The lesson shows Jesus attacking the nature and attitudes of the Jewish leaders in a blunt and devastating way.  He uses strong language to describe them as the lowest of the low, people who did not care about others and who were not only false leaders, but actually ‘thieves and robbers’. 

Our text will show that leaders are not protected when they do evil.  They cannot claim to be God's anointed and therefore impervious to criticism when they do evil.  The life of any leader or shepherd should reflect truth and righteousness.   

One should read carefully the letters to the seven churches in Revelation, for there the matter of good and bad leadership is often addressed.  No wonder the apostle Paul gave priority to good character and a continuing display of righteousness and truth as qualifications in his several discussions on leaders. 

Jesus had previously spoken of himself as one who had come from the Father and brought truth.  He had pointed out the Father’s nature to the nation, for he had come to show the Father.  

The Pharisees had attempted to stone Jesus, but he passed through their midst and went out of the temple untouched. 

Chapter nine illustrates perfectly why Jesus would now identify the Pharisees and leaders of the people as thieves and robbers, false shepherds. 

They should have looked after the man who was born blind, cheered his miraculous healing and welcomed him into the synagogue.  Instead they had him thrown out, amidst much verbal abuse.   

During this episode we learned that they had used their power to terrorize and intimidate the people and turn them against confessing Christ. 

In this case we see a man who would not follow people such as they were, would not be intimidated, would refuse to listen to them, for their voice was not right, but turned to Jesus, recognizing the voice of his true Master and Lord. 

So let us look at this story so that we will properly understand our text.  Note that the verses in our text were spoken at the Feast of the Dedication which follows approximately two months after the Feast of Tabernacles.  Jesus had apparently stayed in Jerusalem during this interval. 

The Feast of the Dedication was designed to bring to mind the rededication of the Temple in 165-164 B.C. Judas Maccabeus had defeated and expelled the Syrians from Jerusalem. They  had profaned the Temple, by erecting an idol of Baal in it and sacrificing pigs on the altar. 

Some of the high priests at that time were in league with the Syrians and went along with their desecration of the Temple. By this they showed themselves to be false shepherds, thieves, and robbers, who had no intention of defending the people since they were in fact hirelings. 

Jesus had healed a man born blind on the Sabbath day.  He had made clay, anointed the eyes of the man with the clay and instructed him to go to pool of Siloam, wash and he would receive his sight.  The man obeyed and he received his sight. When the Pharisees heard of the miracle they objected and accused Jesus of breaking the Sabbath day but instead had broken it.  

They refused to believe that the man had been born blind and his parents were summoned to corroborate this birth defect. 

Despite this powerful miracle, the Pharisees continued to label Jesus a sinner and a man who was not of God, having gone so far as to threatening anyone who confessed that Jesus was the Christ with expulsion from the synagogue. 

Under repeated questioning by the Pharisees, the man refused to confess that Jesus was a sinner, and in fact acknowledged that Jesus had healed the blindness that had afflicted him from birth. Eventually the man became exasperated at their attempts to suggest that Jesus was not of God. 

He pointed out that everyone knew that God did not hear sinners but heard those who worshipped him and did his will.  The formerly blind man continued this marvellous testimony in defence of Jesus pointing out that the giving of sight to someone born blind was a unique and unheard of miracle, one of such amazing power that it could only be done by a man of God.  Someone not of God could display no such power, and could do such miracle.  

At this the Pharisees contemptuously accused the man of being born in sin, that is, of no account and despised by God and who was therefore not in a position to tell them or teach them anything.  They then unceremoniously excommunicated him, carrying out their threat to persecute anyone that confessed that Jesus was the Christ.   

Jesus heard of the expulsion, then searched for the man and when he had found him asked him the simple question as to whether he believed on the ‘Son of Man’. When the man asked Jesus to identify this ‘Son of Man’ and tell him who he was so that he would believe on him, Jesus identified himself as the Son of Man.  This man's heart was open to the truth.  Jesus told the formerly blind man plainly that he had not only seen the Son of Man but this Son of Man was talking to him. 

