Jim was feeling uneasy about life in San Francisco. He was a pastor of a growing church, and you would think that would be enough. But it wasn’t. He was feeling more and more controlled by the local government, and coming under intense scrutiny from the media. So he and most of the members of his church set out for a better, more free and autonomous life…thousands of miles away in Guyana. He built a compound there called Jonestown. It was here where he just knew the life he and his followers wanted would come into existence. It did not. The scrutiny grew more intense, with the United States government sending officials to inspect what was going on. Unable to deal with the pressure, and deeply disappointed, Jim Jones talked his followers into killing themselves. On 11/18/78, over 900 people died in a murder-suicide. At least 300 of them were children. 

Felt Need

Now I know what you’re thinking: “Those foolish people. How in the world could they leave their homes, go all the way to Guyana, and follow this man, who lead them to their deaths?” That’s too easy, when in fact we are more like them than we’d like to admit. All of us are in search of a better life, convinced the way things are, are not the way they should be. This sense of more is deeply ingrained in us, something we feel even as children, which is why we are drawn to fairy tales. These stories have us wishing the kids go through the wardrobe,or fall down the rabbit hole or rub the lamp, because it will introduce us to a new reality, another world. There’s this longing for more. And this longing doesn’t go away. Which is why we’ll never be content with multiple homes, or the dream cars, or the closet full of clothes. No, we haven’t followed a cult leader to Guyana, but we are in search of our own “Jonestown.”

Jesus taps into this longing in our passage, and actually tells us it’s a good thing. Look again at what he says in verse 10, because it is the heart of the passage, “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly”- John 10:10. You know what he’s saying? You’re right, this life will never satisfy you. Your longing for more is exactly the right ache. And I am the wardrobe, the rabbit hole, the lamp- not to fulfill your earthly desires, but your eternal desires. Now what follows in the rest of our passage is the crucial question of who is leading you on your journey. Jesus presents himself to us as the Good Shepherd, which in context means, he is the one who is inviting us to follow him along the journey into the abundant life. 

We are all on a journey. Jesus points to this in Matthew 7 where he says there are two paths, or two journey’s all of us are taking right now. One is the broad path, which Jesus says leads to destruction. The other is the narrow path, which Jesus says leads to life..the abundant life. The critical question we have to answer today is who is leading us? We are all being shepherded by someone or something right now. Spouse. Some of us think if I could just find the right person and get married, they will lead me to the life I’ve always wanted. That’s the wardrobe. It’s the stuff of hallmark cards and RomCom’s: “You complete me. I can’t breathe without you.” You know what the most freeing day in marriage is? It’s when you figure out neither you, nor your spouse has the capacity to do that. Parents. Parents are absolutely critical in laying the foundation for life. As kids we looked to our parents to shepherd us into this abundant life, and for a while they appeared to be doing that. And then we went through a period of deep disillusionment, as they fell from being heroes to humans. You know what the most freeing day as your parents' child is? It’s when you realize they did their best (in a lot of cases), but couldn’t give me what I longed for because they were flawed, broken sinners. Self. And then there’s me. Who here hasn’t sought to be shepherded by themselves into the life they’ve always wanted, only to know the frustration of not even coming close? At the height of her powers, the singer Madonna gave an interview in which she said, “My drive in life comes from a fear of being mediocre. That is always pushing me. I push past one spell of it and discover myself as a special human being but then I feel I am still mediocre and uninteresting unless I do something else. Because even though I have become somebody, I still have to prove that I am somebody. My struggle has never ended and I guess it never will”- Madonna, Vogue Magazine. See the frustration?

Christ, The Good Shepherd- John 10:11

There is only one true shepherd who will lead you into a life of deep, eternal satisfaction, the life you’ve always wanted, and his name is Jesus. In verse 11, Jesus just comes out and says he is the good shepherd. Why? Because he lays down his life for the sheep. In fact, read the passage again, and you will see over and over, Jesus using this phrase of how he lays down his life. This is key to understanding what Jesus means when he says he is the good shepherd. In context good means an others directed way of life which seeks our best, even at great cost to Himself. Jesus is other’s directed. His focus is on us, not himself. This is the exact opposite of the hireling, who instead of caring for the sheep, cares for himself and money. Jesus, the good shepherd, is focused on our absolute best. Not our absolute happiness. Not our absolute comfort. Not our absolute safety, but our absolute best. And he does it at great cost to himself- he lays down his life, which he would do when he died for you and I. I don’t know about you, but this is leadership I want to follow. 

