His Goodness Runs Red

Would you mind turning in your Bible to John chapter 10.

John 10 · chapter mention

It's on page 1065 of your pew Bible.

! And we've been out of the Gospel of John for a couple weeks,

and now we're back into the Gospel of John.

The series we've titled Behold, Believe, and Live.

Behold Jesus, Believe in Jesus, and Live for Jesus.

As you're turning there,

you know, we live in a time of great mistrust and skepticism

regarding leaders in general.

Maybe you've lost confidence in the political leaders of our country.

Well, the church is no exception.

It seems every other month we learn of some Christian leader

who has failed or has drifted or has undermined the Gospel,

who've compromised themselves.

A lot of Christians, even in this room,

have been deeply hurt by compromised shepherds.

Throughout the Bible, shepherding is used as a metaphor

of leading God's people.

Shepherd lead people.

And we shepherds get to lead God's people, His flock.

And throughout the Bible,

God refers to Himself as a shepherd of His people.

I mean, Steve started off this morning,

called us to worship in Psalm 23.1,

The Lord is my shepherd.

And what we're going to see from Ezekiel 34 this morning

is that God is going to claim that title again,

but in the context of a rebuke.

In the New Testament, Jesus, God incarnate,

is described as the great shepherd of the sheep.

It's Hebrews 13.20.

He is the chief shepherd, 1 Peter 5.4.

And in our passage this morning, in John 10,

Jesus calls Himself the good shepherd.

So, I want to help us ask and answer this question this morning.

What is so good about this good shepherd?

What's so good about this good shepherd?

And what difference will that make for us today?

Throughout the passage we're going to be looking at,

verses 1 through 21,

there's this running contrast

between the failed leaders of Israel,

the Pharisees,

and the good shepherd,

the leadership of Jesus.

And what I want to help you to see this morning

are three truths that Jesus claims about His leadership

that should make you fully trust Him.

And here they are.

Truth number one,

He is the legit shepherd.

Truth number two,

He is the purposed shepherd.

And truth number three,

He is the committed shepherd.

So, legit, purposed, committed.

And all of these come together

to make Him the good shepherd.

And what you're going to see

is that His goodness runs red.

So, let's look at this first truth

that Jesus speaks of Himself.

What we're going to take is kind of piece by piece,

make our way through this passage.

And now I'm going to read John 10, 1 through 6.

Let's look at this first truth

where Jesus describes Himself

as the legit shepherd.

Jesus begins,

Truly, truly, I say to you,

He who does not enter the sheepfold by the door,

but climbs in by 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 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.

Who?

Verse 6.

Who are these them, they, them?

We need to understand

who Jesus is speaking to.

In chapter 9, Jesus heals this man born blind.

And it climaxes at the end of verse 9

where this man who now sees,

sees Jesus for the first time,

and he says,

Lord, I believe,

and he worships Him.

But then in verse 39,

we read,

Jesus said,

For judgment I came into this world,

that those who do not see me

may see, may see,

and those who see may become blind.

Some of the Pharisees near Him

heard these things and said to Him,

Are we also blind?

And Jesus said to them,

If you were blind,

you would have no guilt,

but now that you say,

we see,

your guilt remains.

Now let's just pretend

there's no chapter break.

But now that you see,

say we see,

your guilt remains.

Truly, truly,

I say to you,

do you know who the you is?

The Pharisees.

Jesus is speaking these words

to the failed religious leaders

of Israel.

And so what we have before us

is a bit of a confrontation

between Jesus

and the failed leaders

of Israel.

This is a passage about leadership,

believe it or not.

Truly, truly,

I say to you,

Jesus says,

we've bumped into this phrase,

truly, truly,

I say to you,

a number of times

in the Gospel of John,

and what Jesus is doing

is simply setting

the record straight.

He's like,

listen up,

let me just lay it clear

for you.

And He starts

by painting a picture

of a sheepfold.

He says,

He who does not enter

the sheepfold,

what is a sheepfold?