First he had come into the world to bring vision to those who did not see.  That was his first mission. His next mission was to have the eyes of those who thought they were seeing to be made blind. 

The Pharisees were no fools, and they understood that Jesus was addressing this to them, for his words indicated that since they thought that they saw and understood, in rejecting him they would be made blind. 

Then Jesus went even further.  He indicated to them that if they were really blind, he would not consider their action of refusing to understand who he was a sin. But since they were so proud, arrogant and conceited and believed that they “saw”, refusing to change and accept the truth made plain before them, they obviously remained in sin. 

Of course this lesson is important for us today, for it invites us to look at the behavior of leaders and to discern whether they are good shepherds or bad shepherds.   

A person can also examine himself and see if he is listening to the voice of bad shepherds (and this tells a person something about himself and his spiritual poverty), rather than hearing the voice of the good Shepherds, which reveals who he is on the inside. 

It is not possible to follow false teachers and at the same time insist that you belong to those who are classified as ‘good soil’.  It is possible that one might fall into falsehood for a short time, but these false teachings should grate on your nerves, and immediately on hearing the truth, one should turn, hopefully immediately, in the direction of truth. 

We should before we discuss the text, remind ourselves how God regards the matter of leadership in Ezekiel 34:1-11, 23-24.

“And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

“Son of Man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves!  Should not the shepherds feed the flocks?

You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock.

The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them.

So they were scattered because there was no Shepherd; and they became food for all of the beasts of the field when they were scattered.

My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them.

Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord:

“as I live,” says the Lord GOD,” surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no Shepherd, nor did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock”

therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lord!

Thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shalt feed themselves no more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.

For thus says the Lord GOD: “Indeed I Myself with search for My sheep and seek them out….

I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them-My servant David.  He shall feed them and be their Shepherd.

And I, the LORD, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the LORD have spoken.” 

It is most instructive for leaders to read this chapter carefully, for most seem to be unaware of this chapter and what it implies for them and their stewardship, for here God rebukes the evil shepherds or leaders of the nation of Israel, speaking of a day to come when they would be judged, and when Messiah would gather together his scattered and neglected flock and care for them as the Good Shepherd.

THE TEXT

Verse 1.   In the beginning verses of this chapter, Jesus introduces the very comforting thought that he is the kind of Shepherd that Psalm 23 so beautifully describes. 

He continues his discourse from the previous chapter with the famous “Verily, verily” introduction, which emphasizes that what he's saying is critically important and absolutely true, teachings which cannot be ignored. 

The Pharisees, who John 7:49 had revealed as people who thought that their countrymen were ignorant and disgusting, had been greatly distressed by Jesus' comments that ‘they were remaining in their sins’. 

They did not think of the people of the nation as sheep who were to be cared for and properly led, but instead thought of them as people who, if they did not obey them, should expelled  unceremoniously.

Jesus now will structure his teaching by examining the life of a shepherd using several figures. He first defines what a true Shepherd is in contrast to a false shepherd. By looking at this we will know who is true and who is false today. 

He refers to three different marks of the true Shepherd.

First, there is a proper way to enter into the place where the sheep are kept.  Those that enter into where the sheep are, without using the proper entrance are false shepherds.  If that person climbs over the wall, or uses some other way but the right way, it is clear that he does not belong with the sheep in the sheepfold but is a thief and a robber.  This person clearly has no good in mind and his actions demonstrate that he has no legitimate right to any of the sheep. 

All false shepherds can be spotted because they use all kinds of unorthodox methods to gain access to the sheep and lead them in ways that are contrary to the divinely prescribed ways. They do not behave like the true shepherd described in Ezekiel 34. 

They are all false and alike since they develop skilful and deceptive methods to reach the sheep and then use and abuse them to satisfy their selfish interests. 

Note however that these false shepherds are quite industrious and take great pains, running great risks to reach the sheep.  In this regard the thieves and robbers seem to be most energetic and inventive in their pursuit of wickedness and mischief.  They obviously plot, plan and scheme and are certainly not cowardly or lazy.  Their devotion to their cause put many of the honest shepherds to shame, for we would have expected that honest shepherds should be the most energetic ones.

