4 And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the Lord.
His Life for the Sheep
KJV John 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
The best way to know the true nature of Jesus is to hear what He said about Himself. The place where we find the most proclamations from Jesus about Jesus is the Fourth Gospel. This is what the rationalists warn us against. In the last 200 years or so, following the rationalists at Halle University, people have spent less time on John's Gospel and far more time on Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Here is the argument, which is used in many similar cases, called circular reasoning. "Jesus did not consider Himself the Son of God or the Messiah, so those passages are not accurate. The Fourth Gospel is full of these claims, so it must have been written 300 or 400 AD." But, the earliest fragment of any Gospel is from the Gospel of John and it belongs to the first century AD, making its authorship centuries later to be a figment of the convenient imagination - still argued today by the mindless and the faithless.
Here is a simple but powerful statement. Simple in words used, powerful in meaning. "I AM" is the Name of God, Exodus 3. Moses needed the Name of God so he could speak on behalf of God. The Angel of the Lord, speaking from the Burning Bush. "I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God." Exodus 3:6. So first of all we see the Trinitarian nature of God, subtle but revealed in many OT citations. The Name of God is simply - or profoundly - I AM. "Tell them I AM sent you."
So we should look at the I am statements of Jesus as I AM, beginning with His Name from the Burning Bush. That is the only explanation for His rebuke of the opponents in John 8 - "Before Abraham was, I AM." God has always existed. The Son of God has always existed. Go ahead and claim Abraham as your father by blood. I AM - that is, I created all things, and any person you venerate, I created that life and existed even before time was.
The second part of the statement tells us the nature of the Son of God. He is not simply the Good Shepherd in the original text, but I AM the Shepherd the Good. This is the Greek way of saying - I AM - the Son of God is - the Noblest, the Best, the Unique Shepherd. So there is no other shepherd like Him. He is the template of all who would call themselves shepherd (pastor = shepherd in Latin).
This section of John's Gospel - John 10:1ff - starts with Jesus describing the fraudulent shepherds. This is easily followed according to the practices there. The door was an opening into the fold where multiple flocks were kept and guarded. The true shepherds came to that door, which was guarded, and enter because they are known, genuine, shepherds. They speak to their own sheep by name and lead them out. Thieves and robbers climb over the wall, sneaking in to steal the sheep.
10. But that we may make it the plainer, and may understand it the better, we will cite a passage from the prophet Ezekiel, where he speaks of the wicked shepherds that are against Christ, when he says (34:2ff): “Should not the Shepherds feed the sheep? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill the fatlings; but ye feed not the sheep. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought back that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with rigor have ye ruled over them. And they were scattered, because there was no shepherd; and they become food to all the beasts of the field and were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my sheep were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and there was none that did search or seek after them,” and so forth. Accordingly, God reproves the shepherds who do not keep the sheep. And now mark well what he has written. His earnest intent in this paragraph is that the weak, sick, broken, those who are driven away and the lost, are to be strengthened, bound up, healed, and sought again, and that they are not to be torn to pieces and scattered. This you should have done, says he to the shepherds, but you have not done it; therefore, I will do it myself. As he says further on, in verse 16: “I will seek that which was lost, I will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick.”
A true shepherd has two main functions, which are to lead his sheep to pasture and to protect them from harm. The sheep are weak and not very philosophical or intellectual. But they know this, if they need water or food or protection, it must come from the shepherd.
This is an excellent parable or comparison, because the attributes of bad shepherds fit so well. There are so many today, like the Bentley driving minister who would not help a parishioner until she gave 10%. Then - maybe. Maintenance work on a $150,000 car would be enough to help an impoverished person with her bills, but no - she had to give first.
the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Jesus is the unique shepherd above all shepherds, the model for the rest. He did what no one else could do - He gave up His life to atone for the sins of all people. That is an an event, a fact which remains true whether anyone believes it or not, which is quite different from a declaration. The atonement is universal in nature, but Justification is personal for this reason - When the atonement (the Gospel) is taught, the Gospel Word (or the report) creates faith and that person is forgiven. The nature of Justification by Faith is such that our faith is constantly renewed and strengthened.
