President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday he has chosen retired Marine Gen. James Mattis, to be secretary of defense. He has said that responding to “political Islam” is the major security issue facing the United States. Like Trump, Mattis favors a tougher stance against U.S. adversaries abroad, especially Iran. The general, speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in April, said that while security discussions often focus on terrorist groups such as the Islamic State or al-Qaida, the Iranian regime is “the single most enduring threat to stability and peace in the Middle East.” (http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/donald-trumps-secretary-of-defense-will-be-mad-dog-mattis-a-retired-general-known-for-his-aggressive-talk)
Iranian Ayatollah’s have been such a destabilizing geopolitical force for world peace, that world leaders for generations have struggled to contain their aggressions. Instead of putting the welfare of their people first, they fund and promote terrorism to the determent of their own people.
In John 10:11-21, Jesus reveals himself to be the Good Shepherd who enables true and lasting peace for His people. John reveals three blessings the Good Shepherd gives to His sheep because He is genuinely concerned for them (cf. v. 13). He enables peace with God because He 1) Dies for them (John 10:11–13), 2) Loves them (John 10:14–15), and 3) Unites them (John 10:16–21).
The Good Shepherd enables His sheep to have peace with God because:
1) The Good Shepherd Dies for His Sheep (John 10:11–13)
John 10:11–13 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.(ESV)
Jesus’ identification of Himself as the good shepherd points back to the true shepherd described in verses 2 to 5. Verses 11–13 are an extended metaphor, actually a self-contained story matching the figure of speech in verses 1–5 (Michaels, J. R. (2011). John (p. 180). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.).
The concept of a divine shepherd goes back to the OT. Psalm 23 opens with the statement “The LORD is my shepherd” (v. 1); Jeremiah speaks of gathering the nation as a flock of sheep that has been scattered (Jer 23:1–3); and Ezekiel prophesied: “As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them … I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down” (Eze 34:12, 15). To the disciples the figure would have been specially apt since sheep herding was one of the major occupations in Palestine (Tenney, M. C. (1981). John. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: John and Acts (Vol. 9, p. 109). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.).
(CHART: “How Shepherds Cared for Sheep”)
This is the fourth “I AM” statement in John’s gospel where he continues to show His deity to enable something for His followers that only God can do. Here in verse 11, the Greek text literally reads, “the shepherd, the good one,” setting Christ the Good Shepherd apart from all other shepherds. Kalos (good) refers to His noble character (cf. 1 Tim. 3:7; 4:6; 2 Tim. 2:3; 1 Peter 4:10); He is the perfect, authentic Shepherd; in a class by Himself; preeminent above all others. “A” good shepherd does not characteristically give his life for the sheep; “the” Good Shepherd does. Moreover, the death of the Palestinian shepherd meant disaster for his sheep. The death of the Good Shepherd means life for his sheep (Morris, L. (1995). The Gospel according to John (pp. 453–454). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.).
Being a faithful shepherd entailed a willingness to lay one’s life on the line to protect the sheep. Robbers and wild animals such as wolves, lions, and bears were a constant danger (cf. 1 Sam. 17:34; Isa. 31:4; Amos 3:12). But Jesus, the good shepherd, went far beyond merely being willing to risk or actually risking His life for His sheep; He actually laid down His life for them (cf. v. 15; 6:51; 11:50–51; 18:14). Just in case some say that for God to die in that way was cheap—after all, he is the Creator—look at the word Jesus used in verse 11 to describe his life. He didn’t use the Greek word bios (which referred to the physical side of life), and he didn’t use the Greek word zoe (which referred to life’s history); instead he used the Greek word psuche, which meant ‘soul’, the totality of his being, the essence of his life. This means that Jesus loves his sheep so much that he gave himself completely, utterly, totally for them (Paterson, A. (2010). Opening Up John’s Gospel (pp. 81–82). Leominster: Day One Publications.).
The phrase lays down His life is unique to John’s writings and always refers to a voluntary, sacrificial death (vv. 15, 17–18; 13:37–38; 15:13; 1 John 3:16). His death was an actual atonement to provide propitiation for the sins of all who believe, as they were called and regenerated by the Spirit, because they were chosen by the Father. In no case does this suggest a death with merely exemplary significance; in each case the death envisaged is on behalf of someone else. The shepherd does not die for his sheep to serve as an example, throwing himself off a cliff in a grotesque and futile display while bellowing, ‘See how much I love you!’ No, the assumption is that the sheep are in mortal danger; that in their defence the shepherd lays down/loses his life; that by his death they are saved (Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (pp. 386–387). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.).
