I Am Jesus – I Am the Good Shepherd *
Sycamore Creek Church
October 5 & 6
Tom Arthur
Peace friends!
Today we begin I Am Jesus. No, I’m not saying that I am Jesus. Rather, I’m referring to Jesus’ “I am” statements in the book of John in the Bible. There are seven of these “I am” statements. Jesus says:
I am the way the truth and the life.
I am the bread of life.
I am the gate/door.
I am the good shepherd.
I am the vine.
I am the resurrection.
I am the light of the world.
In this series we’ll explore the last four. Today we begin with Jesus saying:
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
~Jesus (John 10:11 NRSV)
If Jesus is the good shepherd, then it suggests that there is some good news here. But if Jesus is the good shepherd, then that also suggests that not all shepherds are good. In fact, Jesus begins by saying:
Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit.
~Jesus (John 10:1 NLT)
Jesus is talking about our spiritual enemy and the evil side of creation. Sometimes he goes by the name Satan or the devil. Jesus tells us that he comes only to steal, kill and destroy.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
~John 10:10 NLT
Satan’s mission can be compared to Jesus’ mission. One is good, the other not so good. Of course, in this metaphor, we’re the sheep. This is not so great news to begin with because sheep are some of the most challenged animals on earth. You’ve probably been to a circus and seen trained elephants, trained dogs, and trained monkeys. But when was the last time you saw a circus with a trained sheep? Never! So say it with me, “You’ve got challenges.” Here are three challenges that we all share with sheep.
1. Sheep are Defenseless
Almost every other animal has some kind of defense: claws, fangs, horns, camouflage, etc. But what happens when you attack a sheep? It says, “Baaaack off.” Sheep are classified by those who study them as prey. Their main defense is to be part of a herd. Together they are more protected than alone. Unfortunately there’s a down side to this defense strategy.
2. Sheep can Mob
Did you know that a herd of sheep is called a mob? Sheep tend to follow a herd mentality. They unthinkingly follow the lead sheep which can often get them in trouble. I came across an article about 450 sheep who jumped off a cliff to their death. There were actually 1500 sheep who went over the cliff but the first 450 cushioned the fall of the other 1050! The loss to the Turkish families was over $100,000. That’s a huge sum in country where the average family makes $2700/year.
We tend to get stuck in groupthink and herd mentality too. We keep using the same bait everyone else is using even though we keep catching the wrong kind of guy or gal. Maybe you need to change your bait. Or if we’re financially in a hole, you need to go to the mall and shop it out. No! That’s what the herd does. Sheep can mob, so can we.
3. Sheep are Filthy
Have you seen white sheep on TV or at the fair? Those sheep were power-washed! I spoke with Alan Culham, MSU Sheep Farm Manager, who told me he has never seen a sheep licking itself clean. Of course, they’re at a distinct disadvantage. They’re white? Whenever I buy something white, no matter how careful I am, I always spill or splatter something on it the first time I wear it! The same thing is true of our spiritual state. The prophet Isaiah said, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way” (Isaiah 53:6 NRSV). Our own way has left us spiritually broken and dirty thinking like everyone else in need of rescue.
In the same way that sheep need a shepherd and we need a savior. The good news is that Jesus is the Good Shepherd. He’s so good he’ll lay down his life for the sheep! Let’s look at four qualities of the Good Shepherd: He leads, he feed, he corrects, and he protects.
1. The Good Shepherd Leads
One of the most famous passages of scripture is Psalm 23. It’s worth reading in full this afternoon. In fact, if you’re going to memorize anything in the Bible, this is a good one to memorize. The whole psalm is about how God is like a good shepherd. We read:
He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
~Psalm 23:3 NRSV
The good shepherd leads us. To let God guide, you have to know God’s voice. Jesus explained this when he said I am the Good Shepherd saying:
The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.
~Jesus (John 10:3-4 NRSV)
Maybe you’re thinking to yourself, “I don’t know the voice of God. Does God speak audibly?” God rarely speaks audibly, although I have experienced one time in life where I think I heard God audibly. It was a word of encouragement to me as a child. But more often than not, God speaks through his Word, circumstances, people, the message in worship and in all different kinds of ways.
There are at least two reasons you may not know his voice. Consider this. If my wife, Sarah, were standing in a room with fifty other women while all of them were talking, could you pick out her voice? It is unlikely that you could pick out her voice amidst all the other noise in the room. That would be because you either don’t know her at all or you haven’t spent enough time with her. It is very likely that after seventeen years of marriage, I could easily pick my wife’s voice. Or maybe you’ve had the experience of hearing your child cry and knowing immediately that it is your child. It’s because you know your child and have spent hours with him or her. The same is true with hearing and recognizing God’s voice. You either don’t know him at all or you haven’t spent much time with God.
One of the amazing things about sheep is that they do have the ability to recognize the shepherd’s voice. They can distinguish it from all others. The Good Shepherd calls us each by name. I find that remembering people’s names can be very powerful. I once remembered the name of the guy who checked Sarah and me into a hotel in Chicago. He was so impressed that I remembered his name, that he treated us like kings and queens all weekend long! God is calling you by name today. Can you hear his voice as he leads you?
