Lesson 8 The Gospel of John, Chapter 10

The Good Shepherd

Isaiah 40:10-11 Yes, the Sovereign LORD is coming in all his glorious power. He will rule with awesome strength. See, he brings his reward with him as he comes. He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.

At the end of chapter 9, we heard that the Pharisees had expelled from the synagogue the man that Jesus had healed from blindness. Jesus told the Pharisees that they were now the ones who are blind, for they could not see God at work in the ministry of Jesus. In this chapter, Jesus reminds the Pharisees, his disciples, and all who were present, of the Old Testament portrait of the leaders of God’s people who were unfaithful, evil shepherds of God’s sheep. The picture of God’s people as sheep, and the leaders of the people (kings, prophets, and priests) as shepherds of God’s flock, was very familiar to anyone who had read the Old Testament. A few examples of that picture are Psalm 23, Psalm 100:1; Jeremiah 23:1-4 and Ezekiel 34:1-10, 23-24. The kings of Israel were called “shepherds” in the Old Testament. For example, King David was called the shepherd of God’s people Israel in both 2 Samuel 5:2 and Psalm 78:72.

The sheep are the people of God. The figure of comparing God’s people to sheep occurs in the psalms from the time of David. David used this metaphor, and it became common. David was calling himself a “sheep” when he wrote, “The Lord is my Shepherd,,,” (Psalm 23:1). In Psalm 100:3 it says, “Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.” The prophets often referred to the people of Israel as sheep, See Ezekiel 34:31 (“You my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, are people, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord”) as an example. Jesus also used this picture in his parables. See the parable of the lost sheep in Matthew 18:12-14. After his resurrection, Jesus commissioned Peter and the other apostles to “Take care of … feed my sheep” (John 21:16-17). WE are the sheep. As Jesus says in the next few verses, His sheep listen to his voice, follow him, and he gives them eternal life.

Jesus now uses that familiar concept to proclaim himself as the good and faithful Shepherd, who truly cares for his sheep, and saves them. (v. 11) In Hebrews 13:20 Jesus is called “that great Shepherd of the sheep.” (“May the God of peace, through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep…”).

This chapter is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Ezekiel: “I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd. I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David will be prince among them. I the Lord have spoken” (Ezekiel 34:23–24). (The “David” the prophet was referring to was not the man who killed Goliath, because this prophecy was written at least 400 years after the time of David. Rather this is a reference to Jesus. The angel told Mary about her child, “The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David” (Luke 1:32). Just as David, a shepherd, fought the giant and defended his people, Jesus (our David) fought the devil and our mightiest enemies and won the victory for us.

This is a comforting chapter for every believer, and one of the most loved chapters of the Bible.

Read John 10:1-10 (The gate for the sheep)

In verse 1, Jesus warns us about “robbers” that do not approach the sheep by using the gate, but by climbing over the fence. Who are these robbers Jesus was warning us about? They are described as men who …

v.1 =

v.5 =

v. 10 =

At night, whenever possible, the shepherd would take his sheep into an enclosed pen made of stones or sticks. Then the shepherd would lay down across the only opening, the gate of the enclosure. Thus, the shepherd himself was the gate. In what way is Jesus the gate for the sheep?
What does Jesus mean when he says that we will have life “to the full?” (verse 10)
Jesus said his followers will listen to his voice but not the voice of false teachers. Why are many who were once Christians led astray by false teachers?

Read John 10:11-21 (The good shepherd)

In this section Jesus speaks about bad shepherds who mislead, forsake, and destroy the flock. Jesus calls these bad shepherds “hired hands”. Their main concern is not the welfare of the sheep, but the advantage they can gain by leading.

There are many such “hired hands” who would like to be our shepherds. They include the teachers and professors in our schools who would lead us to believe that the world has evolved by chance and that we are descended from apes.

They are the astrologers and fortune tellers who would lead us to believe that our destiny is controlled by the movements of the stars, tides, and moon.

They are the humanistic authors, television producers, and personalities, the so-called “shepherds of the masses,” who would lead us in their own brand of self-serving philosophy.

We also find many bad shepherds in the churches. They are the preachers who speak smooth words of flattery, saying that we are all basically good as they downplay sin and tell us to “think positive.” Contrary to many clear passages of Scripture that teach salvation by the grace of God alone, there are many false shepherds in the churches who teach that we cannot enter heaven unless we work hard to earn it, or they teach that we must work alongside of Jesus to earn our salvation.

Because people are always looking for guidance in the wilderness of life, these bad shepherds have misled many.

Like helpless, frightened sheep, we long for and need a good shepherd who will lead us through the untracked wilderness of life, through the shadows of the valley of death, and into the eternal pastures of life in heaven.