Blanche’s daughter was suffering from polio long before they had the vaccine. The local hospital wouldn’t take her, so she found one 50 miles away that would. Twice a week, Blanche would make the 100 mile round trip to the hospital and back to have her daughter treated, which was no easy feat, because Blanche was a maid. But sacrifice she did, even when her daughter hated to go, and didn’t want to do the physical therapy, Blanche made her. Little by little she began to walk, and then run. And boy did she run. She would go on to win 3 gold medals in track in the 1960 Olympic Games. None of that would have been possible without a good mother, who sacrificed herself, and sought the best in her daughter Wilma Rudolph. 

And that’s Jesus, our good shepherd. He sacrificed his life for us, and like Blanche, puts us in uncomfortable positions we may not want to be in, because he has our absolute best in mind. And along the way we experience life at its deepest most satisfying level. He is the Good Shepherd.

Jesus is the Good Shepherd, Because When We Have Made a Mess of Our Lives He Meets us with Empathy- Psalm 23:3.

Yes, but I’m still curious as to why Jesus would use this shepherding image to describe his leadership of us into the abundant life? What is it about shepherds and sheep? To help wrap our minds around the role Christ plays as our good shepherd, I want to draw our attention to some verses in Psalm 23, the popular passage on Christ being our shepherd. I don’t have time to deal with all of the descriptions David uses, but looking at a handful will not only give us a better picture, but will convince us Jesus is worthy of us following him.

One of the things shepherds were always on the lookout for is what is called a cast sheep (image here of a sheep helplessly on its back with feet in the air). This happens quite frequently when a sheep turns over on its back and cannot get up. It’s in a very vulnerable position, and if it is not turned over soon it will experience loss of blood circulation and die, not to mention it is particularly vulnerable to predators. When the shepherd finds this sheep in its helpless condition it gently turns it over, rubs its limbs to restore circulation. One shepherd says, “All the time I worked on the cast sheep I would talk to it gently: ‘When are you going to learn to stand on your own feet? I’m so glad I found you in time- you rascal’”- Phillip Keller. Notice, that when this sheep has made a mess of itself, the shepherd doesn’t meet it with judgment but empathy. 

Ever found yourself in a cast position? Ever made a mess of your life, and gotten into a situation through your own poor choices that you didn’t know how to get out of? Peter did, when he denied Jesus three times. And how does Christ the good shepherd deal with him? Have you not read John 20? He cooks him breakfast! He meets him with empathy. The writer of Hebrews says of Jesus that we can follow his leadership, and come to him boldly, because he can sympathize with our weaknesses. He meets our mess with empathy. And if this is really the case, then we followers of Jesus should meet other sheep of God’s flock who are in life’s cast position with empathy. Paul tells the Galatians, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness”- Galatians 6:1. 

Jesus is the Good Shepherd Because He Knows the Good Stuff is in the Hard Places- Psalm 23:4

In verse 4, David says something interesting about his shepherd, Jesus- he says even in the valley he won’t fear because he knows the LORD is with him. Wait a minute? How’d you get into this valley, which is a metaphor for a bad place? Following your shepherd. Did you get that? Sometimes, following Jesus will take us into some hard places. Why? Well, shepherds when they lead their flocks know that some of the best food and purist water is not on the mountain tops, but in the valley. So they will intentionally lead them into the valley because that’s where the best resources are. And so it is in life. You know this to be true. We’ve all gone through very hard things in which we’ve said, “Never want to go through that again, but so thankful I did.” Why? Because you got some great food in that hard place. Jesus knows the good stuff is in hard places.

C.S. Lewis wrote two books on pain. The first one was a good book. The second one was a great book. What’s the difference? The first one CSL wrote as an outsider looking in. The second one- A Grief Observed- he wrote as an insider, as he watched his wife suffer and die of cancer. Or to say it another way, he wrote the first one from the mountaintop and the second one from the valley. CSL would say the best food and water is in the valley. Solomon said in Ecclesiastes that it’s better to go to a house of mourning than the house of feasting. In essence he’s saying, we learn way more from a hospital room, job termination and struggle than we do from health, employment and prosperity. Jesus will oftentimes lead us into life’s valleys because that’s where the best food is. 

Jesus is the Good Shepherd Because He’s Already Been Where You Are Going- Psalm 23:5

When David says the LORD has prepared a table for him, I always thought that was like a table, table, you know? Nothing could be further from the truth. High plateaus of sheep ranges are referred to as mesas, which is the Spanish word for tables. This is what David had in mind- not what’s in your dining room, but the hard to reach high summer range. It’s this table where the shepherd will go in the early season. He will leave his flocks down below and go up to this mesa or table to inspect it. He will see if it is a good place for his flocks to graze. He will take with him a supply of salt and minerals to distribute over the range at strategic spots to kill any poisonous weeds the sheep may eat. And he will also try to see what predators are there and hunt them down before the sheep get there. He’s preparing the table. So that by the time the sheep get there everything is ready because their shepherd has already been there, setting everything up. 

