Sheep, Shepherds, Gates, Wolves, Hired Hands, Thieves, Outlaws, Strangers, Fathers, and Sons John 10:1-21

Introduction Finishing up John Where are the parables? Metaphors and Imagery Timely and Timeless

John 10:6 Those who heard Jesus use this analogy didn’t understand what he was saying.

John 10:1-6 I assure you that whoever doesn’t enter into the sheep pen through the gate but climbs over the wall is a thief and an outlaw. The one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The guard at the gate opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. Whenever he has gathered all of his sheep, he goes before them and they follow him, because they know his voice. They won’t follow a stranger but will run away because they don’t know the stranger’s voice.” Those who heard Jesus use this analogy didn’t understand what he was saying.

John 10:7-10 So Jesus spoke again, “I assure you that I am the gate of the sheep. All who came before me were thieves and outlaws, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief enters only to steal, kill, and destroy. I came so that they could have life—indeed, so that they could live life to the fullest.

John 10:11-16 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. When the hired hand sees the wolf coming, he leaves the sheep and runs away. That’s because he isn’t the shepherd; the sheep aren’t really his. So the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them. He’s only a hired hand and the sheep don’t matter to him. I am the good shepherd. I know my own sheep and they know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. I give up my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that don’t belong to this sheep pen. I must lead them too. They will listen to my voice and there will be one flock, with one shepherd.

John 10:17-21 “This is why the Father loves me: I give up my life so that I can take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I give it up because I want to. I have the right to give it up, and I have the right to take it up again. I received this commandment from my Father.” There was another division among the Jews because of Jesus’ words. Many of them said, “He has a demon and has lost his mind. Why listen to him?” Others said, “These aren’t the words of someone who has a demon. Can a demon heal the eyes of people who are blind?”

Timeliness Roots in Hebrew Scriptures and theology Familiar, everyday, ordinary Answering questions about Jesus and his relationship to God A specific message with each part Pointed enough to almost get him arrested and stoned (later in chapter 10)

Timelessness The fluidity of language God-talk is always approximate What are the limits? What remains meaningful?

Shepherds, Sheep, Gates, and thieves (together) Limit: no longer a familiar, everyday image Meaningful: opens the door for us to consider new images

Shepherds Limit: strong gender connotation Meaningful: small flocks, dependence, intimate knowledge and affection

Sheep Limit: stupid and smelly Meaningful: we still get stuck in a herd (flock) mentality sometimes…

Gate Limit: sounds or seems exclusive Meaningful: self-sacrificial, for the sake of offering more/better life

Thieves, wolves, etc. Limit: need to be very careful in how we talk about people in terms of their race or religion Meaningful: still experience opposition, other voices, resistance to the kind of life that God offers through Jesus

Father and Son (together) Meaningful: incredibly universal, intimate, ordinary Limit: incredibly universal, intimate, ordinary (depends on our experience)

Father and Son (together) Limit: gendered, parent/child relationships work differently now Meaningful: still a strong sense of doing everything possible to help the child flourish

Communion Is there new meaning for you to find in the images Jesus used? Do these images provoke new ways of thinking of, talking about, or actually experiencing God in everyday life?