SPEAKER_01 0:00

Once again, a very good morning to all of us. We are continuing the sermon series in the Gospel of John. We will continue with certain portions of the Gospel of John, and today we'll be looking at John chapter 10, verses 1 to 18, which tells us about Jesus as the shepherd of the sheep. So the structure of this passage can be broken down into three parts. Basically, I will follow through this, and as usual, what we'll do is we will draw implications for our lives and ask ourselves so what does all this mean and apply to our hearts and our lives today? So in 18 verses from John chapter 10, verse 1 to 5, basically Jesus began to speak in a figurative way, right? Through a figure of speech. The first five verses of John chapter 10. And in verse 6, the people kind of misunderstand what he meant by the figure of speech. And that follows with a further expansion of his thoughts, further explanation of who he is and what he came to do. And that is from John chapter 10 verse 7 to 18. So I'll follow this train of thought and and as we go along with the Lord stir up our hearts to hear his word afresh to us. So John chapter 10 verses 1 to 5, the figure of speech, Jesus began to speak these words. He said, Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfall 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 own sheep by name and leads them, and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers. So the heart of these few verses is Jesus, by using figurative speech, draws a contrast between what a shepherd does and what thieves and robbers do. The thieves and robbers draw from the imagery taken from the Old Testament book of Ezekiel 34, where the Lord Himself berates the shepherds of Israel. If you can quickly browse through Ezekiel 34, they were the religious leaders of Ezekiel's day. They slaughtered the choice animals, they clothed themselves with wool, yet they have failed to look after the flock that has been entrusted to them. The shepherds of Israel in Ezekiel 34 had also failed to strengthen the weak ones among the flock. They failed to heal the sick ones, bound out the injured, or seek the strayed and lost ones. Moreover, they had ruled the sheep with force and harshness. As a result, Ezekiel 34, verse 5 tells us, the sheep were scattered because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. In the context of John chapter 10, Jesus likely is referring also to the religious leaders, the Pharisees, who are also represented by the thief and robber. According to John chapter 9, verse 39 to 41, they are the blind ones, the Pharisees are the blind ones that do not see. And they are also the strangers whose voice the sheep do not recognize. So, in contrast to the strangers whose voice the sheep do not recognize, the sheep hears the shepherd's voice, the shepherd's voice, who calls them out by name and leads them out. It is interesting for us to note that sheep have excellent hearing. They can amplify and pinpoint sound with their ears. And near eastern shepherds were known to calls. And their own sheep will gather by gathering around the shepherd. So because sheep are easily frightened by strangers, by voices that they do not recognize, their natural responsiveness to their own shepherd indicates whose they are. So it's unlike our time now where you know as people tainted by sin in our fallen nature, we are hard of hearing. But Jesus, I believe, he uses this analogy of a sheep and shepherd and of a sheep hearing. The shepherd's voice is to tell us that when we come to know Jesus, there's an undoing. Our hearing can be sensitized. We can hear just as how sheep naturally will hear the shepherd's voice and gather instinctively to the voice of the shepherd. God desires us to instinctively respond to his voice. So today it's about removing all the filters that clutter us from really hearing the voice of God and what God desires for us. So in John chapter 10, verse 6, we see a misunderstanding because the people could not understand the figure of speech Jesus used with them. They did not understand what he was saying to them. So in response to the people's lack of understanding, Jesus then expands and draws out further implications in John chapter 10, verse 7 to 18. So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you. Now he personalized it. Before that, verse 1 to 5, he said, the shepherd and thieves and robbers, more from a neutral perspective, a third-party perspective. But now he's personalizing it. He says, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. Verse 9, Jesus goes on to say, I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be safe and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I come that they may have life and life to the full. So there will be one flock and one shepherd. Again, by means of a figurative speech, again, Jesus now draws a contrast between himself as the gate and the good shepherd versus the thieves, the robbers, the hired hand, and the wolf. Here Jesus explicitly, explicit, explicitly sorry, identifies himself as both the gate and the or the door and the shepherd. As the gate or the door, Jesus is the exclusive and sole means by which the sheep may enter the safety of the foe. It's a reminder in again from John chapter 14, verse 6, further chapters down, Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. So unlike the thieves and the robbers who climbs in in the earlier few verses, Jesus is the door. So in John chapter 10, verse 12, Jesus brings in the imagery of a wolf. Wolves are used in the Bible for destructive leaders. We don't have time to go into that, but I'll provide us the references so we can refer to that. So not that wolves are literally leaders, but they are used as metaphors for leaders who act in a way that they will put the people whom they are