Second, His death was vicarious. The preposition huper (for) is frequently used in the New Testament to refer to Christ’s substitutionary atonement for the elect (cf. v. 15; 6:51; 11:50–51; 18:14; Luke 22:19; Rom. 5:6, 8; 8:32; 1 Cor. 11:24; 15:3; 2 Cor. 5:14–15, 21; Gal. 1:4; 2:20; 3:13; Eph. 5:2, 25; 1 Thess. 5:9–10; 1 Tim. 2:6; Titus 2:14; Heb. 2:9; 1 Peter 2:21; 3:18; 1 John 3:16). Jesus died, not only for others in the sense of “on their behalf,” but and even stronger than this, in the sense of “in their place.” We are sinners; as sinners we deserve to die (both physically and spiritually); but Christ willingly died in our place, taking our punishment, so that we might be set free from sin and its penalty to serve God.( Boice, J. M. (2005). The Gospel of John: an expositional commentary (p. 755). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.)
Third, the death of the Lord Jesus Christ was specific. It is for the sheep—only for the sheep—that the good shepherd lays down his life. The design of the atonement is definitely restricted. Jesus dies for those who had been given to him by the Father, for the children of God, for true believers. This is the teaching of the Fourth Gospel throughout (3:16; 6:37, 39, 40, 44, 65; 10:11, 15, 29; 17:6, 9, 20, 21, 24). It is also the doctrine of the rest of Scripture. With his precious blood Christ purchased his church (Acts 20:28; Eph. 5:25–27); his people (Matt. 1:21); the elect (Rom. 8:32–35) (Hendriksen, W., & Kistemaker, S. J. (1953–2001). Exposition of the Gospel According to John (Vol. 2, p. 111). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.).
Please turn to Matthew 1 (p.807)
Central to the birth of Christ is the identification of His mission. Often missed among the characters and wonder is the sovereign, purposeful intent in His incarnation. Jesus came for His sheep, to redeem His sheep that His sheep may be at peace with God.
Matthew 1:18-25 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. (ESV)
Notice in verse 21 how the Angel of the Lord instructed Joseph as to what God’s intent was in sending His Son: “he will save his people from their sins.” It is ‘his people’ whom Jesus will save from their sins which brings to the fore here the corporate dimension of forgiveness and its connection with the covenant (as in 26:28).( Nolland, J. (2005). The Gospel of Matthew : A commentary on the Greek text (99). Grand Rapids, Mich.; Carlisle: W.B. Eerdmans; Paternoster Press.)
Opposite the Good Shepherd who gives His life for the sheep, in John 10:12, is he who is a hired hand (like the doorkeeper of v. 3), and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, who sees the wolf coming (cf. Matt. 7:15; Acts 20:29), and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them (cf. Matt. 9:36; Mark 6:34). In Jesus’ illustration, the “hired hand” is contrasted with “thieves and robbers” (10:1, 8, 10). Whereas the latter are thoroughly wicked, the hired hand merely proves to be more committed to his own safety than to the sheep entrusted to his care. Under normal circumstances, he is willing to shepherd the flock for pay. In the face of danger, however, he puts self-interest first (Köstenberger, A. J. (2004). John (p. 306). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic).
The hired hand symbolizes the Jewish religious leaders and, by extension, all false shepherds. They are always mercenaries, doing ministry not for love of the souls of people or even love for the truth, but for money (Titus 1:10–11; 1 Peter 5:2; 2 Peter 2:3). Therefore they flee at the first sign of threat to their well-being, because as verse 13 clarifies: cares noting/not concerned for the sheep. Their overriding priority is self-preservation, and the last thing they care to do is to sacrifice themselves for anyone.
Illustration: 223 When We No Longer Care
Dr. Laurence M. Gould, president emeritus of Carleton College, said “I do not believe the greatest threat to our future is from bombs or guided missiles. I don’t think our civilization will end that way. I think it will die when we no longer care. Arnold Toynbee has pointed out that nineteen of twenty-one civilizations have died from within and not by conquest from without. There were no bands playing and flags waving when these civilizations decayed. It happened slowly, in the quiet and in the dark when no one was aware.” (Tan, P. L. (1996). Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations: Signs of the Times (p. 153). Garland, TX: Bible Communications, Inc.)