2. The Good Shepherd Feeds
Going back to Psalm 23 we find that the Good Shepherd feeds us, not just physically but feeds our spirits:
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
he leads me beside still waters;
he restores my soul.
~Psalm 23:1-3 NRSV
Sheep won’t lie down unless they’re well fed and feel safe. The Good Shepherd does both. Not only that but he leads me beside still waters. Why still waters? Have you ever tried to get drinking water from a body of water that has a swift current or big waves? It’s almost impossible. In the same way that you don’t want to go near raging waters because of fear of falling in, the Good Shepherd leads his sheep to still waters so that they don’t fall in. Jesus is the water that gives life. This life giving water of Jesus restores my soul. We receive a supernatural peace amidst chaos.
I’ll never forget the moment sitting at the dinner table when Micah at about age one and a half began choking. I got down to his level to see if he needed help, and as his face began to turn blue and no noise came out of his mouth, I saw the look of fear in his little eyes. To this day I’m still amazed at how calmly I unbuckled him, turned him over on my arm and slapped his back until he threw up what he was choking on along with everything else in his little tummy. Actually his tummy isn’t so little. How much can a one and a half year-old throw up? A lot more than you would imagine! He threw up all over me, all over himself, and all over the floor. Finally he stopped, and I handed him to his mom to go clean up. Somehow I had stayed calm amidst the chaos of staring my son’s death in the eyes. And then I fell apart! But when it counted, I had this kind of supernatural peace. That’s what it’s like when Jesus restores your soul. Your whole life can be falling apart. You can be staring death in the eyes, and deep down where it really counts, all is well.
The Good Shepherd feeds our soul.
3. The Good Shepherd Corrects
While it may not seem like good news if you are the sheep who is wandering, it is good to be corrected. Amidst his life falling apart, Job says:
Blessed is the one whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.
~Job 5:17-18 NIV
Recently Sarah and I went up to Petoskey for a week of vacation where we own a house. We’re within walking distance of the waterfront and the Little Traverse Bay. I was really looking forward to introducing my youngest son, Sam, to the waterfront. One morning we walked out on the break wall. It’s a pretty big platform and there’s no immediate danger of him falling in, but guess where he always wanted to go. Right to the edge. Guess what I never let him do. Go right to the edge. I always kept myself between him and the water correcting his direction any time he was in danger of going too close to the edge. Did he like this? No way. Was I being a good shepherd of my son? Absolutely.
Of course, none of us likes being disciplined and corrected. No one says, “Oh, yay, I’m being disciplined! I’m grounded. Maybe dad will take away my cell phone too!” The author of the book of Hebrews says:
No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
~Hebrews 12:11 NLT
The Good Shepherd leads, feeds, corrects, and protects.
4. The Good Shepherd Protects
Maybe one of the deepest moments in Psalm 23 is found in verse four.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil;
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff—
they comfort me.
~Psalm 23:4 NRSV
When have you been afraid walking through the valley of the shadow of death? When have you feared for your own safety? My son, Micah, when he was about two and a half and still in his crib told me one morning when I came to get him up that he had been scared of something the night before. I told him that when he was scared he could pray to God. He said, “I don’t need to pray. I just yell Daddy, Daddy!” At first I thought he wasn’t getting it. Then I realized that I was his first experience of the protection that God provides. He’s not quite old enough to realize that his daddy has limits to his ability to protect, but God does not.
While God does protect us, he does not always protect from death itself. We will all die. But our Good Shepherd, Jesus, has gone before us. When Jesus said that he was the Good Shepherd, he said,
“The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep.”
~Jesus (John 10:11)
Jesus conquered death so that he might usher us beyond it. When I became pastor here at Sycamore Creek Church, one of my first experiences walking alongside someone through dying was with Ken Ziegler. Ken had multiple sclerosis commonly referred to as MS. I visited with Ken many times in the hospital during my first couple of years at SCC. Toward the end of Ken’s life when he could no longer talk, I would sit beside his bed and pray with him. I came to realize that Ken had memorized many of the great prayers and creeds of the church. I would say the Apostles Creed and see him mouthing, “I believe in the resurrection of the dead.” I would pray the Lord’s Prayer with him and see him mouthing, “Our Father, who art in heaven.” And I would pray Psalm 23 with him and see him praying along with me, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” Ken had hope even in the face of death that death was not the end. It was not the end because he had a Good Shepherd, Jesus, who had laid down his life for his sheep and conquered death through the resurrection.
Jesus once told a story about a hundred sheep. He said that ninety-nine were safe in the pen. One went missing. The Good Shepherd left the ninety-nine to go find the one. Maybe today you’re the one that the Good Shepherd is seeking.
Prayer – Psalm 23 NKJV
The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.
* This sermon is based on a sermon originally preached by Craig Groeschel
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