leading at the disadvantage. So certain princes in Ezekiel 22 verse 27 are referred to as wolves. So were judges in Zephaniah 3 verse 3 and false teachers, Jesus himself said in Matthew chapter 7, verse 15, they are wolves in sheep's clothing. And in Acts 20, verse 29, Paul himself says, after my departure from Ephesus, ferocious wolves may come to attack the flock and to lead them astray. So the imagery of a wolf is usually portrayed in scripture in a negative perspective. It means they don't come for any good, they come to attack the flock and to harm them. So as the good shepherd, Jesus lays down his life for the sheep. That's a key verse in John chapter 10, verse 11. So when threat comes to the flock in the form of a menacing wolf, a hired hand, someone who has just hired to do the job, and who does not own the sheep, when danger comes, their true colours is revealed for all to see. They run for their lives rather than to care for the flock. So a hired hand, John tells us, who does not own the sheep, when they see the wolf coming, they will leave the sheep and flee. However, Jesus in contrasting himself to the hired hand tells us that rather than leaving and fleeing in the face of the threat from the wolf, he would be the one to lay down his life for the sheep. For a shepherd to risk one life one's life for the sheep was occasionally necessary as an expression of protection. We see that in David's role as a shepherd boy in 1 Samuel 17, verse 34 to 35. In the account, David said to Saul, Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion or a bear and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. So David, as a shepherd boy, rose up to the occasion in bravery, and I don't know how he managed to attack lion, lions, bears, you know, but lions and bears, but uh scripture records for us that he was able to find a way uh against them to rescue the lamb from the flock. However, in this chapter, in John chapter 10, for a shepherd to die for his flock is probably to stretch the metaphor beyond itself. Why would a shepherd die for the flock? They may risk their life to protect the flock, but at the point where their life is being threatened, they could just abandon the flock, you know, and after all, uh probably find a new job, uh raise, uh find a new job in a sheep pen elsewhere. So to die for one's flock is radical. So we see here uh in a play of contrast that Jesus versus the thieves, the robbers, the hired hand and the wolves. Uh for the thieves and robbers and the wolves, as they come against the flock, it entails death for the flock. It entails danger. For the hired hand, he runs away rather than defends the flock from the wolves. However, life for the flock requires death for the shepherd. So the the great contrast tells us that Jesus is totally unlike the thieves or the robbers, the hired hand or the wolves. Those bring danger, they abandon the sheep in times of trouble. Whereas Jesus sticks it through, and life for the flock in certain occasions requires the death of the shepherd. So for the shepherd in John's gospel, in our reading today, uh, is crucially also the sacrificial lamb. The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. That's how the Gospel of John begins. In John chapter 1, verse 29, it tells us John the Baptist says, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So Jesus as a shepherd is also the Lamb of God. And very significantly in John's Gospel, the timing of Jesus' death is located at the time where they slaughter the lambs prior to the Passover festival. John 19 verse 14 tells us on the day of preparation for the Passover, about the sixth hour, that was the time where Jesus stood before Pilate and was flocked and sentenced. That was the time of preparation. So for John, these details are significant. And he wants us to know that Jesus, who is the great shepherd of the sheep, is also the Lamb of God, the Paschal Lamb that takes away the sin of the world. Moreover, the preposition for that is located in the verse where Jesus says, I am the good shepherd, the good shepherd lays down his life. For the preposition for for the sheep, it always connotes sacrifice. When the preposition for is used in John's gospel, it always is used in the context of sacrifice. And we see that in John chapter 6, verse 51. John chapter 6 verse 51, Jesus said, And the bread that I give for the life of the world is my flesh. Right? So the word for is used in the context of sacrifice. In John 10, 11, which is the chapter we are looking at, the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. John 10, 15, again, Jesus said, and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 11, verse 15, it's better for you that one man should die for the people. John 18 verse 14, it was Caiphus who had advised the Jews that it would be expedient that one man should die for the people. So Jesus is the good shepherd that gives his life for the people, for his sheep. And very significantly for John again, why is Jesus called the good shepherd? You know, why why why is there a modifier being used? Why is he a good shepherd? Precisely because he is the one that lays down his life for the sheep. The word good can also be translated as noble, the noble shepherd or the worthy shepherd. So it's a term of endearment, a term of esteem. It's not just good and bad, but it is a noble shepherd. A worthy shepherd is the one that lays down his life for the sheep. So there are two subordinate thoughts or ideas flowing from the main point, which is Jesus as the great shepherd, the good shepherd, the noble shepherd, the worthy shepherd that lays down his life for the sheep. Following the life-giving power of Jesus laying down his life for the sheep, there is also an intimate relationship between the shepherd and the sheep. Jesus said, I know my own, and my own know me. It is a knowing relationship. There's a very natural language used here in terms of using the sheep metaphor. Jesus' sheep responds by gathering around him. Because sheep are easily frightened by strangers, their natural responsiveness to their own shepherd indicates whose they are. Because sheep hear instinctively, so they know their shepherd by their hearing of the shepherd's voice. So similarly, the intimate relationship between the shepherd and the sheep flows from the prior condition of Jesus being the shepherd of the sheep that lays down his life for the sheep. Secondly, there's a further gathering of other sheep. Jesus said that there are other sheep that are not of this foe. