'We were
loved even before we entered the Kingdom of God, before we heard
the Shepherd's voice and followed. Loved to the cross and beyond.'
John 10
1 I tell you for certain that only thieves and robbers climb over the fence instead of going in through the gate to the sheep pen. 2-3 But the gatekeeper opens the gate for the shepherd, and he goes in through it. The sheep know their shepherd’s voice. He calls each of them by name and leads them out. 4 When he has led out all of his sheep, he walks in front of them, and they follow, because they know his voice. 5 The sheep will not follow strangers. They don’t recognize a stranger’s voice, and they run away. 6 Jesus told the people this story. But they did not understand what he was talking about.7 Jesus said: I tell you for certain that I am the gate for the sheep. 8 Everyone who came before me was a thief or a robber, and the sheep did not listen to any of them. 9 I am the gate. All who come in through me will be saved. Through me they will come and go and find pasture. 10 A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest. 11 I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd gives up his life for his sheep. 12 Hired workers are not like the shepherd. They don’t own the sheep, and when they see a wolf coming, they run off and leave the sheep. Then the wolf attacks and scatters the flock. 13 Hired workers run away because they don’t care about the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. 15 Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not in this sheep pen. I must bring them together too, when they hear my voice. Then there will be one flock of sheep and one shepherd. 17 The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so that I may receive it back again. 18 No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.
What do think is the purpose of a gate, is it to keep something out or keep something in? We put baby gates up to keep little people in the place where we want them, or out of dangerous areas (or is it to teach them mountaineering?) We lock gates and put signs on saying 'Beware of the dog' in the hope that this will deter all but the foolhardy. The gates outside our church are locked shut. The unwritten message is plain enough, there has been too much damage caused by keeping the door unlocked.
We're talking here about care, about safety, protection and security. Without the gate the child may wander into the kitchen and upturn a pan of scalding water. Without the gate the postman might enter into a one-sided argument with the Rottweiler. Without the gate, many churches have seen precious items stolen, graffiti scribbled and altars desecrated.
'I am the gate for the sheep' says Jesus. Whoever enters through this gate, through Jesus will be saved. We're talking of a gate that offers safety. From what? From the ravages of wolves and the undesirable attention of thieves and robbers, says Jesus. But does that mean that as soon as we enter, Jesus slams the door closed to keep us safe within his sheepfold, safe from harm and from all who might tempt us back outside into the big old horrible world out there. Is it a case of once we're through that door we can cry 'Yes… Made it!' breath a sigh of relief and settle down to a life of nibbling pasture?
Well, I don't think it is actually. The trouble with this sheepfold is that apparently the gate is not one that is continually slamming shut behind each new arrival. It's not a gate that has a warning about the perils and dangers of entering pinned to it. In fact Jesus says that those who enter through Him are free to come and go as they please 'He will come in and go out, and find pasture'
What sort of protection is that? A sheepfold where the sheep are free to wander in and out of? What happens when the wild animals start gathering? Surely it would make more sense to get out the barbed wire or the electric fence? After all, the whole idea of this sheepfold is surely to keep the sheep from being attacked. How can you do that if the sheep are free to come and go at will? Where's the sense in that?
Let's leave those questions hanging there for a few minutes and link into the other 'I am' that Jesus talks about
'I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep'
'I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me…'
'The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the flock.'
'Ok' says Jesus to those who are listening to him with puzzled expressions on their faces. 'If you can't quite picture me as a gate, how about a shepherd? Ah, I can see a spark of light there. You know about shepherds, don’t you? The shepherd's job is to care for and protect the sheep, isn't it? It's the shepherd who leads his sheep through the gate and into the sheepfold to keep them safe from wolves, thieves and bandits.
Through the gate.
Let's look a little closer at the shepherd and see how we can tie these two 'I ams' together. Firstly, we read that the shepherd gives life to the sheep. Outside the sheepfold on the hillside the sheep have to be constantly watched, and at night there is always the threat of attack by wild animals or thieves. Fear is the controlling emotion through the dark hours between dusk and dawn. Within the sheepfold fear is lifted, there is shelter from the strong winds, companionship, food to eat, all that is needed for life.
But then, we read that the shepherd not only gives life to the sheep, he gives his life for the sheep that they might be saved from death. It wasn't a cushy little rural number being a shepherd in those days, you were expected to keep a very close eye on all those sheep that you had been entrusted with. They were a valuable commodity and the shepherd would have to pay from his own pocket for any losses. If the wolves or thieves attacked then it was the shepherd who defended.
You wouldn't expect a hired hand to do this, says Jesus, he'd just run away from the danger because he doesn't have the same responsibilities. But for the shepherd, well he knows everyone of those sheep by name. He's counted them that often he could tell instantly if one was missing.