Verse 2.  The true Shepherd, the good one who has an interest in the sheep and cares for them, uses the proper entry.  He does not have to skulk around and do great deeds of deception. 

There is a proper point of entry and a proper way to make an entrance.  Jesus came to Israel in that way, the way foretold by the prophets, the way divinely ordained. 

The Scriptures told Israel where the Messiah would be born, the line in which he would be born, who his lineage was, the unusual kind of birth he would have. 

Jesus came to Israel through the door, born in Bethlehem according to the prophet Micah, born of a virgin according to the prophet Isaiah.  He would be presented in the temple when just a baby and circumcised as the law required.

He entered by ‘the door’, the accepted way.  He came to serve and do the things that were predicted by the prophets.  He came to heal the sick, give sight to the blind, comfort the broken-hearted and do all the other gracious tasks God designed for man’s benefit.

Verse 3.  The custom of those days was to locate the sheepfold inside the outer gates or walls surrounding the houses, so that the flock would be safe and no one would have access to them, except the door was opened by the master of the House or the doorkeeper who had the keys. 

The second mark of the true shepherd was that the gate or doorkeeper would open the door when the true shepherd arrived for his sheep, for he would be recognized as having a right to his sheep. 

It is believed by many that the gatekeeper was John the Baptist, ‘the voice crying in the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord’.  He identified Jesus as recorded in John 1:29, he opened the door for the Lamb of God. 

The third mark of the true shepherd is that he calls out his sheep by name, there is a personal call and the sheep recognize his voice.

It is as if he has a pet name for each of the sheep, as was common among many of the Palestinian shepherds.  The true shepherd's call is distinctive and the sheep are experts in voice recognition and so they come out to him. 

So Jesus calls his people by their own name, he deals with us on a personal basis, whether it is Nicodemus, Zacchaeus, Matthew at the seat collecting customs revenue, or us who live today. The people that belong to Jesus' flock know his voice and when he calls them by name, speaking to them in familiar sounds, they come to him.  They are not fooled. 

Some suggest that since there was more than one flock in the fold when Jesus calls, there is a process of separation, just as there was in ancient times when the shepherd called out his own flock. 

The fourth mark of the true shepherd is that he leads them out; he does not cast them out as the Pharisees cast out the blind man.  

So if you want to know what real Christianity is, it is to be ‘led out’ by the Lord.  Psalm 23 tells us that the good Shepherd leads his people ‘out’ beside still waters.  False Christianity in contrast is a religion of self, geared to satisfying one's own needs.

Verse 4. Then next, the true Shepherd personally puts out his own sheep, he does not take those that belong to others, but takes out those that are his.  When he takes them out to the pastures he goes before them. 

He inspects every situation that lies in front of the sheep for he goes ahead.  He chooses for the sheep every circumstance of their life, so the sheep knows that he helps them to handle the dangers, the pitfalls and the pressures of life.   

So like David, the sheep know that ‘though they walk through the valley of the shadow of death they need fear no evil for the shepherd is with them and his rod and his staff gives comfort’. 

Note here the reaction of the sheep to all this leading.  They trust his voice.  Their mind is fixed on his voice.

Verse 5.  The sheep know better than to trust or follow any of the false shepherds’ command. In fact they avoid them by fleeing from them. 

They suspect that the false shepherd has harmful plans in store for them and they compare these plans with the good plans of the good Shepherd. 

It is clear that Jesus is drawing on Ezekiel 34.  His warning that the sheepfold of God is exposed to many thieves and robbers, deceivers, seducers, crafty wolves that will turn them away from God, sacrifice them to Devils and abuse them is a timely message for us. 

It is a wise thing for the sheep to learn about and to practice following the voice of their shepherd, for he alone can protect them.  The false shepherds will not. 

Those that consider themselves to be the sheep of Christ should be very cautious and shy about strangers and about their new and exotic teachings.  They must run away from strangers, have a great fear of following them and they must cultivate discernment. The following after strangers and their strange doctrines is described as “itching ears”, a malady that unfortunately afflicts many professing believers.  