A sheepfold is like

a sheep pen,

a sheep corral.

It's basically

a kind of

a walled-in enclosure,

a fenced-in enclosure

to bring sheep in

during the night

to keep them safe.

And the enclosure,

sometimes sides

of buildings were used,

other times they'd weave

like sticks and branches

and they'd bring them

really high

so that nobody could get in

and the sheep couldn't get out.

And it only had one door.

Only one way in

and one way out.

And it's here

that He begins the contrast.

Look what He says.

He who does not enter

the sheepfold by the door

but climbs in

by another way,

that man is a thief

and a robber.

Who is He talking to?

The Pharisees.

Do you know what He's

saying to them?

You're trying to come

into the sheep pen

kind of like

in an illegitimate way,

thief and robber.

What He's contrasting

is illegitimate leaders.

And so He begins

this contrast.

Illegitimate people

trying to access

the sheep

and they've got

ill intent.

They're thieves and robbers.

They don't go through the gate.

But in verse 2,

the legitimate shepherd

is known.

He's recognized.

He's trusted.

But he who enters

by the door

is the shepherd

of the sheep.

To him,

the gatekeeper opens.

He's like an under-shepherd.

He's kind of working

the door

of the sheepfold.

Recognizes that

this guy's legit.

The sheep hear His voice

and He calls

His own sheep by name

and leads them out.

He's legit.

The sheep recognize Him.

They trust Him.

They hear Him

call their names

and they follow Him.

They go after Him.

Literally,

He calls them by name.

He knows His sheep.

He's recognized.

He's legitimate.

Did you notice

the kind of language

Jesus is using here?

He's saying,

to Him the gatekeeper opens,

the sheep hear His voice,

and He calls His own sheep

by name.

His own sheep by name.

The shepherd,

obviously,

is Jesus referring to Himself.

He knows His own sheep.

He calls them by name.

Christian,

if you're in the room

and you've been like,

does Jesus know me?

Absolutely.

He knows everything about you.

He knows your name.

He called you by name

to follow Him.

You are not some nameless face

in a crowd

that Jesus poured out His blood

generally for.

He shed His blood for you.

His goodness runs red.

What He says here is striking.

He's saying something

with clarity and confidence.

He's saying,

my sheep will recognize

my voice.

This is getting at

what theologians call

the irresistible call.

There's the general gospel call,

which the gospel goes out

to people,

all people,

and then God

effectually

is working within that

to call a people

and the elect

to Himself.

those He's known

from the foundation

before the foundation

of the world.

His voice

is recognized.

It's distinct.

It's known.

We've learned some things

about Jesus

along the way here.

Remember John 1,

1,

in the beginning

was the Word

and the Word

was with God

and the Word

was God

and the Word

became flesh

and dwelt among us

and He was full

of grace and truth.

He's full of steadfast

love and faithfulness.

He puts on God,

God on display

in an incarnate way.

It's glorious.

And then at the end

of chapter 8,

do you remember

what Jesus says

before Abraham

was I am?

Do you know

what makes Jesus

the legit shepherd?

He's God.

He is the God.

So like Psalm 23,

the Lord Jesus

is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

He's the real thing.

In verse 5,

Jesus comes back

to the contrast.

He says,

a stranger

they will not follow

but they will flee from Him

for they do not know

the voice of strangers.

A stranger

is unrecognized,

unknown,

untrusted.

Do you see

the contrast

Jesus is doing here?

And do you remember

who He's talking to?

He's talking to these Pharisees

who He's calling thieves

and robbers

and strangers.

Unrecognized

by the sheep.

His sheep.

The sheep won't follow

a stranger.

They don't know

His voice.

They're illegitimate

shepherds.

And so what Jesus

is doing in verses

1-5

is emphasizing

that He is

the legit leader

of God's people.

The legit shepherd

because He is

God in the flesh.

He's no thief,

robber,

or stranger.

His sheep

recognize them.

And then verse 6

we have something

very ironic.

The sheep

read this.

