Beloved congregation, after the sermon, let us sing Psalter 65, the stanzas 1 and 4. Psalter 65, 1 and 4, after the sermon. The Word of God is very rich. I trust it may be your experience when you daily read from the Scriptures that surprisingly you find new treasures in the Word of God, new matters that you haven't seen before, although you had read that portion of Scripture many times. And so we find also in the Word of God so many references to the Lord Jesus Christ. It is surprising how often the Lord Jesus Christ is mentioned, not with that name, but under certain symbols or illustrations or names. For instance, he is referred to as the Shiloh, the one who gives rest. He is referred to as the well-known Immanuel, that he is God with us. And so he is also referred to as the Rose of Sharon because of his beauty. He is referred to as the True Vine, He is the bridegroom, and so we can continue on, so many names are given to the Lord Jesus Christ. And here in John 10, we read therein various illustrations to explain his work. Now if you read John 10 for yourself, you find there various illustrations used at the same time. So the Lord Jesus is speaking of the fact that he is the door. He is in verse nine, I am the door. And so the Lord Jesus is saying that there's only an entrance to God through him. Because we have fallen away from God. We have rebelled against God. We have cast his image down away and so we need to be renewed by his spirit and it's only possible through the door of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the way, he is the entrance and no man can come to God except by him. Now that's one illustration you find here in verse In verse 9, I am the door. But then the Lord Jesus goes on in verse 11 to say, I am the good shepherd. Now if you read this section, and it says here then in verse 9, I am the door, if any man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture. So also it says there in verse two, he that enters in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep, to him the porter openeth, and he leads his people out. You see the Lord Jesus using here actually various illustrations. He is saying on the one hand he is the door of the sheepfold, but then another illustration, because they didn't really understand him, He said then, I am the good shepherd. Verse 11, that's a different illustration. If you read these illustrations together, you could get confused. Is he now the door, the entrance, or is he the shepherd? These are two different parables, actually, that the Lord Jesus is saying. Here in this section, we are looking at the John 10, 11 through 16. The Lord is showing himself as a caring, loving shepherd. He is the good shepherd. Now a shepherd has sheep, and we, by virtue of the covenant, have been led into the sheepfold of Christ. The Lord gives us grace. He receives us and our children into his covenant. That doesn't mean that thereby we are saved. That means the Lord tells us, I am the Lord thy God. So the Lord speaks very personally. Your can be interpreted as being in general. You're a plural form. I am the Lord your God. But it says in our Bible, it says, I am the Lord thy God. That means that the Lord is speaking, that's the singular form. He's speaking to us very personally and he's saying that to the whole congregation. I am the Lord, thy, your personal God. That doesn't mean that we are saved, but that means that the Lord is laying upon us all the blessings that he is offering in his word. He's placing us under the free offer of His grace. And the fact that He declares Himself to be our God, that's an implicit call to repentance, so that we would become His sheep. It doesn't say that therefore, because He says, I am the Lord thy God, doesn't therefore say that we are His people. We need to become his child because ye must be born again. You must be converted and then we learn to follow this shepherd and therefore repentance and faith are needed. And that's again a gift the Lord offers. What we cannot do, He is willing to do. That's all the beauty of the covenant of God. That's the beauty of the fact that He says, I am the good shepherd. And therefore, He is willing to give us everything we stand in need of. He's willing to give faith. He's willing to give repentance. He's willing to lead us that we would be faithful sheep of the Lord Jesus. And so we need to listen, to learn. In spiritual life, we first need to listen. And then the Holy Spirit, the first thing the Holy Spirit does is He sheds light. Then we all of a sudden recognize the fullness of what God is offering. And on the other hand, we start to realize who we have been, and what we have done, and how we have misbehaved ourselves. And then the Holy Spirit works out conversion and changes covenant children into children of God. Now, we're going to look at some of these matters as we consider our text. The text is John 10, 11 through 16. And we see here the Lord Jesus as the good shepherd. And we see in the first place his person, In the second place, his sacrifice. In the third place, his care. The good shepherd, we see his