Luther stressed his sermons on this text - Jesus is the Good Shepherd for the weak, the sick, the distressed.
12. First, he says: The sheep that are weak are to be strengthened; that is, consciences weak in faith and troubled in spirit and of tender disposition are not to be driven and told: You must do this. You must be strong. If you are weak, you are lost. That is not strengthening the weak. St. Paul, speaking to the Romans ( Romans 14:1) says: “But him that is weak in faith receive ye, yet not for decision of scruples.” And shortly afterwards ( Romans 15:1) he says: “Now we that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak.” Accordingly, they should not be driven with rigor, but should be comforted, even though they are weak, lest they be driven to despair; and in time they will grow stronger.
13. Isaiah, the prophet, speaks of Christ likewise ( Isaiah 42:3): “A bruised reed will he not break, and a dimly burning wick will he not quench.” The bruised reeds are poor, tender consciences, which are easily distracted so that they tremble and despair of God. He does not fly at them then, and trample them under foot; that is not his way. But he deals with them gently, lest he break them to pieces. Again, the dimly burning wick, which still burns at least, though there be more smoke than fire there, he does not wholly quench, but lights, and again and again trims it. That is a great consolation, indeed, to such as experience it; and, therefore, he who does not deal gently with tender consciences is no good shepherd.
This shows the irony of the times, when churches think they exist to glorify themselves and to emphasize success. Those are the false shepherds who will not visit the sick, shut-in, the grieving. They are too busy being successful - but also, they have the wrong mindset completely.
The church is not a clubhouse for the strong to sing their favorite fight songs, but an infirmary where medicine is administered through the Gospel. We go to oncology once a month. Everyone has something in common. Someone in the family has cancer and the rest are there to help and support, so everyone is there for help, encouragement, and above all - medicine.
So many have experienced being browbeaten that they do not think of coming to church for the medicine of immortality. Those who need the Gospel are like those who are broke that do not think they can even step into the bank to ask for money. After all, a banker is someone who loans you an umbrella until it rains - then he wants it back.
So this view of Jesus as the Good Shepherd is not only accurate - coming from Him alone - and attested by the entire Old Testament - but also appealing and soothing. I have known many types of clergy - trickster, lying politicians; angry chest-thumpers; and kindly fellows who always have something supportive to say. Sometimes it is that one word needed most, but that Word comes from an experience with trial and faith in God's work and will. For instance, one pastor told me about his travail about church debt and how he worried to death about it. Finally he realized it was nothing and just a weevil in his brain. He told me that just when I was also worried because it was stressed so often. And it did not matter.
People think back and remember, "Who was at my bedside in the hospital or at home?" Yet modern church management has pastors doing everything BUT preparing the medicine (the sermon) and visiting the sick and shut-in, who need the medicine the most.
Christ is the embodiment of forgiveness, because we are daily absolved of guilt through faith in Him. We are not worthy - He makes us worthy. When we feel lost, torn, forgotten, ignored, and abused, He smiles upon us and takes us on His shoulders, rejoicing. He said, in effect to Paul Gerhardt, "I will let you suffer all losses, and then even more, so you can use your God-given gifts to comfort the weak and afflicted in your hymns. You have the most talent, but that will never be tested in a big parsonage and worldly honors."
12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. 13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
It is so funny, because now we can watch the videos on the computer and listen to the hired-hands sneering at others. "Look at my numbers! No one is equal to me!" And others think, "We can learn from him. Look at his numbers." In one case, over $100,000 was missing - and so was the pastor. In another, $300,000.
The frauds of yesteryear are back on TV. They will always be around and doing very well for themselves. But what they administer, while stealing, is deadly.
14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
This is the medicine administered by the Good Shepherd. This is flu and allergy season, so the shopping list says - Be sure and get the best medicine for this. For me, it is simply a salt-water wash, to rinse away the allergens and soothe the nasal membranes. Absent that, the channel for oxygen is blocked and often dynamited with explosive sneezes - which make it worse.
