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Christ is risen, he is risen indeed. Hallelujah. And dear saints, I promise you that with a good shepherd like our Lord Jesus, we need fear nothing at all. But rejoice in his care and his provision in this life, which brings us at last to the life to come. And that’s what we want to talk about this morning, especially this almost unbelievably marvelous promise that our Lord Jesus preaches to us in John chapter 10, that he’s the good shepherd, and that means that he lays down his life for the sheep. If you can believe it, you have to. It’s written right here in the Lord’s own words. We’ll think about that.
But on the way there, I want to pick up at least an idea from the end of the epistle lesson. It’s where Peter himself is talking about how we consider ourselves dead to sin and alive to righteousness. And this goes back to a debate. In fact, one of the defining debates that defines our Lutheran doctrine over and against other confessions and churches. It was probably during the Middle Ages that, well, it has to do with the question is, how should we conceive of our sinfulness? And the overarching picture, at least that was preached in the Middle Ages, was that we should consider ourselves sick with sin. That sin is a deep sickness that is corrupting and corroding us and tearing us apart. But it’s a sickness that needs to be healed.
And let’s just put that in contrast with the preaching of the Reformation, which was that that’s not far enough. It’s not that sin is a sickness, but in fact, sin is death. And the result of those two different pictures of how we think of our sin results in two different pictures of how we think of the solution. If my problem is that I’m sick, then the solution is that, well, I need a doctor who can prescribe medicine that can help me heal and give me therapeutic relief. So the whole system of medieval piety is about healing the sickness of sin, but we’re cooperating with that. You have to take the medicine. You have to go and do the therapy. You have to participate in your own healing.
The Reformation said that’s not enough. It’s not enough to consider ourselves sick with sin. We have to consider ourselves dead in our transgressions and sins. And we didn’t make that up. St. Paul said it in Ephesians chapter 2. We’re dead in our trespasses and sins. If you’re dead, it’s a very different problem than if you’re sick. I mean, the people who are sick need a doctor, but, you know, once you die, the doctors kind of give up. And so do you. I mean, you can’t do anything to heal your deadness. You need, so the picture coming out of the Reformation then is not that salvation is healing, but that salvation is resurrection. That we are raised from the dead. That the word of the gospel is the Lord’s word of life. That he speaks to those who are dead in trespasses and sins. And we are now made alive in Christ to live in newness of life.
And there’s no participation. There’s nothing that we do. We are just about as helpful in our own salvation as Lazarus was when he was laying in the tomb. And Jesus said, come forth. And he stood up and he came up out of the grave. Now that’s a totally different picture of what it means to be saved, to be healed versus to be raised, to be sick and made better, versus to be dead and made alive. And that picture is a biblical picture. This is why one of the reasons why the resurrection is so helpful to be preached to us, because the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is our hope.
And we participate in it, first, by our baptism, that spiritual resurrection, and then second, on the last day when we will actually be physically raised from the dead. So… When we are articulating our Lutheran understanding of conversion, of the will and salvation, of how the Lord takes us from being unbelieving to believing, we have this picture of resurrection. It’s more than sickness. But here is the point that I want to bring back to our minds. Our problem is more than sickness, but it’s not less. And while it’s true that we are more than sick and dead, but we’re dead and raised, we also are sick and healed.
That’s part of it. So that, and this is really what Peter is preaching about in so much of his epistle, that sin… hands us over to spiritual death, but also to sickness and corruption and to weakness and to illness so that all of us, our bodies get sick, our minds get sick, our hearts get sick, our conscience gets sick. It’s all affected by this corrosion and corruption, but now being raised from the dead, being given the gift of baptism, And especially being given the Holy Spirit, the Lord is healing us. Now we’ll be completely healed on the last day. No more sin, no more sickness, no more death, no more dying, no more temptation, no more devil.
But while we wait for the last day, the Lord is also making us new so that we have as Christians a different kind of life. And that’s what Peter is talking about. Listen to how he says it here. He himself bore our sins in His body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. You already are dead to sin and alive in Christ, and now our daily life is starting to take that same shape. By His wounds, you have been healed. So that we do not belong to that corruption that was brought into the world by Adam and Eve in the garden. That corruption of body, that corruption of mind, that corruption of heart.
And you have, in you, we have to remember this, each of us has in us, by the gift of baptism, the Holy Spirit. And that Holy Spirit is working in us To live in a new way, to think in a new way, to speak in a new way, to act in a new way, to confess Christ, to know that our sins are forgiven, to be risen from the dead, to bless and serve the neighbor, to not be afraid to die. All of this is part of this new life that is being worked in us. How about this? Paul says it like this, and this is Colossians 2 and Ephesians chapter 1, and he talks about this in Philippians and in Romans, that the power that raised Jesus from the dead, the Holy Spirit, that same power that took the body of Jesus dead in the tomb and raised it into new life, that power is at work in you, the Holy Spirit.
And this is helpful because life, well, I don’t want to speak for everybody, but probably for many of you, life is tough. there’s long days there’s a lot of stuff to do there’s difficulties there’s there’s trouble inside and out and sometimes we think how how can i keep going in this life but dear saints remember that you do not belong to the old corrupt ways you belong to god the holy spirit fills you he’s at work in you and we work here’s the phrase that paul uses in colossians we work with the energy of god We could just probably put that in our pocket and remember it a few times every week.