person, his sacrifice, his care. So the Lord Jesus says here astounding words. He is speaking to the people here. Repeatedly in John, you find reference to the fact that the Lord Jesus is divine, that he is God himself. He is God in human flesh walking amongst us. And that's astounding, that the creator of heaven and earth, that he became human flesh. God became man. And so the Lord Jesus is saying, I am, that's already a reference to the divine being, because God declares himself, I am who I am. And the Pharisees recognized that. That's why they were so often angry at him. Because he, a man, made himself God, but he was God. He said, believe, you don't believe my words, look at the works I'm doing. You will recognize these are divine works. But they didn't want to believe him because they didn't want to repent. They didn't want to give up their own sinful lives. The Lord Jesus says, I am the good shepherd. And that's again an implicit reference to the fact that the one who is speaking is God himself. The Lord Jesus is repeatedly referring to the Old Testament. And there God was referred to as the shepherd of the people of Israel. He was the shepherd of Israel. And the Lord Jesus says, I am the good shepherd. Why does he say good shepherd? Because there were more who were called to be shepherds over the people Israel. The kings were called to be shepherds. But often they cared only for themselves. They sought their own honor, their own ease. and they oppressed the people. There were also false prophets. Prophets were also called to be shepherds, to shepherd the people into the green pastures of God's word. But there were so many false prophets, and still they call themselves shepherds. And in the days of the Lord Jesus, there were the scribes and Pharisees, and they were called to lead the people again into the green pastures of God's word, but they were false shepherds. And so the Lord Jesus has to say, I am the shepherd. He says, I am the good shepherd. And it's not an overstatement. Because in a little while, the Lord Jesus will lay down his life for the flock. And that's what he even declares here, what he is going to do. I am the good shepherd. And that again refers to the Old Testament, to the prophecies, and this is a fulfillment of these Old Testament prophecies. For instance, Ezekiel 34 verse 11, For thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and I will seek them out. That's what the Lord Jesus was doing here. He's the fulfillment of this prophecy. As a shepherd, says Ezekiel, seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered, so will I seek out my sheep and I will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. And here we see God in human flesh. and he is seeking the lost. He is seeking lost sheep and he is gathering them one after the other. Poor receive the gospel of free grace. And so often we find in other sections of God's Word, the New Testament, that the Lord Jesus Christ is referred to as a shepherd. Hebrews 13 refers to the Lord as the great shepherd of the sheep. Peter refers to him as the shepherd of our souls, 1 Peter 2 verse 25. And here in John 10, that the Lord Jesus has come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. And that's why he says, I am the good shepherd. An emphasis here is upon the word good. That word good means glorious, beautiful. It means excellent. He is unique. He is the only one. There's none to be compared to the Lord Jesus. He is the good shepherd. And that over against all false shepherds who seek to pluck the wool of the sheep and to devour them. The Lord Jesus is the good shepherd. And in him we see the great contrast over against all other shepherds who only think about themselves. Also among people there are those who desire to be good and faithful shepherds. They are called to be faithful shepherds. We can think of office bearers, also in the congregation. They are to be dedicated to the Lord. They are to be good shepherds. They are to have a heart for the flock. They are to do their work not sighing, but lovingly. And it can be in the office, and we can be tired. There's also a time of rest can be needed. But at the same time, beg the Lord for grace to do the work lovingly, with dedication. And although as office bearers we are weak in ourselves, we are limited. But he, the Lord Jesus, is a never-ending fountain of strength and grace because he is the good shepherd. And he calls men to serve under him, but he will endow them with grace and mercy. But at same token, the Lord Jesus is the good shepherd. None to be compared to Him. He comes and He picks up that which is broken and carries it upon His shoulders. He enters a life of one who is going astray and fooling around with terrible sins and stops that person in his tracks and draws him back Because He is a loving, good shepherd. And over against the Lord Jesus, there are false shepherds. There are false pastors, also today. There are false prophets. And when they see danger, they forsake their position. When they see the wolf coming, they forsake the sheep and flee. Right exactly when they are needed. Verse 