and on what happened afterwards. And what happened afterwards? The people brought the man to the Pharisees, who questioned him and his parents about what the Lord had done for him. The Pharisees were hoping that the man or his parents would say something they could use against the Lord Jesus. They were hoping the man or his parents would say something to incriminate the Lord.
And do you remember? John said that the man’s parents were afraid of the religious leaders, because they had issued a warning that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus is the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. That is to say, they would be excommunicated. And because they were afraid of the religious leaders, they didn’t say anything about what the Lord had done for their son. Instead of being allowed to rejoice in the wonderful thing the Lord had done for their son, they were silenced by fear.
And then the leaders questioned their son again. They said to him: We know this man — and they were referring to the Lord Jesus — is a sinner. Now, tell the truth. He is, isn’t he? And when the man spoke up for the Lord, they replied by insulting the man. They said he was steeped in sin from birth. In other words, all you are is a sinner. Through and through. And how dare you lecture us about what is true and what is not true!
And John tells us that they then threw the man out. So, they ex-communicated him. They were no longer willing to treat him as a member of God’s people.
Today we’d say that these were abusive leaders. These were men who abused their authority and who abused the people under their authority. They threw their weight around and they used threats to silence opposition and they shut out from the synagogue whoever disagreed with them. These were abusive leaders. And the world is full of abusive leaders. And perhaps you’ve suffered under abusive leaders in the workplace. And sadly, there are abusive leaders in the church as well.
And that’s the background to today’s passage, where the Lord Jesus tells us that he’s the good shepherd. In biblical times, kings and other leaders of God’s people were often likened to shepherds. Just as a shepherd looks after his sheep, so the leaders of God’s people were to look after God’s people. They were to care for them and protect them and lead them. And yet, many of them — like the Pharisees in chapter 9 — only abused the people, instead of caring for them. They were bad shepherds. But the good news of the gospel is that God the Son came down from heaven to earth to be the Good Shepherd of his people. And what, according to today’s passage, does our Good Shepherd do? He does two things. Firstly, he calls his sheep. Secondly, he lays down his life for his sheep. Thirdly, the Good Shepherd is also the gate for the sheep.
The Good Shepherd calls his sheep
Let’s think about how the Good Shepherd calls his sheep.
The chapter begins with the Lord drawing a pastoral scene for us. He refers in verse 1 to the sheep pen and to the thief and robber, who do not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but who climbs into the sheep pen by some other way. But then there’s the shepherd of the sheep who enters the sheep pen by the gate. The watchman opens the gate for him and the shepherd’s sheep listen to his voice. He calls his sheep by name and leads them out.
In those days, several herds of sheep might be kept in the one sheep pen overnight. And then in the morning, one shepherd would come and call his sheep. And his sheep would hear and recognise his voice and run out to him. And then another shepherd would come and call his sheep. And that shepherd’s sheep would run out to him. And so, it went on until the sheep pen was empty. Remarkably, each shepherd knew which sheep were his and the sheep knew which was their shepherd.
And in verse 4 the Lord says that when the shepherd has brought out all his own sheep, he goes ahead of them and they follow him. In the UK and Ireland, the shepherd tends to walk behind the sheep and drives them forward. But in Judea, the shepherd went before the sheep and the sheep followed him. As the Lord says in verse 4, the sheep follow him because they knew his voice. They could hear him and they followed him. However, the sheep will not follow a stranger. In fact, the sheep will run from the stranger because they don’t recognise his voice.
So, the Lord draws this pastoral scene for us. He mentions the sheep pen and the sheep. He mentions thieves and robbers and strangers. He mentions the gate. And he also mentions the shepherd. But so far, he hasn’t explained the imagery. And the people listening to him must have been wondering why he’s talking about sheep and shepherds. Why is he mentioning these things? And, as it says in verse 6, they did not understand what he was telling them. And since they didn’t understand what he was telling them, the Lord went on in the following verses to make it clearer to them. And in particular he made clear to them in verse 11 and in verse 14 that he’s the Good Shepherd. So, when he talks about a shepherd calling his sheep in verse 3, he’s talking about himself. He’s the shepherd of his people and he calls his people and they know his voice and follow him.
