See that super loose rein on that horse and that head nice and low? See that they’re out in the great outdoors? That’s what it looks like when a horse trusts and respects his trainer. He’s not pulling and tugging and fighting with the beast. He’s gently leading the horse and the horse is willingly following.
Okay, we’re back in Ecclesiology, the study of the church. We’re looking at our relationship with Christ as the church by studying seven figures of that relationship. We’re looking at the first one, the Shepherd and the Sheep. This is our third look at John 10:1-6. Here’s the first, and the second. And here’s the text.
1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3 To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
4 And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
5 And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
6 This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them.
So today, the plan was to look at the fourth verse, And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
There are two differences worth noting in this text compared to the previous text. In the previous verse the shepherd leadeth them out, whereas this verse he putteth forth his own sheep. And the sheep likewise in the previous verse hear his voice whereas this verse they know his voice. The difference between the two verses is that in the previous one they are inside the fold being led out, whereas in this verse they are outside the fold.
Now sheep are herd animals, much like horses. I know nothing about sheep. I do know a little however about horses. I would guess that there are similarities. Inside the round pen you can make much progress with a horse, but when you take the horse outside the round pen into a bigger area like an arena, things begin to get a bit more difficult.
The horse will become more reactive, more aggressive. The horse is more sensitive to things happening around it. In the closed round pen he’s learned to listen to the trainer, hopefully. But when it gets into that bigger, wider area, its concentration is diminished and the trainer has to be more diligent and almost retrain the animal and get it back to the point it was in his concentration while in the round pen. Likewise, when you move out of the arena and unto the trail, the same things happens. There’s much more to deal with out on the trail: the trees, the terrain, cats and dogs, people, other horses, and every object imaginable that can just spook a horse for no reason.
So the trainer must be most consistent and precise when training a horse to be a good horse on the trail. But ultimately it’s a matter of trust and respect. If the horse does not trust or respect the trainer, it’s not going to think to check with the trainer before it reacts to something on the trail. If there’s no trust or respect, it will not care what the trainer thinks, it’s just going to react. My point is that it’s different for the horse and the trainer out in open spaces, and there’s usually some adjusting on the trainer’s part to get things tamed down.
I think we see this difference in situation between the third and fourth verse of this passage. Inside the fold, the sheep are simply led by the voice of the shepherd. Outside the fold, the shepherd must put forth the sheep, and then he must go before them. There’s just more to it outside the fold. The Psalmist said, (Psalm 23:4) Thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Out in the fields from pasture to pasture the shepherd’s visible physical presence is what gave comfort. I do like the way the commentaries describe Jesus’ word choice. They say that the words in the fourth verse are stronger than those of the third.
Application? We don’t live in a pen. Every morning God leads us out through the door and puts us forth and goes before us to lead us from place to place. There’s much out there to distract us from the shepherd’s journey for us. (Ephesians 4:14) That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; If we trust and respect our shepherd, we’ll always look to him in any situation, even if it’s new, different, scary, attractive, whatever, we’ll go where he puts us forth and always follow him. We don’t just react. We wait for the shepherd’s leading.
(1 Corinthians 2:14) But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. They say that a horse has two sides to his brain: the thinking side and the reactive side. His natural inclination is to react first: jump, bolt, rear. A well trained horse has overcome the reactive, natural side of his brain. Instead he concentrates and thinks about the trainer first. Last night we sang a song where the songwriter wrote, As I journey thru the land… and Dark may be the night… and Many arrows pierce my soul… and Satan’s snares vex my soul, turn my thoughts aside… and In valley low… and The mountain height… and Billows rise…
There’s a lot of stuff out there, But my Lord leads me on… My Lord goes ahead, leads what e’er betide… Guiding me… My lord directs my bark… He leads me gently on thru this world below… This brings me back to what it means to have a relationship, between the shepherd and the sheep. One can be related but have no relationship. You may not have a real close relationship with God. You’ve kinda stayed on the fringes. But that does not change the relation you have with him. In other words, despite our wanderings, our aloofness, and apathy, God is still doing his part as the shepherd. He is always faithful to lead and guide us; putting us forth, walking ahead, and speaking to us.
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