Alleluia, Christ is Risen! And the cry comes back, The Lord is risen indeed, Alleluia!
The great cry of the church in the eastern orthodox portion of Christendom shouts the good news of Easter for the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep and as he said took it up again. The last two verses at the end of our gospel reading this morning are these:
"For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay
down my life that I may take it again. No one takes
it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have
power to lay it down and I have power to take it again;
this charge I have received from my Father." [John 10:17-18]
This Sunday's gospel is from the Good Shepherd episode of John's Gospel.
You know every time I read that portion of scripture, I am reminded of Bishop William Cox. In October of 1993, the Bishop's Personal Renewal Conference was held at the Bell Auditorium, in Augusta. It was sponsored by our own Bishop Shipps and Bishop Lessard of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah. One the most dynamic presentations was given by Bishop William Cox from the Episcopal Diocese of Texas. He impressed me, as Bishop Shipps described him in his introduction, as a holy and spiritual man. Bishop Shipps said that his healing ministry and spirituality was well known in the House of Bishops. His talk was a personal testimony of his life in the Spirit. But on Friday afternoon he told the Clergy gathered before the Conference about an episode he had on a trip to Israel. As they were traveling around the country, they noticed a herd of sheep with splotches of different color paint on their backs. when he asked the Palestinian guide what that was about the guide got very upset and said that the shepherd was a very, very bad man. He did not know the sheep. Later on, in the trip they came across another flock of sheep and the guide pulled the bus over and took Bishop Cox over to the shepherd and said something to the shepherd in Arabic. The shepherd called out a word, then one of the sheep nearby came over and stood in front of the shepherd. He called out another word, which was the sheep's name and way over in the middle of the flock one of the sheep picked up his head from grazing and looked around, then began to work his way through the flock and came and stood in front of the shepherd. The guide said to Bishop Cox, "Now this is a good shepherd!" The words of John chapter 10 flashed through his mind;
"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." [John 10: 3-4]
References to sheep occur over 500 times in the Bible, if you include allusions to Lamb and Ram. They represented the chief wealth and total livelihood of pastoral people, providing them food, clothing, and coverings for tents. They were also a medium of exchange and they were central figures in the sacrificial system serving as burnt offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings and peace offerings. Since sheep were affectionate, unaggressive and relatively defenseless we can see how they were continually referred to in a figurative-theological language when it came to the relationship between the shepherd and the sheep. Nowhere in the Old Testament do we hear or see of the shepherd laying down his life for the sheep. It is only in John's gospel that this occurs. In the gospel this morning we heard Jesus describe himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep, whom he KNOWS and who KNOW him. The second verse of our Psalm commands us to KNOW the Lord, for he is God, he himself has made us and we are his. Listen to John in his first letter.
"Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has
not yet been revealed. What we do KNOW is this; when he
is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as
he is." [1 John 3:2]
Do you see the pattern? When we KNOW Jesus, we will be like him, because he has been faithful and obedient to God he has seen the faithfulness of God and been raised to life. KNOWING in this case is not just a cognitive exercise, but is talking about a relationship, a belief, a faith, and a trust between two people. In the ninth chapter of John's gospel Jesus heals a man who was born blind. After the man is kicked out of the temple by the authorities, Jesus finds him and asks him,
"`Do you believe in the Son of Man?' He answered and said, `And
who is He, Lord that I may believe in Him?' Jesus said to him, `You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking to you.' And he said, `Lord, I believe.' And he worshipped Him. [John 9:35-38]
The result of this man's coming to KNOW Jesus was to worship him. The second person to KNOW Jesus is the Father, we are a given an even deeper definition of the verb "to KNOW." It is nothing less than "love" itself. Jesus loves the Father, and is loved by the Father. Such love is proven by the willing obedience of Jesus to obey the Father's command and lay down his life for the sheep. Such love is proven by the fact that Jesus will "take it up again." There is a strong similarity in the Jesus' laying down his life at Calvary and another story that we heard back on the 2nd Sunday in Lent.
In Genesis chapter 22 we are told that God tested Abraham. Listen to this familiar story and see if you can find the similarities in the Good News of Jesus laying down his life for the sheep.
"After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you." So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away. Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go over there; we will worship, and then we will come back to you." Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. Isaac said to his father Abraham, "Father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?" Abraham said, "God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So the two of them walked on together.
When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son. But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." He said, "Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him; for now, I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me." And Abraham looked up and saw a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So, Abraham called that place "The LORD will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided."
