WHAT DID JESUS MEAN? (4)
'I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.' John 10:11
In this statement Jesus is making two important points (1) a claim as to who He is, and (2) a description of what sort of Saviour He is.
For the background of the claim He is making we need to turn to the Old Testament and to the book of the prophet Ezekiel chapter 34. In this chapter, Ezekiel conveys a message from God in which He complains about the poor leadership of the priests and leaders of old Israel. God claims they are not properly looking after the people. He calls them bad 'shepherds': 'Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock?'. God says He will hold them accountable for their failure and that He will rescue His flock Himself (v.10). He says He will search for them, pasture them, tend them, rescue them, gather them, bind up the injured, and strengthen the weak. (vs.11-16)* Then He makes a promise (v.23) 'I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David will be a prince among them. I the Lord have spoken.' The problem with this promise is that David had already been dead for several hundred years! So who is this promised shepherd? It must be a reference to the Messiah - who will be descended from David. By calling Himself 'The good shepherd' Jesus is claiming to be the Prince spoken of in Ezekiel 34:24. He is the One whom God promised to send.
Saying that He will lay His life for the sheep (as a devoted shepherd would do) Jesus told His hearers what He was going to do to save them and us. He went to the Cross to pay the penalty for our sins, so that through faith in Him, we can be forgiven. But even more He signified what sort of Saviour He is. Not a Saviour who then leaves the scene and abandons us, but a Saviour who cares for us, who knows us by name (v.14 'I know my sheep and they know me') He further affirms 'No-one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.' He does all that God said He would do in Ezekiel 34:11-16*