2 February 2025
JESUS – THE GOOD SHEPHERD
(The Names Of God: TNOG 27)
Jesus said, “I AM the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His Life for the sheep” (John 10:11). This is the fourth “I AM” claim. By calling Himself the Good Shepherd, Jesus is identifying Himself as YAHWEH in Psalm 23: “The LORD (Yahweh) is my Shepherd” (v.1). He is also implying that He is the fulfillment of OT prophecies of Yahweh as the Shepherd of Israel. Jesus is the Good Shepherd because He is God and He is Good.
He says this firstly in contrast to the “bad” shepherds in Israel, as mentioned in Ezekiel and Jeremiah who were corrupt and uncaring. So, Yahweh made Himself the Shepherd of Israel: “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I Myself will search for My sheep and look after them… I Myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak. I will shepherd the flock with justice… Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them and that they are my people, declares the Sovereign Lord. You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord” (Ezekiel 34).
Secondly it is also to rebuke the “hirelings” who care for themselves and not the sheep: “The hireling who is not the shepherd…sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep” (Jn 10: 12-13). Hirelings are “shepherds” who serve God for worldly and monetary benefits and do not have the heart of a true shepherd.
Jesus the Good Shepherd lays down His Life for the sheep. “He died for our sins and rose again for our justification … For Christ also suffered once for sins, the Righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God” (Rom.4:25; 1 Pet.318). He died and rose again to be the Savior of all mankind. Hallelujah, what a Savior!
What does Jesus our Shepherd do for us? John tells us about this: “The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice” (10:3-4).
1. He calls His sheep by name. That means He knows every sheep personally and knows all about us and that He cares for us and watches over us. That is because He loves us.
2. He leads them out and goes ahead of them. He is the Leader and we His sheep follow Him wherever He goes. His good sheep must always be obedient and submit to Him in every way. They recognize His Voice because it is familiar to them, and they obey Him.
3. He feeds his sheep by leading them to green pasture (10:9; Psa.23:2). He provides fresh “manna” every day so they will be nourished and become healthy and strong. Let us trust Jesus the Good Shepherd for our wellbeing and our needs and protection.
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