This is John

piping up.

This figure of speech

Jesus used

with them,

the Pharisees,

but they did not

understand what

He was saying to them.

Now isn't that ironic?

Because His sheep

will hear His voice

and follow Him.

But these men

do not hear His voice.

They are not

following Him.

They are not His sheep.

Who would you rather

have as your leader?

A thief,

robber,

stranger,

or God incarnate?

We move on

to the second truth

Jesus

describes Himself

with

about Him

and

the purposed

shepherd.

So let me just read

chapter 10

verses 7-10.

And Jesus said

to them,

Truly,

truly,

I say to you,

I am the door

of the sheep.

All who came

before Me

are thieves

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

may have life

and have it

abundantly.

So the second truth

is about

the purpose

of the good shepherd.

And verse 7

begins with another,

Truly,

truly,

I say to you,

and again,

He's speaking

to the Pharisees.

And so it's like

Jesus is like,

I know you don't

understand Me,

so I'm going to

come in from

a different angle.

I'm going to

speak from

the perspective

of the door

of the sheep pen.

perspective of

the gate,

the sole entrance

in and out

of the sheep fold.

Now,

let's just

ask a basic question.

What is the purpose

of a door?

What's the purpose

of a gate?

The purpose

of a door

or gate

is,

generally speaking,

to keep

bad things out

and keep

good things in.

I have a grandson.

His name is Hudson.

He's 18 months old.

He's mobile.

We have a fenced

backyard.

We keep the gate

closed.

We don't want

anybody coming in

that shouldn't be there

and we don't want

Hudson getting out.

A door serves

a purpose.

And what we have here

is Jesus describing

Himself as a purpose,

a function.

Jesus

is presenting

Himself as the door

that both

protects

the sheep

and provides

for the sheep.

Let me point it out

to you.

In verse 8,

there's this picture

of protection.

Let me read it.

All who came

before me

are thieves

and robbers,

but the sheep

did not listen

to them.

I want you

to turn

to your Bibles

to Ezekiel

Ezekiel 34 · chapter mention

chapter 34.

It's on page

857

of your pew Bible.

This is kind of

a lengthy section

I'm going to read,

but I'm going to read it

so you get it.

What Jesus

is saying here

has roots

in Ezekiel 34

that you will see.

So in Ezekiel 34,

God speaks

to Ezekiel

who also goes

by the Son of Man.

And in 34.1

we read this.

The word of the Lord

came to me.

Son of Man,

prophesy against

the shepherds

of Israel,

the human leaders

of Israel.

Prophesy and say

to them,

even to the shepherds,

thus says

the Lord God,

ah, shepherds

of Israel

who have been

feeding yourselves.

Should not shepherds

feed the sheep?

You eat the fat.

You clothe yourself

with the wool.

You slaughter the fat ones

but you do not

feed the sheep.

The weak

you have not strengthened.

The sick

you have not healed.

The injured

you have not bound up.

The strayed

you have not brought back.

The lost

you have not sought.

And with force

and harshness

you have ruled them.

Maybe you've experienced

a human shepherd's

force and harshness.

So they were scattered

because there was no shepherd

and they became food

for all the wild beasts.

My sheep were scattered.

They wandered over

all the mountains

and on every high hill.

My sheep were scattered

over the face of the earth

with no one to search

or seek for them.

And down in verse 9

he says,

therefore you shepherds

hear the word of the Lord.

Thus says the Lord God,

behold,

I am against the shepherds.

And I will require

my sheep at their hand

and put a stop

to their feeding the sheep.

No longer shall

the shepherds

feed themselves.

I will rescue

my sheep from

their mouths

that they may not

be food for them.

Okay, so this is a big rebuke

of the human shepherds

of Israel.

They've failed.

And then God says

in verse 11,

for thus says

the Lord God,

behold,

I myself

will search for my sheep

and will seek them out.

as a shepherd

seeks out his flock

when he is among his sheep

that have been scattered,

so will I

seek out my sheep

and I will rescue them

from all the places

where they've been scattered

on a day of clouds

and thick darkness.