Now let’s examine some of the coincidences in this story with the life of our Good Shepherd. Chapter 21 of Genesis finds Abraham residing in Beersheba, about 40 miles south of where Jerusalem is today. The mount in the land of Moriah, is named by the writer of 2 Chronicles as the mount on which Solomon built the 1st Temple which was located north of the city of David, Muslims also hold that this is the place where Abraham came to sacrifice Isaac, because they have built the Dome of the Rock on the site in Jerusalem. Think about this, if this is the site where Isaac was almost sacrificed then the bush where the ram was caught, which was provided by God is probably close to the site of another hill, which two thousand years ago was called Golgotha. Abraham's son carried the wood on his back, much like the Son of Man carried the wooden cross on which he would be laid to be sacrificed. Abraham answered Isaac's questions about the lamb to be sacrificed, by saying that God would provide the Lamb. How true, how true! One of my favorite songs on this topic is called “Lay It Down on Mount Moriah” It tells the story of Abraham and his faithfulness and obedience. The refrain says;
"Lay it down at Mt Moriah, offer up what you hold best.
Giving in complete surrender, that you may know
God's faithfulness."
Jesus is like Isaac, who in complete surrender, will lay down his life. He is the Good shepherd who will become a lamb. Not an ordinary lamb but the Lamb of God. Jesus laid it down on Mount Moriah, he offered up his best for us. He gave in complete surrender, that we might know God's faithfulness. Twila Paris is one of my favorite Christian singers and she has a song that I love that is called the Lamb of God. It goes:
" Your only Son, no sin to hide;
But you have sent him from your side.
To walk upon this guilty sod;
And to become the Lamb of God.
Your gift of Love they crucified,
They laughed and scorned him as he died.
The humble king they named a fraud,
And sacrificed the Lamb of God.
Oh Lamb of God, Sweet Lamb of God,
I Love the holy Lamb of God.
Oh wash me in his precious blood,
My Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God.
I was so lost I should have died,
But you have brought me to your side.
To be led by your staff and rod,
And to be count a Lamb of God.
Oh Lamb of God, Sweet Lamb of God,
I Love the holy Lamb of God.
Oh wash me in his precious blood,
Til I am just a Lamb of God."
Isn't ironic the Good Shepherd is also the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world. But most importantly his work as the shepherd is fourfold. Jesus Christ is the:
1. Good Shepherd because he risks and sacrifices his life for the
sheep [John 10:11, 15, Psalm 22]
2. Great Shepherd because he arose from the dead and perfects
the sheep [Hebrews 13:20-21].
3. Shepherd and Bishop of our souls because he welcomes those who
wandered off and went astray [1 Peter 2:25].
4. Chief Shepherd because he is to appear and return to earth
with great glory and reward the faithful [1 Peter 5:4].
To be washed in the precious blood of the lamb means that there is a really close relationship there in order to be that close.
"Oh Lamb of God, Sweet Lamb of God,
I Love the holy Lamb of God.
Oh wash me in his precious blood,
Til I am just a Lamb of God."
A. BACKGROUND NOTES: SHEPHERD
1. DEFINITION: SHEPHERD: (from Heb. ro`eh, "one who tends," to "tend"; Gk. poimen).
A person who takes care of sheep. Figuratively, the Old Testament pictures God as Israel's Shepherd-Leader [Ps. 80:1; Ezek. 34:14]. The New Testament reveals Jesus as the Good Shepherd who gave His life for His sheep. When He said, "I am the good shepherd" [John 10:11], Jesus linked His own divine nature with one of the most ordinary occupations in Israel.
Abel is the first shepherd mentioned in the Bible [Gen. 4:2]. Kings who led Israel
[Jer. 6:3; 49:19] and certain ministers [Jer. 23:4] are also called shepherds. The sons of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob herded sheep [Gen. 13:7; 26:20; 30:36]. Rachel was a shepherdess [Gen. 29:3]. David [2 Sam. 5:2; Ps. 78:70-72], Moses [Ex. 3:1], and Amos [Amos 1:1] found herding to be excellent preparation for future leadership roles.
Jesus' life exemplifies these leadership traits. Jesus knows each of His sheep intimately. Sometimes several shepherds will pen their sheep together in a cave or a sheepfold at night. The next morning each shepherd calls to his own sheep with his own unique guttural cry. Each sheep knows his shepherd's voice and responds immediately. Even in a large flock, one individual sheep will run to his shepherd when his own pet name is called.
Sheep are curious but dumb animals, often unable to find their way home even if the sheepfold is within sight. Knowing this fault, the shepherd never takes his eyes off his wandering sheep. Often a sheep will wander into a briar patch or fall over a cliff in the rugged Palestinian hills. The shepherd tenderly searches for his sheep and carries it to safety on his shoulder.
