John
10:1-6 “The Parable of the Sheepfold”
Introduction: Jesus had sought and found the formerly blind
man who had been thrown out of the
Jesus tells the young man His
purpose for coming into the world. Jesus
said “For judgment I am come into this world”.
The effect of Jesus fulfilling this purpose was that men who realized
their spiritual need for a savior could be saved and those who did not would
remain lost. Jesus used the term “they
which see not” to represent those who realized their lost condition and the
term “they which see” for those who did not accept the fact they were lost.
After hearing these terms used and
knowing what Jesus was saying, the Pharisees ask Jesus if He is saying that
they are spiritually blind. Jesus sets
them strait by giving the meaning of the terms as He used them. Those who are blind are those who see the
truth of their lost condition. Those who
say they are not blind do not see the truth of their lost condition and until
they do their sin will remain un-forgiven.
Jesus now speaks a parable to the
crowd who has gathered. A parable is a
story taken from common life experience which illustrates or teaches a great or
profound truth. All parables have one
central, or main, lesson or point. The
same parable may also teach several lessons.
In this parable we shall learn the difference between true and false
religious leaders. We shall learn about
the good shepherd; About His nature and how He may be identified. We shall learn how lost men may be
saved. We shall learn that God protects
His children and cares for them deeply.
The parable of the sheepfold is put
forth in verses one through five. Verse
six explains to us that it is a parable spoken by Jesus. It also tells us that this parable was, like
many of Jesus’ parables, not understood by those who heard it. I believe that we may correctly conclude
that not even Jesus’ disciples understood its meaning. Their minds were, perhaps, still upon what
Jesus has said to the Pharisees about their sins remaining. Now Jesus seems to have changed the subject
but in reality He is going to show the difference between the Pharisees and
Himself. He will also show the
difference between His prophets of old and His disciples when compared to the
Jewish leaders of that day.
These Jewish leaders may indeed sit
in “Moses’ seat” and as far as their proper teaching of Moses’ Law was concerned
they were to be respected and obeyed but Jesus had well said that their example
was not to be followed for they teach one thing and do another. This point is well illustrated by the parable
of the sheepfold.
I. The elements of the Parable.
(John
10:1) Verily, verily, I say unto you, He
that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but
climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a
robber. (2) But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
First let us pause and contemplate
the seriousness of this parable. Jesus
began this discourse with AMEN, AMEN!
This is the 15th occurrence of this phrase which is used 25
times in John’s Gospel. The phrase is
not used elsewhere in scripture. The
repeating of the word is for emphasis.
It means that what is to follow is absolutely true and vitally
important. Jesus is the truth and all
His words are truth. It is true, it is
true! - a Hebrew term for, “This is a most important
and interesting truth; a truth of the utmost concern to mankind.”
When Jesus
uses this phrase it is for one of three reasons:
1.
Because the saying to follow is of greater importance than other sayings.
2.
Because the mind of man is more reluctant to believe the truth of the saying.
3.
Because of the small number of those who will practice the saying makes it seem
incredible.
I believe
that the first two of these reasons apply here.
What Jesus is about to teach is of greatest importance to men and many
will not accept what He is about to teach.
The sheepfold was a common thing in
Jesus’ day. It was basically a fenced in
area with one gate or door. Its purpose
was to protect the sheep from thieves and predators. There were sheepfolds near the temple for
keeping sheep which would be used for sacrifices. There were sheepfolds near each village for
protecting the sheep during the night hours.
The shepherds were not afraid to mix the sheep together for, as we shall
see in verse 4, they would be able to simply call their sheep and they would
follow them out, for sheep know the voice of their shepherd.
If you were to see a person climbing
through the window of a house you might well think that he is a thief. The same is true of the sheepfold. The thief would not go to the door or gate
for fear of being discovered. He would
instead try to climb over the wall or barrier quietly to avoid detection. Those seen climbing over would rightly be
considered thieves for they are not entering the fold the right way. These are up to no good. They do not have the welfare of the sheep in
mind or the welfare of the shepherd.
They enter for the purpose of self gain.
They seek quick and easy gain.
These are rightly viewed by society as bad guys. They would be punished for stealing when
caught.
If you observe a person using a key
to open the door to a house and they enter the house through that door you
would think nothing amiss. If you
observed a man entering the sheepfold through the door or gate you would also
assume that he was a shepherd of the sheep.
The porter allowed him to enter and all is well. He is the shepherd and has the best interest
of the sheep in mind. His every action
is for their welfare.
II. The
traits of the shepherd.
(John
10:3) To him the porter openeth; and the
sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
(John
10:4) And when he putteth
forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they
know his voice.
(John
10:5) And a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
A man called a porter would keep
watch over the sheep and would blow a horn in the night if trouble
occurred. The porter knew the shepherds
and would only allow the shepherd to enter and to lead his sheep out. The porter is always at the door. His job is to protect the sheep that are in
the fold. He will not allow a thief to
enter the fold only the shepherd.
The shepherd calls to his
sheep. The sheep hear and recognize his
voice. Further he calls them by
name. He knows them individually. He recognizes each feature of each one and
has given them names. He does not drive
the sheep nor does he force them in anyway to follow. He simply leads them and they readily follow
his lead. They know the shepherd that he
is kind and cares for them so they willingly follow his lead.
Strangers they will not follow. They do not trust strangers. They trust only their shepherd. They run from the strange voice because the do
not know this person like they know the shepherd.
III. Understanding the
parable.
(John
10:6) This parable spake Jesus unto
them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them.
The people who heard the parable
knew all about sheep and sheepfolds and shepherds and porters and thieves and
predators. They understood the saying
but did not understand its spiritual application. We now understand the saying but do we
understand what Jesus was teaching by this parable? For the sake of those who heard Him on that
day and for ours as well Jesus explains the parable. Jesus is the door, Jesus is the Good
shepherd, and those who do not follow Jesus do not follow Him because He is not
their shepherd. The Pharisees do not
follow Jesus because He is a stranger to them.
The Pharisees are the thieves and robbers who are in the fold only for
the purpose of hurting God’s people.
In the verses to follow we will be
taught by Jesus the full implication of this parable. We need to ask ourselves “Where do we fit in
this story?” Are you saved? Are you following Christ Jesus? Is He your Shepherd?