“‘Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ 6 Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what He was saying to them.
7 So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go 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 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. 13 The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care 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 I have other sheep that do not belong to 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 in order to take it up again. 18 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’” John 10:1-18.
It seems obvious that the Pharisees are still within view and earshot of Jesus, and so He continues to teach in parables about the sheepfold to show His listeners how true care for the flock is done by Jesus, while the Pharisees are interested in selfish self-interest. Now there are many “shepherd” texts in the Old Testament and in the other Synoptic Gospel writers who also deal with shepherds and flocks. While others were fond of using the “shepherd” as the human pastor of a church, John seems to insist that Jesus alone is the only sole model of the shepherd: “11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep John 10:11.
The first part of the parable contrasts the shepherd with “10 The thief (who) comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” John 10:10. The gatekeeper must know who the true shepherd is in order for him to open the sheep gate, and the true shepherd is the Son of Man whom the Pharisees did not recognize in the previous chapter when they drove away the blind man healed by Jesus: “35 Jesus heard that they had driven him out, and when he found him, he said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man’” John 9:35? John certainly wants to show us that the sheep spontaneously hear His voice and follow Him, just as the blind man recognized and followed Jesus. Two different parables that speak of Jesus as the Son of Man and those who recognize and follow Jesus and those who do not.
The image of a sheepfold is a centuries old method — still in use today throughout the world — where the yard of a home is enclosed by a low stone wall or an enclosure of thorn bushes all designed to keep the sheep safe at night with the shepherds, where in the morning they are taken by the shepherds into the pastures to graze. No thieves or wild animals can reach the sheep who are protected by the shepherd.
But as is so common in Jesus’ parables, many onlookers do not understand the parable, and so Jesus takes time to explain the meaning of the Gospel. He explains the meaning with some variations. First Jesus says that He is the gate — or the door — for the sheep. Thieves and bandits do not get access to the sheep, nor can they enter into the sheepfold. Only those who listen to Jesus, the Good Shepherd, can enter and be protected by the shepherd. The Pharisees, because they do not come through Jesus, the gate, are thieves and bandits. Jesus then also says that the sheep come in and out through Jesus, the gate, and everyone who comes in and out through the gate will have Life. So Jesus is the water of Life, the Light of Life, the bread of Life, and the Gate of Life.
Jesus is clearly the model — or the good — shepherd because He is willing to do two (2) things: He is willing to lay down His life for His sheep (verse 11) and Jesus knows His 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” John 10:14-15. While Jesus is willing to lay down His life for the sheep, the Pharisees are not. The Pharisees are hired by others to sheer the sheep, but make no mistake about it, they have no loyalty towards the sheep. But Jesus is the Good Shepherd, like David when he was a shepherd, who also protected his sheep: “34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father; and whenever a lion or a bear came, and took a lamb from the flock, 35 I went after it and struck it down, rescuing the lamb from its mouth; and if it turned against me, I would catch it by the jaw, strike it down, and kill it” 1 Samuel 17:34-35. The faithful shepherd knows his sheep, as does Jesus, because He knows His sheep. What Jesus is saying is that He loves His flock and that is why He is willing to lay down His life for His sheep. And Jesus’ love goes out to all who believe in Him. “16 I have other sheep that do not belong to 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. You see, Jesus knows only those who believe in Him, those who listen to Him, and this love will extend far beyond Jerusalem to all who “listen to the voice” of Jesus.
All these people who constitute the flock of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, are to be prayed for : 20 “I ask (Father) not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in Me through their word” John 17:20.
Jesus’ glorification will make this all possible, a glorification, Jesus says, that springs from a death that bo be forces on Him — only a death He freely chooses. “So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life in order to take it up again. 18 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” John 10:16-18. And as we shall see later, John’s Passion narrative will be defined by Jesus’ sovereignty over His death. But sadly this narrative ends like so many others — not all Jesus’ hearers listen to Him but are, instead, quite divided.
So what does it mean to listen to Jesus? Take time in prayer and meditation to consider honestly what it means to listen to Jesus.
Oh dear Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me a sinner. Please help me to hear Your voice and obey everything You say to me. In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.
From the Bible:
“Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God” John 8:47.
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” John 10:27-28.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me” Revelation 3:20.
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” Romans 10:17.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” Proverbs 3:5-6.
Comments