It may be questioned whether this relationship of our blessed Lord to His people occupies its due place in our souls. It is quite true that it is found most frequently in the Old Testament scriptures; but it would be to suffer great loss to suppose that it was only a Jewish relationship. Indeed, John 10 expressly forbids this conclusion, for the Lord distinctly states, "Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one flock [not fold], and one shepherd." v. 16. Peter also, writing to the believers of this dispensation says, "Ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls." 1 Pet. 2:25. And again, "Feed [shepherd] the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away." 1 Pet. 5:2-4. The Apostle Paul uses the same figure when addressing the elders of the church at Ephesus. "Take heed," he says, "therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed [shepherd] the church of God," etc. Acts 20:28.
Christ, therefore, is the Shepherd of His people now; and they are His sheep-collectively, His flock. There is, however, this difference. To the Jews, had they received Him, He would have been a Shepherd on earth; and even in the Millennium He will be the Shepherd of His earthly people. "And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even My servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd." Eze. 34:23; see also Jer. 23:1-4. But He is our Shepherd as the One who has died, risen again, and is seated at the right hand of God. The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews thus says, "Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep," etc. Heb. 13:20. It is, therefore, from His place on high that He now shepherds His people; and hence He is termed the chief Shepherd, because in His tender care for the sheep, being absent from them, He provides those who shall "feed the flock" under His guidance and directions. When He therefore ascended up on high, He gave some pastors, etc. (Eph. 4:11); for it is through these, and such as have the place of rule, that He now exercises the functions of the Shepherd for His people.
The relationship then in both dispensations is expressed by the same term, but the blessings secured by it are determined by the respective positions and needs of the sheep. Hence that beautiful 23rd Psalm—the solace of God's people of all ages—could be adopted by saints of all dispensations. Nay, it is so worded that the Lord Himself, when on earth as a man, could use its language, as well as the pious remnant among the Jews, and believers at the present time.
1) Let us then, in the first place, consider a little the Shepherd Himself. To the Jews He said, "He that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep." John 10:2. And there He stood before them as the One who alone came in to Israel by the way appointed of God, who answered to all the conditions predicted of Him in the Scriptures—the One therefore, to whom the door was divinely opened to give Him access to His sheep. But the people as such received Him not, and hence He became also the Door of the sheep (v. 7). "All that ever came before Me," He says, "are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, 'and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life for the sheep." John 10:8-11.
Here then is the great characteristic of the good Shepherd-He giveth His life for the sheep. He is the Christ who died; and if He died for all, then were all dead (2 Cor. 5:14). This brings in the whole secret of redemption. The sheep had gone astray—were lost, and would have perished everlastingly—but the good Shepherd went after that which was lost—even down into death-the death of the cross—and sought until He found. This explains to us the epithet, "good" Shepherd. All we like sheep had gone astray, and turned everyone to his own way; but the good Shepherd offered Himself for our sins, gave His life for the sheep, and the Lord laid upon Him the iniquity of us all (Isa. 53:6). As the Apostle Paul reasons, "When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Rom. 5:6-8. The whole heart of Christ, as well as of God, was revealed by His death; for there was nothing in us to draw out His affection, to move Him to take our place and to redeem us with His precious blood. In the same night in which He was betrayed, He took bread and gave thanks—and founded the memorial of His accomplished sacrifice. Thus side by side we behold His perfect goodness, and man's perfect evil; but the full exhibition of what man was could not hinder the manifestation of what He was. Nay, just as the light of the sun when shining on a dark thundercloud seems all the more bright and intense, so the love, grace, and goodness of Christ are magnified by the unmitigated evil which on man's part brought Him to the cross. The good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.
By giving His life for the sheep He acquired the title to their possession. Thereon follows another action, He giveth His life to the sheep. "The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10. And again, "I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish." v. 28. With this we may connect another word: "I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved," etc. v. 9. We add this scripture to show the way in which Christ bestows life-that it is never apart from faith in Himself. "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life" (John 3:36). So here He is presented as the door, and whoever enters in by Him is saved- has eternal life. It were a fatal mistake to suppose that while He absolutely bestows life as a gift-and indeed as a sovereign gift—that it could ever be possessed without a personal faith. For this is the appointed means of its possession—that indeed which characterizes them as His sheep, and thus separates them from the world.