This leads to a warning about those that are under- shepherds, who God has appointed to feed his flock. They must themselves follow the good shepherd and model themselves after him.

Verse 6.  This figurative saying or allegory (the book of John does not use the word meaning ‘parable’ as in the other Gospels), is really an implied comparison.  Jesus does not expressly compare himself to the figures he's discussing, but is implying that if they considered the shepherd, they would find that it would teach them something about him. 

This created some difficulty for Jesus’ listeners and we're told that they did not understand the lessons that he intended them to grasp.  

Jesus' teachings might sound simple to us, but to the Pharisees that were frozen in their thinking and to the other people that had never been exposed to this kind of teaching, these were difficult things to understand. 

We might have also come across situations where we are trying to explain some of the things of God to someone who does not really know Christ, or who have a very superficial knowledge of him.  We sometimes marvel how some persons find it difficult to understand even the elementary things of God, while others do not seem to have that difficulty. 

What we should probably marvel at however, are people who have been exposed to the doctrines of Christ for a long time but keep going back to the elementary doctrines or the “milk” of the faith and never move on to eat the “meat” of the word.  They shy away from even thinking of all things that they should easily grasp and understand.  So their learning stops.

Verse 7.   Jesus here makes his teaching much plainer, shifting from the sheep / shepherd image and the third person references such as “he” or “him, to the specific statement that he is speaking of himself as the “good Shepherd” and the “true Shepherd”. 

He uses the emphatic statement, stressing that he is telling them the solemn truth and speaks of himself as actually the “door”.  He is the “door” for the sheep and they pass through the door. 

Only those who belong to him will find and use the door.  Those that use the door will understand truth, come to understand the truth about life just as the blind man did.  They are called the sheep of Christ.

Verse 8.    All of those who were pretending to be shepherds, who had tried to usurp his place, who claimed that they were sent from heaven by the Father as the Messiah, were simply misrepresenting themselves.  They were using deception and trickery, which a thief does and violence and destruction, tools of robbers. 

They were not the person that Moses had prayed about in Numbers 27:15-18 that would lead the congregation of the Lord. Those usurpers were certainly not like the one that God had promised himself to appoint in Ezekiel 34:11-12. 

It is often pointed to that Jesus would not be speaking about the prophets and the Saints before him, for he was using the present tense, and so was clearly referring to the religious leaders of his own day who had come and worked in the ‘darkness’ before the ‘light’ came. 

These people were exercising their office without considering that the Messiah was there and had been trying to claim that they were there before Jesus and was superior to him.   

They were behaving in a way which amounted to stealing what rightfully belonged to Messiah.  By condemning him, accusing him of having a demon and being a sinner, they were showing that they did not care about the sheep but were there for personal gain.  They wanted to benefit only themselves.   

The sheep that belong to the Lord were not fooled by these deceivers and robbers, for they knew the voice of their shepherd and did not listen to the voice of strangers.  So the blind man would never listen to the voice of the Pharisees and submit to their pressures, but would immediately worship Jesus when He told him that he was seeing and talking to the ‘Son of Man’.

Verse 9.    So Jesus now gives clear directions as to how a person can find salvation.  People must come through Jesus Christ, for he is the door. 

The false shepherds might tell us that they will provide salvation but they cannot. Jesus is the only one who can give salvation, safety and eternal life. 

Note that there are many benefits to having Jesus as the door.  The sheep can go in and out of their home, which means that they will never be shut out as strangers.  They have liberty in Christ.  They have great privileges.  The Savior will lead them in green pastures in the day and rest and security in the night.  They will always be under his protection, always secure, being able to live in the world but never becoming of the world. They would find pasture, nourishment, food for body, soul and spirit. 

This is the abundant life, filled with great promise and achievement.  This is an overflowing quality of life.

Verse 10-11.    In defining who he is and staking out a position that he is totally different from the false shepherds, Jesus now calls himself “the good shepherd” and then he goes on to tell how the good Shepherd operates.   

The word ‘good’ in the Bible generally has two meaning, the first meaning “pleasant”, “kind”, “gracious”, but the second is primarily aimed at God himself, referring to what he does as good, and the gifts that he gives as good.

