Bible Verses and Quotes: “The Good Shepherd”

Bible Verses

Old Testament

Psalm 23:1

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
(Hebrew: “Yahweh Rohi”)

Psalm 23 (general references)

“He makes me lie down in green pastures.”
“He leads me beside still waters.”
“Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

Ezekiel 34:2-5

“Prophesy and say to them, to the shepherds, thus saith the Lord God, Ah, you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the flock or the sheep? You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the sheep. You have not strengthened the weak, you have not healed the sick, you have not bound up the injured, you have not brought back the stray, you have not sought the lost, but with force and harshness you have ruled over them.”

Ezekiel 34:8

“My sheep were scattered. They wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth with no one to search or seek for them.”

Ezekiel 34:10

“Thus saith the Lord God, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding of the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths so that they may not be food for them.”

Ezekiel 34:11-12

“For thus saith the Lord God, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks, when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they’ve been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.”

Ezekiel 34:23-24

“I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their God. And my servant David shall be prince among them. I the Lord have spoken.”

Isaiah 43:1-4

“But now thus saith the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not be afraid, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire, you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. … You are precious in my sight, and honored, and I love you.”

Joshua 7:19 (referenced/paraphrased)

“My son, give glory to the Lord God of Israel and make confession to him.”

New Testament

John 10:11

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”

John 10:1

“Very truly I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in by another way, is a thief and a bandit.”

John 10:2

“The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.”

John 10:3

“The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”

John 10:4

“When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.”

John 10:7

“I am the gate for the sheep.”

John 10:9-10

“I am the gate; whoever enters by me will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

John 10:14-16

“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.”

John 9 (complete chapter referenced)

The story of the man born blind from birth

John 9:1-6

“As he walked along, he saw a man blind from birth. … He spat on the ground, made mud with the saliva, and spread the mud on the man’s eyes.”

John 9:5

“I am the light of the world.”

John 9:11

“The man called Jesus made mud.”

John 9:17

“He is a prophet.”

John 9:24

“Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.”

John 9:25

“I do not know whether he is a sinner. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”

John 9:27

“I have told you already and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?”

John 9:28

“You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.”

John 9:30-33

“He opened my eyes. … If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”

John 9:34

“You were born entirely in sins, and you are trying to teach us?” And they drove him out.

John 9:35-38

(Jesus finds him) “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” … “Lord, I believe.” And he worshiped him.

John 9:39-41

“Jesus said, ‘If you were blind, you would not have sin. But now that you say, “We see,” your sin remains.'”

John 14:6

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 1:43

“Follow me.” (Jesus’ invitation to Philip)

John 16:13

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.”

John 18:40

“Now Barabbas was a bandit.” (referenced regarding the meaning of “bandit”)

Luke 19:10

“The Son of Man came to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Mark 12:37

“The common people heard him gladly.” (referenced/paraphrased)

Mark 3 (referenced regarding healing on the Sabbath)

Mark 4 (referenced regarding the sower scattering seed on all types of soil)

2 Timothy 1:9

“This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world.”

Psalm 139 (referenced indirectly)

“Search me and see if there be any wicked way in me.”

Genesis 3 (referenced regarding God seeking Adam and Eve in the garden)

Quotes and Notable Statements

From the Waldensian Creed

“They care not for the flock, only for the fleece.”

From Ellen G. White (Desire of Ages / References)

“In all ages, philosophers and teachers have been presenting to the world theories by which to satisfy the soul’s need. Every heathen nation has had its great teachers and religious systems, offering some other means of redemption than Christ, turning the eyes of men away from the Father’s face, and filling their hearts with fear of him who has given them his only blessing. The trend of their work is to rob God of that which is his own, both by creation and by redemption. And these false teachers rob man as well. Millions of human beings are bound under false religions and in the bondage of slavish fear or stoical indifference, toiling like beasts of burden, bereft of hope or joy or aspiration here, with only a dull fear of the hereafter.”

“It is the gospel of the grace of God that alone can uplift the soul. The contemplation of the love of God manifested in his Son will stir the heart and arouse the powers of the soul as nothing else can. God came. Christ came that he might recreate the image of God in man.”

“Whoever turns men away from Christ is turning them away from the source of true development. He is defrauding them of the hope and purpose and glory of life. He is a thief and a robber.”

“Christ is both the door and the shepherd. He enters in by himself. It is through his own sacrifice that he becomes the shepherd of the sheep.”

Key Statements from the Sermon

On Psalm 23

“The Lord is my shepherd—the creator of the universe, the one who spoke galaxies into existence, is my personal shepherd.”

“Instead of saying ‘The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want’ like a funeral dirge, we should say it with joy: ‘Hallelujah! The Creator of the universe is my shepherd!'”

On the Rod and Staff

“The rod is an expression of the will of the shepherd—the Bible is God’s revealed will for us. The staff is like the Holy Spirit—a living connection between the shepherd and the sheep.”

On the Blind Man’s Journey

“We want people to come to church the finished product, saying Jesus is God, without giving people the time and space to make the same spiritual journey as this blind man.”

“Give people grace and space to grow. Recognize where they are and help them in the next stage of the growth process.”

On Testimony

“There was a time in my life when I was ______, ______, and ______. But then I met Jesus, and he forgave me, and I chose to follow him. Now my life is ______, ______, and ______. Do you have a story like that?”

On Multiplication

“Only sheep can breed. The shepherd can’t make more lambs—the sheep have to breed.”

“If we don’t multiply ourselves, if we don’t speak ourselves, the Adventists in Ghana or Indonesia aren’t going to do it for us. It’s our job to multiply disciples for Jesus.”

On Witness

“Sometimes the only person who knows you’re a Seventh-day Adventist is your dog, because they know on Sabbath morning they’re not going for a walk.”

On Following Jesus

“Being a Christian is not about following rules. It’s about following the Master and then being obedient to him because we love him.”

“Whose voice are you following in life? Fox or CNN? Twitter or YouTube? Political pundits? Learn to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd.”

On Leadership

“Leadership can follow one of two routes. Either it is directed to the advancement of the leader, or it’s directed to the benefit of those who are following. The former leads to spiritual death. The latter—leading on behalf of the flock, for their benefit—is the way of Jesus, and it leads to life.”

On God’s Pursuit

“It’s not that we go running to God. It’s that God comes running after us.”

On Suffering

“Sometimes we go through suffering not for a reason that we can comprehend, but God is working out a greater purpose than we can see.”

On Salvation

“Salvation does not come through the bad shepherds. Salvation comes only through the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep.”

On the Flock

“The fold is the physical enclosure—a denominational boundary. But Jesus doesn’t say there’ll be one fold. He says there’ll be one flock—and the flock is defined by those who listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd.”

Summary of Key Themes

The Wonder of Psalm 23 – Yahweh, the Creator, is our personal Shepherd
Sheep Imagery – Our helplessness and the Shepherd’s daily care
The Rod and Staff – Bible as rod (correction/authority) and Holy Spirit as staff (comfort/guidance)
Bad Shepherds – Those who care for the fleece, not the flock
The Blind Man’s Journey – Faith grows in stages; give grace and space
Prevenient Grace – God seeks us before we seek Him
The Good Shepherd – Calls by name, leads, knows His sheep, lays down His life
Three Blessings – Salvation, abundant life, inclusion in the one flock
Testimony – Simple, 15-second story with an invitation question
Multiplication – Only sheep can breed; we must share our stories