12 speaks here about the hireling. He's not a shepherd. The hireling is called to take care of the sheep, but he doesn't do it. He flees, and the wolf scatters the sheep. The Lord Jesus is actually referring here to the Pharisees, for they had no care for the people. When they had a woman caught in adultery with a certain glee, they brought her to the Lord Jesus, see what he will do with her. But they had no care for her. And a blind born man who had just been healed by the Lord Jesus, how did they treat him? And the Pharisees didn't care about widows. No, instead of protecting the people of Israel and seeking that which was good for the people, they thought only about themselves. They were not good shepherds. The Lord Jesus says, I am the good shepherd, and I know my sheep, and I am known of mine. The Lord knows his people. He has special care for them. He knows all your cares. He knows all your wants, all your fears, all the frustrations you may go through, the problems you may have, the desires you have, the fears you have. He knows all about you. Why don't you open up to Him? Why don't you take time to lay down all your cares, and all your worries, and all your sorrow, and all your grief, and all your burden. You lay it down before Him. He loves to hear you. Maybe He's been waiting a long time, and then finally you start to speak. You know what the Lord actually is saying, if I may say so with reverence? He would say, it's so good to hear you. I've been waiting so long. I've been calling you so long. But you never came. You never took time. While I am the good shepherd, I can give you an abundance. I can do far more than you can ever imagine. Boys and girls, wouldn't you want to be a sheep of His flock. Why don't you start praying? When you're alone in your bed, start praying, Lord Jesus, will Thou make me a little lamb of Your big flock? Will Thou take care of me? Will Thou lead me that I may reach heaven? You know the Lord takes pays attention to prayers of children. And He can answer those prayers later on in your life. Ask the Lord if you may also belong to His flock, that you may truly be a sheep of the Lord Jesus. Because only the Lord Jesus can lead you and can lead us all to that glorious place of heaven And that's actually what we should be living for. That's actually what we should be waiting for. To be with the Lord. Do you long to be with the Lord? Do you long to be made Christ-like? Have you become a stranger here in this earth that you long for the Good Shepherd to see His face and to love Him without any spot or stain of sin. Is that your desire? That's the desire of those who have learned to know this Shepherd. That's how the Lord leads them. He teaches them to long for Him because He is the Good Shepherd. And in spiritual life you learn to see that. Everything is bleak. in comparison to the glories of this Good Shepherd. And you know, we must learn to listen to His voice. By nature we listen to all kinds of voices. All kinds of people call our attention and what have you in this world. They're all calling after us. And too often we listen to everything this world has to offer. And so we must learn to listen to Him. and recognize His voice. And therefore, where do you hear His voice? In the Word of God that is speaking to you, at least if you take time to recognize His voice. Often we're so rushed and you read quickly a passage of Scripture, done. So I've done my duty. That's not how it goes. You have to read a portion of Scripture, and then reread that same passage. Take time to listen, to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd speaking to you. And then after that, you speak to Him. And He's listening. And He will hear your prayers. Because we're not praying to an idol. They have no eyes, they have no ears, they can do nothing. But we are praying to the Most High God, the Good Shepherd. And He can give far above what we imagine. Because He is the Good Shepherd, that's His person. But we also see His sacrifice. Because the Lord Jesus is not someone who just proclaims a new doctrine or a new lifestyle or He's not merely an example of self-denial that we have to follow. It's also not that he established a certain religion that we now have to adhere to and that we have to fulfill all kinds of obligations and duties and work so that thereby we can earn and merit a better existence. That's what the heathen religions are all about. But Christianity is unique. Why is it unique? Because the Lord Jesus does all the work. Because the Lord Jesus earns heaven for his sheep. That doesn't mean the sheep do nothing. No, they are called to follow him. They are called indeed to deny themselves, to take up their cross, come behind him and follow him. They are called to strive to enter in. But it's not that we earn heaven. He earned it already. He gives it freely. And He equips people to follow Him in His service. And you know what's necessary, what the Lord Jesus had to do in order to be the Good Shepherd, He had to lay down His life as a payment for sin. And that's how the Lord Jesus earned everlasting life for His people. Already