And I will bring them

out from the peoples

and gather them

from the countries

and will bring them

into their own land

and I will feed them

on the mountains of Israel

by the ravines

and on all the inhabited

places of the country.

I will feed them

with good pasture.

How about that

for a contrast?

You know what God is saying?

I am the shepherd

of my people.

There's no accident

in Jesus using

this shepherding language

with the Pharisees.

He is calling them

failed shepherds

without calling them shepherds.

These Pharisees

are thieves and robbers.

They're strangers.

And Jesus is the gate.

And he is protecting

his sheep

from these thieves and robbers.

From going out

and following them.

From hearing their voice.

They don't recognize it.

They're not going to go.

So,

what we see going on

in John 10

is this fulfillment

of Ezekiel 34

happening in the coming

of Jesus.

In verse 9,

he says,

I am the door.

And now we have

a picture of provision.

Not only is he just

protecting his flock

as the gate,

he's providing for them.

Look what he provides.

Verse 10,

the thief,

no, excuse me,

verse 9,

if anyone enters by me,

he will be saved.

If anyone comes

into the sheepfold

through him,

he will be saved.

The sheepfold

is his people.

The flock of Jesus,

the good shepherd.

And if you want

to be part of his people,

you need to come

through Jesus.

It's similar

to what he says

in John 14, 6.

I am the way,

the truth,

and the life.

No one comes

to the Father

but through me.

Jesus is saying,

hey,

you cannot be saved

unless you come

through me.

I'm the gate.

And the way

that you come

through Jesus

as the gate

is by believing

in his name,

by trusting in him.

This is an exclusive

claim of salvation.

Salvation is found

in no one else.

The only way

to be saved

is to become

part of Jesus' flock

and to be part

of Jesus' flock,

you need to come

through Jesus.

But once you

join his flock,

you come in

and out

and find pasture.

You know what

that's a picture of?

Life.

If you're a sheep,

it's a picture

of the good life.

You come in

and out in safety.

You eat green

from green pasture.

The Lord Jesus

is my shepherd.

I shall not want.

He leads me

besides still waters.

He leads me

to good pasture.

He restores my soul.

In verse 10,

we have this

emphatic contrast

of purpose.

Look at the purpose

of these failed shepherds.

The thief comes only

to steal and kill

and destroy.

What's the purpose?

Kill,

steal,

destroy.

These failed shepherds

are in it for themselves.

They're using the sheep.

They're trying to

advantage themselves

through the sheep.

But look at

what the legit shepherd does.

He says of himself,

I came

that they may have life

and have it abundantly.

It's the complete opposite

of what thieves

and robbers do.

He came to give life

and to give abundant life.

It's his purpose

and it's being pictured

as dependent

on Jesus.

We're dependent

on him

for the good life.

He's the one.

He's the gate.

He's the shepherd.

He brings us in and out

and helps us find pastures.

The good life

is in Jesus,

the good shepherd.

Let me just

expand on that

a little bit.

The good life

is a life

that glorifies God.

And it's not a life

of independence

from God.

It's a life

of dependence

on God.

Later in John,

we'll get there

in a few weeks,

John 15,

Jesus pictures

another way

of talking

about dependence.

He says

in verse 5,

I am the vine,

you are the branches.

Whoever abides in me

depends on me

and I in him.

He it is

that bears much fruit

for apart from me

you can do nothing.

And then in verse 8

we read,

by this my father

is glorified

that you bear much fruit.

and so prove

to be my disciples.

That's the good life.

Dependence on Jesus,

bearing fruit

for his name's sake,

bringing glory

to his father.

So what we have here

in verses 7 through 10

is a contrast

of purpose.

We have these

illegitimate leaders

who are thieves

and robbers,

self-serving

at the cost

of the sheep,

destruction,

killing,

stealing.

And then we have

the legitimate shepherd

who is sheep-serving.

He brings life

to his sheep.