In the New Testament the words translated “good” generally refers to quality, whether physical or moral. In this case the word used has the emphasis on “beautiful”, “pleasing”, “useful”, “noble” and “worthy” in the moral sense. 

When Jesus used the word “shepherd” and “good” together, (see Jesus’ comments on ‘good’ in Mark 10:17 and Luke 18:18) his listeners would associate this with Yahweh’s claim to be Israel’s Shepherd in Ezekiel 34:11-12. 

This was a powerful claim and powerful associations being drawn by Jesus. No wonder these statements would lead to a division among the Jews, with some accusing Jesus of being prompted by the devil.   

The Jews who listened would actually be forced to accept Jesus’ statement at a minimum as a messianic claim, or otherwise as a claim that he was identifying himself with God, claiming deity.  

The problem with the position of the Jews that opposed Jesus and his claims was that clearly Jesus was doing things which only ‘one from God’, or one who was “good” would be able to do.  This of course was supported by the position of the blind man who was healed.  Their rejection of Jesus was therefore quite illogical. 

Jesus now begins to define how “The Good Shepherd” behaves. He tells us that the ‘good Shepherd’ does not simply leads the sheep and protects them from harm and dangers. He deliberately lays down this life in order to save the sheep.  He loves them even unto death and is willing to die for them.  So here we have Jesus specifically referring to his own death on the cross as the substitute for men and bearing their sins.  Clearly the good Shepherd needs to die for the sheep.  Somehow his death is necessary for their salvation. 

Jesus further implied by the statement that the ‘Good Shepherd’ had a literal flock and would die for the sheep, but would not his death bring disaster to the sheep? On the contrary Jesus inferred that his death for the sheep, if it occurred, would spell life for them.  So his entire behavior was contrary to that of the worthless shepherds.  What a contrast to the false shepherds. This was the distinguishing mark of the ‘Good Shepherd’. 

Those who claim to be shepherds should realize that once they accept that position, they have a tremendous responsibility and should be prepared to put themselves at great risk in order to benefit the sheep.  Often times this is generally the furthest thing from the minds of some of these people.

Verse 12.  Here Jesus specifically says why the false shepherds, the worthless shepherds, would never die for the sheep.  He describes them as hirelings, that is, people who are more interested in their wages, than for the sheep that they are supposed to be in their care.  The hireling’s personal interest is above the interests of the flock. 

So when we hear religious voices who are interested in their wealth and when they do things that build-up themselves and do not in fact spend their resources on the sheep, you know that they are hirelings.   

The hireling runs away at the first sign of trouble.  When the enemy comes and the devil strikes they leave the sheep to do the best they can to protect themselves.  So even though they are being rewarded for their job, clearly the hireling are not even doing a good job. 

These hirelings are unfaithful.  They are paid but they don't do a complete job.  Then don't care for anything but money.  They regard the job of the shepherd as just a means to earn a living. 

So many religious shepherds do not care for the souls of others but seek their own thing. 

They are deserters.  They tell themselves that the sheep can look after themselves. They are wrong and when the ‘wolf’ comes, he simply rips the sheep apart and they scatter.

Verse 14.   In contrast, Jesus emphasizes that he is the ‘Good Shepherd” and he knows his sheep and his sheep know him.  He is acquainted with his flock and there is a mutual relationship between him and the flock.  He knows who belong to him and who do not. 

Those who are made the sheep of Christ know his mind and his voice, ‘have died with him and have been resurrected with him’ and so they know him intimately and they know that he is different from the pretenders.

So if you find that you like to pay attention to those ‘shepherds’ because they are nice and attractive, just understand who you really are, for as the secular saying goes, “ birds of a feather flock together”.

Verse 15.  This matter of knowing is very important.  The Father knows Jesus, Jesus knows the Father and they have the same will and they both operate with one goal and one mind.  So Jesus states that the Father knows, and he knows that he lays down his life for the sheep. 

So when Jesus suffers on the cross the Father is pleased at what he has done, for Jesus has acted in total obedience to the will of the Father.  In the eyes of the Father Jesus has been slain before the foundation of the earth.  This is divine planning and everything is done in accordance with the divine will. 