during the Old Testament, It was knowing that people would be saved by faith. Salvation by faith, by resting on the finished work of the Lord, is not only something for the New Testament, it's in the Old Testament too. Abraham was justified by faith. And how often do we read in the Psalms of resting on the Lord. That's faith. And how often do we read in the prophets, think of Habakkuk, justified by faith. And so they're already in the Old Testament, confessions of God's children explaining that the Lord had a better future for them in store that they would receive by faith. That was their trust. Their trust was in the Lord. And yet in the Old Testament, God's revelation was still, as we say, in the shadows. It was still looking forward to the fulfillment. Something was lacking. What was lacking? The coming of the Lord Jesus. And when He came into this world, then the full light shone. Then it became clear that immortality was revealed. through the Lord Jesus Christ, that the Lord came to give eternal life, and therefore the Lord says here in verse 15, I lay down my life for the sheep. That's why He came. The shadow of the cross was already above Bethlehem, above the manger. The Lord Jesus came to suffer His lifelong And finally, at the end of his life, on the cross, I lay down my life for the sheep. And that's the miracle that we can never really fathom. The Apostle Paul says he gave himself for me. Child of God, never forget that. When things may be difficult in life, when there may be disappointments or maybe sorrow or grief or certain hardships, that we don't understand, and we question God, never forget this, He gave Himself for me. He took the punishment that I deserved. You see, the whole of mankind was sunk in death and looked like a valley of dry, dead bones. But the Lord would cause them to be revived and therefore he himself, the Lord Jesus, went into death. It's like a person who is on death row. He's received a death sentence, and then he receives acquittal. He's a free man, or someone who is sick and healed, or someone who has been buried, and he is raised to life again. That's how the Lord Jesus gives abundance and everlasting life. Dead sinners who are stuck in the mire of sin are raised into a new life with Him. But the price that the Lord Jesus had to pay was that He had to die. he had to give himself as a sacrifice. And through his sacrifice, the full payment was given. And so the Lord Jesus could say that one word, tetelestai, it is finished. It is done. It is paid for. Paid in full. That's what it means. He did it. So you never have to pay for your sins. when you are united to Christ, because he did it then for you. He gave himself in order to purchase himself a flock. He shed his blood, so he cleansed his people. And that's why the Lord Jesus is so very special, because he sacrificed himself. That's how he conquered death, how he conquered hell, how he conquered the devil, and now all power in heaven and earth is given unto him. It's unique. It's unique. I am the good shepherd. I lay down my life for the sheep. No shepherd would do that. In shepherds in Israel, they would seek to spare the flock, the good shepherds who would take care of the flock and be willing to do that. They would risk their lives. They would try to fight off a bear or a lion. And they would take pains to seek lost sheep who were wandering around in the desert. But no shepherd would give himself deliberately into death. No shepherd would willingly allow himself to be killed because then the flock will be scattered and there will be no shepherd anymore. There are limits to a faithful shepherd. He wouldn't deliberately give himself into death, but that's what the Lord Jesus does because that's the only way how his sheep could be saved. And so we may think about that dreadful sacrifice the Lord Jesus made, about the fears he went through, the terrors he endured. He knew what it was to fall into the hands of an angry God. And he quaked, he trembled, he shed, as it were, great drops of blood there in Gethsemane. And then he endured the wrath of God. He was beaten with the punishments of His sheep. Their transgressions were laid upon Him, and He took that whole unbearable load upon Him, and He paid for it fully. That's why His blood is a full payment for sin. So in your sins, your life, What is needed for you? One drop of the blood of Christ? No. What's needed for you is the full sufferings of Christ. All He endured, He did it then for you. Everything. All His terrors, His anguish, His pain, His excruciating suffering in outer darkness. Everything of that was needed. to save one sinner, and that one sinner, that's you. He gave himself for me. That's who this good shepherd is, his sacrifice. We find this example in scripture of faithful shepherds, of Jacob. He suffered the heat of the day and the cold of the night, in order to take care of the sheep. But the good shepherd gave his life for the sheep. David was a faithful shepherd. He saved a lamb from the mouth of a lion and other lamb from the claws of a bear. But what is that in comparison to what the Lord Jesus