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice, so that there will be one flock and one shepherd. So, in addition to knowing, Jesus desires us to know him and listen by listening to his voice, there is further gathering of other sheep so that together we will form one flock under one shepherd. So, what are the implications of this shepherdship uh imagery from John 10 for our lives today? I have two implications that I'd like to share with us. Firstly, the first implication is this Jesus is the gate, or other translations say door, in which all of us must enter. You know, uh it's something that perhaps after being a Christian for so long, we think that just by saying the sinner's prayer is a done deal, you know, that we don't have to revisit uh our relationship with God happens in many, many cultures. Many, many uh Christians overseas. For them, being a Christian is a cultural thing because my family uh are Christian, so I inherit the faith. I come to church on Sundays, but other days it is my life, is how I live. And I suspect being a cultural Christian is also quite common in Singapore where we just come to church because uh just as how other faiths, you know, if you are Buddhist, you go to a temple. So if you are Christian, you just come to church. But there's a sense that all of us must make that decision to embrace Jesus as the gate and the door in which all of us must enter through it. You know, in the heightened sense of uh the development of AI and technology, even in the medical field, uh more and more. We are losing the uh ability to uh connect with uh first principles of life. Even in terms in the fields of uh mathematics, you know, there are times in ages past, I think if I don't I didn't use that, but some of us use the log tables, you know, to do uh computation. Like uh I didn't use that, but then it has progressed so fast. Now you have the scientific calculator, you can input values, functions, and they can plot graphs for you. So you don't even need to uh do manual calculation, everything uh has been kind of uh expedited in some way, and now with the advance of uh of AI, you know, we are saying that all our answers is just uh you know, just input your questions and you get everything. Uh and it's changing the face of the world with education, especially, because now knowledge is everywhere. So, how do teachers teach in a context where knowledge is just out there? At the click of a button, you can have access to so much information. So I thought uh this quote which I noted down some time back is quite crucial. This is applied to the medical field of doctors. This is what uh a professor uh, I think it's a medical uh in a medical profession, this is what he says. It's crucial that young doctors do not forget the basics of surgery, especially in the face of rapidly developing technology. No matter how sophisticated technology is, the basics will enable them to get out of precarious situations. Something as simple as being familiar with stitching versus stapling. We are not a surgeon, but this is fundamental to surgery: stitching versus stapling. What's the difference between them? So I like I sense the word of God or the burden of the word of God for us today is really to return to first principles of our Christian faith. It's really to return to the very basics of our faith, which is you know uh entering through Jesus as the gate and the door. But of course, when we talk about entering uh through Jesus as the gate, you know, uh we may not always do so because uh there may be concerns or preoccupations that we are holding to that that is preventing us from wholeheartedly embracing Jesus as the gate and the door. No, we come to church on Sundays to worship and remember God, but have we opened the gate and the door of our hearts to Him? Because as we come each week, we may have certain concerns, certain preoccupations, certain things that are weighing on our mind. So each week, as we come before God's presence, we need to willingly open the gate or the door of our hearts to him. Otherwise, we are just being cultural Christians. We are just coming here because it's a good thing to do on a Sunday morning to just be part of the service and after that uh go about the rest of our day. But now the call of God is for us to return to first principles, which is opening the gate and the door of our hearts, allowing Jesus, entering, allowing Jesus to enter our hearts and entering through the straight and narrow path, which is Jesus as the gate and the door. Scripture tells us that Jesus is not like a thief or a robber or a hired hand or a wolf, right? So all this contrast in John chapter 10 tells us Jesus is not at all like that. She's not like a thief, robber, hired hand, or wolf that will often exploit us for their own benefit or selfish interest. But Jesus has come in John 10, verse 10 tells us that we may have life and life abundantly. So we can trust him as we enter the gate and the door, who is Jesus. We can trust him because he is our shepherd. He's a good, noble, and worthy shepherd. He's a good shepherd, he's a noble