Who would want to be a sheep?

 

John 10: 1-10

In this day and age, it’s not exactly a compliment to call someone a sheep.   Sheep have a reputation for not being too bright, for following blindly without thinking or questioning,  and having no real capability for intellect or independent thought.

Now, of course, we need to question.   To think through our faith.   To look at the evidence.   We don’t want to be thought of as stupid, or to actually be stupid.   Yet, the analogy, or metaphor, of Jesus as a shepherd and us as the sheep is a recurring theme in the Bible.   Understanding the context gives us a better understanding of what this means...

 

God as the Shepherd of Israel

How would Jesus’ hearers have understood this?

They would have understood the shepherd to symbolise a royal caretaker of God’s people – God himself is called the shepherd of Israel in the Psalms.   He had given responsibility to leaders who hadn’t lived up to their calling, and this included the Pharisees and chief priests – these were false shepherds - and he promised to send the true shepherd, the Messiah – Jesus - to care for the people.

 

Jesus as a shepherd

Jesus develops this idea as a parable, a simple story or illustration to convey a deeper truth.   He uses a picture of a sheep and a shepherd to show his relationship to his followers.

 To understand this, we need to put aside our ideas of sheep farming and consider how sheep were farmed in the first century in this region.   Because modern sheep farming has virtually nothing in common with first-century Palestinian shepherds.   

 

Jesus as the gate

At that time, at night, a shepherd would herd his sheep into a low-walled enclosure made of rocks.    And this sheepfold would have a small opening, around 2-3 feet, but no gate, so that the shepherd would lie across the opening.   The shepherd would literally become the gate, or the door.

 Jesus shows the kind of leader he is; he is the gate, or the door.   The way in.   There were others around who were eager to lead, but He is the only way for sheep to get into the sheepfold.

He was even more explicit, John 14: 6

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me…” (NIVUK)

In Greek, ‘I am’ is a very intense way of referring to oneself. We could translate this as ‘I myself, and only I, am’.   He is the only way to the Father.   The only way into the sheepfold.   Do not believe those who say they offer another way in, climbing over the walls.

As well as being the only way in, the shepherd keeps the sheep safe by sitting in the doorway… stopping the sheep from wandering away and keeping wild animals out.  These images speak to us; Jesus is the only way into the sheepfold.   For those in the sheepfold, those who trust we know God because of Jesus, he also keeps us safe.   Think about the things that frighten us.   The things that rob us of our peace with God.   This image shows us that Jesus wants us to know that he keeps us safe.   We do not need to be scared of the things that could harm us spiritually.

 

Know his voice

As well as being the gate, Jesus says he is the Shepherd, in v11, just after our reading, he calls himself ‘the Good Shepherd’.

 Tom Wright has been to the Middle East and seen shepherds with their sheep.   He writes (in ‘John for Everyone’): 

To this day, in the Middle East, a shepherd will go into a crowded sheepfold and call out his own sheep one by one, naming them.   They recognise his voice and come to him.

The shepherd, after all, spends most hours of most days in their company.   He knows their individual characters, markings, likes and dislikes.   What’s more, they know him.   They know his voice.   Someone else can come to the sheepfold, and they won’t go near him, even if he calls the right names.   They are listening for the one voice that matters, the voice they trust.

 The shepherd walks ahead of his sheep; forget 'one man and his dog' driving the sheep from behind; the shepherd would walk in front, and the sheep would know his voice and follow him.

 

Abundant Life

Like the relationship between the sheep and the shepherd, Jesus is talking about a relationship with his followers.   People who trust Him.   Who know what He stands for and are prepared to live this out.   Being a follower of Jesus is more than an intellectual exercise; it is something that is borne out in how we live.

The Christian life is about knowing Jesus.   Hearing His voice and following Him.   We too can know the shepherd, and be known by him.   And live that ‘life to the full’, ‘abundant life’ or ‘life in its fullest measure’.    

 Our reading from Acts (Acts 2: 42-end) gives another insight into how the early church worked out what this life looks like practically.   They met together, spending time with each other, being taught, praying, and they ate together, sharing together in what we call communion.   They also had a concern for each other, helping each other out practically.    Christian life is not meant to be lived in isolation, but amongst other Christians.

 

Response

How do we respond to this?

It’s about relationship.

To know him, to know his voice, to have that familiarity to tell his voice apart from all the others comes from spending time with Him.   Praying.   Reading the Bible.   Talking about Him with others.   Then we will be able to pick out his voice from the many other voices that shout for our attention, that say “this is the way to live”.  

Don’t listen to anyone else who claims to offer another way.   The sheep do not listen to a stranger’s voice.   Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees – an unofficial but powerful group who said the answer to how to live came through strict observance of the law, with their own interpretations and meanings of what we now call the Bible, their own patterns of living.   Jesus often clashed with the Pharisees.   They were not openly evil, but he particularly viewed them as self-righteous and hypocritical, focusing on outward appearances and lacking love.

We can learn from this example today; don’t listen to anyone or anything that just promotes self-righteousness and outward appearances rather than true moral integrity.  

Yes, God gives rules, but don’t miss love and grace.

 The true shepherd is concerned with his sheep, not himself.   Listen to the voice of the true shepherd, the good shepherd, Jesus.

 This will take time to develop.   Relationships don’t just happen; they are the result of investing time.   Our relationship with God depends on an acknowledgement of our need of Him, our separation from Him and finding forgiveness as we turn to Him and trust in His death and resurrection to enable us to be forgiven.   But it doesn’t stop there, or it shouldn’t.   As I have said many times before, that is just the start.   He wants us to ‘grow up’, to mature, to get to know Him better.

 I don’t want this to be an empty, guilt-inducing challenge, where I say ‘come to the prayer meetings’, ‘make coming on a Sunday a priority’, ‘spend time with God every day – read some of the Bible, think about it and pray’ (there are apps that help with this.)

These are all good things, but I don’t want you to do them out of guilt or to make me feel better.   This is coming from a place of me not wanting anyone to miss out.   So try them out.   Ask God to strengthen your relationship with Him.   Don’t miss out.

 

Conclusion

John placed this passage after questions as to who Jesus was.    Is Jesus from God or not?  Is He the Messiah, the one whom God will set as judge over the world? 

Jesus answered with a figure of speech, where he likens himself to a shepherd, the good shepherd.   The image of a shepherd is used in the Old Testament to refer to a king and his people.   Jesus is using this image to explain his claim to be the true King.   Our King.   Our shepherd.

So, to begin where I started, who would want to be a sheep?   Perhaps you would if your shepherd were:

•        A God who wants us to know him
• A God who knows us, cares for us and wants to keep us safe, safe from wandering away and safe from evil.  
• A God who wants us to know His voice, so that we can recognise His voice and see where He leads.
• A God who wants us to follow Him, living as He intended us to live, having life to the full.

 I’ll end with one other image of a shepherd, that of David, the shepherd boy of the Old Testament who became king.   A man, God said, was ‘after my own heart’.

 That’s what God is seeking from His people; people after His own heart.

 

Revd Kevin