The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life.

 

Sermon for Easter 4, April 21, 2024

To Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His own blood and made us a kingdom and priests to God His Father—to Him be the glory and the power forever.  Amen.

John 10:11-18  ¹¹“I am the Good Shepherd.  The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.  ¹²The hired man, who is not a shepherd, does not own the sheep.  He sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and runs away.  Then the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them.  ¹³Because he works for money, he does not care about the sheep.  ¹⁴“I am the Good Shepherd.  I know my sheep and my sheep know me ¹⁵(just as the Father knows me and I know the Father).  And I lay down my life for the sheep.  ¹⁶I also have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen.  I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.  Then there will be one flock and one shepherd.  ¹⁷This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again.  ¹⁸No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.  I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it up again.  This is the commission I received from my Father.” (EHV)

The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life.

Dear lambs of the Living God,

            There are some who view Jesus as a masterful teacher and showman who grew too famous for His neighboring teachers and politicians to tolerate, so tiring of His popularity and criticisms, they had Him killed.  Others view Jesus as some sort of radical who ultimately wore out His welcome with the governing authorities who feared Him leading a rebellion, so they crucified Him.  Some of His day thought Jesus to be demon-possessed or mentally ill.  Many people no longer think about Jesus at all.

To be clear, however, Jesus tells us exactly who He is and His mission in life.  Jesus came into this world in a role only He could fill, to do work that only He could accomplish.  If Jesus had not come or had not fulfilled this role, you and I would suffer eternally.  Today, we give thanks and praise the Lord because The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life.

Jesus said, “I am the Good Shepherd.”  As soon as Jesus used that “I am,” statement, the ears of Israel’s leaders perked up.  They knew He claims to be God.  They understood that Jesus was equating Himself with the God who met Moses on Mount Sinai, who chose David as king of Israel, and promised Abraham that from his seed all nations on earth would be blessed.  This is important for you and me, because only the Son of God could be the truly Good Shepherd.

To be the Good Shepherd who would give His life in exchange for the rescue of God’s people, the Messiah had to be perfectly holy, righteous, and completely willing to sacrifice His life for people who have only sinned against Him.  He could have no regrets about the pain He would suffer, not even concerning the agony of separation from the Father.  In addition, He needed perfect knowledge of this world and everything in it.  He had to have the strength to do and control all things, and the perfect restraint to do everything needed while living the humble life of an ordinary man.  He had to have patience to deal with great sinners and powerful temptations without ever once succumbing to the baser instincts of man.

Jesus had to do everything perfectly in thought, word, deed, emotion, and feeling.  He loved with the purest love ever to exist, because it sought nothing for Himself except the hearts and souls He would rescue from darkness and death and return to His Father’s glorious home.

Not only did Jesus announce His divinity as He made these statements, but He said, “The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”  The world still tries to lay the blame for Jesus’ death on the people who accused Him, sentenced Him to die, and nailed Him to the cross.  Yet, those people were really no more guilty than you or me.  Jesus had to die for the whole world, because we are all sinners to the core. 

Now, no doubt many men, and women too, have given their lives for their friends, family, or country.  Yet, none of them could save a soul, not even their own.  Furthermore, not one of those brave, self-sacrificing heroes has ever raised anyone from the grave, especially not themselves.

However, from the day Adam and Eve sinned, God has comforted His people with the promise of a Savior.  No ordinary man could do.  No woman either.  However, God promised to send a Son of the woman who not only could, but would, win us back from the devil’s deceptions.  The Deceiver would be crushed for eternity, but the Son would live on even after suffering great pain and death.

In our text, Jesus compares the Good Shepherd with the hireling.  “The hired man, who is not a shepherd, does not own the sheep.  He sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and runs away.  Then the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them.  Because he works for money, he does not care about the sheep.”  Certainly, every pastor, priest, or religious teacher should take this message to heart.  Anyone who ever gives more thought to his own benefit than to defending God’s people from the world and the devil’s schemes will fall prey to the conniving ways of Satan’s wolf.  Yet, not even Moses could stand up to every test.  Not one of the apostles Jesus sent out with His Word could stand alone to win the fight against the main predator in this ongoing war.  This is why faithful preachers and pastors rely solely on the Word of our God as they lead Jesus’ lambs in the wilderness of earth.

