Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Amen.

           Text: St. John 10:11-18, but especially these words –

 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep…I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me…and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dear Friends in Christ Jesus:

 One of the greatest pictures we have in connection to our relationship with God – is that of a shepherd to his sheep. This picture had its beginning already in the Old

Testament. In the twenty-third Psalm, David declared – “The Lord is my shepherd.” He here described his Lord as a good shepherd, one who takes care of His people, His sheep. And God, through the prophet Ezekiel, had this to say concerning this shepherd-sheep connection – “I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I myself have made them lie down…I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak…I will feed them in justice.”

  Jesus uses this same picture in the text for today, when He said about Himself –

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” At that time, His hearers knew that a real shepherd was most importantly concerned about the well-being of his flock. He would provide his sheep with the necessities of life, such as food and water. And when wolves attacked, the shepherd knew what his

responsibilities were. The shepherd would risk his own life – in order to save the sheep. He would put his own life on the line – to protect the flock. This is the tremendous picture that’s placed before us today.

 Our Lord is here telling us something about Himself, something about ourselves – and something about this connection. He’s here claiming us as His very own. Christ is saying – “I’m the One to whom the psalmist looked at all times. I’m the One who leads you and provides for you also. I’m the One who goes with you throughout your lives. I fill your lives with goodness, mercy, and love – and I guide you, so that following

Me, you might dwell in My Father’s house forever.”

 But Jesus tells us even more. He says – “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” And with these words, our Lord shows us what He did so that His flock, so that you and I, may live for Him now and with Him forever. The Scripture lessons for Lent and Easter are still fresh in our minds. So, we know how Christ fulfilled this prophecy with His death upon the cross of Calvary. In the text, our Lord has this to say about His own life – “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.” And we believe that this claim was fulfilled by Christ’s glorious resurrection from the dead. Today, we accept His claim to be the psalmist’s Lord – and also your Lord and mine. We can say with the apostle John – “We are God’s children now.” And with the apostle Peter, we can confess – “And there is salvation in no one else.”

 The problem today is that we often reject Christ’s claim upon us. And so, it’s not by accident that the Lord compares us to sheep. “I am the good shepherd. I know my own.” Jesus knows us with all of our weaknesses and fears. He knows how we still love to wander and stray from the fold. And yet, Christ wants us to be one flock gathered around Him. He wants to be the Lord of our lives. But, what happens? We still wander and stray, we run away, we stumble and fall. For we all have our own wants, wills, and desires. And we decide to do what we please – without regard for the Lord’s will for our lives, nor for the consequences of our actions. Whatever it is, each of us must confess with the prophet Isaiah that we’re just like sheep – that we’re the ones who have wandered and strayed.

 And yet, Jesus calls us back. And to show us the extent of His love, our Lord once told the story of the shepherd who had one hundred sheep – and suddenly realized that one of them was missing. So, he left the ninety-nine others in the open country and went out after the lost sheep, looking for it until he found it. And when he did, he picked the sheep up, carried it home, and called his friends and neighbors together for a celebration – for the lost had again been found.

 In the same way, Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd, won’t let us go. He calls us back through His Word – and there proclaims His faithfulness. He picks us up in the arms of His grace and love. He forgives us all of our sins. And then He brings us back home, home to Himself and to the power of His redeeming love. Christ bought us back! And He did this for a reason. When the Savior stood among His disciples on the evening of the resurrection, He greeted them with words of peace and then immediately told the disciples – “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And Jesus now sends us out to continue the work that was begun in Him. He now asks us to follow His example – so that the blessings of God are conveyed to others. However, our Lord first gives us an example of what He does not mean by being a shepherd – that of a hired hand.

 This isn’t a real shepherd in any sense of the word. The people represented here are those who only try to use Jesus Christ and His Church. They’re content to stop with the picture of the Good Shepherd – as a picture of comfort. They’re the kind of people who never go and tell. They’re people who use the Church for baptisms, confirmations, weddings and funerals – but who avoid commitment to and responsibility for the life and work of the Church.

 They fail to offer their love and loyalty to the Savior. The Church will never be a blessing to those who only use it for what they can get out of it – nor will they be a blessing to the Church, to the flock of Jesus Christ, the Savior. In contrast to the negative example of the hired hand, the Lord Jesus calls upon us to see Him as our Good Shepherd. And even as the Father sent Him into the world to lay down His life for the sheep, so He calls upon us to follow His example.

 God calls upon us to commit ourselves to the Savior and to the task of shepherding one another. Today, as always, the flock is in danger of letting the weaker ones wander away. So, it’s necessary for everyone who calls Jesus the Good Shepherd to follow the example of the Master – to lay down our lives for the sake of the flock. The means that we resolve to do, not what we want – but what must be done for the sake of Christ’s kingdom. It’s our risen Lord who has shown us that when we lay down our lives for others, He gives them back to us again. He gives us the power to rise above our weaknesses, as we attempt to be shepherds to each other.

 And one opportunity that most of us have to be shepherds to one another is in the home, within our own families. This is especially true in regards to the area of our attitudes and values. As children see our response to others – the way we treat our marriage partner, our neighbors, and those in the community – the way we talk about our family, friends, and fellow church members – they’re being taught how to respond to people around them. And when children see what’s important to their parents, they set their own values along the same lines. So, whether husband or wife, parent or child, brother or sister, our first opportunities to follow the example of the Good Shepherd are usually in the home.

 But our Lord goes on to say – “I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” These words don’t allow us to get comfortable. For the reason He has called us is to reach out to others who aren’t yet a part of Christ’s flock, who aren’t yet in His fold. And so the Good Shepherd leads us out of our family and congregation, out of our own little worlds – and into our community and into the world that He came to claim for Himself. But the way isn’t an easy one. It’s a way that leads to criticism, when we stand up for what our Savior has done for us. It’s certainly not easy to live the kind of life demonstrated by Jesus Christ – in a world that is hostile to Him and to His cause. 

However, our Good Shepherd leads us out – so that He can lead others in.

 And the tremendous thing is that Jesus Christ hasn’t only left us a path to follow – He also goes with us, by our side. He’s ready to help us and lead us. So, no matter what struggle or challenge we may encounter, we can be sure that Jesus has already gone before us – to make a path for us. He’s the Good Shepherd who leads us, who lifts us up when we fall, and who carries us when we can’t go on. Christ claims us and calls us. And we’re secure that even when we do stray, the forgiveness of the Shepherd, secured for us by His blood – restores us again and again to His fold and to His care. He’ll see us through until His words are fulfilled – “So there will be one flock, one shepherd” – in heaven above. Amen.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen. 

Authored by Reverend Carl Trosien.