did? He gave His life for the sheep. The sheep were condemned to die forever. But the Lord Jesus took that anguish upon Himself. And so He laid down His life for the sheep. The Lord Jesus did not only have to die a temporal death, He had to die the everlasting There are more examples of people who gave themselves their lives for another. There was a minister, he was in the Java Sea in 1942, when the Japanese had attacked the combined Dutch, British and Australian fleet. And they were winning the battle. There was A ship had been struck, and the sailors were out in the sea. There was a raft, and they all got on the raft. Among them was a minister, and then there was a boy. He tried also to get on the raft, but he couldn't. Then the raft started to sink, and the minister slipped away. He said, here, you take my place. So the raft went on, and the minister drowned. He said, said to the boy, I can die, but you can't yet, so get on that raft. That minister gave him his life for that boy. But there was only a temporal death. The Lord Jesus did not give a temporal death. He died everlasting death. How could he do that? How could the Lord Jesus, after three hours, say, it is finished? Because He is the eternal God. Only the eternal God could bear the eternal wrath of God, the eternal death. And that's what He did. He gave Himself. And Isaiah already spoke about it. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way. And the Lord have laid on him the iniquity of us all. He did it of his own volition, free will. He wasn't forced to do this. I lay down my life for the sheep out of love That's the love of Christ. That's how loving this good shepherd is. Ephesians 5, 2, As Christ also hath loved us and hath given himself for us as an offering and a sacrifice to God. This shepherd is enough for you in all your misery to lift you up. If he gave his life If he suffered the torments of hell, wouldn't he help you in all your personal worries and cares? Is he not a loving and a caring sheep? If he has done the most greatest thing, would he not be willing to help you with other things you are struggling with in which you need help? He's calling you. Do you hear his voice? Maybe he's calling you now in these moments in a very uncovering manner. Maybe you see something of your ignorant, unwilling, impenitent attitude towards his good shepherd. Maybe you've had low thoughts of him up to this present day. Maybe you see something of your loathsome sin, of your bankrupt life, and you have nothing of yourself. You have no life of dedication to the Lord. You're only thinking about yourself and about the good things that this country and this life here offers us. Maybe you're thinking about your own prosperity, your own income, and really, What does faith mean for you? Is it something in the periphery of your life? Something on the edge? Oh, I'm a church-going person, for sure. I'm not an atheist. I'm not an immoral person. But it means, actually, very little to you. Because you're living only for yourself. and about your income, and that you do not have really love to the Lord. You don't really long for Him. You don't really thirst for Him. No, you thirst for other matters, but not really for Him. And you don't care much about His image that we lost in paradise. No, actually, you love yourself. Do you see something of your guilt? Are you now maybe starting to feel ashamed? Shouldn't we be ashamed of such an attitude? And yet He is still the Good Shepherd and He is calling you with His life, with His love. He longs more for you than you for Him and He has come to give. not to gain things from you that would cause him to be better off. No. He's not calling you to use you, to manipulate you. He's calling to set you at liberty, to deliver you, to give you life and abundance. He's calling you. Look at his sacrifice. Look at what he is doing. Trust in Him. You may come as you are, with all your failures, with all your lack of love, and you may sob before Him. Oh God, be merciful to me, the selfish, self-centered person. I've never laid down anything for Thee. and thou hast laid down thy life in order to be able to save me? Why don't you break down and say, Lord, take my life, take my everything, and may it be devoted to thee. May I live for thee and live with thee, for thou art most worthy, because herein is love, that thou hast laid down thy life in order that I could be delivered from my guilt and sin, that I could rise up in a new life with thee. And you know, you start to see this more when you focus not only on his sacrifice, but also upon his care. His care. Because he is most caring. He cares. He knows all your cares. He knows where you live. And He cares for His people. When they make their cares known to Him, He already knows what they stand in need of. And He is filled with tenderness and mercy. He seeks your well-being, your salvation. He seeks your eternal life. And he does this with so much patience. He is not a harsh master. He doesn't lash out when you stumble in sin. But he calls you. After a while he can smite you because he wants you back. But he is so