I Am The Good Shepherd; John 10:11-18
In John 8:58 Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I am.” With these words He revealed Himself as the eternal Son of God. He always has existed and always will exist. He spoke of Himself as the great “I AM” on eight different occasions, each “I AM” statement helps us to understand who He is.
When He said, “I am the bread of life,” He showed us that He satisfies… “I am the light of the world,” He showed us that He sanctifies… “I am the door,” He showed us that He saves… In this passage He said, “I am the good Shepherd.” What is it that He wants to reveal about Himself?
I. As the Good Shepherd, Jesus Reveals His Character
The O.T. saints knew the Lord as a shepherd. In Psalm 23 David said, “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.” Isaiah 40:11, “He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, And carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.” (Ezekiel 34:11-15).
When Jesus said, “I am the ‘Good’ Shepherd” He revealed His character. (Matthew 19:16-17). Jesus was not denying He was good or God, He was just trying to get this young man to realize what good means. This young man thought he was good – kept the law, almost perfectly. He failed to love God above all else. He could not keep all the commandments he was a sinner…
In the same sense “All have sinned and come short of the glory (& goodness) of God.” We can do good things, do good deeds, have good intentions, but we in and of ourselves are not good. Actually Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Man is not good in and of himself, man is wicked and needs to be saved, regenerated, & become a new creature in Christ.
But God is good in and of Himself, that is His character, it is not just what He does, it is who He is. We cannot separate God and goodness. God is good… Jesus is the “Good shepherd.”
Corrie Ten Boom - Deep in our hearts we believe in a good God. Yet how shallow is our understanding of His goodness, especially since we see many things that seem to deny it. Corrie Ten Boom clarified the issue for us. She wrote: “Often I have heard people say, ‘How good God is! We prayed that it would not rain for our church picnic, and look at the lovely weather!’ Yes, God is good when He sends good weather. But God was also good when He allowed my sister, Betsie, to starve to death before my eyes in a German concentration camp. I remember one occasion when I was very discouraged there. Everything around us was dark, and there was darkness in my heart. I remember telling Betsie that I thought God had forgotten us. ‘No, Corrie,’ said Betsie, ‘He has not forgotten us. Remember His Word: “For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him.”
It is difficult for us to see how good God is when our world is falling in around us. “If God is good how can He allow people to be killed, or die in natural disasters?” People are killed because men are evil not because God is not good. Natural disasters are a result of sin in the world. Without sin man would be living in the Garden of Eden, in a perfect environment; our imperfect environment just a part of the punishment of sin.
Because of God’s goodness He sent His Son… The “Good shepherd” came to seek & save…
II. As the Good Shepherd Jesus Reveals His Care
As the Good Shepherd Jesus demonstrates His care in many different ways:
Vs. 3 - He “SPEAKS” to His sheep… You know one of the greatest things we can do for our kids to show them we care? Speak with them, communicate with them… Too often parents yell at their kids, make demands of their kids, or ignore their kids. Jesus communicates with us through His word.
Vs. 3 – He “CALLS” His sheep by name (relationship – Vs.14)… How does it make you fell when someone forgets your name? Like they don’t care enough to remember your name… We all meet a lot of people and can’t remember every one. But we usually remember those we truly care about…
Vs. 3 – He “LEADS” His sheep (Direction in life)…
Vs. 4 - He “GOES BEFORE” His sheep (protection)… Vs. 12-13
Vs. 27-29 – He gives “ETERNAL LIFE” to His sheep…
Vs. 15 – He “LAYS DOWN HIS LIFE” for His sheep… Which brings me to my next point:
III. As the Good Shepherd Jesus Reveals His Cross
Vs. 15… This is a picture of the cross with all it’s suffering… He did it willingly, “I lay down my life.” Vs. 18… This was the Fathers plan of salvation for all who believe.
In the O.T. sacrifices were made to atone for man’s sin. This began at the Passover in Exodus 12 – The Israelites were to take a lamb without blemish and slay it and pour the blood around the door of the house. That evening when the death angel appeared and saw the blood upon the door, he would Passover and all would be saved including the first-born son. But when the death angel saw that the blood did not cover the doors of the Egyptian houses, the first born in each house would die.
These sacrifices were to continue under the law as a means of atonement. but they were never really sufficient, these sacrifices had to be made at least once a year. But (Hebrews 10:1-10)… These sacrifices were only a picture or a shadow of things to come…
1 Peter 1:18-19, “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:”
Jesus is not only the shepherd He is also the “Lamb of God.”
Vs. 18b… Not only is this a picture of the cross it is also a picture of His resurrection… And it is through His resurrection that we have the promise of the eternal life He speaks of in Vs. 28.
Conclusion: Do you know the Good Shepherd as your own, do you hear His voice, do you wonder if the “Shepherd” is really “Good”? Look to the cross, stop doubting, and come to the Good Shepherd by faith.