Think about the work a shepherd does. In what ways is Jesus “the good shepherd” according to verses 11-14?

v. 11 =
v.12-13 =
v. 14 =

Who are the other sheep Jesus will bring into his fold? (v.16-19)
According to Jesus why does the Father love the Son? (v. 17)
Jesus had already promised he was going to need to sacrifice his life. In v. 18 Jesus adds two important details about his death. What are they?
Jesus spoke about his personal relationship with his sheep. What are some things your good shepherd has done for you?

Read John 10:22-30 (Jesus confesses he is true God)

As we now come to 10:22 a new time reference appears – The Feast of Dedication. This feast is sometimes called Hanukkah or the Festival of Lights, and the Jews celebrate it in mid-December. The festival remembers the rededication of the temple after its desecration by Antiochus IV in 165 B.C. Though about two months had passed since Jesus’ words in the first half of John 10, he returns to that familiar theme of him as shepherd and his followers as sheep. In the second half of the chapter we see the conversation between Jesus and his enemies turn to the central theme of John’s gospel – Jesus is the true Son of God, one with the Father.

This account takes place at the temple in Jerusalem under the shelter of “Solomon’s Colonnade.” This large columned porch of the temple ran along the entire east side of the temple mount. Rabbis would use this covered porch to teach classes, and later Jesus’ disciples often met here (Acts 3:11; Acts 5:12).

Here the Jews demanded that Jesus tell them plainly whether or not he was the Messiah. (John 10:24 – “The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”) Jesus had previously told the Samaritan woman very plainly that he was the Messiah (see John 4:25–26 – The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.”) However, most of the Jewish people had a false concept about the Messiah, believing that the Messiah would lead a rebellion against the Roman authorities and establish a new earthly kingdom in Israel. If Jesus were to simply say, “I am the Messiah,” most of the people would misunderstand and think that he had come to be a rebel and political leader. Therefore, Jesus could not simply tell them that he was the Messiah in so many words. Instead, he told them in a special way that would make it clear that he had not come as a political Messiah, but as a divine King.

In reply, Jesus said that he had already told them that he was the true Messiah. When was this?

Jesus told them time and time again that He was sent by the Father.
Jesus answered the Samaritan woman about the Messiah, “I am He”.
He said, “I am the Bread of Life”.
Jesus claimed to be the Light of the world.
Jesus told them He was the Fountain of Living Water.
Jesus said, “before Abraham was, I AM”
Jesus informed the blind man that He was the Son of God.
He just told them that He alone was the Shepherd of the sheep.
Every miracle that he did was proof that he had come as the true Messiah.

Verse 28 records three promises from Jesus. What are these promises and what do these precious promises mean to us?
What does Jesus mean when he says in verse 30 “I and the Father are one”?

Read John 10:31-42 (The Jews try to kill Jesus)

Jesus claim to be one with the Father was understood by the Jews as a claim to be God. Some modern day Bible scholars have said Jesus never claimed to be God, but that his early disciples made up that teaching. The reaction of the Jews makes it clear that they understand that Jesus was indeed claiming to be God.

However, they did not accept this claim, but considered him to be a “mere man.” Therefore they tried to stone him for what they considered to be blasphemy against God.

The claims of Jesus still make people upset. Many people today consider Jesus to be a mere man (though a good one), but his claim to be the only way for people to get to heaven is still widely rejected by people all over the world.

In v. 34, Jesus defends his right to call himself God’s Son because in the Old Testament, even those who held the office of judge were called “gods” in Psalm 82:6 (“I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’) What did the psalm mean by referring to the assembly of judges as “gods”? It meant that their authority to judge was given them by God, and they were to use his laws, as given through Moses, as the basis for their judgments. Thus, with God’s own authority, and with God’s words guiding their work, they were to be respected as “gods” when they rendered their decisions.

Jesus’ argument was that since they could not object to the fact that the Scriptures called the judges “gods” – and the Scriptures could not be broken (because they were true in every respect) – how much more true it must be that God’s own Son, sent into this world on God’s saving mission and with God’s authority, could call himself God.

At the same time that Jesus defended his right to call himself God, he also proclaimed another important truth about the Holy Scriptures (verse 35). What is that truth?
Over the last several chapters of John we’ve seen many examples of Jesus being rejected by the Jews. What does Jesus teach us by his response to those who oppose God’s Word?

In our next lesson we will study one of Jesus’ most amazing miracles, a miracle so amazing that it remains a continual comfort to all of us in the dark days of human death. Please prepare the lesson carefully prior to class. PAGE 6

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