John 10:1-16 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
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.
All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
Jesus often compared believers to sheep. We are His sheep and behave in a sheep like manner. I've been reading about sheep from web pages of people who are modern day sheep keepers or "shepherds". It has been very instructive in proving just how appropriate our Lord's comparison is.
Sheep are among the most docile and vulnerable of all animals. They make ideal prey for the many predators lurking about the flock. They do have strong instincts built into them by their creator. The predominate defensive instinct is the flocking instinct. Sheep will huddle together to present a bigger and more unified presence to the predator.
They are also by nature very strong followers. From the very beginning the ewe will urge the lamb to follow her. This instinct is not much diminished as they grow older. They will follow a bolder member of the flock even into very dangerous ground. A relatively recent instance of 400 sheep following a "leader" over a 15 meter cliff illustrates this point well. Sheep have a high tolerance for pain and will remain silent even while being slaughtered. They will not cry out when injured as this will signal a predator of their weakness. When they follow each other in a line along a path, they will create a path that weaves left and right so they can keep the view behind them open. They will not willingly go around a blind right angle turn or over a blind ridge. They are very wary. A sheep who does not keep watchful is the most vulnerable and will most likely not survive in the wild. Sheep and goats sometimes are mixed together in a flock. Being very different, goats can create problems for the sheep. Goats are much more aggressive and independent than sheep. They will butt and bully and run ahead of the sheep to get to the water first. They will muddy the water before the sheep get there. Goats are not predators to the sheep but are agitators and will harass them. Sheep, when driven by a predator will try to stay together as long as possible but when the pressure exceeds a certain point they will scatter.
All these things make it necessary for the sheep to have a loving, kind shepherd who will gently lead them. See Psa. 23.
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