John 10:34-42

Each morning, if I have time, after I finish writing this study in the morning and send it out there into Internet space, I actually read it for the first time. And sometimes I’m amazed that God has written it just for me that day. Yesterday, when I was reading back to myself I was struck by the idea of the Shepherd going before me and mercy and goodness following after me all the days of my life. That was exactly what I needed yesterday as I headed to work. I was scheduled to meet with a parent who has been trying to get me to change her daughter’s report card. She’s written several LONG emails to me and to the district and has met with someone at the district office in an attempt to change the report cards of all three of her children. Anyway, although I was not at all worried about meeting with her, I was also not looking forward to explaining to her yet again (after more than 2 hours of meeting already), why I would not be changing the report card.

So reading this reminded me that God has me covered! And, in fact, I had been praying that somehow God would use me to show her love through this. Well, when I got to school I received an email from the district that the meeting had been cancelled. The woman has just decided to put letters of complaint in her children’s cum folders! Not the way I expected it to end, but so grateful that God took care of it! :) By the way, let me make a correction to yesterday’s lesson. I mentioned the name of the pastor who spoke on Psalm 23 as John Farrar. His name is Steve! I had it written correctly twice in the margin of my Bible so I’m not sure why I got it wrong (must have been thinking on my father...).

Today’s passage, at the end of chapter 10, is Jesus’ response to the Jews’ charge against Him of blasphemy, for claiming to be God. Jesus’ answer is confusing if you don’t understand the context of His reference:

Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are gods’? If he called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken— what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp. (John 10:34-39)

The reference to “gods” comes from Psalm 82. Read in context you understand that God is referring to judges and earthly rulers as “gods” in the sense that they are responsible for making judgments on earth. God is charging them with partiality toward the wicked and warning them that they need to defend the cause of the weak and needy, for even they, the judges, are “mere men” who will die and “fall like every other ruler.” Worldly rulers often act as if they have the power of God, but Jesus actually DID have that power and had displayed it over and over.

Jesus’ argument is that the Jews had no problem ascribing lordship to other rulers, but when the Son of God came, performing miracles that affirmed His identity, they called His claim blasphemy. They again tried to seize Him but He slipped away. This scene happened a little over three months before Jesus was actually crucified. He was coming to the end of His earthly ministry and He knew what lay ahead. So after this final rejection by His own people, Jesus retreated to the place where His ministry began, the Jordan River, where John had baptized Him. Do you think there’s a message for us in that???

Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. Here he stayed and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a miraculous sign, all that John said about this man was true.” And in that place many believed in Jesus. (vs. 40-42)

There will be one more huge miracle recorded by John, but for the most part, we’ll see that Jesus spent the rest of this time preparing His disciples (and Himself through prayer) for the crucifixion. I love that verse 41 points out that John the Baptist never performed a miracle (unlike Elijah, for instance), and yet Jesus calls him the greatest prophet who ever lived, because he spoke the truth about Jesus; he pointed everyone to the Messiah. Isn’t that our job, too? We don’t need to accomplish the performance of miracles, although certainly God does continue to use some of His servants to perform miracles even today. Our job is to proclaim Christ to a needy world!

 

Psalm 23 - Our Great Shepherd!

If you grew up in a church, at some point you may have memorized the 23rd Psalm. It is probably the best known passage of the Bible. As we have been studying Jesus’ claim to be the Good and Great Shepherd in John 10, I just feel compelled to look at this wonderful psalm of David. And I choose the King James version, because it’s probably the one we all memorized:

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.


We had a great Christian speaker, Steve Farrar, at our church about a year ago, and he spoke on this psalm, which he called the “Cliff Notes” of Christianity.   :)  Since God calls us “sheep” in His Word more than 200 times, Farrar reminded us of the characteristics of sheep. Besides being stupid (they’ve been known to follow each other over a cliff), they are timid, skittish, and defenseless. You never here of a sports team called “The Sheep!” “Go Sheep, beat the Sharks!” :) Sheep have no natural defense device. They don’t have claws, they aren’t large, they have no stinger, they can’t growl or roar. In fact, don’t you think their bleating sounds more like whining? Furthermore, Farrar pointed out that sheep are dirty and cannot make themselves clean. No wonder God refers to us as His sheep!

