The message is loud
and clear. Don't be taken in by
breakneck public activity that serves only for the aggrandisement of would-be
leaders. The true shepherd cares only
for the good of the flock, seeks only their betterment, leads them into fresh
pastures, feeds them, tends them, protects them, opens to them abundant life, that
only He can give. He gives them love,
He is prepared to lay down his life for the sheep. He gives them life, abundant life,
progressive life, eternal life as He says in v28. He gives them liberty, freedom to go in
and out, to explore, to enjoy.
He is the door into
the sheepfold, that is the way of salvation.
He is the shepherd of the flock, that is the way of satisfaction. There
are many qualities of the Lord, as the
true Shepherd-familiarity, the sheep must know His voice; intimacy,
He calls them by name-each one individually known to Him; leadership, He
leads them out and they follow Him; devotion, He protects them from
danger to the extent of laying down His life.
Above all, he has the
approval of His Father, which is the single most important factor in shepherding
the people. “As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father and I lay
down my life for the sheep.” The pattern for the perfect shepherd is-approved
of God and accepted by men. The imagery
of human beings, characterised as sheep is not a very complimentary one and we
would probably prefer to be seen as more noble animals like jaguars or tigers,
or lions, or eagles and the like. However,
the imagery of sheep is perfect because sheep are oftentimes silly; they tend
to wander and they get lost. Also they
follow the pack, not always in a good way.
The one who created us knows us best, and knows what we need and how to guide
us. We can be sure that He is the Good
Shepherd and always has our best interests at heart. Good in scripture denotes nobility, attractiveness
worth, beauty. His was a voluntary life of sacrifice laid down for the welfare
of the sheep. His familiarity with the
sheep, and they with Him, is rooted in His intimate relationship with the
Father.
“And other sheep
I have which are not of this fold. Them also I must bring, and they shall hear
my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Therefore doth my Father
love me, because I lay down my life that I might take it again. No man, taketh it from me, but I lay it down
of myself. I have power to lay it down,
and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my
Father” v16
Until now, he has
been speaking of the fold of the sheep of the true Israel. Now He refers to Gentile believers who would
come at His bidding, and under His care.
It should be noted that in this verse there are two different words translated
fold. The first refers to a place where
sheep gather; the second should be translated flock and refers to the sheep
themselves. There are two folds but one flock and one shepherd. This has been perverted by world religions,
each suggesting that they, and they alone, are the one fold into which people can
come. The two folds are “the lost sheep
of the house of Israel”-Matthew 10v6; and the strangers of the Gentiles-1st
Peter2v10. In that wonderful outline by
Paul in Ephesians 2v15-18 we find that God creates out of two folds “one new
man”, and there is one flock, and one shepherd.
The work of the Shepherd will continue on into the future end times,
when He will gather His sheep and tend them, according to Revelation 7v15-17.
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