To us one sheep or cow looks much like another, but to the farmer and the shepherd who spend their whole life caring for their animals these are individuals with their own particular ways and personalities. They're family. They're special. Not only that, but the sheep themselves recognise the voice of their shepherd; they have learnt to trust this person, they feel a part of this family because within it there is safety.
St Paul has this to say to the Ephesian Elders 'Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the Church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock… so be on your guard!'
Pulling the various strands of this passage together what do we have then? What was Jesus telling his listeners? In fact, whom was he actually talking to?
Well, it seems that Jesus was addressing his words to the Pharisees and teachers of the law who were still desperately trying to collect enough evidence to get Jesus silenced. They hadn't got a clue what he was going on about, but they were absolutely convinced that Jesus was trying to undermine their authority as the true spiritual leaders of the day.
Whether it was the style of Jesus' teaching through allegory and parable, or simply that they were blind to the truth that was standing in front of them who can say. That they failed to connect Jesus' words with Ezsekiel chapter 34 which talks of
'Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not the shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourself with the wool and slaughter the choice animals but you do not take care of the flock.' is pretty obvious. Yet it was certainly a passage that they would have been familiar with.
So within this passage there are underlying themes. The first concerns those who would call themselves religious leaders and teachers. There are many, says Jesus who would like to think there is a tradesman's entrance to the sheepfold, the Kingdom of God if you prefer (which is how I interpret the idea of the sheepfold). They think there's a back door that can be squeezed through, or an open window that can be prized open enough to gain access. But they will be found out for what they are - Jesus uses the terms thieves and robbers for those who would try and lead their followers through anything but the front door.
Have you ever been to an event or club where the guy on the door has stamped the back of your hand with a mark as you enter, so that you can prove you came in the right entrance and didn't sneak in some other way. Well, says Jesus there are many who try and try and sneak in some other way, sometimes without realising what they're doing. But it's the shepherd who leads his sheep through the gate, who knows his sheep, who cares for his sheep. Those who try and enter by any other means will be revealed for what they are
Paul in Galatians says 'I bear on my body the marks of Jesus'
As for safety, for being saved, for salvation, there is only one entrance, says Jesus. It's not through the Law, fancy words, sacrifice or rituals. It's through me. Those who came before had ulterior motives, they had their own self-interests at the heart of what they preached. They were effectively thieves and robbers. They stole not only money but souls.
'I am the entrance gate,' says Jesus. 'They came to steal and destroy. I have come that they might have life, and have it to the full.'
Although John in his Gospel has Jesus as the centre of this passage with the two 'I ams' I'm sure it's to the listeners that these words are aimed, every bit as much as the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law. There is a very real sense in saying that within these few verses is summed up the whole mystery of the Gospel, the Good News of Salvation.
Let's pick up on the important points
True believers are at home in Christ; when they go out, they are not shut out as strangers, but are free to come in again; when they come in, they are not shut in as trespassers, but are free to go out. They go out to the field in the morning, they come into the fold at night; and in both the Shepherd leads and cares for them, and they find pasture in both: grass in the field, fodder in the fold. Their needs are catered for. This is the freedom of the sheepfold, of the Kingdom of God, which is the sheepfold that we as believers belong to. Within the fellowship of the Kingdom of God we are fed and watered by the Spirit, but our spiritual life and fellowship is not confined to the four walls of a Church, it goes out with us as we leave surrounded and protected by his loving arms.
5 Fifthly it is through Jesus that we find entry to the sheepfold. There is no other way to know the intimate fellowship that is possible with Jesus and His Father. And no one is ever forced to follow that path. Jesus never mentions sheepdogs herding up the sheep. They hear and follow the shepherd's voice, they listen to his words. We are only ever loved into the Kingdom of God, never forced. Loved to the ultimate, loved to the point of sacrifice on a cross.
Romans 5.2
'(Jesus) Through whom we have gained access by faith into his grace in which we now stand.'
Eph 2.18
For through him we both have access to the father by one Spirit
Revelation 3.8
'I have placed before you an open door no-one can shut'
What this passage teaches us more than anything else is how much we are loved. We were loved even before we entered the Kingdom of God, before we heard the Shepherd's voice and followed. Loved to the cross and beyond. Outside these walls, within our circle of family, friends and work-mates there are many who are also hearing that voice. It is our responsibility to lead them in the right direction, to love them into the Kingdom; to the safety of the family of God; to the knowledge that they are precious in the eyes of God… and to salvation through the death and resurrection of Jesus, the Good Shepherd of His sheep.