10:10
This verse contrasts the role of Jesus and all the others. The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy. This is what the religious leaders did, and even today there are still religious leaders who do this. They act religiously, but are only after their own gain, exploiting people as much as they can. Jesus, on the other hand , comes to give us life to the full. Now we must note that there is no room for prosperity teaching here, that is not what this verse is about, and shows a poverty of image of what abundant life is all about. It means we will be like Jesus, we will become the people that God always intended us to be.
10:11-13
Now Jesus declares that He is the good shepherd, and the defining characteristic is that He lays down His life for the sheep. The one looking after the sheep could be either one who owns the sheep, or at least some of them, or a hired hand. If protecting them becomes a matter of life and death then the hired hand will flee for he has no lasting interest in the sheep. The one who actually owns the sheep will behave differently.
The implication here is that Jesus owns us, we belong to Him. The laying down of His life is clearly a reference to the cross. So we belonged to Jesus before He went to the cross, and He went there, or was sent there by the Father, in order to rescue us. Jesus died on the cross on purpose, and He died not just to make it possible to save us, but to actually save us.
This attitude is one that all of who serve in the church should have. We are not hired hands, but should be committed to the people, their future is our future.
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