7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to Him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
In the opening verses of John 10, which we looked at last week, Jesus spoke of the true Shepherd who comes to the door, gains entry, and calls His own sheep by name. It’s a picture we are familiar with, as Jesus is often described as the shepherd of His sheep in Scripture, yet we’re told in verse 6 that the Pharisees “did not understand what He was saying to them.”
Jesus then continues to teach them with the third and fourth of His “I am” claims in John’s Gospel - I am the Door, and I am the Good Shepherd.
This is a reminder to us that all Christian truth finds its ultimate meaning in the person and work of Jesus Christ.
There were actually two kinds of sheepfolds in ancient Palestine. Last Sunday we looked at the common sheepfold, usually found in the towns where many shepherds would bring their sheep each night, but as Jesus continues with the same theme, He refers to the more rustic sheepfolds found in the rural areas, where only one shepherd would put his sheep in at night, while he would lay across the entrance to protect them.
This helps us to better understand what Jesus meant when He said, “I am the door.” The large, common sheepfold in the town symbolised Judaism, from which Jesus drew out His sheep, but now the smaller, individual fold is a picture of His own flock - His Church. The way in is through Him, as He offered Himself for our sins on the cross. Jesus is the door of the sheepfold, and those who enter are safe for eternity.
This is the third of seven “I am” statements that Jesus makes in the Gospel of John. We have previously looked at His claim to be the Bread of Life in chapter 6, and the Light of the World in chapter 8. Today in chapter 10 He says He is the Door and the Good Shepherd, and later on in John’s Gospel, Jesus says He is the resurrection and the life, the way, and the truth and the life, and the true vine.
When we consider all seven of these great I AM sayings collectively, we begin to see what is at the heart of the Christian faith. With each of the seven “I ams,” Jesus’ meaning is clear, and in chapter 10 He teaches that the entrance to salvation is only through faith in Him.
There was only one entrance into the sheepfold, and faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to enter God’s salvation.
It’s important that we are clear on this, because many people, even some who call themselves Christians, deny that Jesus is the only way of salvation. I cringe when I see so-called Christian leaders sharing platforms with leaders of other faith systems., including some ministers in our denomination. What are these people thinking? This is in direct violation of Paul’s teaching in 2 Corinthians 6:14-16. “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols?”
The Bible teacher Josh Buice said, “It would do us well to refuse to be ashamed of what God says in His Word.” The Christian faith, by its very definition, is offensive to the modern, relative age we live in, and we have no right to redefine the teachings of Jesus in order to be more acceptable and less offensive to non-believers. He is the door to salvation, and there is no other. There are some “Christians” who claim that it doesn’t matter what you believe, just so long as you’re sincere in order to be saved.
That might sound all nice and all-inclusive, but this kind of teaching stands directly opposed to what Jesus says in John 10:7. “I am the door of the sheep.” He is not one of many doors, but the one and only door to salvation, and this is something He emphasises throughout John’s Gospel. He said in 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” He could not make it any clearer. If God’s wrath remains on those who reject Jesus, then faith in Jesus is the only way to escape God’s just condemnation.
There is a much deeper problem with those who object that God has provided only one way of salvation. What the unbeliever’s true objection to Jesus as the only means of salvation is, is really an objection to God’s verdict on sin. Unbelievers refuse to confess their guilt, because they don’t see their sin for what it really is - cosmic treason against a holy God. They demand another way - any other way in fact, that can bring them salvation that is to their glory instead of God’s. It’s been said many times that all roads lead to God. You might not have thought of it this way before, but that saying is absolutely true. All roads do lead to God, but the only road that leads to forgiveness and grace is Jesus Christ. All other roads lead to the wrath of God.
This is why we are eternally grateful to God for His plan of salvation in Christ. Maybe, instead of insisting that He forgive us on our terms, we should learn to swallow our foolish pride and fall on our faces before Him, thanking Him that He has provided salvation in the first place!
And it all comes to us through faith, not through works, as Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8-9. “By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Remember the conversation between Jesus and the man He healed of blindness at the end of chapter 9. “‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ He answered, ‘And who is He, sir, that I may believe in Him?’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have seen Him, and it is He who is speaking to you.’ He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshipped Him.” (John 9:35-38)
We have referred to John 20:31 many times as we have been working our way through John. “These are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.”
Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone. It does not come through our own achievements. Jesus is the door, and those who enter by simple faith are immediately received into everlasting life.