In water-hungry Syria and Palestine, shepherds have always had to search diligently for water, sometimes for hours every day. Sheep must be watered daily. The shepherd might find a bubbling stream for the sheep that are always on the move and needing fresh pastures every day.
The presence of the shepherd also offers comfort to the flock. David recognized this in [Psalm 23]. Sheep are content merely to be in the same field with their shepherd; Christians are comforted by the very presence of the Lord. This thought is especially comforting when darkness overshadows the believer. Jesus is our Door; nothing can touch our lives without touching Him first. This is a perfect picture of the shepherd. He literally becomes the living door of the sheepfold. He curls up in the door or in the entrance of a cave. He puts his body between the sleeping sheep and ravenous animals or thieves.
B. DOCTRINAL POINTS
1. Jesus is the model shepherd because if his willingness to lay down his life for his
sheep. In Old Testament we often find the relationship between God and his people as that of a shepherd and a flock. This provides a rich background against which to understand Jesus’ use of the image. Faith in the Good Shepherd and the desire to manifest the same sacrificial love must be characteristics of the pastors of God’s people.
2. Jesus is the model shepherd because he knows his sheep. Jesus knows his sheep
by name and they recognize his voice. It is the familiarity of knowing another’s inner life – just as the Father and the Son know each other.
3. The mutual knowing is the communion of life between Jesus and the disciples that
draws these followers into union with one another. The guiding, caring for and uniting task of the Shepherd will form the one flock of those who believe in him who loved and gave himself for them. The flock is meant to be universal, for the Father’s love embraces all who believe in his Son.
C. APPLICATION/DISCUSSION: THE SHEPHERD AND HIS SHEEP by Ray C. Stedman
The wonderful benediction at the end of the letter to the Hebrews says, "May the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom be glory now and forever," {Heb 13:20-21 KJV The first thing in his work as the Great Shepherd is that he has "other sheep that are not of this fold." The fold he speaks of is the nation Israel. Here Jesus is lifting his eyes beyond the cross, beyond the resurrection, to the going forth of the gospel to all the nations of the earth. Isn't it moving to think that not one of us would be here this morning, as Gentile believers in Jesus, if he had not been willing to lay down his life for the sheep. The result of that laying down of his life was that the gospel broke out beyond the boundaries of Israel and spread throughout the earth. Here we are, at the far corners of the world, meeting as a great crowd of believers in Jesus because he laid down his life for the sheep. He brought us together so that there is one flock -- not one fold, notice, but one flock-- and one shepherd, no more than one; one church, one Lord, as Paul says in Ephesians 4. We all belong together. There are not two flocks; there is only one.
Focus Point: Shepherd: Gathering God's Children.
Do you hear the voice of the Shepherd?
First, you will find salvation. That means not only the new birth, a new life, eternal life, but it primarily means salvation from a wasted life. When Billy Graham came to the Cow Palace in San Francisco in 1958 we ran busloads of young people to the crusade. Following a great meeting one evening I sat on the bus on the return trip beside a young man who had gone forward. I said to him, "I don't know what this means to you, but one thing you can be sure of: It means you don't have to fear death any more." I will never forget what he said in reply. He told me, "You know, I don't fear death. I don't think I have ever been afraid to die. What I am afraid of is that I will waste my life." I was happy to assure him that that is exactly what the Lord would save him from if he walked with him.
Isn't it strange that we can spend the best part of our lives making money, becoming successful, and getting ahead, and find at the end that we have wasted our lives. All the good things, the joyful things, the things of peace, the things that make for a sense of accomplishment have slipped by and we have missed them all. That is what is called "destination sickness," the malaise of arriving at where you always wanted to be and finding that you do not want anything you've got. Many people are suffering from that disease. But Jesus promises, "If you enter the door" -- if you begin to understand what he has taught -- you will be saved from that.
More than that, you will "go in and out." This is a beautiful figure. To go into the fold means to find security. This is a desperate need in this hour. Last week I read in the newspapers of three major communities where people are simply stunned by the number of teenage suicides that have occurred this past year. Fine young people, well educated, from good families are taking their own lives suddenly, without warning. Why? Because the future seems so bleak and barren. There is no security left in this world. A terrible nuclear threat hangs over our heads; insecurity is felt in our jobs, constant changes in life are hitting all the time. No one feels secure. But the wonderful thing about this Shepherd is that, when you know him, you will have a sense of security. You are with the One who is in charge of all things. "All power in heaven and on earth is given unto me," Jesus declared to his disciples following his resurrection {cf, Matt 28:18 KJV}. Thus you can find security.
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