shepherd, he's a worthy shepherd. So, with that, I just want to do an exercise with us this morning. Um I just want us to at this moment just clench both our both of our left and right palms together. You know, if you can just do this along with me. And sometimes our clenched left and right palm uh could symbolize things that we hold on to. You know, we have whether it's a fear or concern or preoccupation, interest that is uh uh overtaking Jesus in our lives. Perhaps it's a problem that has waited on our hearts, a preoccupation, our family situation, perhaps it's a work situation, perhaps it's our own inordinate desires, you know, that we just are not willing to come to Jesus. Whatever it is, you know, uh our clenched palms represent the holding on to those things, those areas. And what I'm going to do is I'm going to pray and ask God to just reveal to us what are the concerns or current preoccupations that is occupying the space of our mind and stirring our emotions such that it has clouded the vision of God, vision of Jesus as a gate and door of our lives. And as we do that, and I'm going to lead us and ask the Lord to just reveal to us uh the areas of our lives that have weighted us down, that is preventing us from entering into the pathway through the gate, through Jesus. All of us each day have to choose a flesh to enter through the way of Jesus. Salvation is a one-time, we are safe, uh, but it's an ongoing walking out of our relationship with Jesus. We need to enter every day through Jesus as the gate and the door of our life. It's not just saying the sinner's prayer and then that's it. But every day we have to make a choice to surrender our preoccupations and our fears to Jesus, our concerns, our worries, our idols even, so that Jesus can be the way, the truth, and the life. He can be the gate and the door in which we must enter. So will you join me and just with your as a symbol of that, with your hands uh left and right palms uh clenched, I just want to pray that the Lord will reveal to us. Father, I we come before you and Lord as a just a symbol of sometimes our struggle with sin, even the weighted issues on our hearts, Lord, is resembled by our clenched palms today. And Holy Spirit, I pray right now that you will speak to our hearts as I speak. Lord, reveal. Holy Spirit, reveal to us the areas of our lives that we are weighted down, that we are just so far from you. Concerns, preoccupations, idols inordinate desires, other things that have taken the rightful place of you in our life. Lord, today we want to center our lives on you. Lord, would you now come and reveal those areas of free occupations and concerns to us? Holy Spirit, would you speak to us right now? Speak to us in the recesses of our hearts. And as the Holy Spirit speaks to you, just begin to release your clenched left and right palm with simple words of surrender to you, to God. It doesn't have to be in Queen's English. Could be as simple as God, I trust you. I want to release the concern and preoccupation that is weighing down on my heart and mind to you. If it's the idle and inordinate desires, Lord, I'm asking you right now for strength to overcome this. You are the good shepherd, you are the noble shepherd, you are the worthy shepherd, and I can trust you. I want to release the concern and preoccupation to you, knowing that as I embrace you as the gate or the door, I will find true life and life more abundant. So as you begin to pray, just begin to release your palm and just begin to surrender afresh to God and say, Lord, have your way. You know what's best. I would want to just follow your heart and your desires, wherever that will lead me to. The name of Jesus. Amen. So we can do that daily or times where the Lord leads you. I find that it's a very uh useful practice for myself, yeah, because we are all weighted down by many things in Singapore. So by doing the exercise, it helps to release our burdens, our concerns to Jesus. My second point is this Jesus is, second implication is this, Jesus is our good shepherd whom which we enter, who gives his life sacrificially for us. To put this across in simple terms, in three sentences, it's simply this. Jesus loves you. He really loves you. He really, really loves you. And this is how he shows his love for us. As a shepherd, he lays down his life for us. And that's all. John is telling us greater love has no one than this. He lays down his life for his friends. And in 1 John 3.16, also written by John, he says, by this we know love. 1 John 3.16, by this we know love. That he, referring to Jesus, laid down his life for us. How do we know that God loves us? Because he lays down, he lays, he's willing to lay down his life for us. So Jesus loves you. He really loves you. He really, really loves you. So there's uh actually uh a kind of uh meditation that uh sometimes uh spiritual directors bring uh uh candidates through, and the first week, the first thought they are to think of is Jesus loves you. That means they begin the whole week just contemplating on the fact Jesus loves you, he loves you, Jesus loves you. The next week, what they contemplate on is He really loves you. He not only loves you, but He really loves you. And the third week, He really, really loves you. So it's as simple as that. First principles, we are going back to the basic, the foundation of our faith. The first principles, you know, when technology fails, which it will, he has shown us today there was some there's some problem with the live streaming today, yeah, because we have we have a new PA system, so we are still experiencing these few weeks a bit of teething issues, but we hope that eventually these two will pass, you know, and there comes a time maybe all PowerPoint will, there's no point in having PowerPoint because there's no power to the point.