Jesus knows who belongs to Him, and most importantly, we know if He belongs to us. We know His voice and find it soothing and cheering, rather than frightening and annoying. That shows how powerful the genuine Gospel is - giving us, through the spoken Word, the absolute certainty of God's grace and forgiveness, His wise guidance and rule over this world.
So many unusual things happen from the Gospel, which seems weak to unbelievers, that we know how powerful it is. Every so often, when I wonder how valuable it is to do one more book or post, etc, something astonishing happens, far beyond anyone's imagination. It is like aiming to hit the ball in softball and seeing it sail over the fence beyond reach (not in my experience). So I was thinking, "Let's put all of Luther's Lenker sermons in one file and give it away." I was hoping for a bunt into a few seminaries and who knows from there. But it sailed all the way to Pakistan.
And who was Lenker? He went to a tiny seminary, Hamma, which was merged into Trinity and forgotten except by a few. Lenker taught at Dana College, which was so small and weak that it could no longer exist, not even as an online school. Both his institutions are gone, but Luther remains in print, with illustrations in color, on Kindle and Dropbox in full color.
Lenker did quite a bit in publishing and was largely forgotten, or picked up for a time and forgotten again. But what survives? The Word of God preached by Luther. In the same way we do one little thing and it contributes to the vast and intricate structure of the invisible Kingdom of God.
The Word of the Gospel is so strong that it calls people out of unbelief and into faith in their Lord and Savior.
15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
The Spirit caused John to remember especially Jesus' identity with the Father, not the same Person of the Trinity but the same unified Voice. There is not a separate concept or mission, a different mercy and love. The Father sent the Son so the world would know His true nature, His kindliness and forbearance, His grace and mercy.
This is summarized in "I lay down My life for the sheep." As predicted centuries before, Jesus would give up His life for the life of the sheep, He would heal them of their sins by His stripes.
This is what makes the Gospel paradoxical, a seeming contradiction. The Creating Word dies in apparent weakness to defeat the greatest powers of all - sin and death. Only the Son could die for the sins of the world. He offered up His life freely, so when He was arrested, beaten, humiliated, tortured, and killed, it was to fulfill the Promises and provide Himself as bait for Satan. In dying, He seemed to lose, and that is the problem with spiritual blindness. What is true seems wrong, and what is wrong seems so appealing. Even Satan and his allies were encouraged and heartened. Jesus' disciples were appalled, afraid, and weakened. But both impressions were very short-lived.
The entire world is fairly certain that Jesus rose from the dead. Only the cutting edge of atheism mocks that fact. That is a quick test I administer, "Did Jesus really rise from the dead, bodily, leaving an empty tomb." The cute response at the moment is - "That is not an important doctrine," truly a laughable excuse, but also the ultimate confession of unbelief.
As long as people identify Easter with the actual resurrection of Christ, that Promise of eternal life will plant faith in the hearts of sceptics, fence-sitters, and lukewarm Christians. So many events in life make us look at eternal life. And here is the sentence that began the Passion, when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead - "I AM the Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Me, even though he die, he will live again." John 11:25
So the weakest are the most strong, because they have Christ and rest in the "shadow of His wings."
16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
I have been at meetings where this was taught as Jesus praying for the establishment of the World Council of (unbelieving) Churches and its cousin, the National Council of (unbelieving) Churches. There is only one true Church, which is invisible and built on faith in the Promises of God. There is only one Shepherd, no room for Buddha, Cho, and Walther.
I know a lot of pastors in the shadows. I never name them. In many cases, there is no indication of friendship at all - not that it matters ultimately. What unites us is that role of being under the one true Shepherd. They know that the verbal and financial knocks they have taken are substitutes - because the great and wise Pharisees of today cannot beat and torture Christ. He is beyond their reach, so they look for substitutes to show their hatred of the Gospel. The shame is - they are honored and treated so well, their blindness becomes worse and their hardness hardens. They justify themselves until the end when it only matters if we are justified by faith in the Savior, not by faith in ourselves.
