Laying It All Down part 1

It is said that we remember a person by they way we last saw them.  This thought should cause us to always want to leave a place on the very best of terms. However, if our leaving a place should be by means of death, how we leave would not be our choice- for the way we die a natural death is not of our choosing.  Christ, however, had the authority to do both: to leave a legacy and to choose His own death.  To those who know Him intimately, His legacy and His death are one in the same.

Here’s a little Snack: We find ourselves locked securely within the sheepfold of John’s 10th Gospel chapter. Our choice verses are the 15th. thru the 19th.  In these verses we find the dynamics of the Father’s relationship with the Son- that of authority and obedience.  This is the perfect example of the most appropriate of Gospel relationships.

Verse 15 says, “As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.”

Many blessed truths are discovered from this one thought provoking verse.  Immediately we see that the great dynamic of the Father’s relationship with the Son is one of mutual understanding.  The One understood clearly the position of the Other.  This understanding allowed perfect harmony between the Two.  As a result, fallacies were non-existent, mistakes were impossible and change was unnecessary.  Not once did the Father and Son reconvene for clarity of the plan or huddle together to improvise on the play.  There had always been the complete understanding of one another.  

The two roles were not subliminal, nor were they secretive.  The Father and the Son were clear as to their own role and also clear of the role of the other.  Through the Word, today we are made privy of this same understanding.  So, what were the two roles?  The role of the Father was that of Commander, while the role of the Son was Obedient Steward of all the Father commands.  With this understanding, along with the flawless performance from both, the good pleasure of the Father was predicted with unquestionable reliance.

“As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.”

The key to seeing the 2 complimentary roles is found in the word “and.”  It would be the same as our phrase, “and as a result.”  In other words, as a result of the mutual understanding of the roles, Christ laid down His life for the sheep in obedience to the Father’s command. It is made more clear to our understanding if we reposition the verse in our reading, from back to front.  In other words, if we were to read it, “I will lay down my life for the sheep because My Father and I have a mutual understanding of one another’s role” it is more clearly understood.  Without the command of the Commander and the obedience of the Steward, the sheep would be doomed forever.

Now, we cannot lose sight of the reason for the command.  We see this clearly as we are made known the benefactors of the Stewards keeping of the command of the Commander: “the sheep”.  It was God’s love for the sheep that motivated the Command; and it was Christ’s love for the Father the motivated His obedience. The partnership of the Father and Son (the Commander and the Steward) is the focal point of this chapter and this week's Snacks.

Pastor Mike Carmody