Know what to listen for. I’ll start by asking a simple question, or really just two words, abundant life. When you think of that phrase, what comes to mind? Is it a full bank account, 20 acres, a cabin in the woods, and one on the beach? Is it a garage full of toys and time to use them? Is it 5, 10, or 15 children in your house, you’re at your wits end, but it’s full of laughter and joy. Or as I learned in Sunday school this morning, for a Montana, is it simply to be left alone? What is an abundant life? What is the abundant life that Jesus said he came to give? And how can we find that abundant life? These are questions I hope our study of John 10 will address this morning. Let me now pray for the reading of God’s word. This will flow from Psalm 119. Heavenly Father, we are here because your testimonies are wonderful. And as we recognize how wonderful they are, our soul desires to keep them. Lord, because the unfolding of your word gives us light and it imparts understanding to us who were sometimes simple. Father, we desire that our mouths would open and we would pant, longing for your Commandments.
And we ask that you might turn to us and be gracious to us, as is your way with those who love your name. Father, further, keep steady our steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity take dominion over us. We ask that you would redeem us from oppression and that we might keep your law. It is before your law that we submit ourselves this day and ask that you would work it into our hearts as we have need. We pray this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Now with Bibles in your hand. Read John 10: 1-18. This is God’s holy and inerrant word. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheep hole by the door, but Climes in another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him, the gatekeeper opens. The sheep Hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name, and he leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.
This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me were thief and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to 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 comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they might have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. 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. He flees because he has a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and my own know me, just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this fold I must bring them in also.
They will listen to my voice, so there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason, the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, But I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down. I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. You may be seated. Pray briefly for the reading or the preaching of God’s word. Father, the grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of the Lord stands forth. Amen. The abundant life that Jesus invites us into and provides for is one rich in relationship and sacrifice. This is what we to see in our brief study of this text this morning, that Jesus desires that we understand his teaching is obvious in several ways. First, notice that he begins this section with that attention getting phrase truly, truly. It’s a phrase that only John in his gospel captures, and he shows that Jesus uses it 25 times. In John’s account, some of Jesus’s most memorable sayings come after this truly, truly, or amen, amen in the Greek.
For instance, truly, truly, unless one is born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God, or truly, truly, I say to you before Abraham was, I am, or truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me. And last in this brief selection of 25 examples, truly, Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times. Another way that we know that Jesus desires that we understand him is in the first five verses of this text, he uses a common analogy to Middle Eastern pastoral life. He’s making the point of what it means to be in proper relationship with Jesus, and he’ll make the point that to be in proper relationship relationship with Jesus, that will require a proper entry, a proper call, and a proper response. He’ll repeat these themes, so I’m only going to briefly introduce them here. But as he does that, don’t overlook the obvious fact that Jesus is using a common analogy, and we’ll also see a dramatic contrast or contrast to make that point. Now, first, he uses the shepherd, the sheep analogy, which is one that most residents would see even daily.
It would be as common as traffic on reserve or savings at Costco or visitors in the summer. We know these things to be true, and we can learn from our Lord as we consider how it is that we could share life-giving truths to friends or to families or to neighbors. Use common analogies. Pictures we all see. John, as a writer, also uses contrasts, and he notes that Jesus uses them as well. In verses one and two, we see the first of several contrasts that are in this text, comparing two ways to enter a sheepfold. In verse one, the way of the robbers and the thief, not through the door, but climbing in another way. That’s contrasted with verse 2, the shepherd who enters properly. You see in verse 3, the gatekeeper opens the door for the true shepherd. Jesus is briefly making the critical point that in order to be a proper life-giving relationship with him, we need to properly enter into that relationship. Later in verse 10, he’ll show why the thief and the robbers enter by another way. But here it’s simply noted that it’s improper. Proper entry also, verse 3, shows a mutual recognition between the one entering and the one guarding the door.
Multiple scholars note that in the shepherding community or shepherding village at this time, and even in some places to this day, all the shepherds would gather their flocks together and place them in a common enclosed and pay a gatekeeper to simply watch the door or the gate through the night. In the morning, the shepherds would come into that enclosed, and they would retrieve their flocks simply by calling out to them and by calling them by name. The shepherd, while speaking, would then begin to walk out, and its sheep would follow him. Verse 3 mentions this again to those shepherds, the legitimate ones, the gatekeeper opens the door, and there’s a mutual recognition between the keeper and the shepherd, and also between the shepherd and his sheep. He would call them by name, and they would, hearing that, that proper recognition would result in the proper response. They would follow him. Note the contrast in verse 5. Five. A stranger, they will not follow, for they do not know his voice. A stranger comes in improperly, he gives an improper call, and he gets that lack of response. And now look to verse 6. This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying.