There’s no season in your life Jesus hasn’t already been setting everything up. We see this in the bible when Jesus tells Peter, Satan wants to sift him as wheat, but don’t worry, He has already prayed for Peter. It’s Jesus’ way of saying, “Peter, you’re about to go through something hard, but no problem, I’ve already been there working it out.” 

Wait a minute. How is this possible? No way Jesus can be with me, and ahead of me all at the same time. Yes he can. Our family lived in NYC where the famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade happens. The streets are lined with spectators who see it linear, one float at a time. But above them is a blimp, who sees and interacts with the parade all at once. The blimp is at the front, middle and back all at once. That’s Jesus. We are the people trapped in time who take in the events of life one moment at a time. Jesus is in the blimp able to be with us and ahead of us all at once. This news should comfort us. I love what the psalmist says, “For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD”- Psalm 112:6-7. How can this be? Because they know the good shepherd has gone before them, preparing a table for them. 

Jesus is the Good Shepherd Because He Protects Me- Psalm 23:5

Shepherd’s have a saying, “Summertime is fly time.” Sheep are particularly troubled by a species of fly called the nose or naval fly. These flies will buzz around the sheep's head looking to deposit their eggs in the damp mucous of their nose. If they are successful the eggs will hatch in a few days and form larvae which work their way up the nasal passage in the sheep’s head, burrowing into the flesh and causing intense irritation and severe inflammation. To get relief the sheep go crazy, banging their heads against trees, rocks, posts or brush, which can lead to permanent damage, even death. To keep this from happening, the first time a shepherd sees these flies he will put an ointment together and anoint the sheep’s head with oil, smearing it all over their faces thus keeping the flies away, and the sheep at peace. This is a process they will repeat over and over again.

Who here hasn’t found themselves filled with worry and anxiety by life’s “nasal flies”? The rebellious kid. The controlling in-law. The self absorbed roommate. The health problem that won’t go away and seems as if the doctors will never find a diagnosis for. All of these and more are nothing but life’s irritants driving us crazy, filling us with worry, and wanting to cause us to bang our heads on the wall. But David says the good shepherd will anoint our head with oil. Did you know oil in the bible is often used as a symbol for the Holy Spirit? In Galatians 5, Paul says one of the signs we have been anointed with the HS is we have peace. So that when Christ, the good shepherd, anoints our heads with oil, he gives us peace- a peace which passes all understanding, even our own. 

Jesus is the Good Shepherd Because He Leaves Me Better than He Found Me- Psalm 23:6

Finally, David says that following our Shepherd will lead to goodness and mercy following us all of the days of our lives. Sheep are known to be the most destructive livestock around. When it’s time to leave a field they’ve been grazing in, it's completely wrecked. The hireling will just move right along, paying no mind to the damage done. Not a good shepherd. What the shepherd will do is take the manure of the sheep- which is some of the most nutrient rich around- and scatter it all over the field, so the grass is even more lush for the next flock. In other words, a good shepherd leaves the field better than he found it. Goodness and mercy follow this shepherd. 

If you own a home you know this principle of leaving things better than you found it. A good homeowner is constantly repairing, remodeling and updating so when they do finally sell the home, it is much better than what they found it. Do you know as a husband I have one goal: I want my wife to be able to say she’s a better woman, flourishing in her life because of my active presence and leadership. I want Korie to be better than when I first met her. And that’s what Christ does to us. One of the ways you know you are really a follower of our good shepherd is your life has gotten qualitatively better since apprenticing to him. And another way you know you are following our good shepherds is you leave people and things better than what you found them. Your neighborhood or apartment complex should be better because you, Christ follower, were there. Your job should be better because you were there. Your relationships should be better, because everywhere you go, goodness and mercy follow you.

Gospel Conclusion

Now you would think this is the kind of leadership we would want (summarize points), but the way our text ends, not everyone wants Christ the good shepherd. Our passage ends by saying there was a division (Greek word for schism), with some saying Jesus has a demon and is not the good shepherd, and others open to the possibility that he is. And that’s how it ends! Why? Because I think we are left with the question to answer for ourselves. Will he be our good shepherd? Will we allow Jesus, and no one else, not even ourselves, to shepherd us into the abundant life? But what does that mean? The reason why there were many who said Jesus was demonic is because in Psalm 23:1, David said it was the LORD who was his shepherd. Jesus now says he is the good shepherd, which is his way of saying he is God, which lead them to say he has a demon. Don’t you see? Jesus is saying I’ll never be your shepherd unless I am first your LORD. Is he your LORD today?