Born of Controversy :: John 10:1-10
[Introduction]
The Word before us this morning comes from one of the most famous and familiar passages in all Scripture: John 10. We have only the first half of the Good Shepherd discourse today, but it doesn’t make it only half as good to preach on. Jesus opens eyes and ears to the truth of who he is. If you search Fort Wayne’s media server, you will find dozens and dozens of titles referencing John 10. Our service book has at least 62 hymns with roots in John 10 ... eighteen to this passage alone. I know at least one of our congregations ... is it not Holy Cross? ... features a painting of our Good Shepherd above the altar. The Good Shepherd is also a prominent image for stained glass windows, including here at Trinity.
Parents and grandparents use this image with their children ... singing ... “I Am Jesus Little Lamb, ever glad at heart I am” (LSB 740:1). ... We teach our children to sing ... “Shepherd of Tender Youth, guiding in love and truth” (LSB 864:1) ... Therefore, “Have No Fear Little Flock / Have No Fear Little Flock / For the Father has chosen / To give you the kingdom / Have no Fear Little Flock” (LSB 735:1).
5.
But here’s something you might have forgotten: Jesus’ description of himself as The Good Shepherd was born from controversy ... born from excommunication.
In John chapter 9, Jesus had just given a man born blind his sight. The man’s neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were surprised ... shocked even ... not only that he could now see ... but that it was Jesus who healed him (9:5, 11) ... opening his eyes to see the Light of the World standing before him ... on the Sabbath no less (9:14). ... So they hauled the poor guy before the Pharisees to begin an inquisition.
Who would do such a thing on a Sabbath, making mud patches and telling you to wash? ... How can a SINNER do such signs, giving sight to the blind? (v 16). We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners (v 31). And you were born in complete sin, and you teach us? (v 34)
So they cast the man out of the temple ... slamming the door in his face, barring him from entering the temple again.
When Jesus heard they had done this, he bluntly and directly called the Pharisees blind guides ... robbers and thieves who were destroying God’s flock. Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, ‘Are we also blind?’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.’ (9:41-42).
4.
That’s where our reading picks up.
Jesus then said: “Amen, Amen, I say to you, the one not entering through the gate of the courtyard of the sheep but goes up from elsewhere, that one is a thief and a robber. But the one entering through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. To this one, the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has put out all his own, he walks in front of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice (vv 1-4).
3.
Dear brothers in Christ, the world is filled with preachers who are eager to steal God’s sheep. They do it for profit. They do it for fame. And it’s a mystery why some do it at all.
Now it’s not fair to say that the Pharisees didn’t mean well. They wanted to live the good life. They wanted to be godly. They wanted to stay on the straight and narrow. They wanted to dot their Is and cross their Ts. They thought that by doing so ... it would lead them to heaven. But as Paul teaches us in Galatians 2:16, We know that a man is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ. We know that faith comes through hearing the voice of Gospel ... by listening to the voice of Gospel ... by following the voice of the Gospel.
We might think that the Pharisees are ancient history ... but godless sheep stealers ... who can’t tell the difference between Law and Gospel ... are everywhere. Like the Pharisees, they make up their own rules on Christian living. We hear their voices on our local radio stations ... on TV ... on the Internet. We read their nonsense in our local newspapers. Their voice comes from the east and the west ... from D.C. and from Hollywood.
These robbers and thieves are jumping the fence, setting up shop around the corner, ignoring the Gate himself. They rob God’s children of the truth ... speaking lies about creation and sexual identity. Some actually teach that God lied to Adam and Eve in the Garden ... that sin was God’s fault. They ignore the very promises of God. They preach prosperity. They tease the world with the idea that you can make a decision for Jesus ... develop a close, personal relationship with Jesus ... forgetting who Jesus is. They perpetuate the myth of premillennial dispensationalism. ... It’s shocking how many people in our congregations think a secret rapture will take place before the coming of Christ, giving people a second chance.
These thieves and robbers deny the very means of grace through which Jesus has promised to come to us ... the very means through which he gives abundant life ... the Gospel in Word and Sacrament. They teach that baptism doesn’t do anything, but you gotta do it the right way so that it won’t do anything. They teach that Jesus can’t possibly give us his body and blood to eat and drink ... that the verb “is” doesn’t mean “is.”
It’s no wonder the Pharisees didn’t understand anything that Jesus was saying to them (v 6).
Therefore, Jesus said again to them, Amen, Amen, I say to you that I AM the gate of the sheep. Everyone who came before me is a thief and a robber. But the sheep did not listen to them. I AM the gate. If anyone enters through me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
2.
If you’ve ever wondered why the world hates Christians, this is another reason why.
THE WAY THROUGH THE GATE IS BORN OF CONTROVERSY
The world wants the freedom to create its own religion, its own god, its own morality, its own gate to heaven. But Jesus says that ... the only gate to heaven is found through faith in him ... and he’s the one who calls the sheep and he’s the one who opens it for the sheep.
Christians are then called intolerant and bigoted and hateful and judgmental for listening to the Word of Christ. But salvation is found in no one else but Jesus, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). This is the message of Pentecost. This is the message we all need to hear.
1.
So proclaim it, brothers! Keep reminding your congregations of the incarnation. Keep reminding them of the sinless life of Jesus. Keep reminding them of the cross. Keep reminding them that because of the blood Jesus shed, all sin indeed is forgiven. Keep reminding them of the resurrection and ascension and coming of the Holy Spirit. The Gospel opens the gate.
No one else came from heaven to earth to give his life as a ransom for sinners (Mt 20:28). No one else carried the sins of the world to the cross and shed his blood to pay for them (1 Pt 2:24). No one else was despised, beaten, and crucified in our place (Isa 53). No one else endured the wrath of God as our substitute (Rm 3:25). No one else could shed righteous blood to atone the sins of the world (1 Jn 2:2). And, most importantly, no one else could prove the truth of his word by rising from the dead (Mt 28:1-10) and lead all who listen to his voice into good pasture. No one else has the good news of a Good Shepherd who leads us back to our baptism and forward to the altar for the supper he prepared.
That’s the difference between Jesus and all the robbers and thieves out there. He alone opens our eyes to see the light. As Jesus said, A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
[Conclusion]
So preach it ... in Jesus’ name. Amen.