Again it is said, "He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out" (v. 3); also that He knows His sheep (vv. 14, 27). He had just exemplified this in the case of the blind man. He had met him in his blindness, opened his eyes, led him out of Judaism, and made him a worshiper of Himself as the Son of God. There are also several beautiful illustrations of these characteristics of the good Shepherd recorded in the Gospel. Take one from the first chapter of this Gospel. "Jesus saw Nathanael coming to Him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile! Nathanael saith unto Him, Whence knowest Thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee." vv. 47, 48. From all eternity He has known His sheep; and in His own time He addresses them by name, calls them by a word of power; and His voice, penetrating into their souls, leads them out, constraining them to recognize it as that of the good Shepherd. Just as on the morning of His resurrection, when He said, "Mary," and she instantly responded, "Rabboni," so now, He speaks, and the sheep hear His voice and straightway follow Him. It is thus He has called every one of His flock, and thus that He will still gather His sheep, until the last one that is straying upon the mountains or in the deserts is brought under His shepherd care. I "know My sheep" is surely a word of rich consolation to the hearts of His own. In the wilderness still, though following His lead and often faithless and weary, how often does the temptation come to doubt His care and love? I "know My sheep" should calm every anxiety and dispel every fear, revealing as it does that His eye is ever upon us, comprehending all our case, all our needs, yea, knowing us altogether!
We have already alluded to the composite character of His flock-being now made up of Jews and Gentiles-as He teaches in the 16th verse. Indeed, the whole history of the formation of the flock is there set forth—"Other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold [flock], and one shepherd." This is the special feature of the flock during this dispensation. In the past, Israel alone was His flock; hence the 23rd Psalm commences, Jehovah is my Shepherd. But inasmuch as when He came unto His own, His own received Him not, He by His death broke down the wall of enclosure that separated the Jews from the Gentiles, and laid the foundation in His blood for the gatherings out of both alike through faith in His name. Ever since Pentecost, therefore, He has been calling His sheep from every land, and from every clime; and they hear His voice and they are brought; and together, whether Jews or Gentiles, they form the one flock under the one Shepherd.
Another characteristic of the Shepherd is, that He keeps His sheep in safety. "I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any [I do not insert the word man with our translation, for the term any will include Satan as well as man-as it was intended to do] pluck them out of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and no man [no one] is able to pluck them out of My Father's hand." vv. 28, 29. He thus guarantees absolute security to His own. The wolf may catch [the same word as pluck] the sheep away from him who is an hireling, and not the shepherd; but none can catch [pluck] them out of His hands. What rest of heart it should give us, as we read these blessed words!
2) It may be profitable if we ponder a little more in detail upon some of the characteristics of the sheep.
They hear His voice (vv. 4, 16, 27). This goes back, as already explained, to the very commencement, when He called His own sheep by name, and is that which distinguishes them as His sheep. The Lord Himself draws the contrast. "Ye," He said to the
Jews, "believe not, because ye are not of My sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear My voice," etc. (vv. 26, 27). We may combine this with another trait, "They know not the voice of strangers" (v. 5). Herein lies the safety of the flock. They at once recognize the voice of the Shepherd, but though a stranger should simulate the tones of the Shepherd ever so closely, they know not his voice; that is, they detect it as that of a stranger. This is that which is taught by the Apostle John. "Ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.... These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. But the anointing which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him." 1 John 2:20, 27. There is no need, therefore, that we should seek to be familiar with all the errors t hat abound on every hand in order to escape their seductions; it is enough for us that we know the voice of the Shepherd, and our safety will be in ever listening to it, becoming increasingly acquainted with it, maintaining evermore the attitude of her who sat at the feet of Jesus and heard His word (Luke 10:39). This will be at once our preservative from danger, and the means of our safety and blessing.
Consequent upon hearing His voice, the sheep follow the Shepherd. "He goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him: for they know His voice." v. 4; see also v. 27. The sheep have no will but that of the Shepherd; and ceasing to follow Him, they become wandering sheep. "All we like sheep," says the prophet, "have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way." Isa. 53:6. In Eastern lands, and indeed in some parts of Europe, the shepherd ever goes before the sheep; and when he moves onward, so do they; and when he stops, they stop likewise. Our blessed. Lord alludes to this in the scripture before us, and uses the custom to convey most striking instruction. For to follow the Shepherd necessitates that the eye of the sheep should be ever upon Him, that, indeed, they should ever be on the watch to ascertain when He would have them to move, and where He would have them follow. Everything is thus left in the Shepherd's hands; it is His to discern a coming danger, to provide for their sustenance, and to indicate their path. Their responsibility is to follow-to follow the Shepherd wherever He may lead—to follow Him until He shall come to receive them to Himself.
It is also said that the sheep know the Shepherd. They not only know His voice, but they also know Himself. "I am the good shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father." vv. 14, 15. This is the highest blessing which the sheep can receive, for it implies entering into His own thoughts, ways, and desires; yea, the knowledge of Himself. It is thus that we are brought into communion with Him. We may know His voice, and be following Him, and yet be without much acquaintance with His character. To know Him is what the Apostle John gives us as descriptive of the fathers in God's family. "I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known Him that is from the beginning." 1 John 2:13. This, therefore, is the highest and most blessed attainment which the believer can make. And the Lord desires that it should be made-and in an infinite measure-"As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father." He knows us and He desires that we should know Him. May He Himself lead us into an ever increasing acquaintance with Himself, so keeping Himself before our souls that we may grow daily in the knowledge of Him—of what He is, as well as what He is to us and for us-through the Dower of the Holy Ghost!