The 23rd Psalm reminds us that our Shepherd takes care of our every need. We lack nothing! If there is something you want that you do not have, it’s likely because the LORD knows it would not be good for you at this time. Not having it is for your own good!

One of the reasons I love this psalm is that it takes me to a peaceful place. When I read it, it feels like I’m taking a deep cleansing breath that relaxes me. The imagery is so restful: green pastures, still waters, restoring my weary soul. It’s interesting that our Shepherd has to MAKE us lie down in green pastures, because otherwise we’d keep wandering. We love to fill our lives with busyness, don’t we? We give lip service to hating our fast pace, and yet we keep running on that treadmill! Sometimes the Shepherd has to force us to rest. In fact, He may bring something into our lives that gives us no choice but to rest.

Our Shepherd LEADS us all the way into the places HE wants us to go - into paths of righteousness. These paths aren’t always lined with flowers - sometimes they seem downright scary - even into the shadow of death. But He NEVER leaves us! He doesn’t push us from behind, but goes on before us. We need not fear EVER!!! He promised that He would NEVER , EVER leave us. Do you believe that? His tools of discipline (rod) and rescue (staff) should comfort us. The Father disciplines those He loves! If He sees us going in the wrong direction, He will pull us back.

If we are being persecuted, we can relax knowing that our Shepherd will defend us before our enemies. We need not fight our battles - He will do it! In fact, He will honor us before our enemies. With so many wonderful reminders, no wonder David said, “My cup runneth over!”

As our Shepherd leads us through this life, we are guaranteed that mercy and goodness are bringing up the rear. No matter what trials we face, we can always look ahead in confidence, knowing that Jesus’ sheep WILL dwell in the house of the LORD -  FOREVER! Amen!

 

John 10:22-33

The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. (John 10:24-27)

This encounter with the Jews happen at a different time than those at the beginning of this chapter, during the Feast of Dedication, while Jesus is in the temple area. The Jews are charging Jesus to tell them “plainly” whether or not He is the Christ. Jesus makes it clear that He has already communicated who He is. Not only did He clearly make remarkable claims, but they were validated by the miracles He did. The problem was that this audience does not have spiritual ears. They will not hear Him, because they are NOT Jesus’ sheep!

My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” (vs. 27-30)

These verses describe what I call the “heavenly handclasp.” Jesus says that once we are His, he holds us in His mighty hand and NO ONE can snatch us away. And NO ONE can snatch us out of the Father’s hand. I envision myself upheld by the hand of Jesus and covered by the hand of the Father. It forms a single fist holding onto me tightly. I don’t hold onto them, they hold onto me! That’s about as secure as it gets! Remember that the purpose of John’s gospel is that we would believe and KNOW that we have eternal life. We can KNOW it only because it is GOD who holds onto US.

Jon Courson, in his Application Commentary: New Testament (P. 525-528), writes about Jesus’ hands. He describes them as “strong” hands. The hands of a carpenter would be calloused. They were hands that lifted a dripping wet Peter out of the water, hands which overturned the money tables in the temple court. He describes them as “tender hands;” hands that blessed the little children brought to Him. They were “wonder-working hands.” They fed five thousand and touched and healed the lepers. They opened the eyes of the blind. Courson also says they were “inclusive hands” that choose us to be His family.