I don’t know about you, but I found that a rather encouraging verse. Jesus, the greatest teacher of all time, one full of wisdom and grace, knowledge and patience, and they did not understand what he was saying to them. Brothers and sisters, as we strive to teach our children or those whom we may be fostering, our neighbors, our friends, nieces and nephews, coworkers, anyone that in any way we are trying to share the gospel wherever it is that we live, work, and play. Take heart, knowing that even our master, even the great example, our savior, Jesus Christ, at times was not understood. These truths that he was trying to impart, that we are called to impart, these are spiritual truths, and they require spiritual sight, which only the Lord can provide. So share, but Equally important, as you share, pray that the Lord will provide sight. This call, this recognition that the Lord would provide sight is fitting, actually, because our story, our dialog the context of it is set in one of the giving of sight. In fact, chapter 9, if your Bibles are open, you can glance back and you will notice that that whole chapter is the chapter in which Jesus gives sight to the man born blind.
The pharisees observe this. They interact with that man who is born blind, and they begin to be upset by what Jesus has done and the testimony that he claims. And so challenging Jesus, they ask, Are we also blind? Is that what you’re hinting at, Jesus, that we’re blind? Jesus, as only he can do with clever and a convicting reply in verse verse 41 essentially says, Yes, however you want to answer that question, yes, you are blind. And then chapter 10 starts. But notice immediately after our text, we’re looking at through verse 18, but verses 19 to 21, the people who are listening are beginning to react and discuss among themselves hearing this dialog of Jesus, the good shepherd. And Some think he’s demon possessed. And others respond by saying, Can a demon open the eyes of the blind? So pray then to the one who does open eyes as you share stories of life with all those around you. And if they don’t initially understand you, notice Jesus’s strategy in verse 7. So Jesus said again to them, Parents, teachers, supervisors, friends know that some messages just need to be shared again and again and again.
And Jesus does just that. He, in fact, uses the same Amen, Amen, or truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. It’s the same analogy, but here he has clearly applied it to himself, I am the door. He’ll repeat that again in verse 9. This time he adds, If anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and he will go in and out and find pasture. Jesus is making an exclusive claim here. He’ll further clarify that in chapter 14, verse 6, where he says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father but through me. The abundant life that Jesus promises can only come through him. Now, he has throughout his ministry, recorded in the gospel of John, but the other gospels as well, he has been declaring truths about himself to anyone who would listen. In fact, even to the blind man that he just healed, he asked, Do you believe in the Son of Man? Christ has claimed to be the light of the world. He has promised that if one abides in his word, he will be set free. He has claimed that if one keeps his word, he will never taste of death.
Freedom, truth, and life are only found in Jesus. And so we understand that the proper entry into his sheepfold is through faith and trust in Jesus himself. He is the great gatekeeper. He also tells us that all who came before him were steeds and robbers. They didn’t bother coming into the fold the right way, for they had no concern for the sheep, and they were not in a right relationship with the shepherd. They were simply out for themselves. Thiefs and robbers, thieves from the Greek klepto, as in kleptomaniak, one who just can’t help himself from stealing. That’s actually the word used to describe Judas, where in John 12: 6, it says that he helped himself to the disciple’s money bag. Robber is the term used to describe Barabbas, who was released by Pilates. He was a hardened criminal, a brigand, some would say. In this context, they’re essentially the same thing. It’s basically someone who is only looking out for themselves. This is expanded in verse 10, where where we see that they’re coming in this way because their intention is to steal, to kill, and to destroy. Who then are these themes? Who are these robbers?
In the context of our passage message, it looks like he’s speaking of the pharisees in chapter 9. Now, they’re the ones that were trying to rob people of joy, rob people of even the healing that they were receiving from Christ, keep people in chains to their understanding of the law. But who might the thieves and the robbers be for us today? I think in keeping with Jesus’s original use, it would also be any false shepherds who is leading us astray, who unlike the good shepherd, who does everything for our good, a false shepherd, whether that’s an actual person that you’re listening to that’s distracting you with their teaching or an idol that you’ve set up that distracts you from the life that Christ would be leading you in, those are the thieves and the robbers in your life. In either case, whether it’s an actual false shepherd or a golden cow, they’re not concerned with your best. They have their own agenda, and that’s to take from you the abundant life that Christ has promised. Now, to be sure, the abundant life that Jesus promised and the abundant life, the idea that you may have for abundant life might be worlds apart.
And so it’s wise to be reminded, again, of a few things that Jesus taught. In Luke 12: 15, for instance, he said, One’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possession. Matthew 6 tells us, Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth or where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your treasure is, there your heart is also. A New Testament scholar Richard Phillips notes that God is a father, not a grandfather. He does not spoil his children, but he trains them in righteousness. Writing this sermon this week, I read that passage in a very different way. I’m a grandfather. I don’t see anything wrong with chocolate ice cream, chocolate cake, and actual chocolate for dessert for my grandkids. Their father, seated right there, knows better than the grandfather. A father trains in righteousness. He uses gentle and loving discipline to train his children. And that is who Our heavenly Father is. Paul reminds us also in Philippians 4: 19, he reminds us that my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches and glory in Jesus.