The energy of God is at work in us. That’s the confidence that we have. This is what Peter means. By his stripes, we have been healed. For you, we’re straying like sheep, but have returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. So we’ll turn our attention now to that. All through the Bible, we have this great promise that God is our good shepherd. I mean, we sang about it in Psalm 23. We heard about it in Ezekiel 34, where the Lord is just blasting after those evil, wicked shepherds, and then promising that he himself will shepherd his people. All through the Psalms, all through the prophets, we have this confidence that God will be our shepherd.
And then the Lord Jesus shows up and he says, I am that shepherd, which is a beautiful promise that Jesus is God. And he gives us, for example, this… almost unsurpassingly beautiful picture of the kingdom of heaven is like a shepherd who has a hundred sheep and one wanders off and the shepherd leaves the 99 in the wilderness and he goes and he searches for the lost one which is you raise your hand it’s you and he finds you and he puts you on his shoulder and he carries you home and he has a feast and you think how much better could it get What better, kinder, more beautiful, more generous word, picture, parable could the Lord Jesus paint for us?
Then he’s the good shepherd who comes and finds us in the wilderness and carries us home. And then Jesus says, if you think it can’t get better, I’m gonna outdo even that. And he comes to you this morning and says these words, I am the good shepherd, I lay down my life for the sheep. What? What kind of shepherd is that? I mean, can you think of a, like, I am the good rancher. I give up my life for the cows. I am the good vet. I lay down my life for the cat. Never was spoken.
Jesus says, look, this is my work. And he gives us a picture, if we want to think of it. He says, it’s not like the hired hand. The hired hand, you know, the guy that you pay the money to watch the sheep in the middle of the night. If the wolf comes and he sees the wolf there, he runs for it. But I am not that way. When the wolf comes, I stand there. I stand between the sheep and the wolf, and I let myself be devoured. This is, can you imagine the sheep sitting there? And you hear the growling wolf. Yes. creeping up out of the shadows and you know because you’re a sheep that you’re done for i mean wolf versus sheep is always for the wolf i mean you don’t have a chance you i mean you can’t outrun the wolf you can’t outsmart the wolf you can’t out trick the wolf you can’t you’re not climbing up a tree the wolf is not going to be intimidated by your super fluffy wool you’re just your breakfast if the wolf comes you’re done
in less One would interpose, and this is what Jesus says. He stands between you and everything that would kill you. He stands between you and the devil, and he takes all of the devil’s wrath. He stands between you and the world, and he takes all of the world’s mockery. He stands between you and the judgment seat of God and the holiness of God and takes all of the wrath of God in your place so that he gives up his life in exchange for you. He doesn’t run, he doesn’t shrink, he stands there. He doesn’t want to. He wants the results, but we know that he endured the cross, despising the shame.
We know that he prayed in the garden, Father, if it’s possible, let this cup pass from me. He did not enjoy it. It was suffering beyond what we could ever even ask or imagine. And yet, Jesus is willing to stand there and to endure the heat and the pain and the affliction and the darkness and the forsakenness and the wrath of God and the smiting and the mockery of the world and the devil’s devouring wolf teeth cracking his bones. He’s willing to endure all of this so that you and each and every one of you can be safe in his flock.
And then we think, okay, now that’s unbelievably good. I couldn’t even, if I sat for an eternity and tried to imagine anything better, I could never get there. It’s so good and it’s so beautiful. It must not be for me. Because look at me, a sinner. We know this. We know our own hearts. We know our own shame. We know the things that we’ve done wrong. We know the commandments that we’ve broken. We know all the good that the Lord laid out for us to do and we fail to do it. And we think, surely…
If the Lord Jesus is dying for the sheep, it must be for the other sheep. It must be for the better sheep or the nicer sheep or the less stinky sheep or something. But probably not me. But look at what Jesus says here. He says he flees, the hireling flees because he’s a hired hand and he doesn’t care for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. Listen, I know my own, my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. Amen.
and I lay down my life for the sheep.” In other words, Jesus is saying, look, I know your sin, I know your weakness, I know you’re failing, I know your shame, I know what you’ve done, I know what you’ve failed to do, I know all of it, and still I lay down my life for you. It’s not a mistake. His suffering for you is not a mistake, it’s not an accident. He knows just what he’s doing. He is saving you. He is forgiving you. He’s rescuing you. He’s bringing you from death to life, from darkness to light, from sorrow and shame, to joy and peace. He knows your name.
And he says, you know him. Jesus wants to be known by us Not only as the God who spoke in the universe leapt into existence, not only as the God who holds the depths of the earth in his hands and created all things, not only as the God who performs miracles and does great works, he wants to be known by you also, and maybe most especially, as the good shepherd who dies for the sheep. Luther said something like, we know of no God, but the man Jesus Christ. So that when you see Jesus suffering and bleeding and dying and breathing out the Spirit, when you see that, you know God, just how he wants to be known by you as your Savior and your friend and your good shepherd.
So dear holy sheep, Hear what your good shepherd says. I mean, you know, you couldn’t believe it, but it’s written down here. And these things are written so that you would believe. 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. That’s your good shepherd. God be praised. Amen. The peace of God that passes all understanding. Guard your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Hallelujah.