Are You Sheep of the Good Shepherd?

Engage in sacred Scripture: John 10:1-21.

“I am the Good Shepherd.” These words are familiar to any Sunday School student, seminary professor, and, I suppose, every pastor worth his weight in gold. 

It makes for good sermons, lesson plans, and devotions. But what does it really mean?

The Good Shepherd?

Take a moment; I would like you to read these words, maybe from a different perspective than you’ve known before. Remember, they come from the lips of the head of the Church.

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd gives His life for 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 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. John 10:11 & 14-15 NKJV.

Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, is the Good Shepherd. He speaks with perfect clarity. Yet many refuse to hear His voice – not because it lacks anything, but because they do not belong to His flock.

Therefore, there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?” Others said, “These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” John 10:19-21 NKJV.

Good Shepherd/Head of the Church

The Good Shepherd speaking to the Jews that day is the head of the Church, and a new sheepfold was formed that didn’t exclude the ones who heeded His call:

For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Eph 2:14-18 NKJV.

So, the Good Shepherd is our peace. We are no longer strangers or foreigners to the will of God, but fellow citizens with those who have gone before us. 

Because of the Good Shepherd, we are members of the household of God – sheep added into the one sheepfold! 

Our Good Shepherd

So, when your pastor stands up and comes to the platform, they do not come alone. They are co-shepherds of the Good Shepherd. What they teach will come from the voice of Jesus Christ. 

So, lean in to listen and stop to learn. His sheep hear His voice. 

Good or bad Co-Shepherds?

It is important to see this chapter as a chapter of warning. The Good Shepherd is selfless, heals, and sacrifices for the flock. The “bad shepherd” is self-serving, exploiting the sheep for their personal gain. They neglect the marginal and vulnerable only to abandon the sheep when danger comes. 

We will know them by what they do and what they say. The Good Shepherd has warned us. And we do well to live the life with God in daily fellowship as we set our hearts on Sacred Scripture.

The Good Shepherd is our good example. 

For good, sacred Scripture has been entrusted to us and handed down from generation to generation. The Lord has guarded it against error.

It is the voice of God.

The Good Shepherd Versus…

Why does Jesus refer to Himself as the “Good Shepherd” and not just the Shepherd? 

The motivation of the Good Shepherd is to love, and His genuine desire is to care for the sheep. Not so, the bad shepherd, for they are motivated by personal profit, status, and self-preservation. The sheep is no more than a good paycheck.

Faithful, good co-shepherds point the flock to the voice of the Good Shepherd revealed in sacred Scripture.

Every cult has the mark of a bad shepherd. 

This is why Scripture repeatedly warns believers to test those who teach in God’s name.

The bad shepherd leaves the sheep hungry and thirsty, the vulnerable exposed, and the marginal remain hopeless. The bad shepherd ignores the weak and rules with harshness and brutality.

On the other hand, the sick, injured, and lost are safe with the Good Shepherd. He binds their wounds and seeks them out.  

When danger comes, the bad shepherd cowardly runs away, finding another place to go. But trouble follows him even as he leaves the sheep scattered and devoured. 

Warning! Warning! Warning!

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. John 10:11-13 NKJV.

So Now What?

Jesus did not call Himself the Good Shepherd for no good reason. The reason is clear: bad shepherds are out there. We need to know the difference. 

Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers… 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 have it more abundantly. John 10:8-10 NKJV. 

Look! Listen!

There is something about the voice of Jesus that resonates within the heart of the true believer. The longer we walk with Him and live the “with-God” life, the more clearly we will recognize His distinctive voice.

Our relationship with Jesus brings life. Not just life, but abundant life. Our life in Christ is not a mere mundane existence. We do not have to fall into the trap of the bad shepherd. 

As sheep in intimacy with the Good Shepherd, we live an ongoing, vibrant, dynamic, and good life. Life is indeed available to all, but abundant life comes through Jesus – the Good Shepherd.

Trust the Good Shepherd, and you’ll never regret it.

I confess, I peeked ahead in this chapter, and what did I find?

So, think about it… Who’s your shepherd?

Every voice is calling for your attention. Every teacher asks for your trust. Every shepherd promises something. But only, absolutely only, one laid down His life for the sheep. Only one knows His sheep by name, gives eternal life, and can say this:

And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand. John 10:28-29 NKJV.

Take Away?

We could stop here, but I think you’ll find there’s even more Scripture confirming what you already know. The Good Shepherd is worthy of our praise!  

So we, Your people and sheep of Your pasture, will give thanks forever; we will show forth Your praise to all generations. Psalm 79:13 NKJV.

Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Ps 95:6-7 NKJV. 

Behold, the Lord GOD shall come with a strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him and His work before Him. He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them to His bosom, and gently lead those who are with young. Isa 40:10-11 NKJV.