1.
The Door of the Sheep, vss. 1-10
To
some, this passage can be a little confusing because of the figures,
or the images used here in this teaching, and so we need to do a bit
of interpretation in order to get to the bottom of it. And
interpretation always starts with a question. For example, to whom
is Jesus speaking? Why does He speak of a sheepfold? What does He
mean by "climbing up some other way into it"? What is
meant by "the door"? What is "the sheepfold"
that He speaks of? Questions like this help us to focus our
attention on the One Who is in view here, and the truth is, that both
Israel and the church need to know about His purposes on this earth.
"Verily,
verily I say unto you", v.1; Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees
of ch. 9.40, and the situation at the time was the expulsion of the
formerly blind man, from the synagogue, 9.34. Jesus considered those
Pharisees to be false shepards over the flock of Israel, or as He
calls them, "thieves and robbers", sneaking in over the
walls of the sheepfold, rather than coming in by one of the three
doors referred-to in these verses. By contrast, in the next verse
(v. 11), we will see Jesus refer to Himself as the True Shepard, Who
is even willing to lay down His life for the sheep!
Now,
about these three doors I have spoken-of; first, there is the "door
of the sheepfold" in v. 1; there is "the door of the
sheep", in v. 7 and finally, there is "the door of
salvation", in v. 9. Now remember that back in ch. 9, the Lord
had healed a man who had been blind, and that man came to eventually
profess a saving faith in Jesus. But the Pharisees were so angry
over the whole thing that they cast the poor man out of his
synagogue, in a jealous rage. And so Jesus revealed them for who
they really were; they
were the blind ones (9.41)! It was their pride, and their false
claim on the sheepfold that caused their sinful behaviour! It was
their self-confidence and their complacency that would again, as we
shall soon read in 10.31, cause them to "take up stones again to
stone Him", while many other sheep, spoken-of in v. 42,
"believed on Him there".
Well
lets take another look at the sheepfold. Remember who Jesus is
speaking-to here...the Pharisees...the Jews. Now the sheepfold
cannot be the Kingdom of Heaven, because thieves and robbers cannot
enter in there; nor can it be the church, because the true shepard
does not lead his sheep out of it, as we read in v. 3. And so the
sheepfold must be Israel, the chosen ones of God. And Jesus, in this
passage, is simply using another figure of speech to describe to the
Jews,
what is now so apparent to us,
in terms of our eternal future....that the way to that eternal future
is by the Door, v. 9. Jesus, the true Shepard of the sheep had
presented Himself to Israel in exactly the manner described-by Old
Testamant prophecy...born of a virgin, out of the covenant people,
out of the line of Judah, in the City of David, born under the Law
(Galations 4.4), circumcized the eighth day and finally, presented by
His mother at the temple. And for Him, Holy Spirit had opened the
door to the hearts of man, and as we have read in v. 3, the true
sheep hear His voice and He calls His sheep by name and He leads them
out; out of bondage, into freedom; out of sin, into righteousness;
out of darkness into light; and out of death into life! These are
the marks of the True Shepard, right there in that third verse, and
Jesus is telling the Jews that He is the True Shepard, and the Good
Shepard and the Rightful Shepard, having rightful ownership of the
sheep.
Now
sheep won't follow a stranger...they run away; I suppose they would
need to be driven, as verses 4, 5 imply. There are many examples in
scripture of Jesus calling His sheep out of Judaism, and it's been
that way with God's intended, all down through the ages...not just
that "many are called but few are chosen", but that, "by
me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved".
Now,
I've said before, I don't know much about sheep, but I do understand
this much about Jesus' teaching on shepards...first of all, a shepard
is one who is given access to his sheep as a result of the true
calling of God, unlike the Pharisees described in this passage.
Secondly, a shepard is of
the sheep...he has their true welfare at heart, and he is concerned
with their best interests. Third, Holy Spirit will open the door for
him to be involved in ministry and in service. Fourth, his sheep
hear his voice...they recognize and respond to his ministry. Fifth,
he calls his sheep by name...they
don't only know him,
but He
knows them!
Sixth, he leads them into the green pastures of the faith, where
they can find nourishment and rest. Seventh, he goes before them,
setting a Godly example of faith and of faithfulness. And finally,
he gives his life to his work...all that he does, he does it wholly
for them; and, "a stranger will they not follow".
You
know something? I really believe that a true sheep (because there
are false sheep as well as false shepards!) can discern between the
good, the bad and the ugly (especially the ugly!), but as v. 6 says,
those Pharisees..."they understood not". Those who are not
true shepards of God will, very simply, be confused by the truth of
God, even when it is plainly presented to them. And not much has
changed, either.
Notice
the relationship between verses 7 and 9, and 8 and 10. In 7 and 9
Jesus speaks again of the Door, and the importance of entering in by
Him for salvation. For the Jews, as I've said, that same Door is the
way out of the bondage of Judaism, and this should be their proof
text, even today, of the calling and the ministry of the Lord Jesus.
On the other hand, just as one would expect, in verses 8 and 10 we
need to be aware of the dangers presented by the thief and the
robber. Don't forget! Satan has his angels too, and they can
present themselves as a pretty attractive lot; but look at their
objectives, there in v. 10.
Just
take a look at a couple of nearly parallel passages...Matthew
23.13,14 and
2
Corinthians 11.13-15. These are pretty solemn warnings. And the
prophecy of Zechariah 10.2 is fulfilled..."therefore (the Jews)
went their way as a flock; they were troubled, because there was no
shepard". But ther's a promise in verses 3 and 6..."But I
will strengthen the house of Judah...I will save...I will bring...I
have mercy...for I Am the Lord their God, and will hear them".
Jesus gives us in v. 9, a six-point sermon concerning the future of
those same people; first, "I Am the Door..."; then, "...by
Me..."; then, "...if any man enter in..."; then, ..he
shall be saved..."; then, "...and shall go in and out...";
and finally, "...and find pasture". And what a sermon it
is! And it's all about Jesus (Numbers 27.15-17)!
It's
also worthwhile noting that here, in these first 10 verses of Chapter
10, the third and the fourth of the "I Am" references are
found in this gospel..."I Am the Door", and "I Am the
Good Shepard"; and of course, in v. 10, "I Am come...that
they might have life and have it more abundantly"!
Who
among us could resist the promise of a more abundant life as asheep
in the Good Shepard's own flock!
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