The Heart of the Good Shepherd
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Light of Christ Anglican Church
The Rev.
Michael J. Moffitt April 21, 2024
SCRIPTURE John 10:11-16
Today we are in week 4 of Eastertide and the 50-day journey from the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter morning to the day of Pentecost on May 19th. This Sunday is set aside to focus on Jesus as the “Good Shepherd”. Our purpose this morning will be to understand what it means that Jesus is our Shepherd and how this changes and informs how we should see ourselves as his followers—his sheep.
As I considered this fact in preparation for this sermon I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed by the contrast between Jesus as the Lord, the creator of all things and Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Often we think about or repeat ideas or concepts out of habit without considering the implications. This is likely true of the claim of Jesus that he is the Good Shepherd.
All four of our scripture readings are obvious themes of shepherds and the task of shepherding itself. We’re going to focus on our gospel reading from John 10, and the characteristics of the “Good Shepherd.”
Today we remember that Jesus had the willingness and commitment to save His sheep, despite the price. This came from the Lord who also had the authority to rise from the dead. As I’ve pointed out in the last two sermon’s this season’s traditional greeting is “He is Risen!” and the reply is “He is risen indeed!” When rightly understood this should bring hope and light to our broken and fallen world. We need the Holy Spirit to open our minds if we are to understand the implications of God Almighty, King of the universe being our Shepherd.
It is important to remember that Jesus went to the cross willingly, not under compulsion. The Apostle John quotes Jesus making this clear in John 10:17-18,
“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.”
Shepherds at the time of Jesus ranked rather low as to their social status. It was not an esteemed career as the task of shepherding animal’s had passed from a being a family lifestyle and a respected vocation and was now usually given to servants and low paid help. However, this was not always the case throughout history. For centuries the ancient profession of the shepherd was considered respectable and became a major metaphor for the characteristics of leadership. All the patriarchs of the Jewish people were shepherds, from Abraham to Moses and David. There is something about shepherding that produces good biblical leaders. Before the advent of coins, wealth was measured in gold, silver, and in usable goods and services, which included livestock. Owning large herds of animals indicated you were a rich person and were highly respected. In some parts of the world this is still the case.
Years ago on one of my trips to Rwanda we were taken to meet the elderly parents of one of the pastor’s we were working with in the town of Gahanga,. They were around 75-80 years old and by western standards they were poor. However, the first thing the father wanted us to see were his two cows. He was very proud of this, but the funny part came a few minutes later. One of the ladies from our church who often traveled with the teams to Rwanda was 72. The father walked up to her and looked her over squeezing her arm, I think to judge whether she had the ability to work hard. I was wondering if he was going to ask to see her teeth, but he didn’t. He then paid her a real compliment in his culture by declaring that she was still worth two cows. In his mind she still had great value.
In Genesis 47, when Joseph's brothers were presented before Pharaoh, and he asked them of their occupation they responded, “We are shepherds like our fathers before us”. Abraham and Jacob along with Moses and David were extremely talented shepherds in the Bible. It’s interesting to note that though Abraham was promised land for his offspring he personally never was given possession of it.
But in Genesis 24:35 Abraham’s servant spoke of the wealth of Abraham,
“The Lord has greatly blessed my master, and he has become great. He has given him flocks and herds, silver and gold, male servants and female servants, camels, and donkeys.”
Being a shepherd usually led to a nomadic lifestyle, moving from one source of water to the next. Shepherds had to be knowledgeable about where to obtain food and water, where there was no food or water, who to make alliances with, and when to move the flock. Shepherds had to be warriors who could defend the flock from predators in the wilderness. Shepherds had to be able to guide their sheep, keep them from falling into ravines and keep them away from flash floods. Shepherds were also the veterinarians for their flock, binding up their wounds, caring for the injured, and expertly helping them through difficult births. In other words the lives of their flock were worth defending, even worth dying for. The shepherd loved his flock and depended on them for food, milk, and wool for clothing. If you’ve spent much time with sheep you’ll know that they can be very stubborn and easily frightened. But the good shepherd was trusted by the flock and as long as they could see him and hear his voice they were comforted.