So if Jesus is the door, who are the people who may enter through faith in Him? He gives us the simple answer in verse 9: Anyone. There is only one way of salvation, but that one way is open to absolutely everyone.
We need to pause here and look at verse 9 in more detail. “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” There are some who say that Jesus’ words here contradict the Biblical doctrine of election, or predestination. In John 6:37, He said, “All that the Father gives me will come to me.” This means that all who believe come to Christ because they were chosen by the Father and were given to His Son for salvation. Jesus reaffirms this later on in John 10:29 where He speaks the eternal security of His sheep. “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.” Paul writes in Ephesians 1 that believers are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.
So if this is all true (and it is), what does Jesus mean in John 10:9 by saying that anyone can enter through faith in Himself? The answer is that the Gospel is genuinely and freely offered to all. We looked at just the first half of John 6:37 a minute ago. The verse in its entirety says, “All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” There’s the eternal security once more, so again, does John 10:9 contradict the doctrine of predestination?
No, because these two teachings present the Gospel from two different perspectives - one from the side of God’s sovereignty, and the other from the side of mankind’s opportunity. The point is, that instead of losing sleep by worrying about where you fit in God’s eternal plan, and “How can I know if I am one of the elect?”, simply respond in faith to the invitation that God graciously made to you. “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved.” Do that, and you will be one of the elect. You will be one of His sheep, and you will never be cast out.
The “anyone” Jesus speaks about means exactly what it says. Confess your sin. Admit your guilt before a holy God. Enter into salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, and you will be safe for all eternity.
When the sheep went into the sheepfold and the shepherd lay across the doorway, they were protected from intruders. Those who enter in by Christ not only will be saved but also will be safe. This is what Jesus means by saying the sheep “will go in and out,” because now they will constantly live under the protection of the Good Shepherd.
The reformer John Calvin wrote in his commentary, “The only reason for security is that our salvation is in God’s hand. Our own faith is unfirm and we ourselves tend greatly to waver. But God who has taken our salvation into His hands is mighty enough to scatter all the weapons of our foes with one puff of His breath. The most important thing we can do is to turn our eyes to this power of God, if we are not to be overcome by the fear of temptations. For Christ wanted to show us how the sheep are enjoying peace and quiet even while they wander among wolves.”
Sheep have no means of self protection against predators. They are among the most defenceless and vulnerable of animals, which is a good analogy of our spiritual vulnerability in a world of sin and evil. The good news is that those who belong to Christ are not left defenceless against spiritual attacks and the condemnation of sin, but are instead safe and secure in Him, as Jesus continues in the second half of verse 10. “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
Context is important. Jesus said this during an argument with the Pharisees. In the previous chapter He healed the blind man, but the Pharisees did the worst thing they could do to a Jewish man. They threw him out from the synagogue. So everything that Jesus says about Himself in John 10 stands in direct contrast to the attitude of the false religious leaders. The first half of John 10:10 is a direct accusation to the Pharisees. “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.”
Those like the Pharisees who preach a way of salvation based on good works, religious rituals, or by paying money - in fact, any way other than faith in Jesus Christ alone, are like wolves among the sheep. They are thieves and robbers, as Jesus said in verse 1. “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.”
I mentioned last week that false teachers often take the Word of God and twist it to get it to say what they want it to say. John 10:10 is a favourite verse of the prosperity preachers. “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” Notice that Jesus says an abundant life, not an abundance of things. He said in the parable of the rich fool in Luke 12:15, “One’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”
Jesus then continues with the 4th of His “I am” statements in verse 11. “I am the Good Shepherd.” Again, He said this to the Pharisees. They were the false shepherds of Israel, and He makes a cutting remark to them in verses 12 and 13. “He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”
For all their bluster and pomp and ceremony, the Pharisees had no regard for the people God had put under their care. To them it was all about prestige and their desire to build themselves up instead.
Jesus, on the other hand, proves He is the Good Shepherd, and He did that by laying down His life for His sheep. Literally. He willingly gave His life for those who put their faith in Him, and as He gave His life, He has protected His sheep from eternal damnation.
When He said in verse 11 that He lays down His life for the sheep, He was pointing to His sacrificial death on the cross. He was talking about the doctrine of the atonement.
