Grace Christian Fellowship: Christian Teachings from John

John 10 "The Good Shepherd"

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. (John 10:1-6)

The Thief and the Shepherd

There was much confusion about Jesus in Jerusalem. Some people thought that He was a good man and others thought that He misled the people. The religious authorities condemned Him as a sinner, and yet how could He heal the blind if He was not truly from God? There is still a lot of confusion about Jesus today. In Japan some people that we talk to think that Jesus was an American. Others have studied in school that He was the founder of the one of the world’s great religions and is in the same category as Buddha and Mohammed. Still others doubt that He existed at all and put Jesus in the same class as fairy tales and Greek mythology. At the same time there is also a great deal of confusion about how to know God. There are countless "spiritual" experiences that are competing for the attention of those who are seeking.
Jesus described those who are seeking for God as sheep. Perhaps one of the most famous passages of the Old Testament is David’s song, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters." (Ps. 23) Like sheep we are in need of spiritual care. We are not able to fend for ourselves. There are wolves that would prey upon us, we cannot find green pastures on our own and the waters are often too fast and dangerous for us to drink from by ourselves. Picturing ourselves as sheep is a very humble start. Sheep do not inspire images of bravery or heroism. They are not dogs or lions that we can respect. Sheep are very dependant on the loving care of a shepherd. In many areas of our lives we might be tenacious dogs or even bold lions but if we are honest we must admit that in our spiritual lives we are sheep.
So how do we find a shepherd that we can depend upon? Jesus taught that there are two ways to enter the sheepfold. In those days all of the sheep of the village would be brought into one central holding pen for the night. The door would be guarded by one doorman so the shepherds could go home. In the morning the shepherds would arrive at the sheepfold to collect their flocks and take them out to pasture. But if someone came into the sheepfold a different way, if somehow they climbed over the wall or cut a hole in the fence, it was a sure sign that they were not a shepherd. That person would be a thief, coming in to steal sheep. The thief would try to get close enough to the sheep without startling them, but in the end he would have to grab and hold and force the sheep to go with him. The shepherd wouldn’t need to use such rough methods because the sheep would know his voice. In the middle east the typical way of bringing the sheep out to the pasture is not the same as the method used in England or Australia. In those countries dogs are used to drive the sheep out, but in the middle east the shepherd would simply call his own sheep out by name. Then the shepherd would go before them and they would follow him.
One way that we can see very clearly who are shepherds and who are thieves is the result of their work. The shepherds lead their charges to green pastures and still waters where the sheep can grow and enjoy peace. But the thieves must grab and hold their victims, so that they cannot run away. Shepherds go before their flock, never asking them to do anything that they would not do first. When I ask you to read the Bible it is because I read the Bible and have found that it is true and that it really does light my way. When I ask you to tithe, it is because I already give 10% of my salary and more and I have found that I am free from financial worry because of it. When I ask you to pray, it is because I pray and know a peace that I cannot explain, not because all of my problems have been solved, but because God is with me. But the thieves always demand that the sheep do more than they are willing to do themselves. They put themselves in a category above the sheep. The sheep are right to be afraid, but the thieves will do anything to keep them from getting away. And so these spiritual robbers will threaten and coerce people, lay on guilt so that people are afraid to leave, and even cripple their own sheep just so they can continue to take advantage of them.
It is obvious from the results of their ministry whether or not a spiritual leader is a thief or a shepherd. Jesus said that a tree is known by its fruit. But isn’t there a way for us to know beforehand? By the time we see the fruit it might be too late. Jesus said that it is obvious that the one who comes through the door is the real shepherd. Then He tells us more about the door.

