「自分の命を与える良い羊飼い」 一月第二主日礼拝 宣教 2025年1月12日
ヨハネによる福音書 John 10章10b〜18節 牧師 河野信一郎
Good morning. I thank the Lord for the opportunity to worship with you this morning. I pray for God’s accompaniment, protection, and blessings upon you all this week. Now, before I begin the message, I would like to make a short statement of thanks and some requests.
First of all, thank you very much for your Christmas offering. As reported in the weekly bulletin, a large amount of money was donated. We will split the amount and send it to Hisayama Rehabilitation Center and JOCS. Thank you for your love and prayers. Now, I am looking for your “Kanji of the Year” for 2024, but as of today, I have received only 4. You may think it is meaningless, but I think it is important. This morning, I put the paper at your chairs. If you would like to apply, I would appreciate it if you could look back on your progress in the last year and introduce one kanji character with a short comment. You may also use your initials. I would like to know a little bit about how you and your church family have walked this past year, and we would like to pray for you.
Now, we will hold a general meeting after the service to elect deacons for the next year. This is a very important meeting for church formation. Please pray that the deacons will be chosen according to the will of God. Lastly, the day to remember the Great East Japan Earthquake in March is approaching this year, and our church has continued to support three churches in Tohoku with our prayers and offerings. It has been 12 years now, and so far 20,000 yen has been given in the past 10 months. This is significantly lower than the amount of donations in previous years. Please remember in your prayers the churches that are forming churches and proclaiming the gospel in the very difficult situation in Tohoku.
Now, since last week, we have been listening to God speaking to us using the word “good” as a key word. What strikes me about the use of the word “good” in the Old Testament is that it is often used of God’s promise that “God will lead you into a good land”. Needless to say, this phrase is used when God promises to lead the Israelites to the promised land of Canaan. But elsewhere in the Old Testament, the question is asked, “Is your faith in God pure? In other words, it is used when it is asked whether your faith is genuine, whether it is a faith that truly fears and follows God, or whether it is really a pretense or a self-centered faith. In reflecting on our own faith, we are asked if we are rejoicing in, thanking, and responding to the grace of the faith God has given us through Jesus.
In last week’s message, I mentioned that it is God who judges our progress, good or bad, during the year, not us. It says, “Keep the commandments, statutes, and ordinances which the LORD your God has commanded you, and do what is right in his sight.” It continues, “Then you will be blessed, and you will enter the good land that the Lord swore to your ancestors”. We confirmed the promise that as we trust God, listen to and obey His Word, and put His will first, we will be led into a good land filled with blessings. It is Jesus Christ who leads us into this promised land.
This morning we hope to listen to the words of Jesus in the Gospel of John chapter 10, where Jesus calls himself the Good Shepherd. This title was not a sudden flash of inspiration in Jesus’ mind, but something that God had promised in Old Testament times. That promise is recorded in the 34th chapter of Ezekiel. I would like you to read the entire chapter 34 after you return home, but first, please open your Old Testament to page 1352. Here is the promise that God will raise up good shepherds for Israel. I will introduce you little by little, but these are the words of the Lord God’s promise.
Verses 11 and 12 read, “Truly thus says the Lord God. Behold, I myself will seek out my flock (Israel) and take care of them. As a shepherd searches for his flock when they are scattered, so I will search for my sheep. I will rescue them from every place.” And verse 14 says, “I will feed them in good pasture,” and again in verse 15, “I will feed my flock and cause them to rest, says the Lord God. I will seek the lost and bring back the pursued, I will wrap up the brokenhearted and strengthen the weak.”
The extreme point is in verses 23-25a. “I will raise up a shepherd for them [Israel], and he will shepherd them. It is My servant David (this refers to Jesus Christ). He shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and David my servant will be lord in their midst. I, the Lord, speak this. I will make a covenant of peace with them.” Jesus is the fulfillment of this divine promise. Jesus was sent from God to this earth to fulfill God’s promise and walk as the Good Shepherd.
The fundamental reason why God made such a promise is that the chief priests who were set up as Israel’s leaders and shepherds were preying on the flocks of sheep and not feeding them well. Also, because they were not taking care of the flock, many sheep went out of the enclosure and lost faith and life, which is not God’s will.
So Jesus begins chapter 10 with the parable of the “sheepfold” and then declares Himself to be the “Good Shepherd” sent by God. I have come that the sheep may receive life, and that they may receive it abundantly. I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
This is Jesus’ way of rephrasing John 3:16. “For he loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
Jesus says He “forsakes” Himself five times before verse 18. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, gave up His life on the cross, giving it to us, so that we might be saved by God’s mercy and have eternal life. That is how much we are loved and valued by Jesus and God.
In verses 12-13, Jesus speaks of the difference between a genuine good shepherd and a hired shepherd for money. He says, “The hired man who is not a shepherd and has no sheep of his own, when he sees the wolf coming, flees, leaving his sheep behind. He is a hired hand because he does not care for the sheep”. The hired shepherd does his work for a living, and because his own life is more important than that of the sheep, he runs away as soon as he feels that he is in danger. Jesus, however, loves the sheep as if they were his own family, leading them to pasture, feeding them, and leading them to the banks of the river. He works with his life to protect the sheep from wild beasts and Satan and takes good care of them. Jesus is “the Good Shepherd”.
In verses 14 and 15, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. It is the same as the Father knows me and I know the Father.” This means that He knows us personally, not just as a vague knowledge or awareness. He knows everything about us, our names, our upbringing, our environment, our character, and what is in our hearts. That is how strongly Jesus is interested in and loves us.
Finally, I would like to read verse 16. “I have other sheep that are not in this enclosure. I must guide them also. They, too, will recognize my voice. Thus the sheep will be led by one shepherd and become one flock”. The “other sheep that are not in the enclosure” are non-Jewish Gentiles, that is, us. Jesus walked the path to the cross and gave His life on the cross in order to find us on earth to save us and to make us one flock, the Church.
In addition to Japanese, Swedish, Korean, American, and Chinese/Taiwanese people have been added to Okubo Church as brothers and sisters in Christ, and we worship God in Japanese and aim to be an international church serving God and the community. In addition to ethnic groups, we pray and seek to be one church in Christ Jesus, transcending differences in social class, gender, and age.
We desire to be a center church that takes advantage of its locality and accessible location in Shinjuku, and to be a church that testifies that Jesus is the Savior in its midst. It is God’s will to build us up into such a church. We are gathered to be such a church. For that purpose, the Lord Jesus Christ gave His life on the cross. We are grateful. Let God and Jesus change us as people who live in response to this love and grace.