SPEAKER_00 35:15

Right?

SPEAKER_01 35:16

So when that happens, you know, preaching is just down to being uh fundamentally a preacher is basically a herald, someone that proclaimed good news and called the people to repentance and turn to God.

SPEAKER_00 35:30

So fundamentally it is this, even without PowerPoint or without uh uh hopefully with sermon notes, but we can still sing, we can still worship God. But sometimes technology will fail us.

SPEAKER_01 35:44

Even the I read to us the quote from the professor, you know, even for a surgeon with highly now with technology, so advanced, I believe so in Singapore, but still you need to know the basics, right?

SPEAKER_00 35:57

Even in school, uh when you go through language or mathematics, you still need to know how to count, right? You cannot say that because you can press the calculator, then uh you forget all your functions, calculus, and just throw it away. Just press the calculator. You still need to know the fundamentals so that you can check against the result, right?

SPEAKER_01 36:19

So that's the reality, the fundamentals of our faith. To know that Jesus loves us. He really loves us, he really loves us. So as we embrace Jesus, Jesus' sacrificial love for us and appropriate it in our lives, then we will grow in knowing that Jesus knows us and desires us to grow in knowing Him. Again, the imagery of shepherd and sheep is so poignant here because sheep are naturally good at hearing, but humans, we are terrible at hearing.

SPEAKER_00 36:58

We often hear wrongly, or we think we are hearing another voice, we are hearing our own voice, not God's voice, or maybe our friend's voice, our spouse's voice.