The believer’s true wealth is that his joy is not dependent on earthly wealth or easy circumstances, but rather that they know the voice of their savior and that they depend on his leading us into spiritual abundance in any circumstance. Psalm 23 brings this out so masterfully. Our good shepherd is one that leads us both besides still waters, lush pastures, and through the valley of the shadow of death. And through it all, his presence comforts us, and he leads us towards joy in that great banquet table. Key then to this abundant life is that each of us truly know the voice of Jesus, our shepherd. I hope you know that Research has noted that babies in the womb can hear at about four months, they can differentiate sounds a few weeks later, and they’ll know their mother’s voice in that same time. And so why mothers and fathers who read to their children, sing to their children, and talk to their children even before they’re born, are building that bond of trust and communication that will serve that relationship for lifetime. Time, Jesus sheep know his voice. They have trained themselves to listen to his voice.
They’ve trained themselves through regular time in the word, through careful listening of sermons and other sources. And as they hear others speak of the word, they ask themselves, does this really align with God’s word? Is this true? Is this right? Is this beautiful? This deep relationship with our savior, this requires a proper entry into his care, a proper calling by his name, and a proper response to the voice. And they all work together to bring us in to an abundant life. But we’ll see in verse 11 that this abundant life, it’s also ours through deep sacrifices, the deep sacrifices that we are presented with. And Here in verse 11, we see yet another contrast between the true and the false shepherds. The true shepherd, here called the good shepherd, lays down his life for his sheep. You can see in the questions, question number 4, I noted that elsewhere, John calls Jesus the true vine, the true light, and the true bread. But here, he’s called the good shepherd. Why switch from true to good? The D. A. Carson notes, True is always used in reference to the temporal and perhaps even failed type. He’s showing us that Jesus is the genuine an antetype that Jesus is the fulfillment and that he’s rooted in eternity.
Other scholars note that good also means noble and beautiful. Jesus, who lays down his life, is in beautiful contrast to the hired hand who merely runs away. The stranger, the thief, the hired hand, none of these have any vested interest in the sheep. As verse 13 states, They care nothing for the sheep. Their interest is only in themselves. And so at the first sign of danger, as the wolf approaches, in our text, they flee, leaving the sheep defenseless. And again, verse 12 shows us some are snatched by the wolves and others are scattered. And then the contrast in verse 14, Jesus assuring us, I am the good shepherd. And he reminds us that he knows all of his sheep, and they know him. And then verse 15, Just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for my sheep. ‘ Jesus has a vested interest in his sheep, for he lays down his life for them. And in fact, that’s exactly what he has done. Jesus has also declared something really beautiful in these two verses. He has shown us that in some similar way that he and the Father are in relationship, so are we as well with Jesus.
He knows us and we know him. He knows the Father and the Father knows him. Our relationship with Jesus puts us into relationship with the Father. Furthermore, we see that Jesus sacrifices selfless. Verse 16 shows us his commitment to all of his sheep, not just to the house of Israel has he come, but to the Gentiles as well, to any, to all that will hear his voice and respond to his call. Jesus must bring them in. It’s his mission. And the text says, They will listen to his voice. He will succeed. Again, if your Bibles are open, you can glance down and look at verse 29 and see that the Father has given to Jesus all of these sheep. They will be protected and none will snatch them out of Jesus his hand. God is clearly sovereign in this entire process. The last two verses of our text, Jesus affirms that it was out of love for us that he made that choice to lay down his life for his sheep. Jesus is foreshadowing both the crucifixion and his resurrection. And in doing so, he’s also telegraphing for us that while the Romans may have been When ruling and the religious leaders thought they were shaping the events, Jesus was in complete control.
Again, in verse 18, he tells us that he had the authority to both lay down his life and take it up again. This authority was given to him by the Father. This then for the Christian, for a follower of Christ, ought to give us confidence as we share this same message, one that Christ knows his sheep. All that the Father has given him will come in. Your encouraging message, your sharing the stories of life, it will succeed. If you’re speaking to one of the sheep. You cannot fail as you present the good news of the gospel to the world around you. All of Christ’s sheep will be brought in. So we We have confidence. And more than that, we also have the authority. This was Jesus’s mission, and he has all authority to accomplish that. He shares that with us in Matthew 28: 18 and following. You perhaps remember that verse, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you.
And lo, I am with you to the end of the age. This is the abundant life to which we have been called, one in which we are deeply loved, one in which we are known by and called by name and led through times of rejoicing and times of trouble. Jesus is the only way to this abundant life, and he has shown us that this abundant life is one of deep relationships and selfless sacrifice. And yet through it all, he, the good shepherd, will be with us. Let us pray. Father, indeed, you are the good shepherd. Now, you have loved us with an everlasting love, and we rejoice in your goodness. You, with patience, shared this truth to us, and when we didn’t it, you shared it again, and you have called us to be your messengers. So, Father, give us your patience and work before us to open the eyes that people may hear, unstop their ears that they may… Or that open their eyes that they might see and unstop their ears that they might hear. And Father, there may be some among us who need to see and to hear correctly as well.
Would you be pleased to do that work even now? Father, thank you for your love for us. You are truly and only our hope in both life and death. And it’s to you, the good shepherd, that we pray this morning. Amen. Indeed, I invite you to stand and.
Discaimer: This sermon text was generated by an automated transcription service.