patient. He instructs His sheep that they start to realize more and more that they can do nothing without Him. That they are fully dependent upon Him. And you know, that's the way they love it. They want to be dependent upon Him because He is so good. With Him, Paul says, I can do all things. But without Him, I can do nothing. not the least. And that's why I want to be dependent upon Him. I want to be united to Him. I want Him to take care of my life, because He leads me in green pastures. Even when I go through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me. Thy staff, Thy rod, They lead me. I hear His voice speaking to me in the dark valley. He is always with me. He protects me. The Lord Jesus never loses any one of His sheep. We see this already in the Old Testament where the Lord Jesus was actually in that pillar of a cloud and the pillar of a fire, He was leading them. Then, He was actually speaking to Moses from that burning bush. It was the Lord Jesus, the not yet incarnated Son of God, speaking to Moses. And there of Him it was said, He shall feed His flock like a shepherd, Isaiah 40. He shall gather the lambs with His arm, carry them in His bosom. And Ezekiel 34 again, I will seek that which was lost, and will bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick. The Lord knows His sheep. And that's such a rich comfort. He knows me. He knows the way I have to go. He will be there. Was He not there in your life in the hard times you went through when you called upon His name, when you needed Him? Was He not there? Did He not lead you through? It wasn't always easy, but He was there because He knows you with a very tender, personal knowledge. is an intimate bond, and it's experienced by all true believers. They've experienced in their lives that the Lord is merciful and gracious, and that's why they are knit to Him. That's why they love Him, because He first loved them. And that's why they more and more start to long for Him, because He is good. The Lord found them. when they were dying. Yes, when they were dying in sin. Maybe they had a time in their life when they tried to climb up to meet God, but they always, they slid down. And they couldn't, they couldn't reach God. And they were lying there at the bottom, unable to find God, until they heard footsteps coming down to them. And he laid his hand upon me, and he spoke peace to my soul. And he was there, and everything else was bleak. Everything else was not important anymore, because he was there with his love. And he spoke peace to my soul, and he united my heart to him. He had mercy upon me. because he loved me freely. And not only me, that's what a child of God can testify, but also many others. The Lord has his people everywhere in this world, in Eastern Europe, in the former Soviet Union, in many countries, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, he has his people. He has his people throughout the entire world. It's so glorious. An elder from Rotterdam, he's a Kurd. He was converted powerfully by the Lord in the Netherlands. And then he received a powerful call to become a missionary among the Kurds in Iraq. And he's there now again for a few weeks. And he goes back to his wife and children. He goes there maybe six times, five times a year in Iraq. He has 70,000 people listening along to him from Iraq when he is preaching in his church in Rotterdam. At Easter, 70,000 people. Because the Lord is at work. He's doing far more than we imagine. He's not sitting idly, because the Lord Jesus said it already. And 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 and one shepherd. Oh, wouldn't that be beautiful? That one flock, do you ever think about it? to be there in that one flock with all God's people of all ages, of all countries. And they will all be there. That's the future. Because of this good shepherd. And they will be joined together as one flock. That's how great it will be, an innumerable multitude. And at the same time, He has individual care. As if the Lord all had His, all of His attention focused upon you. That's how God works. That's His love. That's His care. The care of this Good Shepherd. And that's why He can lead you and exercise you to godliness. Do you ever pray for that? Lord, exercise me to godliness. Show me more of my corruption. It's a painful thing. It's not really nice, but it's necessary. It's good that you see more of your loathsome, who you are. And that's the purpose is to have more value for Christ to see that He is altogether lovely. And that's how the Lord works, how the Lord draws, how the Lord teaches. And He will teach you with His care every day of the week when you enter your closet and there you are alone with Him, where you take time to be with Him. there He will teach you. And so we need to listen to this Good Shepherd. If you love life, flee to Him. If you want to be saved, look unto Him and call upon His name. Because the day is coming when there will be a shifting. A shifting. A change. All the nominal Christians will be put to one side, and all the true Christians will be with Him. On which side will you be? Amen.