NOTES for Joh 10:1-21

Jesus usually did not speak directly about His messiahship. But He hinted at it often. His words about Himself as the good shepherd are also a hint. In those days there were many claimants to the role of Messiah. As early as the time of the Maccabees, roughly a century and a half before the Savior's coming, a new wave of messianism begins. Political messianism. The Messiah is awaited as a liberator, first from the power of a secular dynasty, and then from the power of the Romans. He is awaited as a great earthly King.

And traditional Jewish ideas about the Messiah did not require at all that one had to be born the Messiah. One could become the Messiah in the same way that those whom God calls to prophetic ministry become prophets. That is why false messiahs appeared in the same way as false prophets. Everything ended, at best, in nothing, and at worst, in tragedy. The Roman authorities did not encourage political messianism at all, and they suppressed any mass movement quickly and mercilessly. It often happened that the newly appeared "messiah" disappeared while the reprisals fell on the ordinary participants in the movement. Yet this did not stop zealots and adventurers of messianism. It is no accident that Jesus calls them "thieves and robbers": they certainly were not true shepherds of their flock.

And that is no surprise, since these people did not consider these flocks their own. The issue is not only that they were impostors. The issue is also the very character of political messianism. It lies in the idea of the Kingdom, which to the supporters of such messianism appeared to be a purely political reality, and therefore an entirely earthly one. Such an earthly kingdom could not be built without victims. The inevitable war and the following upheavals, political and social, were impossible without victims. Of course, everything was justified by the greatness of the goal. But that did not make things easier for those who died.

Only Jesus brought into the world a Kingdom that did not have to be established by force. A Kingdom for which one did not have to wage war against the authorities of this world. It also required a sacrifice, but the Savior Himself became that sacrifice. Therefore He had the right to speak of Himself as the true shepherd of His flock, for He became the door into the Kingdom for everyone who seeks it and did not destroy any one of them.

Today Jesus tells us that He is the shepherd and the door for His sheep. The image of the shepherd is clear and familiar. But why does Jesus connect two things that seem different: "I am the door of the sheep" and "all who came before Me are thieves and robbers"? What do thieves and robbers have to do with a door?

Apparently, a direct connection after all. "All who came" before Jesus are people who claimed the role of leaders of the people. Like leaders generally do, they promised to lead the people to a "bright future." The people of Israel still remembered that the only bright future can be in the Kingdom of God. But Jesus says that the only door into this Kingdom is He Himself. It is impossible to enter it by another way, through a back door. That is why all who promise to bring people into the Kingdom while bypassing Jesus are thieves and robbers, for they are trying to steal the Lord's sheep by luring them with promises they know are false.

Christ often “calls” Himself some inanimate object. At one time He is a stone, at another bread, then water; today He is a door. Each time He compares Himself with an object with which we deal almost constantly. Living without regular “contact” with a door is quite difficult nowadays: anyone who enters a building through an opening not intended for the purpose is a thief and a robber. Our Lord Jesus Christ is precisely the door through which we can enter the house of our heavenly Father. The way to God passes only through Him: “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me,” the Lord will say a little later (John 14:6).

One can try to climb through windows or a chimney, or dig a tunnel—but why? Perhaps one can take roundabout ways to God, chase after some “special grace,” try to make oneself out to be something, and pretend that we ourselves can do at least something for our own salvation—but why? Why, when the way is straight? “Make His paths straight” (Matt. 3:3).

Straight does not mean easy. Everything will not instantly become better as if by the wave of a magic wand. But the essential thing is that the Lord “calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out” (John 10:3). He will lead us, blind sheep, “by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them” (Isa. 42:16).

Today the evangelist passes on to us Christ's words, exceptional and most important for our life. These are the words that He is the Good Shepherd and the Door of the sheep.

Here it is useful to remember that in ancient Palestine sheep were not pastured the way cows were pastured in Russia. We imagine a shepherd as a scruffy little peasant walking behind the herd and driving the animals on with a heavy whip. Barking dogs biting at the heels of those trying to dodge them complete the unattractive picture. Alas, instinctively we understand Christ's words that He is the Shepherd in the way more familiar to our culture. A shepherd of sheep in the East, on the contrary, walks ahead of his flock, choosing the road among rocks and cliffs. Often he has to stop in a narrow place and let the sheep pass one by one, because for them there is no other road than the place where the shepherd stands.

This is exactly what the Good Shepherd is for us, the One who leads us to life. We follow Him, and on the narrow way it is possible for us to get through only by pressing close to Him, by cleaving to God, as the Bible says. Therefore the shepherding of Christ is a great gift for us. And in order to receive any gift of God, it is necessary to ask for it and thirst for it, to use it and thank Him for it. So too, in order for the Lord to be our Shepherd, we must desire this with all our strength, listen to His voice, and give thanks that He shepherds us.