The Lord says in verse 3 that the shepherd calls his own sheep by name. The Bible commentators discuss among themselves whether it’s likely that a shepherd would have names for all his sheep. Would a shepherd really be able to call his sheep by name? Some say that it’s unlikely. However, another commentator said that if the sheep were kept for their wool, then the same shepherd would be looking after the same sheep for many years. And, therefore, there’s no reason why he wouldn’t give each of his sheep their own name.
So, some say it is likely that he has named them. Some say it’s not likely. But it doesn’t really matter, because the point the Lord is making is that he, the Good Shepherd, knows his people by name. He knows which ones belong to him and which ones do not belong to him. And the ones who belong to him are the ones the Father has given him. That’s something we’ll read in the next passage after this one, because in verse 29 the Lord says that his Father has given him his sheep. And elsewhere in the Bible, we learn that God the Father gave them to his Son from all eternity. So, before the creation of the world, before we existed, before we had done anything whether good or bad, God the Father gave his Son a people to save. And so, the Lord knows his people. He knows them by name, which means he knows them individually and personally. And he comes to his people and calls each one of them just as a shepherd might call each one of his sheep. And he calls his people to follow him.
And that’s what the Lord has been doing throughout this gospel. Wherever he went, he stood before the people and he preached to them about himself and about his Father in heaven and about the Holy Spirit and about eternal life. And he called on the people to believe in him. And from chapter 7 he’s been in Jerusalem, preaching to the people about these things. And so, he stood before this great mass of people in Jerusalem and in other places. And all the people were listening to the same message. And some heard his voice, but they didn’t pay any attention to him. They refused to follow him. And they refused to follow him, because they were not his sheep and he was not their shepherd. But there were others who heard his voice and they listened to him and they believed the things he was saying and they were prepared to follow him. And they were prepared to follow him, because they were indeed his sheep and he was indeed their shepherd. At long last they heard the voice of their shepherd. And they responded to his call and they followed him by trusting in him as their Saviour. On the other hand, there were others who heard him saying exactly the same things. But instead of following him, they ignored him. And they ignored him because they were not his sheep and he was not their shepherd.
And later in today’s passage, the Lord will refer to other sheep. Do you see that in verse 16? He says he has other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. And when he refers to these other sheep who are not a part of this sheep pen, he probably means Gentile believers. So, while he was on the earth, he focussed on calling his people from the Jewish nation. He went around Judea and into Jerusalem calling Jewish people to come to him. But it was always his intention to call others from among the Gentile nations of the world. He says in verse 16 that he must bring them also. And he says they too will listen to his voice. They’ll listen to his voice, because they too are his sheep, given to him by the Father before the world began.
But how can they hear his voice when he’s now in heaven and not on earth? When he was on earth, he focussed on calling his people from the Jewish nation. But how can he call his people from the Gentile nations when he’s now in heaven? Well, he calls his people from the Gentile nations, not in person, but through the preachers he has raised up and sent into all the world. He has appointed under-shepherds, if you like, to go into all the world on his behalf to call his sheep. And those under-shepherds call his sheep by preaching the good news of the gospel. And those who are his sheep, who belong to him from all eternity, will hear his voice, calling to them through the preaching of his word. And they will respond to his call and follow him by believing in him.
And those who belong to him will spend the rest of their lives listening to him. Every time they open their Bible, every time they hear someone preach, the Good Shepherd is calling them. He’s saying to them: ‘This is the way. This is the way you should go. Not that way, because that way leads to trouble and destruction. But this way. This is the right path. This is the way you should go.’
And the Lord Jesus, the Good Shepherd of his people, will lead his people all the way to everlasting life in the presence of God.