The Door of the Sheep

Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers., but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. (John 10: 7-10)

The chief characteristic of the thief is that he tries to take the sheep out by a different way than the door. Perhaps he lifts them over the wall, cuts a hole in the fence or digs a tunnel underneath, but he cannot use the door because there is a doorkeeper who will protect the sheep. In many sheepfolds there was only an opening for the sheep to come in and out of the pen and no gate at all. The doorkeeper would become a human door by sleeping in the middle of the entrance. That way no sheep could go out and no thief could come in except that they went through him. Jesus says the same thing about Himself. "I am the door." Any real shepherd will always lead his sheep through this door. Every real shepherd will take his people to Jesus Christ, who alone is able to save them. Jesus describes this another way in John 15. He compares Himself there with a vine and calls us branches. "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me." The source of the good results of our ministry is Jesus and Jesus alone. If I want to lead our church to green pastures and still waters where we can grow in peace into spiritual maturity the only way I can do it is to take all of us to Jesus. He promises us abundant life, the life that David sings about where our cup runs over and surely goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our life. Those who promise spiritual benefits but do not take us to the door, Jesus Christ, have a different motive altogether. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill and to destroy

The Good Shepherd & The Hireling

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore My Father loves Me because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from me., but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father." (John 10:11-18)

Jesus switches metaphors here and calls Himself the "Good Shepherd". The chief characteristic of a good shepherd is that he gives his life for the sheep. The man who is hired sees the wolf coming and makes a quick calculation. Is it worth risking death for the salary that I am getting? Without a moment’s hesitation he runs into town to get a newspaper and start searching for another job. But a good shepherd knows his sheep and they know him, he cares about the sheep and will not desert them. Giving your life is not simply being willing to die. It is not that easy. If you are not giving your life every single day then when the crisis appears you will not give your life when it matters most. A good shepherd is willing to sacrifice. Before, Jesus was comparing true shepherds with the thieves and robbers who lead people away from the door. Now Jesus is showing us by example how to be a good shepherd. It is not enough just to watch over a flock and lead them to Jesus, a good shepherd has to love the flock and sacrifice himself for them. This is why being a pastor, a shepherd is not just a job, it is a calling. We are not hired, we are ordained. We are not paid for services rendered, who could put a price on the gospel? Instead those who are taught the Word are instructed to share all good things with those who teach and to show them double honor. The church shares with and honors their pastor, but could never come close to paying him a fair wage for what he does for them. The Apostle Paul sacrificed his life every day that he traveled on his missionary journeys, not just on the day that he was martyred. He preached to those who would thank him and support him, and he also preached to those who would stone him and leave him for dead. How ever he was repaid, Paul was willing to keep working and to face any danger, because he was a good shepherd. I want to be a good shepherd like Paul was though I have not sacrificed nearly what he did. But dear people, if we have achieved some measure of success here, it is because of sacrifice. I left my country and my family eleven years ago because I believe that there are still other sheep that need to be brought into the fold. I worked for the gospel here in Japan for seven years without pay because I care about Japanese people who are lost and hurting like sheep without a shepherd and need Jesus Christ. Without sacrifice no one believes that you love them. Without sacrifice we are simply hirelings who are looking for the best benefit for ourselves.
We are called to be good shepherds, but Jesus said "I am the good shepherd" There is something special about Jesus that makes Him different than any pastor, no matter how loving and self-sacrificing that pastor may be. The pastor can never become a substitute for Jesus. Because Jesus has the power to lay down His life and the power to take it again. This is no ordinary shepherd. We can sacrifice ourselves for others, we can even go so far as to die for someone else. But then we are done. But when Jesus died for our sins on the cross, He was not done. Instead He turned the ultimate sacrifice into the ultimate victory and won eternal life for us all. Jesus did not stay in the tomb. He rose again on the third day and lives today to save you and me. This is why, when someone asks me why I came to Japan, I tell them immediately, "Because Jesus lives." This is why Paul answered the same question, the question, "why did you do it, why do you expose yourself to such hardships and go through such sacrifice? -- "To live is Christ and to die is gain." Jesus is the good shepherd who can lead us through the valley of the shadow of death to the other side. Jesus is the door, through Whom we must go to be saved. Only He has the power to lay down His life and take it up again. Only He has the love to take each of our little sacrifices and turn them into life for the lost and hurting of this world.

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