Since antiquity the Israelis were engaged in animal husbandry, raising in particular sheep in the first place. That's probably why it is so much spoken about shepherds and sheep in the Bible, and God often uses the realities of the pastoral way of life as images indicating the relation between Him and people. Jesus acts the same way in His sermon. These images are maybe not so clear to us today, as they were to people, who listened to Jesus 20 centuries ago: most of us know sheep only because they give wool and meat, and generally - white, downy and harmless. Thereafter, the fact that the shepherd takes care of them seems something not special for us: firstly, they are so nice, and secondly, he needs them indeed for his own purpose!

It is not actually like that. People knowing the reality will say that sheep are dirty, stupid and nasty animals, and to love them is natural in no way. And the attempt to explain that the good shepherd takes care of the sheep by interest, looking forward to the future dividends (the wool and the meat), comes to nothing with his self-sacrifice: if he gives his life for the sheep, then he already can receive nothing from them! Thus, there is here another motivation for the shepherd – unselfish love towards the sheep and the fulfillment of the will of the owner of the sheep. So this image used by Jesus adds certain new paints, allowing to see the relation of Christ towards us and His service to us in a new light.

As before, Jesus uses symbolic words from everyday life familiar to people in order to express who He is and why He has come. This time He calls Himself the shepherd, ready to protect and preserve the flock even at the cost of His own life.

Like other images, this little parable cannot prove anything to anyone. Although the Lord says that the sheep know the shepherd by his voice, most of them prefer not to remember or accept this. This image can only help a person who already trusts Jesus to understand Him better, to become convinced of the truth of His words, and to hear once again from the pages of the Gospel how a familiar voice calls him by name - for in this flock each sheep is unique and is worth the shepherd's life. The one who by faith knows why and for whom the Lord died and rose again can now realize how immeasurably close and dear he is to the Good Shepherd, who lays down His life for the sheep.

From ancient times the Israelites were engaged in animal husbandry, raising sheep above all. That is why the Bible says so much about shepherds and sheep, and more than once God uses the realities of shepherd life as images pointing to the relationship between Him and people. Jesus does the same in His preaching. For us now, these images are not as clear as they were to the people who listened to Jesus twenty centuries ago. Most of us know only that sheep give wool and meat, and that in general they are white, fluffy, and harmless. Accordingly, the shepherd's care for them does not strike us as anything special: first, they are so sweet, and second, he needs them.

In fact, everything is not quite like that. People who know the reality say that sheep are dirty, stupid, and vicious animals, and that loving them is not natural at all. And any attempt to explain the good shepherd's care for the sheep by self-interest, by the expectation of future dividends in wool and meat, breaks down against his self-sacrifice: if he gives his life for the sheep, he will receive nothing from them anymore. So here there is some other motivation for the shepherd: selfless love for the sheep and fulfillment of the will of the owner of the sheep. Then this image used by Jesus adds new colors that allow us to see Christ's attitude toward us and His service to us in a new light.

As we can see, many of the Pharisees were still ready to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah. They correctly understood His hints about His messiahship, and now they wanted only one thing from Him: that He finally declare Himself openly to be the Messiah. But He does not do this, because He knows perfectly well what "being the Messiah" means for these people, and He was not going to become that kind of Messiah - His plans did not include raising a rebellion, beginning a holy war against the Romans, or becoming the ruler of an earthly state.

Instead, He again and again explains to those around Him what the Kingdom He brought into the world is. And He speaks of the main thing that forms the basis of the Kingdom's life by His own example: to live in the Kingdom means to give one's life to God in order then to receive it back from His hands. And the Savior's own path, His death and Resurrection, is a remarkable example of this.

According to the laws of our untransformed world, even the Messiah, bearing in Himself the fullness of God and the fullness of the Kingdom, can die - although, unlike us, death is not a natural inevitability for Him. And when He is killed, He dies like any human being. But His life belongs to the Father; He lives not by His own life, but by the Father's life, which was given to Him by the Father in all its fullness. And in the Kingdom, where there is no place for death, He receives it again from the Father in all its fullness - completely unexpectedly for His enemies, who thought that now, once He had died, everything was over.

And the path of every Christian, every inhabitant of the Kingdom, resembles the path of the One who brought the Kingdom into the world. Of course, God has not given any of us, as He gave Him, the capacity to contain the life of the Kingdom in all its fullness. But the Kingdom is open to us, and one can enter it only by giving up the life that God gave us at birth, so that there in the Kingdom He may return it to us transformed. This new life will no longer be part of our world - a world being transformed but not yet transformed - but part of the Kingdom; it will become the first step on the path of our transformation, the first step on the path to salvation.