The Good Shepherd enables His sheep to have peace with God because:
2) The Good Shepherd Loves His Sheep (John 10:14–15)
John 10:14–15 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep .(ESV)
It is because the Lord loves His own that He gave His life for them. The word know is used here to denote that love relationship. In Genesis 4:1, 17, 25; 19:8; 24:16; and 1 Samuel 1:19 the term know describes the intimate love relationship between husband and wife (the NASB translates the Hebrew verb “to know” in those verses “had relations with”). In Amos 3:2 God said of Israel, “You only have I known of all the families of the earth” (NKJV), speaking not as if He were unaware of any other nations, but of His unique love relationship with His people. Matthew 1:25 literally reads that Joseph “was not knowing [Mary]” until after the birth of Jesus. On the day of judgment, Jesus will send unbelievers away from Him because He does not know them; that is, He has no love relationship with them (Matt. 7:23).
Please turn to Malachi 3 (p.802)
In these verses, know has that same connotation of a relationship of love. The simple truth here is that Jesus in love knows His own, they in love know Him, the Father in love knows Jesus, and He in love knows the Father. Believers are caught up in the deep and intimate affection that is shared between God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. 14:21, 23; 15:10; 17:25–26).
Malachi 3:1-4 “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, and they will bring offerings in righteousness to the LORD. 4 Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in former years. (ESV)
• For those who delight (v.1) in the messenger of the covenant, there will be peace. The righteous offerings of v. 3 are said in v. 4 to be pleasing to the Lord. God derives joy from the end result of His work (Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1997). The Nelson Study Bible: New King James Version (Mal 3:4). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.).
• John the Baptist proclaimed the way of Peace from the Prince of Peace. But in the Coming of Christ, the message of peace, from the prince of peace is only peace for those who accept the terms of His peace.
Poem: In considering ourselves we might ask Christ of His saints: But they are just sheep, and sinful sheep at that! We would understand if you should say that you felt pity for them, that you hated or were even grieved to see them torn by wild animals or scattered. But surely you would not go so far as to give your life for these poor silly creatures? Your love cannot be as great or as strong as that?” I do not know about you, but I cannot understand such love. I cannot fathom it. I cannot trace the reasonings of such love. But I do believe it and respond to it rejoicing. That is all we can do after all: Awake, my soul, in joyful lays, And sing thy great Redeemer’s praise: He justly claims a song from me, His loving-kindness is so free. He saw me ruined in the fall, Yet loved me notwithstanding all, And saved me from my lost estate, His loving-kindness is so great (Boice, J. M. (2005). The Gospel of John: an expositional commentary (p. 756). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books.).
3) The Good Shepherd Unites His Sheep (John 10:16-21)
John 10:16-21 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” 19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” (ESV)
The other sheep in view here are Gentiles, who are not of Israel’s fold. They, too, will listen/hear Jesus’ voice calling them to salvation (cf. Isa. 42:6; 49:6; Rom. 1:16), and redeemed Jews and Gentiles will be one flock with one shepherd. A flock derives its unity partly by being a group of animals in one place; but Jesus desires more than that. Each of the sheep remains in the flock, not by being physically present, but because the shepherd owns and cares for it. The basis for the unity of the flock is that they all have one shepherd. Too many efforts in structural unity among Christians focus on building bigger, more inclusive fences rather than clarifying to which shepherd the sheep belong. True followers of Jesus have always managed to find and fellowship with each other even though they live out their faith in different church structures. Genuine oneness in Jesus Christ allows for wonderful fellowship among sheep from very diverse backgrounds.( Barton, B. B. (1993). John (p. 213). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House.)
Please turn to Ephesians 2 (p.976)
To suggest that Jews and Gentiles would be united in one flock was a revolutionary concept. The Jews despised Gentiles, and they returned the animosity. Even Jewish believers were so programmed to prejudice that they were slow to accept Gentiles as equal members in the church (cf. Acts 10:9–16, 28; 11:1–18; 15:1–29). To the Ephesians Paul wrote:
Ephesians 2:11–16 11 Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. (ESV)
• In verse 14 the writer emphasizes that He, referring to Jesus mentioned in verse 13, He alone is our peace (cf. Isa. 9:6); there is no other source. Note that Paul does not say that Christ is “your” peace, as though Christ’s work is sufficient or necessary only for Gentiles. Rather, Christ’s work is effective for both Jew and Gentile, as our peace (Cohick, L. H. (2010). Ephesians (pp. 74–75). Eugene, OR: Cascade Books.).
