Nobody Took It—He Gave It

People often think of shepherds as mild-mannered, sentimental, puny men. This passage dissuades us from those faulty notions.

Scripture Focus: John 10:11, 15, 17-18

Four times in this passage, Jesus says it: "I lay down my life for the sheep."

If you were to ask the question, "Who forced Jesus to the cross?" what would you say? Was it Pontius Pilate? Was it Caiaphas? Was it the Romans? Was it the Jewish mob? Was it the religious elite?

Jesus gives us the answer in verse 18: "No one has taken it from me, but I lay it down on my own initiative."

Jesus wasn't forced to the cross. He went on His own accord. It was not the nails that held Jesus there—it was His love for His sheep.

Peter preaches this reality in his opening sermon in Acts 2: "This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge." This was always God's plan. The scourgings, the bruisings, the beatings, the crown of thorns, the slaps, the mockery—none of it was outside of God's plan.

Later in John 18, when Jesus is taken by the Roman guards, Peter draws his sword to fight them off and cuts off a man's ear. Jesus rebukes him, heals the man's ear, and says, "Peter, this must happen. Don't you know that if I wanted to, I could call down twelve legions of seraphim warriors?"

Why is that significant? One angel in 2 Kings wiped out 185,000 Assyrians like that. And Jesus says, "Oh Peter, I could call down 72,000 of them—my national guard—and wipe out the universe. No, I'm going voluntarily to the cross."

He tells Pontius Pilate, "You would have no power unless it had been given to you from above." No one took His life. Jesus gave up His spirit and breathed His last.

Not only was His sacrifice voluntary—it was vicarious. Verse 11 says, "The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." That word "for" is the Greek word huper—it means "on behalf of," "in the place of."

Here is why the goodness of the Shepherd is so pervasive and persuasive: The Shepherd died in the sheep's stead. In your place. If you are in Christ, this is the love of God. Romans 5:8: "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."

Think about Barabbas for a moment. As was the Jewish custom during Passover, the Romans would release one prisoner. They present two options: Jesus or Barabbas. The Jewish mob that a week before shouted "Hosanna!" now cries "Crucify Him!" And when asked about Barabbas, they shout, "We want Barabbas!"

I always wonder if Barabbas followed at a distance, crawled up a nearby hill overlooking Golgotha, and with a tear in his eye as they slaughtered Jesus said, "That cross was meant for me. A bandit, a thief, a murderer, an insurrectionist. That cross was made for me. I'm alive because that man dies in my place."

That is the reality and the testimony of every single one of Christ's sheep. I'm alive because the Shepherd died in my place—for me.

His death was not merely an example of sacrificial love. It wasn't just a model in being others-minded. It was a substitutionary atonement—in my place.

And the pain of the cross wasn't just the whippings and the bruisings and the beatings. Think of the moment in your life where you felt the most guilt—the guilt that made you almost want to throw up, where you felt sick to your stomach, dizzy. That sin that almost crippled you, where you couldn't get out of bed.

Are you thinking of that time? Now compound that with all of the guilt of every person who would ever believe in Jesus Christ. On the cross, Jesus bore an unbearable, unfathomable weight of guilt. The most torturous element of the cross wasn't the crown of thorns—it was the world's guilt. Every sheep's guilt.

And Jesus says, "I laid down my life."

Nobody took it. He gave it. For you.

Stay dialed in.