TITLE: “Jesus Christ the True Shepherd”

In the name of the Father and of the † Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.  Our text for this morning is the Good Shepherd text from John chapter 10.

Martin Luther once wrote that a seven-year-old child knows what the church is, namely, holy believers and sheep who hear the voice of their Shepherd (Smalcald Articles, XII).  Our Lord in this text speaks to us about hearing the voice of the Good Shepherd, namely, Jesus Christ.  Where is that voice heard?  It is heard right here in Church.  The Church is made up of God’s people, God’s sheep, who hear the voice of the Shepherd.

It’s interesting that Jesus uses the image of sheep and shepherds.  I don’t know about you, but when I think of animals I would like to be associated with, sheep don’t generally come to the top of my list.  They’re slow, they’re almost blind, and frankly, they’re pretty dumb.  But there is one thing about sheep that makes them unique: sheep have almost the best hearing in the animal kingdom.  Sheep are led not by a whip or by waving red in front of their faces like a bull.  No, the way to get a sheep to follow you is to teach it to know your voice.  When we think of shepherding today, we think about sheep dogs biting at their heels to try and get them to go in the right direction.  But in Jesus’ day, a shepherd went first, and called out so that his sheep would hear his voice and follow in the right direction.

So it should not surprise us that Jesus calls himself the Good Shepherd.  The sheep know the voice of the Good Shepherd, and they follow His voice and no other.  Jesus says that only the Good Shepherd knows what’s best for the sheep.  The hireling, the mercenary who just works for money, he’s just in it short term.  He’s out to get a buck, not to protect and care for the sheep.  So at the first sign of trouble, the hireling bolts and leaves the sheep to their own devices.  And if there’s one thing we know about sheep, it’s that they can’t defend themselves for anything.

But let’s get to the point, shall we?  Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and the hireling is Satan and his false minions, the voices of this world.  You know the voice of the Good Shepherd from your Baptism.  That voice of Jesus has been sunk into your heart and soul through the Word of God, through the liturgy and hymns of the Church, and through preaching your whole life.  You know the voice of the Shepherd.  Your mother and your father probably brought you to this place or one much like it as a child, and like Timothy you learned the voice of the Scriptures from your youth.

So why do so many of our families quit following the voice of the Shepherd?  Many people I think would say it’s the fault of youth.  Young people get distracted and quit going to church when they go to college, and then they never get back into it.  They are hearing other voices, voices that speak of money and wealth and power.  The voices in our world today are myriad, and these voices are tempting.  Remember, when Jesus calls you to be His disciple, He calls you to give up on yourself and your false bravado and games, and to listen to Him.  He is the Shepherd.  He is the one who knows what is best for you.  He is the one who has gone before you into death, so that when you die, you don’t remain there.  But what about other voices?  The voices on television, the radio, and even our own friends are not the voice of the Good Shepherd.

This isn’t just a problem for the youth of our church.  One of the great changes is the past generation is the place that the Church has in people’s lives.  There was a time when the Church was the central event, the focal point in the life of the Christian.  Why?  Because this was where you received Jesus and the forgiveness of sins.  The rest of your life flows out of that voice, that message of the Savior.  That message of the Good Shepherd is what strengthens your life, so that you can go on living.

But something has happened.  The Church is not the place where people come to receive the forgiveness of sins.  The Church for many has become one more thing on the list of weekend chores.  You put in your hour on Sunday, and then go on with your life.  But of course, that forgiveness can’t interfere with personal time or family time.  Clearly that time away is more important than the loving Shepherd for died for you.

What are we teaching our children with this attitude?  We are teaching our children that you listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, but only when it’s convenient.  The Shepherd is all fine and good, but I want Him on my terms, not His terms.

What does Jesus say about this in our text?  The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep.  So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away.  The then wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.  When you listen to other voices, they may be tempting.  They may even be enticing.  But listening to any other voice as the source of your strength and life is nothing other than deadly.  The voice of money tells you to work so much that you have no time for God or family.  The voice of leisure tells you that you have to have so many hours of “free time” to really exist.  And if our Lord and His work interfere with that, well, I guess it will have to go.

Don’t think I’m here to just rag on your favorite pastime.  We all have pastimes, and we all have things we love to do.  I do just as well as you.  And that’s good, because the Lord gave us the earth and it’s gifts to enjoy.  This is very serious business, though.  It is so tempting for us today to worship creation rather than the creator.  Don’t let the wolf get the best of you here!  Who will take care of you when you are in need?  Is the sun-god or whatever your temptation is going to come and rescue you from the clutches of death?  No, only Jesus can do that.

Jesus in our text implores us to know the voice of the Shepherd so well that we can distinguish it from the other voices of the wolf.  They say that a child in its mother’s womb knows the voice of his mother.  And almost every child I’ve ever known is comforted by the voice of its mother.  Now when you were baptized, you heard the voice of the Good Shepherd.  That voice has been with you in good times and in bad.  Throughout your whole life that voice of Jesus has been a part of who you are as a child of God.  Earthly mothers and fathers are great gifts from God, but even they are not the voice of the Good Shepherd.

Perhaps we’re onto something here.  One of the ways that Satan temps us is to get us to believe that the voice of Jesus is only there in the good times.  How can Jesus love me when my life is going so badly?  How can this shepherd be with me when struggles and trials of heart and faith seem to come from every side?  My friends, that is the voice of Satan speaking to you.  It is in those times of trial that Jesus is most with you.  Remember the words from our times, I am the good shepherd, and I know them and they know me.  Just as I know the Father and the Father knows me.  And I lay down my life for the sheep.  Think about those words for a minute.  Jesus knows you just as well as He knows the Father.  Remember, too, the words of Jesus, I am the Father are one.  Jesus knows you better than you know yourself.  And He wants you to know Him in that same way.  Jesus is a part of your life, but even more than that, He is your very life.  He gave His life up on the cross so that you would live forever.  That’s dedication.  That’s love that knows no bounds.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called the children of God!  You have nothing to worry about in this life.  You have every reason to be confident.  You are children of God!  In those holy waters God made you his own child.  You are not in want.  He is the one who will make you down in green pastors.  He is the one who will lead you beside baptismal waters.  He is the one who can restore your soul.  Only Jesus can guard you and take care of you like no other.

Jesus will bring you safely into the sheep pen.  He will bring you safely into heaven.  Trust in him for this.  Jesus lays down his life for the sheep, he is the good Shepherd.  He will never leave you nor forsake you.  He will not abandon you to be devoured by the wolves.  Listen to the voice of your Good Shepherd through the voice of his under-shepherd.  It is the voice of Jesus that preaches to you saying that your sins are forgiven. 

It is the voice of the Jesus, the good shepherd, that says, “Take eat, this is my body; take drink, this is my blood.”  It is the voice of Jesus, the good shepherd, that says, “The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make is face shine on you and be gracious unto you.  The Lord lift his countenance upon you and give you peace.”  And it is the voice of Jesus, your good shepherd, that speaks comforting words to you while you and your loved ones are on their death beds, holding your hand, and helping to make that transition between this life, and the next.  The Good shepherd will lay down his life for every last one of you sheep, until all of you are safely in the sheep pen.  Amen!

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM

Messiah Lutheran Church

Kenosha, Wisconsin

Easter IV-B (May 14, 2000)

John 10:11-18

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Last Revised: May 15, 2000