Abundant life.

The good life.

A life of dependence

on God.

What would you rather have

from a lever?

Abuse

or abundant life?

which brings me now

to the third truth

that Jesus speaks

of himself.

And this is in verses

11 through 18

and I'm using

the word commitment.

The committed shepherd.

So we've seen

Jesus speak

about him

being legit,

about him being

purposed

to give life.

And now let's

look at how

he kind of

spells out

his commitment

to his own.

in verse 11

he says

I am the good shepherd.

And then if you look

down in verse 14

he repeats it.

I am

the good shepherd.

What is so good

about this

good shepherd?

What

what's his goodness?

What we're going to see

is that

his goodness

runs

red.

in verse 12

he continues

with this

contrast

between leaders

and he

he changes

his language

now.

He's no longer

talking about

thieves and robbers

or strangers.

He's talking

about a hired

hand.

And so he

says this

he who

in verse 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.

He flees

because he's

a hired

hand

and cares

nothing

for the sheep.

A hired

hand

is not

a shepherd

Jesus says.

In other words

he doesn't own

the sheep.

He's just been

hired

to make a

wage.

And what

Jesus points

here in

verses 12

and 13

is that

this hired

hand

is out

with the

sheep

and he

sees a

wolf

coming

and what

does the

hired

hand

do?

He splits

and leaves

the sheep.

He abandons

the sheep.

And if

you've been

around sheep

which I try

not to be

I'm not one

who likes

sheep

or goats

but sheep

they're

defenseless

beast.

Easy

pickings

for a

wolf.

And so

what this

hired

hand

does

is

in

order

to

save

his

own

skin

he

leaves

the

sheep

these

vulnerable

animals

to fend

for

themselves

and

they

will

not

last.

I mean

look what

we read

and the

wolf

snatches

them

and

scatters

them.

Why?

Why would

they do

this?

Why would

they bail

on the

sheep?

Well Jesus

tells us

in verse

13

he flees

because

he's a

hired

hand

and

cares

nothing

for

the

sheep.

He cares

for himself.

Now remember

who Jesus

is talking

to.

He's talking

to Pharisees.

And what

Jesus in a

veiled way

is saying

to them

is he's

calling them

selfish

and cowardly.

because

they're not

willing to

stick around

for his

sheep.

And in

contrast to

that we

learn that

the good

shepherd

verse 11

lays his

life down

for the

sheep.

It's the

complete

opposite.

Verse 14

we're told

why.

I'm the

good shepherd.

I know

my own

and my

own

know

me.

I

know

those

who are

mine

from before

the

foundation

of the

world.

I

know

them.

I

go out

for them.

I

die

for

them.

The

question

is what

does it

mean

for him

to

know?

I

know

my

own

and

my

own

know

me.

Look

at the

beginning

of

15.

He

actually

gives

us an

analogy

of what

this

knowing

is.

So he

says at

the end

of

verse 14

I'm

the

good

shepherd.

I

know

my

own

know

me.

What

kind

of

knowing?

Just

as the

father

knows

me

and I

know

the

father.

It

is a

relational

knowing.

It

is a

loving

of one

another.

If

you

swap

out

the

word

know

with

love

listen

to

that.

We

read

it.

I'm

the

good

shepherd.

I

love

my

own

and

my

own

love

me.

Just

as

the

father

loves

me

and

I

love

the

father.

This

kind

of

knowing

that

Jesus

is

speaking

about

here

is

an

intimate

relational

knowing

like

I

know

you

by

name

and

I

love

you.

I'm

committed

to

you.

That's

why

this

good

shepherd

lays

his

life

down

for

his

sheep.

He

knows

he

loves

his

sheep.

It's

an

intimate

knowledge.

And so

out of

love

for

his

own

Jesus

laid

his

life

down.

His

goodness

runs

red.

Verse

16

we have

a bit

of a

surprise.

We

read

and I

have

other

sheep

that

are

not

of

this

fold.

Huh?

What are

you

talking

about?

