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There is a divine mystery that plays out this time of year, Jesus the Good Shepherd is remembered for his transformation into the lamb that was slain for the sins of the world.  Conversely an equally strange miracle plays out in believers.  We who are the sheep under the Good Shepherd are asked to partner with him in becoming under shepherds leading lost sheep back home.

But before we become shepherds we must become sheep and we must follow the voice of the ‘Good Shepherd.’ We don’t talk a lot about being great followers – but that is the primary activity to which we are called.  Jesus said, “Follow Me!”  But, why should we follow Jesus?

This is a fair question and one we should ask.  Jesus previously criticizes the Pharisees for not being good leaders and bringing great harm to the people.  Jesus condemns them as bad shepherds – shepherds who hurt and destroyed the sheep.  Not so different from today, presently there is a rise of literature about spiritual abuse and how to cope with the damage spiritual leaders can leave.  Maybe some of you have experienced damage at the hands of spiritual leaders.  If so you’re hesitant to agree to follow anyone, or anyone’s interpretation of Jesus.  Why should we think Jesus trustworthy?  I think Jesus is aware of the damage the Pharisees had done to the Jewish people and what damage has been done to us.  So, he tells, why he is the Good Shepherd, why he’s trustworthy.

1. He is good because of his sacrifice.(11-13)

• This is the definitive action of Christ that proves his goodness.  It is what sets him apart from all other leaders.
• In the OT hired hands who tended sheep were not responsible for loss by wild animals (Exodus 22:13).They worked for a wage and didn’t own the sheep so they didn’t risk their lives or limbs to keep them safe, at least not the way the Chief Shepherd did.
  • The Pharisees were these cowardly shepherds who wanted the wage but were unwilling to pay the price.  (Jeremiah 23:1; Ezekiel 34:6)
  • A spiritual leader whose looking out for themselves, will not make sacrifices because it costs them something.  Jesus isn’t looking out for himself, he’s looking out for us and so he makes sacrifices that cost him everything.

2. He is good because he is familiar.(14-15)

• It is said that during this time, shepherds would share pens for the sheep and that much like a dog today they could call the sheep by name and they would come.  This is far removed from today’s ranching techniques of numbers and profit.
• This is how Jesus cares for us.  He does not treat us as a number or an abstract, he knows each of us personally.  Matthew 10:29-31 tells us that even the hairs of our heads are numbered.  I imagine Christ as a shepherd knowing each of us by name, checking each sheep at the end of the day, inspecting and bandaging all the places where we are wounded.  He remembers that and comes back to check and mend as often as we need it.
• I think we’re sometimes afraid to follow the Good Shepherd, to be lumped into Christianity as just another hypocritical Christian.  I think the primary fear for many is that they would lose a sense of uniqueness, a sense of identity, their own sense of value.  Kenneth Feinberg, 9/11 fund administrator, talked about his task of valuing human life in his book What Is  Life Worth?.  In this book he concludes that the families primary motivation in the settlements were to assert the unique value of their lost loved ones lives.
• Christ knows your worth, because he created you.  And I’ll add this that it’s only in Christ you realize your full potential and realize your full promise.  Christ is Good because he knows you and because of that/or in spite of that he sacrificed just the same.

3. He is good because he brings unity. (16)

• While God knows each of us personally, he wants to have as many of us know him as possible.  He doesn’t stop seeking and finding and gathering his lost sheep.
• He wants to expand his love to all people.  This is why any doctrine that limits the atoning work of God is completely against God.  It states that God’s love isn’t for everyone, that his reach is not capable of saving all, that his work is limited to a few.
• God wants to bring all and unite all into one fold.
• This mission he charged us with in Matthew 28:19, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
• Christ is concerned with the salvation of all, he came and died for the lost.  What is it that we’re prepared to do?

4. He is good because of his eternity. (17-18)

• The best part about the Good Shepherd is that this never changes.  He is eternally our sacrifice for sin, he is eternally and intimately knowing and connecting with us.
• Hebrews 13:8 reminds us that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever, which means he is always sacrificing, always knowing, always uniting, always.
• This means that there is not a sin too big for his sacrifice, never a trespass that would render you unfamiliar to him, never a discord that he couldn’t bring, never a time that he couldn’t transcend.
• Today the shepherd is calling you, calling your name, won’t you come to him for he is good and he is good for eternity.

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