• True unity between Jews and Gentiles defines the church because both are sheep who belong to the same Shepherd.
The Father loves the Son as verse 17 notes, because He laid down His life for the sheep, all of whom the Father had chosen in eternity past and given to the Son in time. The love of the Father for the Son, and the love of the Son for the Father, are logically prior to the love of God for the world, and the basis that makes salvation possible (cf. 3:35; 5:20; 8:29; 14:31). … It is not that the Father withholds his love until Jesus agrees to give up his life on the cross and rise again. Rather, the love of the Father for the Son is eternally linked with the unqualified obedience of the Son to the Father, his utter dependence upon him, culminating in this greatest act of obedience now just before him: willingness to bear the shame and disgrace of Golgotha, the isolation and rejection of death, the sin and curse reserved for the Lamb of God. The last clause of the verse should probably be read as a purpose clause: Jesus lays down his life in order to take it up again. Jesus’ sacrificial death was not an end in itself, and his resurrection an afterthought. His death was with the resurrection in view. He died in order to rise, and by his rising to proceed toward his ultimate glorification (12:23; 17:5) and the pouring out of the Spirit (7:37–39) so that others, too, might live.( Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (p. 388). Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.)
Verse 18 indicates that He did so voluntarily; no one took His life away from Him, but He laid it down on His own accord/initiative. It can be translated “authority,” “legal right,” or “power.” This verse shows the power and authority of Jesus (Utley, R. J. (1999). The Beloved Disciple’s Memoirs and Letters: The Gospel of John, I, II, and III John (Vol. Volume 4, p. 98). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons International.)
The Lord’s twice-repeated declaration that He would take His life up again points forward to His resurrection—the ultimate demonstration of His messiahship and deity (Rom. 1:4). As with everything He did, Christ exercised His authority to lay down His life and take it up again in voluntary compliance with and loving obedience to the charge/commandment He received from the Father. By the power of His resurrection, He would raise all His flock to eternal glory (John 6:39–40, 44).
• Christ perfectly enables peace as the Good shepherd because in His deity, He controlled His death, resurrection and this all point to His coming again. These sureties enable His sheep to find peace and rest.
As was always the case, Jesus’ teaching created heated controversy among those who heard Him, and verse 19 notes that a division occurred again among the Jews because of these words (cf. 7:12, 43; 9:16). Christ’s entrance into the world, and into homes, and into hearts, produces a sword, rather than peace. Only when people receive Him as Lord and Savior do they know the peace of God (MacDonald, W. (1995). Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments. (A. Farstad, Ed.) (p. 1527). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.).
Verse 20 continues to note that: Many of them said/were reiterating the familiar accusations that “He has a demon and is insane. Why listen to Him?” (7:20; 8:48, 52; cf. Matt. 9:34; 10:25; 12:24). Instead of even considering what Jesus was saying, many arbitrarily dismissed His words—responding with ridicule rather than repentance and faith in their own Messiah. Having already rejected Jesus (and His claim to be from God), they held their ground stubbornly and attributed His ministry to demons. Such a blasphemous and deluded conclusion is damning.
Others, however as verse 21 concludes, were not so blindly biased, and were able to conclude the obvious—what the lucid, majestic sense and clarity of Christ’s words indicated: “These are not the words/sayings of one whi is oppressed/demon-possessed.” Then, reaching the same conclusion as the blind man whom Jesus had healed (John 9:30–33) they rhetorically ashed: “Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” Like the blind man, they realized that Jesus’ miraculous power was undeniable proof that He truly was sanctioned by and sent from God (cf. 7:31). One of the arguments for the credibility of the Gospels is that they show little defensiveness in handling contradictory reports about Jesus. John included the reactions and reasons of those who disbelieved in Christ. Other explanations for Jesus’ power are faithfully recorded. The Gospels are not propaganda; they present the facts in such a way that the reader is still forced to make his or her own decision about Jesus. The questions of doubt and unbelief are useful for clarifying our own faith. Is the Christ we trust more like someone raving mad or like the Lord of the universe? Each time we reaffirm our faith in Jesus, we become stronger and better prepared for new challenges and opposition (Barton, B. B. (1993). John (p. 214). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House.).
Since Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd, the shepherd must separate the sheep from the goats. He gave His life for His sheep and eternally loves them. As He draws all His sheep together, we have peace.
(Format note: Some base commentary from MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). John 1–11 (pp. 431–437). Chicago: Moody Press.)
