Sheep, shepherds, and thieves
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold 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 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.” This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
So Jesus again said to them, “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. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
John 10:1–10
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the risen Lord Jesus Christ. Today is Good Shepherd Sunday but our gospel reading stops one verse short of that particular statement of Jesus. Instead, in John 10:1–10, Jesus identifies himself as something else as part of this illustration.
On Good Shepherd Sunday, we like to picture a lovely image of the sheep being gathered under Jesus, the Good Shepherd. We, as the church and as His sheep, we are unified in the fold of Christ. The Acts reading tells us about the first Christians sharing everything they owned and living in perfect unity and harmony.
What’s the general message we tend to take away from Good Shepherd Sunday? Jesus is the shepherd who loves us and cares for us. We are the sheep. Sheep are stupid at times and tend to wander off. Jesus leaves the ninety-nine and rescues us, bringing us together again.
In our reading from John 10 today, none of this is true. Jesus is not the shepherd in this case. The sheep are not stupid, but they can actually distinguish between voices. Nor is Jesus attempting to bring people into unity and harmony. Whenever Jesus tells a parable or teaches with illustrations, his aim is to divide and cause friction.
This parable is pitched at the Pharisees, who have been the great teachers and leaders of Israel. The Pharisees have always taught that to be in God’s sheepfold, we need to be better sheep. Jesus is here to change their entire worldview.
Sheep and shepherds, thieves and robbers, gates and gatekeepers. As with any of Jesus’ parables or illustrations, every aspect is supposed to represent a specific person or group. There are a few important aspects to the picture that Jesus is painting for the Pharisees:
There are both shepherds and thieves in the world. Jesus tells us how we distinguish them.
There is an intimate relationship between the shepherd and his sheep. This applies to our relationship with Jesus, but also with pastors, teachers, and leaders.
Jesus identifies himself as the gate, giving us passage in and out of the fold. As His sheep, we spend time in both places.
Shepherds and thieves
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold 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 out.
John 10:1–3
To understand the image that Jesus is using here, it is important to know a bit of context.
Farming sheep in those days in the Middle East was very different to how we do things today. One shepherd would care for only a small herd, maybe 30-40 sheep.
Every night, the sheep are herded into a small enclosure, maybe in a cave or a fenced-off space on a hillside. This was to protect the sheep from wolves and thieves, and also to keep them from wandering.
The final difference is perhaps the most significant. These days, we drive large herds of sheep from behind and push them towards where we want them to go. Because herds were so small, shepherds were able to lead the sheep with their voice. The sheep hear the familiar voice of their shepherd and they follow.
So, with all of that in mind, let’s see what Jesus has to say.
Thieves and robbers don’t use the gate to access the sheep, but climb in over the fence to stay hidden. Shepherds, however, enter by the gate. The gatekeeper, who is likely the owner of the sheep, opens the gate when he recognises the shepherd as authentic.
What does all of this mean? True shepherds and mere thieves are distinguished by how they approach the sheep. Because the shepherd is recognisable and trustworthy, he is able to be open, vulnerable, and honest. He has no need to hide himself or put on a fake persona.
Remember that Jesus is addressing the Pharisees. As the teachers of Israel, they had always been understood to be the shepherds, teaching and guiding the sheep. However, they did not lead the sheep with a familiar voice, nor did they enter the sheepfold through the gate.
The Pharisees are the thieves. Their intention was to keep the sheep inside the boundaries of God’s Law (and their own interpretations of it) and maintain control over the herd. They did not access the herd by the gate—they did not recognise Jesus as the Messiah. Instead, they found ways around the gate and stayed hidden from plain sight. They used God’s Law and their teachings to manipulate and deceive. Jesus says that the thief comes in only to steal, kill, and destroy.
We, as God’s sheep, no longer deal with the Pharisees, but we certainly deal with thieves. There are people who seek to gain control over God’s flock by teaching their own interpretations rather than seeking to proclaim truth.
Remember: we distinguish shepherds and thieves by how they approach the sheep. Thieves are people who climb over the fence by saying things in private that they are not willing to say in public. Thieves seek to have an influence in the community without being seen in the light. They avoid the gate, the proper entryway that is watched and guarded, because their hearts are not in step with God’s.
We sheep are more intelligent than we give ourselves credit for. Jesus says that the sheep don’t follow a stranger’s voice. We know a foreign voice when we hear it. When we sense that what someone says to us is not of God, we should listen to that sense and steer away from those things. Seek the shepherd’s voice.