Application
And since this is true, since the Lord’s sheep know his voice, then all we have to do to reach his sheep with the good news is to set forth the truth of his word plainly.
When I’m out and about with our dogs, I know that when I call them, they will come. When I call them, they will come. And they’ll come to me when I call because they know me. They know I’m their master and they respond to my call. And when I’m walking my dogs, there are other dogs running around. But they won’t respond to my call. And they won’t respond to my call, because they don’t belong to me. I’m a stranger to them. But Sandy and Nova will come when I call. When I want them to come to me, all I have to do is to call them clearly or plainly. And as soon as they hear, they come.
And when a preacher sets forth the truth of God’s word plainly to a congregation, or when believers set forth the truth of God’s word plainly to a neighbour or friend, the Lord’s sheep will hear his voice and they’ll come to him. They’ll come to him because at long last they’ve heard the voice of the Good Shepherd calling them.
The Good Shepherd lays down his life
So, the Good Shepherd calls his sheep. Secondly, the Good Shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.
The hired hand doesn’t really care for the sheep. At the first sign of trouble or danger, the hired hand will run away. He only cares about himself and his own safety. Do you see that in verses 12 and 13? The Lord says that when the hired hand sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. But the Good Shepherd is different. He knows his sheep; And his sheep know him. And he lays down his life for the sheep. That’s in verse 11.
What does that mean? What does the Lord mean when he says that he lays down his life for the sheep? Well, when he said that he lays down his life for his sheep, he meant that he will die for his people voluntarily. So, no one took his life from him against his will. He voluntarily or he willingly laid down his life for his people. And the Lord makes this even clearer in verse 18. Look what he said there: ‘No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.’ In the Garden of Gethsemane, when the soldiers came to arrest him, he had the opportunity to save himself, didn’t he? He could have run away in the darkness just as the hired hand runs away and abandons the sheep at the first sign of danger. But the Lord Jesus loved us so much, and he was so committed to saving us, that he refused to run away. He stayed where he was. And he gave himself up to the soldiers when they came to arrest him. And, though he could have called for the angels of heaven to come and defend him, he let them arrest him, and beat him, and crucify him. No one took his life from him against his will. Instead he willingly laid down his life.
And not only did he lay down his life, but he laid down his life for his sheep. In other words, he did it for our sake; he did it for our benefit. So think of a flock of sheep which is about to be attacked by a wolf. The hired hand has abandoned the sheep and has run away. And the wolf is getting closer and closer to the flock and he’s about to pounce on a little lamb and tear it to pieces. But suddenly the shepherd appears and without thinking of his own safety he threw himself at the wolf and the wolf and the shepherd roll over and over and over on the ground as the shepherd tries to overpower the wolf. The shepherd cared for his sheep so much, he loved them so much, he wanted to keep them safe so much, they he was prepared to risk his life in order to save his sheep from the wolf.
Well, the Lord Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd, not only risked his life for us, but he gave up his life for us. He gave up his life for us on the cross in order to save us from eternal destruction. On the cross, he bore in body and soul the punishment we deserve for all that we have done wrong so that we would not have to suffer it ourselves. He was wounded and beaten and he suffered and died, to pay for all that we have done wrong, so that we can receive forgiveness from God. And so, on the cross he voluntarily and willingly laid down his life for the sake of his people. He gave up his life to save us from death and destruction. He died so that we might live for ever.
According to the Lord Jesus in verse 13, the hired hand runs away because he’s a hired hand and he cares nothing for the sheep. The hired hand doesn’t care about the sheep. But the Good Shepherd is willing to lay down his life for the sheep because he does care for the sheep. He cares for the sheep so much that he’s willing to lose his life for them. He loves his sheep so much that he’s willing to do this for them. John 3:16 says that God the Father so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. So God the Father loved the world so much that he gave up his only begotten Son to death on the cross. But we can also say that God the Son so loved the world that he gave himself up to death on the cross so that whoever believes in him shall not perish. but have eternal life.
