“The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:11
The common image of a biblical shepherd is an older man with a beard walking slowly through the countryside. He is wearing a flowing robe and carrying a long stick with a hook on the end.
If that’s how you think about a shepherd, then it’s time to change the image. Think about a cattle rancher and you’ll get a picture that is much closer to reality.
Jesus said, “The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (10:11). Now, why did He say that? Because in biblical times, the shepherd was their only defense against predators.
David met with Saul and volunteered to represent Israel in a showdown with the Philistine champion Goliath. But Saul thought the idea was ridiculous: “You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for you are but a youth” (1 Sam. 17:33).
Here’s what David said to Saul: “Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him” (1 Sam. 17:34-35).
That’s impressive. No guns. No tranquilizer darts. Face-to-face with a lion and a bear, armed only with a piece of wood. You can’t get a hired hand to do that: When the “hired hand… sees the wolf coming… [he] leaves the sheep and flees” (John 10:12).
The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He is more interested in the good of the sheep than in his own welfare. It isn’t easy to find shepherds like that! And those are the kind of shepherds we need in the church.
Have you known any “good shepherds” in ministry? Can you name one or two?