All this is determined by grace.  This is the principle which runs throughout the entire Scriptures.  So when men say that they have been saved by the Law, they are simply ignoring the teaching of Scripture for their own purposes.

Verse 16.  Note that Jesus tells us that his people include both Jew and Gentile.  His sheep are now Jewish, but there are other sheep that he does have.  He does not say that he ‘will’ have them, but that he has them already, because the Father has already given them to him.  They are his elect. 

He must bring them to him.  No one can stop him.  He intends to make one fold, which he will lead as the one “good Shepherd”. See Ephesians 2:11-22 for the apostolic discussion of this. 

The mission of Jesus was not just to save the nation of Israel, but to save people all over the world. 

We understand that even though the Jews of the day might have looked at Jesus and sneered at his few followers, his little flock, He was really telling them that they were dead wrong, for his followers were not a small group, but he was a shepherd with millions of sheep. 

The Jews should not be proud and thinking that they were the only sheep of Messiah.  They might have missed caring for the poor among their own people, disdained the Samaritans and disdained the Gentiles, but here they were also wrong. 

Jesus the good Shepherd was faithful to his trust and would complete his mission satisfactorily.  He would never leave those that came to him to perish. 

Unity in the flock is created by Jesus and those of his are in unity in him.  All this rests on what Jesus has done. 

There is no valid or acceptable thing as the “spirit of unity”. This is what many preach but God does not recognize that. God does recognize the “unity of the spirit”.  Those who are not his, or who follow the false shepherds can never be in unity with His flock. So the flock of Jesus is special and always in intimate communion with him. 

There was a time when there was no Jew and Gentile.  God really called a special people because of the hopeless nature of pagan mentality and the necessity to provide a people from which he would bring the Messiah.

 Messiah tells us that God intends to have one people and one shepherd.  That's it. So one must be very careful in using the term “Jewish Christian” and “Gentile Christian”, this distinction is not really biblical.

Verse 17-18. Now we are exposed to the absolute unity between the Father and the Son in the work of Redemption.  There is no disagreement between them and they are together in perfect synchronization. 

The Father's love for his Son is even more glorious because of the obedience of his Son.  The texts even suggest that the love of the Father is directly related somehow to the obedience and the nature of the son, who willingly dies for the sheep, fulfilling the Father's will.  We are told that the Father delights in Jesus because he is his faithful servant.  Isaiah 42:1. 

Jesus is really no victim, for men could not take away his life.  He voluntarily gives up his life knowing that he will arise from the dead.  He is the source of all life so he has authority and power to lay down his life and take then take it up again.  He has power to lay down his human life, but that was not an easy thing for him to do. 

Jesus could have resisted dying and he sweated blood in Gethsemane as he agonized. But in the end he obeyed the will of his Father, even to the point of death. 

The love of the Father is so much because Jesus was God's ‘Holy One’ and the Father decreed, as recorded in Psalm 16:10, that his Son would not see corruption. 

CONCLUSION

We note from this power of Christ that Jesus would never fall to his enemies.  He has ability, authority and power.  So we tell those who have lost loved ones that Jesus has the power, ability and desire to comfort them in sorrow and grief. 

We remind each other that Jesus is the Good Shepherd and when we have intimate relationship with him, he gives us life abundant, which flows into the resurrection from the dead; life after death.   

So the Good Shepherd gives us a purpose to life, as well as a standard for life.  The Good Shepherd has given his life for the sheep.  He knows his sheep and they know him and that is the foundation for eternal life. 

Jesus is most gracious, for he willingly offers himself to save us. He is our perfect sacrifice.  Note that the sacrifice of Christ was not done easily.  It was expensive.  He agonized but he did it on our behalf, so that we might receive the abundant life, the overflowing life. He delivers us from sin and guilt, gives us joy and peace and gracious fellowship and companionship. 

We know that there is a union between Jesus and the Father.  We know that Jesus knows those that are his and they hear his voice and follow him.  He is the Redeemer of the sheep.