What is one of your favorite images of the Lord Jesus? For many Christians it is that of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. I remember as a young child seeing a picture of the Lord Jesus with a small flock of sheep surrounding Him, as He tenderly holds a little lamb in His arms. Whenever I think of the Good Shepherd, I think of that painting, especially as I know that I am one of His flock. Today’s Scripture is from the Apostle John’s Gospel, where Jesus tells us of the beloved title of His.
Just prior to our Scripture Jesus had healed a man who had been born blind. Now He is speaking, teaching the people of His role as the Good Shepherd of His people. Let’s see what Jesus has to teach us in this brief passage about the Good Shepherd, what the Good Shepherd does for those who are in His flock.
In John’s Gospel, Jesus spoke of several titles that He called Himself, such as the Bread of Life (John 6:35), the Light of the World (John 8:12), and the Resurrection (John 11:25-26) to name a few. Here Jesus identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd. The image of a shepherd would be very familiar to His audience, much more than for most people today. A shepherd guards, protects, and leads the sheep in his care. A shepherd doing his job well will make sure that the sheep in his care have plenty of good fields to graze in, along with fresh water to drink. When they need to move to another field, he will lead them on a safe route to their next grazing place. The shepherd knows each sheep, and will notice and give medical care to any one who is injured or ill. Finally, he keeps a careful watch out for any predators, and will chase or fight them off when they approach.
As we look at Jesus, we see that He certainly fits the role of the Good Shepherd to perfection. He provides us believers, the sheep of His flock, with all we need. He watches over and cares for us all along our life journey, from one “field” to another. Jesus protects us from our enemies, especially those in the spiritual realm, and He made the ultimate sacrifice of a good shepherd, and that was by giving His life for us (vs. 11), His substitutionary death on the cross for sinners.
Jesus continues on by comparing the good shepherd with that of a hireling, one who is hired to help watch over the sheep, but who is not the actual shepherd (vs. 12-13). The hireling does not care about the sheep as the true shepherd does. He is just there to earn a paycheck, and when danger comes, he flees. He isn’t going to sacrifice himself for the sheep. The hireling in this passage represents the religious leaders, both in His day and today, who perform their duty in good times, but who never display sacrificial care for the sheep in times of danger. This is in contrast to Jesus, who laid down His life for His flock.
A hired hand tends the sheep for money, while the shepherd does it for love. The shepherd owns the sheep, and is committed to them. Jesus is not merely doing a job. He is committed to love us, and even lay down His life for us. False teachers and leaders do not have this commitment. True sheep do not belong to false shepherds. Sheep that do choose to follow a false shepherd will do so to their doom and destruction.
As has been shown many times, sheep can recognize the voice of their shepherd. And a good shepherd knows each one of his sheep. To most of us, sheep all look the same, but to the shepherd, he can identify each one. Jesus knows those who are a part of His flock. We are not just a part of the crowd to Him. He knows us each individually (vs. 14-15). If the Savior knows our name, we are certainly loved! Life is not meaningless!
Jesus closes this passage by telling His audience that there are other sheep who are not part of this fold. These sheep must be brought in and become one flock with one Shepherd (vs. 16). Jesus was referring to the Gentiles, who initially were not part of the fold with the Jews. However they would also become part of the Church, along with Jewish believers. Jesus’ death upon the cross was for both Jews and Gentiles. They both make up one body, the Church.
As we close our look of Jesus as our Shepherd, we see the Good Shepherd dies for the sheep. The Great Shepherd lives for the sheep (Hebrews 13:20), and the Chief Shepherd comes for the sheep (I Peter 5:4). Jesus is our Good Shepherd, and because of His loving care, we will have all that we will ever need as a part of His flock.
No comments:
Post a Comment