"Very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice...

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away...

I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me—just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep."

— John 10:1-5, 11-12, 14-15 (NIV)

Jesus spoke this parable following His healing of a blind man and the subsequent controversy with the Pharisees. It contrasts His loving leadership with the false shepherds of Israel who failed to care for God's people.

Divine Leadership

Spiritual Discernment

Sacrificial Love

Parable of the Good Shepherd

"Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn't she light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?

And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.'

In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

— Luke 15:8-10 (NIV)

This is the second in Jesus' trilogy of "lost" parables, following the Lost Sheep and preceding the Prodigal Son. Jesus continues to defend His ministry to tax collectors and sinners, using everyday examples His audience would understand.

Diligent Seeking

Intentional Methods

Shared Joy

Parable of the Lost Coin

Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn't he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it?

And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'

I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent."

— Luke 15:3-7 (NIV)

Jesus shared this parable in response to the Pharisees and teachers of the law who were criticizing Him for welcoming and eating with sinners. It's the first in a series of three parables about God's heart for the lost.

Divine Initiative

Community Celebration

Parable of the Lost Sheep

If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, then the whole batch is holy; if the root is holy, so are the branches.

If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you.

You will say then, "Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in." Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.

Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. And if they do not persist in unbelief, they will be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again.

After all, if you were cut out of an olive tree that is wild by nature, and contrary to nature were grafted into a cultivated olive tree, how much more readily will these, the natural branches, be grafted into their own olive tree!

— Romans 11:16-24 (NIV)

Paul uses this agricultural metaphor to explain the relationship between Jews and Gentiles in God's plan of salvation, addressing Gentile believers who might be tempted to feel superior to unbelieving Jews.

salvation

Parable of the Good Shepherd

Parable of the Lost Coin

Parable of the Lost Sheep

Parable of the Olive Tree