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am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture."

IT is a little doubtful whether this should be reckoned as one of our Lord's Parables or not. Certainly the whole chapter cannot be considered as a Parable; but I think the first nine verses may. At all events, what is said in the sixth verse will justify us in treating it as one-" This Parable spake Jesus unto them."

Our Lord pictures before us a Sheepfold -not such a fold as we are accustomed to see in this country, made of a few hurdles. fastened together; but an enclosure built up with high walls, so as to prevent the possibility of any attack from wild beasts or other enemies.

Now, into such a Fold as this, if we were to see any one entering, not by the door, but either by breaking down the wall, or climbing over, we should at once suspect that he could have no good intentions. Such a person is here described. "He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some

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other way, the same is a thief and a robber." The Shepherd will naturally enter by the door; and to him the person stationed at the door, the Porter, will at once open; and the sheep will welcome their Shepherd, and feel that he is no stranger.

It is clear that our Lord was levelling this Parable against the Jewish Teachers, and perhaps especially against the Pharisees. They professed to be the Guides and Leaders of the people; but they were untrue and unfaithful Shepherds-starving, instead of feeding, the flock-administering poison to them, rather than wholesome nourishment.

At the end of the Ninth Chapter, we find that some of the Pharisees, who were with our Lord, and heard His words, were greatly offended at what He had said, exclaiming, "Are we blind also?"-we who have prided ourselves on seeing more clearly than othersare we blind also? Upon which Jesus replied, saying, "If ye were blind, ye should have no sin; but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth." And then He proceeds to speak this Parable, in which He compares them to false shepherds, who had forced

their way into the sheepfold, and had not entered by the appointed door.

But let us look again at the Parable. Our Lord goes on to say in verse 8, "All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them." Now, what did He mean by this? Surely not that all those Teachers who had gone before were false Teachers. He did not mean to condemn such as Moses, and Elijah, and Isaiah, and John the Baptist. No; such could not be His meaning. What He meant was, that all who had taught what was contrary to His truth-all who had led men by ways which were not His ways, however fair their speech, and however promising their professions, were but as thieves and robbers: they came only "to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; " not to

save.

But, as for our Lord Himself, how different was His character! "I am the good Shepherd," He says. And then, to the close of the chapter, or at least to the end of verse 27, He enters upon this beautiful comparison of a Shepherd, and tells us what He has done for

His beloved flock, and what are the peculiar marks of His true sheep.

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But in reading this Parable, we have often perhaps found a difficulty in getting a clear view of its meaning. And I think it is for this reason-because our Lord here uses two comparisons. He speaks of Himself both as the Shepherd, and also as the Door of the sheepfold. But if we read the passage attentively, we shall see why He does so. Look at verse 6: "This parable spake Jesus unto them but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep." They could not take in what He had said about them as "thieves and robbers," and about Himself as the good and true Shepherd; for men are generally slow to understand what makes against themselves. And in consequence of this dulness on their parts He changes this comparison, and speaks of Himself under another likeness, "I am the Door."

Having now explained the chief difficulties

which are in the Parable, it will be well to touch on some of the leading points contained in it-such as the Fold, the Flock, the False Shepherds, the true One, the Door. I will say a word or two upon each.

First, I will speak about the Fold. What is the Fold into which Christ gathers His sheep the fold of safety-the fold from which He leads us forth to find pasture for our souls? That Fold is the Christian Church.

Christ does not leave His people to wander alone up and down this world. He bands them together in one great company, which He calls His Church. He provides pasturage for them-spiritual nurture-and defends and guards them under His watchful care. "When he ascended up on high, he gave gifts unto men. And he gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ."

But the Church on earth is not our dwell

ing-place for ever. It is only our preparation-home. There is a better Fold above, into

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