Many of you will remember the story of David and Goliath in 1 Samuel 17. David a young shepherd boy likely in his teens, offered to fight Goliath a huge Philistine warrior. King Saul tells David that he wouldn’t stand a chance against this seasoned warrior. Listen to David’s reply in verses 34-37,
“But David said to Saul, ‘Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.’ And David said, ‘The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.’ And Saul said to David, ‘Go, and the Lord be with you!’”
One of the main points that are to be gleaned from that story is that one of the attributes that David had as a shepherd would also make him a great king, who would care for those under his authority.
However, as wealth was accumulated families began living in more urban areas and leaving the rural areas. So, they hired shepherds who were not a part of the family to take care of their sheep.
The memory of Shepherds as great leaders seems to still be present in the time of Jesus. Psalm 23 and other Scriptures, such as Ezekiel 34, that we read this morning still highlighted the qualities of shepherds. People knew how shepherds should act. However, this vividly contrasted with the hirelings that were used as shepherds by many of the rich in His time. In John 10, Jesus does not speak of the bad shepherd, he speaks of the hired hand who in truth was not a shepherd. Jesus and Paul both understood that a true shepherd wasn’t someone who lived far from his flock but someone who was present and cared for each sheep–something that we are challenged to do as well.
In our reading from Ezekiel 34, God through the prophet pronounces judgment on the civil and religious leadership in Israel. At the time of the writing the shepherds of Israel, who in this context are in Babylonian exile with their people, have acted inappropriately and have been self-serving. The leadership have been unfaithful in their mandate as leaders to care spiritually and physically for the people. We should take care not to confine this rebuke to the past and forget its lessons but should take this warning upon ourselves in the present day.
God informs them that he will replace the leadership with his own direct care through a future son of David. It was and still is being fulfilled in Christ, the great Shepherd of the sheep.
With that in mind let’s turn to John 10:11-13,
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”
Jesus says, I am the Good Shepherd, one of the "I am" sayings that, like the others, ultimately concerns the issue of life. He had just promised abundant life in verse 10 and he now says this life, the life he is offering, will come through his death. Once again he starts with a familiar image in his audience's life since shepherds commonly had to deal with the problem of wild animals.
A good shepherd, one who is worthy of admiration would risk his life to protect the sheep. But Jesus does not merely risk his life; he consciously gives his life for the sake of his sheep. The idea of a voluntary and vicarious death for the sheep is not found in the Old Testament nor elsewhere. The closest conceptual background is that of the suffering servant of Isaiah 53. I always flinch when I read the entirety of that chapter because it foretells the intentional betrayal and rejection of the one who came to restore that which was lost and return it to the Father- his sheep.
Listen to verses 4-5,
“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”
Why did he come to put up with such people and to die for us? Verse 6,
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
Another prophecy about the Good Shepherd comes from the prophet Zechariah, who contrasts two shepherds. One is the messianic shepherd-king who is rejected by the people, which, in turn, results in their condemnation (Zech 11:4-14). The second is the worthless shepherd who deserts the flock (Zech 11:4-17). God's messianic shepherd will be struck down, causing the sheep to be scattered and leading to the judgment and refining of God's people (Zech 13:7-9). This rejection by the leaders of the people and their own condemnation is echoed in John, as is the striking of the shepherd, though with a different effect. It will indeed lead to the scattering of Jesus' flock for a brief time, but it will also be central in the gathering of his own flock from among the nations: John 12:32, "But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself".
This death makes him the shepherd that is good. This word refers in such a context to that which is beautiful, noble, honorable, worthy of praise. In other words, Jesus is fulfilling his job as a shepherd in an exemplary fashion so that such goodness is able to be perceived. He is the admirable shepherd, and there is something admirable, heroic, and attractive in his death. Consequently, it is in his death that he will draw all men to himself (12:32). The beauty of the Lord's character attracts those whose hearts are able to receive divine beauty. This is far more than an admirable death of a martyr. For in this death we see the beauty of God himself, since God is love, and love, as John says (1 Jn 3:16), is the laying down of life. It is precisely because he was in the form of God that he poured himself out and laid down his life.
In Jesus we see the divine character, and what we see is beautiful. When we are able to really see God as Jesus has revealed him we cannot help praising him if we have hearts that are open to God. Such a vision of God's beauty is at the heart of all true worship.
Jesus goes on to contrast the shepherd who will risk his life for the sheep with a hireling who runs from the wolf and leaves the sheep behind to be attacked, literally, "snatched" or "carried off" and scattered. They are not his sheep, so he does not care about them.