The shepherd-to-sheep relationship
Because sheep herds were so much smaller back then, shepherds had quite an intimate relationship with their sheep. The sheep know their shepherd and they follow his voice. The shepherd also knows his sheep.
We know that Jesus is our Good Shepherd and we are to follow Him, but that is not the point Jesus is getting across in this passage. We are still talking about true and false shepherds. We are talking about pastors, teachers, and leaders.
The word ‘pastor’ literally means ‘shepherd,’ so that connection is quite obvious. However, there is more shepherding going on than through the one person.
There are many voices within church communities. There are those in elected positions, those authorised to teach children and young people, those who lead Bible study groups, those who visit the sick and elderly. Some of these voices have been given authority and some speak because they are mature Christians who feel called to do so. Either way, it is clear that there is more than one shepherd among us.
Whoever the shepherds are in your particular community, how can you be sure that they are shepherds and not thieves?
Shepherds are genuine in character. Unlike the thieves who try to get into the fold another way, the shepherd enters through the gate. Shepherds are comfortable being seen because they have nothing to hide.
Shepherds are also kept accountable. In the image, they are accountable to the gatekeeper. If the gatekeeper is unsure about the shepherd in any way, he will not open the gate. In our churches, shepherds are accountable to right authority: church governance and leadership, legal requirements, and the church members themselves. If what the shepherd is teaching, doing, or saying is off, he can be removed from office by church authorities, legal authorities, or even their own members.
Accountability is an absolute key for building trust. This is easy to apply to those in official positions, particularly when there are job descriptions and agreements to adhere to. It is clear when the shepherd is veering towards becoming a thief.
This is more difficult when the shepherds are simply faithful Christians who offer their time and skills for the church. Trust relies only on the sheep’s sense of character, rather than objective things.
Whoever the shepherds are in a given community—pastors, teachers, or leaders—they must have a loving, trusting relationship with the sheep. Without that, there is no reason for the sheep to listen.
Through the gate
Jesus is not the shepherd in this illustration until verse 11, a verse after we stopped our passage today. Jesus is the gate. Jesus is the only way in and out of the sheepfold.
This is true for pastors. They only have authority to preach and teach because they are given it by Christ himself through the church. With the proper training and authorisation from the church, they are allowed to proclaim Christ to people publicly. Shepherds can only enter the sheepfold through Jesus. You should question the authority of a person who calls themselves “pastor” but belongs to no church body whatsoever and has no formal training behind them. They may well have jumped the fence rather than entered by the gate.
The shepherds are not the only ones who pass through the gate. The sheep do as well.
We sheep spend time within the sheepfold, within the safety and security of the fence, when we come together to listen to our Good Shepherd’s voice. Within the bounds of a worship service, we are safe from wolves, thieves, and our own wandering. We are safe in the presence of God and guarded by His Spirit from anything that would attack us.
Within that safe place in worship, we learn, grow, and are fed. In our different traditions, we take ‘being fed’ to mean slightly different things. We all agree that we are fed the bread of life when we hear and process the Word of God. We Lutherans also believe we are literally fed with Christ’s own body and blood, which is a gift of His grace to us. We quite like using the word ‘fed’ when it comes to worship.
But remember that Jesus is the gate, not the fence. The sheep do not stay within the sheepfold forever. When the shepherd calls us out, we also venture outside the safety of the fold. Sunday is only one day in the week.
What do we find when we leave the fold? Psalm 23 tells us: green pastures, still waters, but also dark valleys and enemies. But Jesus, who is the Good Shepherd, is never far away from us. We trust Him because we know that He is committed to His sheep, even to the point of laying His life down for them.
Jesus is the only way to the Father because of the sacrifice He made.
Through Christ, we have access to our heavenly Father.
Through Christ, we come to God with complete confidence that He hears our prayers.
Through Christ, we are reconciled to God and have a loving relationship with our Creator.
So Jesus again said to them, “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. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
John 10:7–10
We thank our Good Shepherd for giving us this new life of abundance. We thank Him for providing faithful shepherds to teach us and feed us. We thank Him for becoming the gate through which we have freedom to both enter His presence and go out to the world.
We thank our God for giving us His peace, which is far beyond our understanding. May it keep our hearts safe in Christ Jesus, the Good Shepherd. Amen.