Unlike learned theological treatises, unlike dogmatic definitions directed against various errors, Holy Scripture speaks of the mysteries of God with extreme restraint and reverence. Much is passed over in reverent silence; much is indicated only by a brief hint or a parable. Christ's words in today's reading are a rare moment when the evangelist sparingly transmits the words of the Son of God Himself concerning things that cannot be spoken.

The Lord says: "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it up again." Listening closely to these words, one should remember the limitation of human language, and yet it is important to try to grasp what the Lord is saying and, above all, why He says it. For since the Spirit of God inspired the evangelist to remember and write down these words, it means He wanted us to hear and understand them.

The Lord explains the love of the Heavenly Father (although from our point of view it is completely beyond explanation) by the fact that the Son lays down His life. And here two important things must be noted. The love of which Jesus speaks is not simply a relationship between Persons, just as the laying down of life is not simply a heroic act. Both speak of the very nature of the unchanging God, and therefore in his epistle the evangelist John writes of Him that He is Love. In addition, according to the principles of biblical language, we see that the Lord places the Father's love for Him alongside His laying down of His life. In essence, this is one and the same nature, manifested differently by the Father and the Son. Since the life of the Son of God is given for us, these words are a priceless hope for us.

And one more thing: in order for us to experience, feel, and as far as possible appreciate this love of God, it is necessary to hear Christ's words that He gives us His life in perfect freedom, without compulsion from external circumstances. Only because we are dear to Him.

We humans sometimes love to simplify very much. We need to know clearly whether something is black or white. We do not recognize third options. We want plain truth, without any of those omissions and hints. And for the most part we apply this approach to others. We need to understand everything about them and put it all neatly on the shelves. But what is going on in our own soul at the same time is "a great mystery." How can our rich and many-sided inner world be described in two words and clear categories?..

The Jews can no longer tolerate the fact that Jesus actually pities them, understanding that His Word has no room in them (see John 8:37). The Lord gives us as much as we are able to understand. But it keeps seeming to us that He is being obscure, that there is some mystery around us carefully hidden from us. So the Jews demand a simple answer from Christ: yes or no. And the fact that He speaks to them only about this and manifests it by all His works is not enough for them, that is, for us (see John 10:25).

But what will change if Christ gives the answer expected of Him? As if those waiting are ready, depending on the answer, to formulate their position clearly - whether they believe in Christ or not. Unfortunately, they are not ready at all. We carry our freedom and finely organized soul around like a prized possession, while being unable to give an account of our hope (see 1 Pet. 3:15). And meanwhile, before God and for God there are no half-tones: "Let your word be: yes, yes; no, no" (Matt. 5:37).

What does Jesus mean when He speaks of those who came before Him? If we consider the purely historical aspect, the answer is more or less clear: obviously He is speaking of the numerous claimants to messiahship who appeared in Judea then almost every day — appeared in order, in Jesus’ words, “to steal, kill, and destroy.” For all of them ended their preaching with a call to uprising, to a messianic war, a call that was almost always heard, and the consequences were not slow in coming: the Roman army suppressed all such movements harshly and mercilessly. Jesus, however, speaks of Himself as the Shepherd who cares for the sheep and does not want to destroy them needlessly, for He brought into the world the Kingdom, for the establishment of which no uprising is needed.

But this is only one side of the question. For when Jesus speaks of false shepherds, He is also addressing the Pharisees; it is they whom He calls blind, and He tells them that if they acknowledged their blindness, they would not bear sin upon themselves. Yet the Pharisees as a whole, unlike the Zealots, for example, were by no means supporters of holy war, though, of course, they awaited the Messiah no less. Of what, then, does Jesus accuse them? They certainly could not be accused of neglecting pastoral care: in this respect the Pharisaic teachers and rabbis were very zealous. But toward what was their zeal directed? First of all, and unsurprisingly, toward the religious education of their flock.

But religion in itself does not yet guarantee a full spiritual life. It can be either a help or an obstacle on the way into the Kingdom; if one makes it an end in itself, the consequences for spiritual life can be very sad. And the Pharisees were always inclined toward such absolutizing, although, of course, as always in such cases, much depended on concrete people. Unfortunately, however, there were many such mentors who were ready to sacrifice a person for the sake of religious norms and rules, and Jesus’ words applied to them in full measure.

Of course, many of those who were supposed to lead people along the spiritual path were objectively not ready for it. In that case a simple acknowledgment of their unreadiness would have been enough to remove responsibility from themselves: after all, no one would expect guidance from someone who had admitted this. But, as usual, very few were ready for such an acknowledgment. Who wants to sign his own pastoral incompetence?

And then the shepherds turned into those very false shepherds of whom Jesus spoke. And they bore sin upon themselves: for falsehood is always sin, and false shepherding is a double sin. Here the matter concerns the way of righteousness and the way into the Kingdom, and therefore salvation — something with which one must not play.