In our gospel reading the themes introduced in a general way (Jn 10:11-13) are then personalized and developed (10:14-16).
Let’s read John 10:14-16,
“I am the good shepherd. 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. 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.”
Jesus' knowledge of his flock and their knowledge of him as their familiar shepherd (v. 14) are compared to the knowledge the Father and the Son have of one another. As always, Jesus' identity as the Son and his relationship with the Father are crucial for understanding what is being said.
This knowledge is not simply a knowledge about one another or merely the knowledge of an acquaintance. Rather, it is an intimacy that is love. The intimacy of the Father and the Son is so close it is described as a oneness (10:30), “I and the Father are one.” A similar oneness of life is affirmed between Jesus and his disciples which is seen here but in 15:1-7 it is compared to the vine and its branches. The believer is not stirred into some cosmic soup, as in false forms of mysticism, but rather there is a radical oneness that does not obliterate the distinctness of the person.
As the holy Trinity is both One and Three, so the believer is one with God and yet distinct from God. This theme of intimacy had been introduced earlier in John 6, in Jesus' teaching that his followers must eat his flesh and drink his blood and it was unpacked in detail in the discourse in the upper room where Jesus introduces the Lord’s Supper in the reinterpretation of the Passover meal. Its inclusion here provides important clarification regarding the nature of the new community Jesus is bringing into existence. This closeness includes the most intimate of relations between Jesus and each of his followers. It is part of the union with God that they enter into in Christ through membership in his flock.
This new community is based in his death, in his laying down his life for the sheep (10:15). The very pattern of life in this new community is that of life laid down for one another, a cruciform life. The possibility of such a life and the power for such a life come through the life of the Son of God poured out on the cross. The effect is the uniting of God and mankind by taking away the sin of the world and revealing the glory of God. The cross doesn’t simply teach us that Christ has died but] teaches us how to live.
Before revealing more about his death, Jesus mentions that he has other sheep not of this fold who must be brought also, so “there shall be one flock and one shepherd” (v. 16). The most natural reading, accepted by most commentators, is that Jesus is referring to sheep from outside the fold of Judaism. There are Gentiles who will listen to his voice and be joined to his flock. Thus, in this section that speaks of Jesus' founding a community apart from official Judaism, Jesus himself speaks to one of the greatest points of controversy in the earliest church. He does not clearly specify on what terms the Gentiles are to be included, and so the church later had to discern his will whether or not Gentiles must become converts to Judaism in order to join his flock.
They are already his sheep because they have been given to him by the Father, yet they must hear his call and respond. So once again we see both divine sovereignty and human responsibility at play. In saying that he must bring them also he speaks of the love that goes in search of the lost, which is a theme running throughout this Gospel and indeed the New Testament.
But how will he bring the Gentiles? When Gentiles do come to him it signals his hour has finally arrived (12:20, 23), but Jesus himself is not seen going to the Gentiles. He will bring the Gentiles into the flock by the ministry of his disciples, whom he will send. Jesus will continue his own ministry through his people, which will be accomplished through the presence of the Spirit. They are the ones who will bring the Gentiles, but Jesus is saying it is he himself who is doing so. This is an example of the oneness between the shepherd and his flock.
Similarly, the one shepherd unites the flock. The oneness comes from sharing the life of the one God in his Son by his Spirit. This will fuse what was once separate into a spiritual entity.
So what should this look like? I read an article in the “Gospel Coalition” on what is called the “Cruciform Life”.
“The term ‘cruciform’ literally means ‘shaped like the cross.’ A cruciform life embodies the qualities of the cross of Christ: humility, acceptance of suffering, sorrow, grief, and loss. At the other end of the cross lies resurrection, restoration, triumph, and joy.
In essence, a cruciform life is about self-sacrifice, compassion, and embracing both the challenges and the hope found in the cross. It invites us to live in a way that reflects Christ’s love and sacrifice for humanity.”
It means that we learn to ask God to help us employ the two greatest commandments that we remind ourselves of weekly.
The disciples started learning this in earnest after Pentecost because the only way to live a life of loving obedience to God and sacrificial love to those around us is through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
This can turn Hatred into Love—Apathy and indifference into compassion and genuine concern. May God pour out His power and love into our midst.
Let’s pray.
