Dial In with Jonny Ardavanis - Dial In - John 10:1-21 (Ep. 28)

Episode Date: May 7, 2020

Dial In is a devotional series with the intention of helping followers of Christ understand God’s word and love Him more. Jonny seeks to communicate the profound depth of scripture in a digestible and condensed format each weekday. The goal of the podcast is that our “minds would be renewed” as we behold who God is in His word. In this series, Jonny is walking sequentially through the Gospel of John.In this episode, Jonny covers John 10:1-21 where Jesus proclaims that He is “the good shepherd.” Jesus does not only come to protect and provide for his sheep, but comes to bring “life abundantly.” The rich and precious life that Jesus offers us is made possible because “the shepherds lays down his life for His sheep.”Watch VideosVisit the Website Follow on InstagramFollow on Twitter

Hey guys, my name is Johnny Artavanis and this is Dial In. We come now to one of my favorite passages in John's Gospel. In this episode, we're looking at John chapter 10, verses 1 through 21. Let's dial in. John chapter 10, verses 1 through 21. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens.

The sheep hear his voice and he calls his sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all of his own, he goes before them and the sheep follow him for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow but they flee from, for they do not know the voice of strangers. This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they

might have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. And they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock and one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I might take it up again. No one takes it from me, for I lay it down on my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father. There was a division among the Jews because of these words.

Many of them said, He has a demon and is insane. Why listen to him? Others said, These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind? Okay, so there is no change of scenery between chapters 9 and 10. There's no gap here. Jesus is addressing the same audience of Pharisees and blind men and those around the temple as he was in chapter 9. And here Jesus begins what is commonly known as the good shepherd discourse. It is essentially a word picture of what occurred in chapter 9. The religious leaders, the Pharisees and the scribes, the one who knew the words of God had been entrusted by God to lead the people in righteousness, to point them towards the truth, to bring them into greater affection for God and a more fervent anticipation for the Messiah. They were to be

the shepherds of Israel, but they completely missed the heart of God. And Jesus contrasts himself with these other false shepherds and says in verse 11 of chapter 10, I am the good shepherd. The analogy of sheep and shepherds would have been obvious to the audience that Jesus is interacting with in chapter 10. This was a normal occupation and the occupation of many of the Hebrew heroes. Abraham was a shepherd. Isaac was a shepherd. Jacob was a shepherd. Moses was a shepherd. And Midian. But the most well-known shepherd in all of the Old Testament is who? God himself. Psalm 23 says, the Lord is my shepherd. Psalm 79, 13, we are your people and the sheep of your pasture.

Psalm 95, he is our God and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. There is so much that we could talk about in this passage, but first we need to understand the relationship between the sheep and his shepherd. Sheep were utterly dependent upon their shepherd to feed them, to guide them, to lead them, to groom them, to protect them, to find them when they are lost. And Jesus says in verse 3 that the good shepherd, he knows his sheep and he calls them by name. At night, all of the village sheep would be brought into one central pen and all of the sheep of the city would be mingled

together. And in the morning, the shepherd would return to the sheepfold. And the way that his sheep would be separated from the others is not what they sheepdog, but with his own voice as Jesus will say in verse 11 that he is the good shepherd. And if you're in Christ, he is your shepherd and he knows your name. Jesus is weaving profound theology into one of the most prominent analogies in scripture. He is our shepherd. I always think of Psalm 8 when I read this passage where the the psalmist, I imagine, is looking up at the stars as he guards his own sheep. And he says, when I look at the stars, the heavens, the moon that you have made, what is man that you are mindful of him and the son of man that you care for him? The psalmist is saying, man, when I look up and I realize how big God is,

how powerful and majestic and holy and amazing he is, who am I that he would even know who I am, that he would even consider me? And here, in Jesus' own words, the word who became flesh, who created all things, not only knows of his sheep, but he calls them by name. You are not a number to God. He knows you and he calls you by name. The question is, how do we know then if we're one of his sheep? Well, it reads in verse 3 that the sheep follow their shepherd's voice.

John 8 says that if you abide in his word, Jesus says, you are my real disciple. Once we are his sheep, once we recognize his voice, once we are set free from the bondage of the world, we follow willingly because he is our shepherd. In verse 7, Jesus says that he is also the door of the sheep, meaning that he is the only way into the fold, and he is the only way out of the fold. He is saying, enter by me, and you will forever be saved. Jesus is saying the same thing that he will say in John 14 6. I am the way, the

truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. And Jesus says, he is the door. And in verse 9, Jesus continues and says, if anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and you will go in and out and find pasture. The moment that a sinner trusts God, God shuts the door. He is secure. The good shepherd never loses one sheep. The man who believes in Christ shall go in and find rest and peace and security, for there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ. But the passage continues and says that the one who enters by Jesus Christ will not only go in, but will also go out and find pasture.

What does this mean? I think it details that the one that comes to Christ does not come as a prisoner, but comes as a free man. But what does it mean to go out here? I think this signifies our liberty in Christ. The sheepfold itself represents safety and protection, but sheep don't want to stay there. In fact, if sheep just stay in the sheepfold, they will die. They want green pastures and they want water. They want abundant life. And that's what we want. We are

his sheep and the sheep of his pasture. That's why Jesus continues in verse 10, and I love this, and says, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy, but I have come that they might have life and have it abundantly. Life to the fullest is with the shepherd, and only Jesus can provide that. But how is this abundant life possible? Well, verse 11 tells us, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. Jesus offers us abundant life because he, the shepherd, would die for his own. And he is saying this to a group of

men that are already intent on killing him. They've already begun the plot to execute him. But these religious leaders could never forcefully kill the shepherd because this shepherd was a king. Jesus will lay down his life voluntarily. Verse 11 says, I lay down my life for my sheep. Verse 17, I lay down my life. Verse 18, no one takes it from me, but I lay down my life on my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again. He warns those who are already plotting his death. You can't have my life.

You can't take it from me. I give my life for my sheep and you have no power over me unless I give it to you. The death of Jesus Christ, his sacrifice was voluntary. Pilate had no power over Jesus Christ. Caesar had no power over him, but he would lay down his life for his sheep. He could have called on legions and at any moment he could have stopped the execution, but he drank the cup the father had given him to drink. Verse 18, our shepherd has authority not only to lay down his life, but to raise it up again. Jesus was either a madman or the Messiah. Many have predicted their death, but Jesus here foretells of his resurrection. He says, I will take it up again. Jesus comes and he offers us life in himself

so that you would stop eating the dirt of this world and experience the pasture that he alone can lead you to. Jesus did not die to merely provide you with security, but that you and I would experience deep and rich and profound soul satisfaction because he laid down his life for us stay down then