It is impossible for the Church to over-emphasise the importance of the centrality of the cross. The one thing above all others that makes Jesus the Good Shepherd is that He laid down His life for His sheep. This is why as the Church, our task is to point people to the cross. The foundational doctrine of the Christian faith, the one doctrine which stands above all others, is the doctrine of atonement - the sacrificial death of the Son of God for those who believe in Him.
Take away the cross, and Christianity is nothing. The distinctive and central feature of the Christian faith is its teaching of the cross of Christ, and we see this emphasised throughout the Bible. The Old Testament points forwards to the cross, and the New Testament points backwards to the cross.
The apostle Paul probably said it best in 1 Corinthians 1:18-24. “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.’ Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”
Any teaching which downplays the severity of the problem of sin and Jesus’ death on the cross to remedy that problem is not Biblical Christianity. It is not what Jesus and the apostles taught. Paul again, in 1 Corinthians 2:2 says, “I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”
It’s also important to note that Jesus voluntarily laid down His life for His sheep. In verse 18 He says, “No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.” The authority to take it up again is proven by the resurrection. All of Jesus’ claims to be who He said He was are validated and proven by His resurrection from the dead.
We also need to understand that the cross was no accident. It was not plan B once Adam and Eve fell into sin. Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross was planned in advance from eternity past in accordance to God’s will. Jesus continues in verse 18 by saying, “This charge I have received from my Father.”
Not only did God know that Jesus was going to die, but He planned and permitted it to happen, and it was all to the glory of Jesus. Isaiah 53 contains the most vivid Old Testament prophecy of the cross - reading from verse 4 to 9: “Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned - every one - to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, and there was no deceit in His mouth.”
That describes what happened at Calvary, but look at the next 2 verses of Isaiah 53: “Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush Him; He has put Him to grief; when His soul makes an offering for guilt, He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. Out of the anguish of His soul He shall see and be satisfied; by His knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and He shall bear their iniquities.” (Isaiah 53:10-11)
“It was the will of the Lord to crush Him; He has put Him to grief.” Other translations say, “The Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief.” The cross was never plan B. It is the only way we could be forgiven for our sin.
John Calvin again: “In Christ we find the road by which we are led to the gate of salvation. Our sins overwhelm us; but they are transferred to Christ, in whom we are acquitted. When we were perishing, separated from God and hastening to hell, Christ took upon Himself the filth of our iniquities and rescued us from eternal destruction.”
In his powerful sermon preached on the Day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter said, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised Him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held by it.” (Acts 2:23-24)
God’s glorious plan of salvation, by which Jesus would die for our sins and be raised in glory, was all according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.
And yet, as we see in the final 3 verses we are looking at in John’s Gospel today, mankind remains tragically divided over just who Jesus is and what He has done.
“There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. Many of them said, ‘He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to Him?’ Others said, ‘These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?’” (John 10:19-21)
To the unbelieving world, Jesus’ teaching about sacrificial love - the Good Shepherd who willingly lays down His life - is nothing short of foolishness. They said He was demon possessed and insane. Others though, were drawn to Him, they understood who He was and put their faith in Him.
When all is said and done, all of humanity will be divided into just two categories: Those who love Christ, and those who hate Christ. Nothing else will matter. In eternity their are only two kinds of people: The saved, and the lost, and the dividing line between these two groups is Jesus Christ.
This is why it is impossible for us to over emphasis the Cross of Calvary, and this is why we dare not water down the severity of human sin. Eternity depends on the Church rightfully and faithfully proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. Enter into salvation through the Door who is Christ and come under the eternal protection and provision of the Good Shepherd. Turn to Christ and be saved, or you will face the wrath of God for all of eternity. It is that simple, and it is that profound. As Paul wrote to the Corinthian Church, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” (2 Corinthians 5:20)
Homegroup Study Notes
Read John 10:7-21
Last week we looked at the image of ancient sheepfolds in the towns, from where Jesus calls His sheep out of Judaism.
How does the smaller sheepfold He speaks about in verse 9 represent His Church?
By proclaiming Himself as the Door to salvation, Jesus yet again makes it clear that He is the only way sinners can be saved.
How do we faithfully proclaim the Gospel message in our “all-inclusive” world?
What about faithful members of other religions?
Are they saved or not?
When John the Baptist introduced Jesus, he called Him “The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world,” while in John 10:14 Jesus calls Himself the Good Shepherd.
What is the significance of Jesus being both the Lamb of God and the Good Shepherd?
Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-24
Why is the doctrine of atonement and the centrality of the cross crucial to the Christian message?