‘Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go 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. ‘I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.’ Again the Jews were divided because of these words. Many of them were saying, ‘He has a demon and is out of his mind. Why listen to him?’ Others were saying, ‘These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’
Reflection What an interesting text!
Jesus is the Good Shepherd – who calls his sheep by name, leads them out, and loves them enough to lay down his life for them.
But Jesus is also the Gate – the means by which the sheep go in and out. Without the gate, they would be stuck – either within the sheepfold, with its limited pasture, and no way to experience anything beyond the restrictive fence; or stuck on the outside – unable to know the security of ‘home’ within the protective fence.
Two other aspects of the text catch my eye: In verse 16, Jesus says, ‘I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.’ Who are these ‘other sheep’? And if ‘they don’t belong to this fold’, to where do they belong?
Questions: To the church which seems homogenous – could this refer to people of different cultures and ethnicities? To the church which holds conservative convictions – could it refer to people with different understandings of human sexuality, or gender, or gender roles? To Christians generally – could this refer to people of different faith traditions – and maybe even people of no faith affiliation? Could it be that Jesus – the Good Shepherd – claims all of these as his own, and can create space for all to enter the gate?
That brings me to my second observation: Verse 3 speaks of ‘the gatekeeper’ who ‘opens the gate’ for the shepherd. I wonder, who is this ‘gatekeeper’? Who appointed them? And how often do we presume to be gatekeepers over matters of life and faith – deciding who is in and who is out, who is acceptable and who is not – when Jesus came ‘that they may have life, and have it abundantly’ (v10). Do we inadvertently hold the gate shut, making Jesus inaccessible to some of those that Jesus would claim as his own?
Jesus is the Good Shepherd – but who knows the full extent of Jesus’ flock? Not me. And I doubt that anyone does.
Prayer Jesus, let me rejoice in knowing I am a part of your sheepfold. Let me rejoice in knowing I am loved and beloved. Let me rejoice in the abundant life you offer. And may I never be the reason that anyone else is denied the same.
Today’s writer
Karen Campbell, Secretary for Global & Intercultural Ministries