You might say that our Good Shepherd had to have skin in the game.  Thus, Jesus covered His divinity in human flesh to destroy Satan and rescue God’s most precious creation from the jaws of our most ancient enemy.  That’s why we needed the Good Shepherd.  Only God’s Son had the necessary desire, tools, and strength to repel every assault of the wicked ones.  He said, “I am the Good Shepherd.  I know my sheep and my sheep know me (just as the Father knows me and I know the Father).  And I lay down my life for the sheep.”  Jesus knows exactly what we need for salvation, and He knows exactly what is needed for our sanctification.  For our salvation, Jesus lived in perfect obedience to all His Father desires so that we could be counted holy.  Furthermore, Jesus gave His life in exchange for ours so that our debt of sin is paid in full. 

Still, not content just to pay the price to redeem our souls, The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life.  Knowing that we need to hear the Good News of all He has done to give us life, Jesus sends pastors and teachers with the instruction, “If you remain in my word, you are really my disciples.  You will also know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32) and with the command, “Go and gather disciples from all nations by baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and by teaching them to keep all the instructions I have given you.” (Matthew 28:19-20)  He gives children to parents and instructs them to “bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4)

As Jesus gave His disciples these final instructions, He wanted those men to know that His salvation isn’t limited to only the clans of their forefathers.  God gave His Son into suffering and death because He desired salvation to be available to all people.  Thus, Jesus says, I also have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen.  I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.  Then there will be one flock and one shepherd.” 

In our world, there are numerous religions, and nearly uncountable denominations and organizations that claim to worship God, or that pretend to have another road to peace.  However, only one way leads to everlasting life and the glory of heaven.  This side of heaven, we may not always know who are among the flock of our God, but Jesus knows.  Furthermore, it is evident here on earth that wherever the Gospel is proclaimed, and the Sacraments rightly administered, there will be those who hear the voice of the Savior and follow Him.  Someday, as we are gathered around the throne of heaven, it will be perfectly clear who has heard our Savior’s voice and loved the sound of His call.  We will be gathered forever around His throne giving praise to the Lamb who was slain, who yet lives and reigns over all things for the good of those whom His Father has elected to enjoy eternal peace.

There are occasionally those who want to blame the Jews for killing Jesus, or the Roman soldiers for nailing Him to the cross.  However, all those people who brought their false accusations against Jesus, and the crowds who shouted, “Crucify Him!”, and the governor who decreed the sentence were doing exactly what God had planned would happen to His Son so that we might believe in Him and live.  That doesn’t excuse their behavior, but God worked through their evil to bring good for you and me, and for them too, if they later came to believe in Jesus.  But none of those forces was in control of the events that day.  No, that would be Jesus, alone, for He assured His disciples, “This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again.  No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.  I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it up again.  This is the commission I received from my Father.”

Of course, God didn’t start loving Jesus because He was willing to lay down His life for God’s flock.  No, God has always loved His Son for they abide in the perfect harmony of their shared nature.  Still, watching His Son live the life we needed, and giving up His life in exchange for ours, the Father confirmed His love from heaven, saying in thunderous voice, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him.” (Matthew 17:5)

Still today, Jesus is living to protect His flock from the wicked one, to preserve us from danger, and to work saving faith in those God has chosen.  As part of the promise that The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life, Jesus promised His disciples, “Surely I am with you always until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20) 

A real shepherd does more than just stand and watch, or even just walk at the head of the flock.  He observes the flock with a knowledgeable, trained eye, so that whatever they need, he is ready to supply.  When new grazing fields are needed to nourish the flock, he guides them there.  He knows when they need water and where to find it.  At all times, he remains ever vigilant against the enemies that would steal a lamb or a weakened sheep from the flock.

In like manner, our Good Shepherd always has His eye on you, ready to supply your every need, to heal your hurts, and to guide you through the perils of this cold and troubled world.  Then, especially with His Word and Sacrament, Jesus, our Good Shepherd, builds a fence around us to protect us from the wily ways of the old predator, so that the old evil foe can never again snatch us away from the Father’s love. 

Dear friends, rejoice in the love of your Lord, your Savior and Redeemer.  The Good Shepherd shepherds us to eternal life.  Amen.

Now may the God of peace—who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, in connection with his blood, which established the eternal testament—may he equip you with every good thing to do his will, as he works in us what is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ.  To him be glory forever and ever.  Amen.