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 

 

Yesterday we read that the religious leaders the did not believe concerning the healed man who was born blind, 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."  His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had agreed already that if anyone confessed that He was Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue.  Therefore his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."  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."   As we begin chapter 10, Jesus is continuing His conversation with the Pharisees.  This is taking place at the conclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles.  My study bible comments that Jesus -- in the entirety of today's reading -- contrasts their leadership with His own.  They have failed as pastors of God's people ("pastor" comes from the Latin word for "shepherd").  It says their leadership has been marked by deceit and pride and has lacked compassion.  Christ, on the other hand, fulfills all virtue.  According to St. John Chrysostom, the door is God's Word,  meaning both the Scriptures and our Lord Himself, since the Scriptures reveal 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 Christ's works openly, these false shepherds use underhanded means to control, steal, and manipulate people, which ultimately destroys their souls.  By contrast, my study bible says, those pastors who lead according to Christ will find eternal life (see verses 9-10).  

"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 comments here 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.  These pastors endeavor to understand each person's situation and needs, from the greatest to the least, possessing Christ-like compassion for each one (Hebrews 4:15).  In return, the people will respond to a true leader, it says, trusting he is a follower of Christ.  St. Ignatius of Antioch is quoted as saying, "Where the bishop is present, there the people shall gather."  The response of the faithful can be a better indicator of 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. 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."  My study bible says that the phrase all who ever came before Me does not refer to Moses or to genuine prophets.  It refers, instead, to people claiming to be the Messiah both before and after Christ, such as Judas of Galilee and Theudas (Acts 5:36-37).   The ultimate thief is Satan, who spreads lies and heresies among the people of God, in order to lure away both leaders and people.  Life, my study bible explains, means living in God's grace here on earth, and 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 Jesus reveals Himself as the good shepherd."  My study bible comments that the good shepherd 1) enters by the door; in other words, He fulfills the Scriptures concerning Himself; 2) He knows and is known by the Father; 3) He knows His people personally, and therefore is known by them; and 4) He gives His life for the sake of His people, a direct prophecy of His 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 the one shepherd.   Therefore, for example, the Church from its earliest beginning has transcended ethnic and racial lines.  From the beginning, it was the teaching that there is one bishop serving a city (I Nicea; see Canon 8), a principle affirmed in each generation.  In the early second century, St. Ignatius wrote to a Church which 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."   My study bible comments on Christ assertion I lay down My life:  Christ is clear that His life-giving death is going to be voluntary.  He doesn't do anything apart from the will of the Father.  As Christ laid down His life for us, so we also lay down our lives for Him and for the sake of others.

There is quite a bit to unpack and think about in today's reading.  Jesus brings in all kinds of concepts that haven't been put together before.  Not only has He just mentioned that His mission into this world is concerned with judgment (see the final verses in yesterday's reading, above), but here in today's reading He reveals Himself as the good shepherd, the One who will be the shepherd for all.  What characterizes this shepherd, and how do we know Him?  First of all, He is the door.  He's the way for the sheep.  And the sheep know His voice, just as Christ knows the Father.  There is a relationship of love and of care.  He gives the sheep what they need, for them there is the word that leads to eternal life and to abundant life -- not simply in an afterlife, but here in this world, to find that grace which He can give to our lives.  It is in Him that we know and are known.  There is a union of love that characterizes our relationship to the true good shepherd, who is here for all people, Jew and Gentile, so that we are one flock.  He contrasts the good shepherd with the robbers, the thieves, the ones who lie and don't care about truth, who don't know His Father.  This is the choice we're given.  As followers of Jesus, we are asked to keep our eyes open -- even as the blind man has been healed -- to know our Good Shepherd and to truly know our leaders, so that we also identify the false ones, in whatever guise they come (Matthew 7:15).  Finally, the good shepherd is the One who will give His life for His sheep.  He has come into the world in order to so deeply identify with us that He will take on all the responsibility for the sheep, and do whatever it takes to protect them, so they may have this abundant life.  It is His enemies who will simply destroy without a thought.  And in this is cemented in the love between the Father, the Son, and the flock.  Each is inseparable in that love, for the command comes from the Father, and the Son volunteers to follow.  It's a lot to consider, but let us contrast the Good Shepherd with the thieves who don't care about the flock, for that remains pertinent with us to this day, no matter what the setting, nominal group, or nature of relationship we're talking about.  The judgment is here, hidden in these spiritual things that need a spiritual perception on our part to understand.  It needs discernment, to which He very clearly calls all of us in our capacity as rational sheep.  His flock are all those who know His voice.