I

must

bring

them

also

and

they

will

listen

to

my

voice.

So

there

will

be

one

flock

one

shepherd.

So

Jesus

is

in

Jerusalem.

He's

talking

to

the

Pharisees.

He's

in a

Jewish

context

and

he's

saying

to

them

I've

got

other

sheep

that

are

not

in

the

Jewish

fold

that

are

not

ethnically

Jewish.

Do you

know

who he's

talking

about?

Gentiles.

I

have

sheep

from

the

Gentile

world.

That's

good

for

us

a

room

full

of

Gentiles.

He

would

come

for

us.

And

so

what

he's

saying

here

this

surprise

is

that

he

has

a

mission

that

goes

well

beyond

the

Jewish

people

to

every

nation

of

the

world.

Every

tongue

every

tribe

every

nation

he

has

people

he

has

sheep

that

he

has

died

for

that

he's

going

to

call

to

himself

and

he's

going

to

bring

together

in

one

flock

with

one

shepherd

it

is

a

multi

ethnic

flock

with

Jesus

our

good

shepherd

his

big

plan

for

the

fullness

of

time

is

to

save

many

from

every

tongue

tribe

and

nation

and

then

to

unite

them

all

together

to

follow

him

our

good

shepherd

this

is a

beautiful

thing

he's

saying

you

know

what

my

hope

is

for

VBS

in

August

I

hope

a

whole

bunch

of

people

get

saved

that's

what

I'm

praying

and

I'm

praying

that

a

whole

bunch

of

people

who

are

white

brown

and

black

get

saved

and

people

who

are

children

and

adults

and

that

they

find

themselves

in

this

room

with

us

and

we

get

to

unite

together

as

one

flock

with

one

shepherd

the

good

shepherd

who

laid

his

life

down

for

us

all

his

goodness

runs

red

in

verse

17

we're

told

that

Jesus

says

this is

the

reason

the

father

loves

me

because

I

lay

my

life

down

that

I

might

take

it

up

again

it's

bigger

than

what

it

sounds

like

what

Jesus

says

God

loves

me

the

father

loves

me

the

son

because

I

willingly

have

given

my

life

for

the

sheep

I

willingly

laid

it

down

it's

uncoerced

God

the

father

delights

in it

that

Jesus

would

willingly

give

his

life

for

us

in

verse

18

it's

that

willingness

that

gets

emphasized

no

one

takes

it

from

me

but

I

lay

it

down

of

my

own

accords

you

see

his

goodness

ran

red

he

shed

his

blood

on

the

cross

that's

what

he's

talking

about

when

he's

talking

about

laying

down

his

life

his

death

on

the

cross

where

his

blood

flowed

down

and

he

died

in

order

to

bear

all

of

God's

wrath

for

all

of

our

sins

so

that

we

could

be

brought

into

a

relationship

with

the

living

God

he

he

did

did

that

willingly

uncoerced

because

he

loves

us

this

is

the

authority

that

has

been

granted

to

the

son

of

man

to

lay

down

his

life

and

then

to

take

it

up

again

he's

talking

about

his

resurrection

this

is

gospel

this

is

Jesus

talking

about

the

gospel

in

different

language

he's

talking

about

laying

!

it

down

and

taking

it

up

again

you see

the shepherd

of the

sheep

not only

laid

his

life

down

for

us

but

he

was

raised

three

days

later

and

do

you

know

what

that

means?

he's

alive

today

the

shepherd

of the

sheep

who

laid

his

life

down

for

you

is

now

sitting

upon

a

throne

of

grace

and

he

bids

you

come

come

in

your

need

you

shall

not

want

!

I

will

lead

you

you

know

what

this

is?

This

is

commitment

his

commitment

to

us

if

he

was

willing

to

lay

his

life

down

for

you

his

goodness

runs

red

how

much

more

will

he

be

willing

to

provide

everything

that

we

need

for

life

and

godliness

what

a

wonder

Jesus

is

the

legit

shepherd

he