SPEAKER_01 37:08

You know, so we have terrible problems with hearing, but sheep are good.

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We can learn something from sheep today.

SPEAKER_01 37:15

They are good at hearing, right? So I believe when Jesus shares this imagery, he wants us to be like sheep. He wants us to begin to hear the voice of the shepherd, just as how a sheep naturally does that. So we need more training than a sheep. Sheep instinctively know. But for us to know how to hear God's voice, we need to get in tune with him. Back to first principles, to hear and know Jesus more, so that we will respond to him instinctively. So, how do we know and hear Jesus better? So, back to first principles, get to know his word to us. You know, start reading scripture, start coming under the authority of God's word, you know, because God's word is basically what he's telling us, right? The Bible tells us, it's God's message to us. So a lot of people say, I want to hear God, I want to know God. Hey, do you read the Bible or not? No, I don't read that. How do you know? How do you know God without knowing his word? How about without knowing what he's telling us in his word? So sometimes when we say, I I want to know God, but I can't know him, it's because we have not put in the effort to know his word. Because his word is his word to us. So I'd like to suggest to us that we need to start reading scripture daily. There are many resources available. Uh you can use the lectionary, you can use so many Bible apps, but basically, you got we have to infuse ourselves with scripture, and that that's something that the Anglican tradition has given us great resources. Daily readings, uh prayers that helps us connect to God daily. You know, it's not just a Sunday thing, but daily. So get to know his word to us. Start reading scripture daily. Talk to him through prayer, tell him your needs and concerns.

SPEAKER_00 39:20

And don't just talk, talk, talk, but spend time to listen. But a lot of times we talk, we tell God this, oh that we spend one hour telling him all our concerns, but sometimes we fail to wait to listen to him.

SPEAKER_01 39:33

And the waiting, which is the tough part, is to listen to him. Quieten yourself, find a secret space, spend time in silence, because a lot of time God speaks through silence, right? Through when we remove all the clutter of our lives, through silence we hear God better. So talk to him in prayer, spend time listening to him in silence. It's a two-way thing, right? Prayer is not just talking, talking, talking, telling God everything, but also talking and listening, right? We talk to God, we also listen, get a response from him. And sometimes the response will come through a confirmation of the word, it will come through encouragement from a friend, it will come through prayers answered, right? So there are various ways in which God answers our prayer. But we need to spend time in silence. For those of us who can pray in tongues, pray in tongues. Build up your spirit, man. Worship God, praise Him. So all this will help us know and hear God better. And as we grow to know and hear Jesus better, He desires others to come to know Him too. Just as how in John 10, Jesus desires more sheep to be added to the sheepfold under one shepherd. So start to share about the sacrificial love of Jesus. Point others to know and hear Jesus better by reading his word and praying to him. So, in a nutshell, John chapter 10 is just introducing and reintroducing to us the fundamentals of our faith. Right? It's about knowing that Jesus is a good shepherd. He lays down his life for us. He really loves us. He really, really loves us. And he wants us to know him. Like how a sheep knows the voice of the shepherd. And he also wants us to start to share, start to bring other sheep to know him, to know his love, to um to have a relationship with Jesus. And then the cycle continues. So it's a call today, I believe, to return to the fundamentals of our faith. The first principles, you know, when all things fails, you know, uh the basic posture of us as a Christian is really to be uh word and prayer people. We are people that uh read his word and pray to him. That's fundamental. That's the first principles of what it means to be a Christian. To read his word, to pray, to know that he loves us. Let us pray. Father, we want to thank you for your word to us this morning. Thank you for the reminder that Jesus loves us. Jesus really loves us. Jesus really, really loves us. That as a good shepherd, he shows us his love by laying down his life for us. And greater love has no one than this. Thank you that like sheep who hears the voice of the shepherd, you desire us to have a relationship with you, communion with you through word and prayer. Thank you that you desire other sheep to know you too. So help us to walk out the fundamentals of our Christian faith so that when all else fails, Lord, you will still be at the center of our lives. So, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.