I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep

 "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.  To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.

Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  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 that they may have it more abundantly.  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.  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 I 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.  Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father." 

- John 10:1-18

In our current readings, Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles.  On this last day of the Feast, He has preached to the crowds and sparred with the religious leaders.   In the sixth sign of John's Gospel, Jesus has healed a man blind from birth, whom the religious authorities now debate and question.   In yesterday's reading, we were told that the leaders did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind and received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight.  And they asked them, saying, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind?  How then does he now see?"  His parents answered them and said, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but by what means he now sees we do not know, or who opened his eyes we do not know.  He is of age; ask him.  He will speak for himself."   So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, "Give God the glory!  We know that this Man is a sinner."  He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know.  One thing I know:  that though I was blind, now I see."  Then they said to him again, "What did He do to you?  How did He open your eyes?"  He answered them, "I told you already, and you did not listen.  Why do you want to hear it again?  Do you also want to become His disciples?"  Then they reviled him and said, "You are His disciple, but we are Moses' disciples.  We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from."  The man answered and said to them, "Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes!  Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him.  Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.  If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing." They answered and said to him, "You were completely born in sins, and are you teaching us?"  And they cast him out.  Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when He had found him, He said to him, "Do you believe in the Son of God?"  He answered and said, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?"  And Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you."  Then he said, "Lord, I believe!"  And he worshiped Him.  And Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind."  Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, "Are we blind also?"  Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.'  Therefore your sin remains."

"Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.  But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep."  Christ here is contrasting the leadership of the men with whom He has been disputing with His own leadership.  My study bible says that they have failed as pastors of God's people ("pastor" comes from the Latin word for "shepherd").  Their leadership has been marked by deceit and pride and has lacked compassion.  On the other hand, Christ fulfills all virtue.  In accordance with the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, the door is God's Word, which means both the Scriptures and the Lord Himself, since the Scriptures reveal to us God the Word.  The one who tries to lead in a way that is neither in Christ nor according to the teaching of the Scriptures is a thief and a robber.   Rather than using this door so all can see His works openly, these false shepherd use underhanded means to control, steal, and manipulate people, ultimately destroying their souls (v. 10).  By contrast, those who lead according to Christ will find eternal life (v. 9).

"To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers."  Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them.  My study bible tells us that as Christ has intimate knowledge of every person, so also true pastors in the Church strive to know their people by name; that is, personally.  Such pastors endeavor to understand each person's situation and needs, from the greatest to the least, expressing Christlike compassion for each one (Hebrews 4:15).  In return, people respond to a true leader, trusting that such a one is a follower of Christ.  Ignatius of Antioch comments, "Where the bishop is present, there the people shall gather."  In a traditional perspective, the response of the faithful can be a better indicator of just who is a true shepherd than the claims of leaders (7:47-49).

Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.  All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.  I am the door.  If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture."   My study bible tells us that the phrase all who ever came before Me doesn't refer to Moses or to genuine prophets, but rather to people who claimed to be the Messiah both before and after Christ, such as Judas of Galilee and Theudas (Acts 5:36-37). 

"The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.  I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."  The ultimate thief, my study bible says, is Satan, who spreads lies and heresies among the people of God, which lures away both leaders and people.  Life means living in God's grace here on earth, and the more abundant life indicates the Kingdom to come.

"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.  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 I lay down My life for the sheep."  Here is Christ revealing Himself as the good shepherd.  As such, He enters by the door -- in other words, He fulfills the Scriptures which concern Himself.  He knows and is known by the Father.  Furthermore, He knows His people personally, and therefore is known by them.  Finally, He gives His life for the sake of His people, a direct prophecy of the coming Passion.

"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."  Other sheep are the Gentiles, who will be brought into the one flock with the Jews under one shepherd.  Therefore, for example, the Church transcends ethnic and racial lines.  My study bible notes that tradition from the beginning declared one bishop serving a city (Canon 8 of I Nicea).  In the early second century, St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote to a Church that held separate liturgies for Jewish and Gentile Christians, "Be careful to observe a single Eucharist, for there is one Flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, and one cup of His Blood that makes us one, and one altar, just as there is one bishop. . . . This is in line with God's will."

"Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.  No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.  This command I have received from My Father."  Jesus is expressing the voluntary nature of the sacrifice He will make in His life-giving death on the Cross.  Moreover, He does nothing apart from the will of His Father.  This is a foundation in love for the faith He teaches.  My study bible says that as He laid down His life for us, so we lay down our lives for Him and for the sake of others.

Today's reading is simply packed with meanings and insights given by Christ about Himself, His Church, and the nature of His communion with the Father and with us.  Once again, as so often has been the case throughout John's Gospel, everything goes back to the Father.  Christ's identity comes from the Father (His sheep are those given to Him by the Father, see 6:37-39), there is no Son without the Father, and in today's reading He tells us that everything that is going to happen -- including the life He will lay down to take it again -- is by command of the Father.  There is more in today's reading, and that is the context of love which is expressed through the actions described, and which of course will become more explicit as the Gospel continues.  The good shepherd is one who will lay down his life for his sheep.  There is true devotion here, true care, true concern.  Moreover, the flock is that given by the Father, and so there is the bond of love between Father and Son which is extended to the sheep.  The sacrifice of life for the sake of others is a sacrifice expressing love.  That the sheep hear his voice -- the voice of the good shepherd --  is a recognition of love and care.  And by contrast, the stranger cares nothing for the sheep, and the sheep will not respond.  Love and care are intertwined with all of these teachings, but there is deeper meaning here about the nature of faith as well.  Love and care inspire both trust and loyalty.  These are two essential aspects of Christian faith.  The very essence of the Greek word for "faith" that is used in the Gospels has the root meaning of trust.  What makes you trust someone?  Why does a child trust a parent?  Why would a "sheep" respond to the voice of the "good shepherd" who calls the sheep by name?  Love in the heart of a person inspires trust in the object of that love.  Our faith is a kind of trust placed in the Good Shepherd, whom we know is not the thief nor the stranger who cares nothing for the sheep.  Just as Jesus, the Good Shepherd, implicitly puts His trust in the Father and the commands given to Him by the Father, so we place our trust in Christ.  Moreover, the expression of love is in loyalty.  Christ's loyalty to the Father is complete, and as His sheep, He asks for our loyalty as well, just as He is loyal to us to the point of death.  All of these sayings in today's readings are indicators about the nature of our faith, its rootedness in love, and its expression in love, loyalty, and trust to the point of the greatest sacrifice to save others in this flock.  The early martyrs will, of course, take this quite seriously, putting their lives on the line for Christ.  How, then, do we take this seriously today?  What do we put on the line for Christ, our Good Shepherd?  Is there anything that we sacrifice for the sake of love and trust in Him?  How does His loyalty to you call you forward, and how are you in turn loyal to Him?  Let us consider these questions, because they still pull at us, they remain real and valid for all time.  Our Good Shepherd remains the One who laid down His life for us, who calls us through love, who asks of us to do the same for love.  He gives us His loyalty and strength, and we follow Him.  How deeply do you rely on His trust and care for your life?