“I Am the Good Shepherd”

It is a very remarkable word which we read in the gospel of John 10:11: “I am the Good Shepherd: the Good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.” The attentive Bible reader will immediately observe that this is not said of an ordinary person or an under shepherd. No man can with freedom say, “I am a good shepherd; I have such good gifts.” Yet, the Saviour could testify in reality, “I am the Good Shepherd.” He is the Good Shepherd by reason of divine appointment. He has been appointed and sent by the Father. There is only one like Him. He not only feeds His sheep and protects them against attacking wolves, but He also gives His life for His sheep. This Good Shepherd is so good that He defends His sheep with His life. A shepherd knows his sheep; he knows their number and their weaknesses. Oh, this Shepherd knows all His sheep by name. Their weaknesses are all known to Him. They are not hidden from Him. He lays down His life for them. He has given His life for them and He was taken away by death. By His death the sheep are saved, and they can never go lost to all eternity. In John 18 we read about the reality of this mediatorial work, of giving His life to liberate His sheep.

(The following is a chapter taken from The Bible History Told to our Children, Volume 3, by John Vreugdenhil.)

Boys and girls, many sheep are kept in the land of Canaan. The shepherds went out with their flocks and cared for them. In the Orient the sheepfolds are altogether different from ours. There the sheepfold was an open area surrounded by a wall or a fence. Usually, a cave was situated in the rear where the sheep could find shelter against the cold and rain. An opening was left in the front of the wall through which the sheep could go in and out, but a door was lacking in many of those sheepfolds. Wasn’t this dangerous? Couldn’t the sheep run away at night? Couldn’t the wild beasts creep unhindered into the sheepfold and rend and kill their prey? Indeed not, the shepherd lay in this opening. Nothing could enter the sheepfold unless it passed the watching shepherd. The shepherd was the door. If a wild beast or thief approached, the shepherd would defend his flock with the courage of a lion, even if it had to cost him his life. In the morning the shepherd would leave the fold with his flock.

We know shepherds to walk behind the flock and drive them forward, but in the Orient the shepherd walks in front and the sheep follow him. If one of these animals lagged behind, the shepherd called the animal by its name, and immediately it would walk to its master. Every sheep knows the shepherd and his voice. If a stranger should call a sheep by its name, it would not come to the stranger but would flee. The sheep knows by the sound of the stranger’s voice that he is not his master. While the shepherd journeys onward with his flock, he clears the way. If one of the sheep falls into a ditch, the shepherd goes for it. He would carefully lift it up, lay it upon his shoulders, and carry the strayed sheep back to the flock. He delivers this animal from death. Boys and girls, I first had to tell you this, otherwise you would not understand the following.

After the Lord Jesus had witnessed the wicked actions of the Pharisees (to the man who was born blind), He says: “I am the door of the sheep…I am the Good Shepherd.” Oh, what does He mean by this? He compares the people to a flock of sheep and Himself to a shepherd. The Pharisees were no shepherds. They did not watch over the sheep; they did not comfort the people, but they pulled them to pieces and drove them away. Oh, the Pharisees appeared more like wolves than shepherds, but the Lord Jesus is the Good Shepherd. The man who was born blind was rejected and driven away by the Pharisees, but the Lord Jesus looked for him. The Lord Jesus is a Shepherd for His people; He will take care of them; He will keep them and lead them safely through this life. Not one of His sheep, not one of His elect, will go lost. The enemies may try to destroy God’s people but they never will succeed. The Lord Jesus will protect them. The Lord knows His sheep by name and they know Him. God’s people live in this world which is full of enemies. The greatest enemy of God’s people is the devil. He continually tries to destroy them, but Jesus, the Good Shepherd, takes care of them; He watches over them. As a shepherd in the Orient walks first and clears the way, so also the Lord Jesus shows His people the way in which they must go.

A good shepherd goes to meet the enemy. The Lord Jesus also went to meet the enemy, and He defeated him. A good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. So, also, the Lord Jesus gave His life. He died the humiliating death upon the cross so His people could live forever; He died to deliver them from destruction. An Israelite shepherd sooner fought the enemy until he died rather than forsake the flock and save his own life. He did it out of love for those dull animals. The Lord Jesus also gave His life voluntarily, and He died out of love for His people. Do you understand how the Lord Jesus is just like a shepherd? He is not only a good Shepherd for the converted Jews but also for the heathens who shall be converted by Him. Soon God’s people will be gathered together in heaven. All will be one flock, for He is the only Shepherd, the Good Shepherd for all His “sheep”—Jew as well as Gentile.

Boys and girls, I know this portion is very difficult for you, really too difficult, but I still told you it. Why? So that when you are sitting at the table listening to your father read the portion from the Bible where Jesus says, “I am the Good Shepherd” or “I am the Door of the sheep,” you will understand a little of its meaning…

What do you say about it? Do you know the Lord Jesus? Do you know His voice in your heart? Does the Lord Jesus know you? Ask if this Good Shepherd will, by grace, make you a sheep of His flock. Only then you shall be safe and He will take care of you. Wouldn’t it be a great privilege?

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