Application
We’re reminded here of why we ought to love him, because he was willing to give up all things for our sake.
And we’re reminded here of why we ought to give thanks to God the Father for him, because his Father sent him into the world to save us.
And we’re reminded here of why we ought to serve him: he’s not a hired hand who only thinks of himself; and he’s not a thief or robber who only wants to harm us. He’s the Good Shepherd, who loved us and who laid down his life for us. And so, with grateful hearts we ought to love and serve him every day of our lives, seeking to please him in all we do and say in order to demonstrate how thankful we are for what he has done for us.
But then, we’re also reminded here of why we ought to trust in him every day. The Lord Jesus is not like the hired hand who only thinks of himself and cares nothing for the sheep. He’s knows us and he cares for us. And if he was prepared to lay down his life for us, then there’s nothing he won’t do for us now, now that he has risen from the dead and is alive for ever. If he was prepared to give up his life for us, what good thing will he withhold from us now? And so, we can count on him to help us every day. Whatever troubles we’re going through, whatever danger we find ourselves in, our Good Shepherd is close by to help us.
The Good Shepherd is also the gate
So, the Good Shepherd calls his sheep. And the Good Shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. And the Good Shepherd is also the gate.
The Lord talks about the gate in verses 7 to 10. Some of the commentators say that a shepherd would lie down at the entrance of the sheep pen at night to block it. And they say that’s what the Lord has in mind: he’s the Good Shepherd who acts as a gate by lying down at the entrance to the sheep pen. Other commentators are happy to accept that the Lord is describing himself in two ways. In some ways he’s like a shepherd and in some ways he’s like a gate. And in verse 7 he says, ‘I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.’ And in verse 9 he says, ‘I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture.’
A gate has two functions. Firstly, it shuts out thieves and robbers. Do you see that in verse 8? The Lord refers to the thieves and robbers who come before the gate. And he means that they come and stand in front of the gate. But because the gate is there and because the gate is closed, the thieves and robbers can’t get in to steal the sheep from the sheep pen. The sheep are safe inside the pen while the gate is closed. And so, the gate provides protection for the sheep from those who come to steal and kill and destroy.
And the Lord Jesus Christ is like the gate in that he is the protector of his people. He is our shield and defender and he will not let anyone steal or destroy our faith. He will keep us as his people and he will strengthen our faith in the midst of trouble and persecution and temptation so that we will continue to trust in him and we’ll remain in his kingdom for ever. When people come along who want to steal and kill and destroy our faith, he will give us the strength we need to persevere.
But then secondly, the gate opens for the sheep so that they can go out of the sheep pen and find pasture. If the sheep remained in the sheep pen all the time, they would go hungry and die. But when the gate is open, they can go out and find pasture and find the food they need for life.
And the Lord Jesus is like the gate in that he gives his people everlasting life. So, we enter eternal life through him. It’s by believing in him that we receive life in all its fullness, which is eternal life. He’s the one who gives us eternal life in the presence of God, where we’ll be perfectly holy and happy for ever. And the way to eternal life and eternal happiness in the presence of God is through faith in him.
And so, the Lord Jesus is a closed gate to those who want to steal and kill and destroy the faith of his people. And he’s like an open gate to those who want eternal life. And whoever enters through him will be saved.
Conclusion
And so, the Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He knows and calls his sheep. When he was on the earth, he did it in person. Now that he’s in heaven, he calls them through the preaching of his word. And he loves his sheep so much that he laid down his life for them to save them from destruction. And not only is he the Good Shepherd who calls his sheep and who lays down his life for them, but he’s also the gate. His sheep enter through him into eternal life. And he protects and defends his sheep from all their enemies.
This then is our Saviour and we’re to love and serve him always, giving thanks to God the Father for sending him into the world for us and for our salvation.
Sermons and Stuff 