They are the hands that “span the cosmos.” Isaiah 40:12 tells us that He measures the waters and the cosmos with the span of His hand. Courson writes, “With the naked eye, man can see 1,029 stars on a clear night. With his first telescope, Galileo counted 3,336 stars. Now e know there are more than 100 billion stars in our galaxy, more than 100 billion galaxies in our universe, each having at least 100 billion stars. That’s a lot of stars - and the Lord knows each of them by name (Isaiah 40:26). Can you imagine knowing the names of 100 billion stars times 100 billion more? . . . Nothing can compare to the big Hand of the Father. The entire universe and whatever is beyond is spanned in His hand."  (P.527)

These are the hands that hold onto us! Amazing!

When Jesus made the claim that He and the Father were one (vs. 30), the Jews had a strong reaction.

Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”


“We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.” (vs. 31-33)

They would not have been upset had Jesus merely claimed to be “a son” of God. They understood He was claiming something much more. He was claiming to be the exclusive Son of God, to have the DNA of Deity. He was claiming oneness with His Father. He was claiming to BE God! He is the Great Shepherd, the One who knows us by name, the One who holds us in His heavenly handclasp. Praise His name!

Tomorrow we’ll look at the related Old Testament passage about our Shepherd, the 23rd Psalm.  Remember to pray for Royce this morning as he has his surgery.

John 10:11-21

In case anyone was wondering where I’ve been, last week was my spring break. It was not relaxing in the least, but it was filled with family gatherings! On Good Friday we had the burial service for my mother-in-law. It was a beautiful time of paying honor to the woman who raised my wonderful husband. Then we enjoyed a great Easter day with our girls and their families. All of us went out to Palm Desert for three days of cleaning out Evelyn’s home and getting it ready to put it on the market. We are so grateful for our sons-in-law who gladly spent their own vacation time helping us with our daughters and grandchildren (everyone pitched in). The rest of the week Don and I took care of paperwork and phone calling and bill-paying as we tried to figure out all of his mom’s financial stuff! Mixed in with that, though, were great times with the grandchildren. I’m amazed at how God stretched that week and our energy to get so much done!  Thank you, LORD!

I’ve got an update on baby Royce for you. His grandmother, Pam sent out the following prayer request yesterday:

Please pray for Royce.
This Tuesday he is having surgery to have a feeding tube put in his little stomach.
Jesus is taking such good care of our little miracle baby.
And we are so blessed by his presence daily. I love you dear Friends and pray many blessings for each of you.

Thank you for your faithfulness in prayer!

Today we look at such a treasured, encouraging passage from John 10! Jesus continues to teach his audience about just who He is and what He had come to do for his flock:

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.


“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. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” (John 10:11-18)

Do you find as much comfort in these verses as I do? Our Good Shepherd knows who we are! He can pick us out of the flocks in the pen! He is the watchman guarding us from the false shepherds (and there are many) who seek to destroy us. Although He was speaking to a Jewish audience, he refers to the “other sheep” who He would be gathering. That’s us Gentiles! :)

In addition to knowing His sheep, Jesus also said that His sheep know Him! How well do you know the Great Shepherd? Do you hunger for His Word so that you may know Him better? Note that no one killed Jesus against His will. It was the Father’s plan and Jesus makes another remarkable claim here: He has the authority to lay down His life and to raise it again! Only God can do that! This claim outraged many of the Jews, but there were some who considered his claims logically:

At these words the Jews were again divided. Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”
But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” (vs.19-21)

The signs and wonders that Jesus did were to validate His message. He was proving His authority to them when He healed. He obviously did not appear demon-possessed or crazy.

Jesus has much more to tell us about being our Shepherd! He is not finished with this analogy yet! Tomorrow we’ll see my favorite part of John 10!

 

John 10:7-10

The joy of a teacher is seeing the “light go on” in a student’s eyes when he finally “gets” what you’ve been trying to teach! It is the reason we hang in there. But, when you get blank stares back from students who DON’T understand the concept you are teaching, you can become so discouraged. So you try coming at the topic in a different way to engage such students.

But what really is upsetting is seeing blank stares from students who have been doing everything BUT pay attention. They haven’t even been trying! They have been fiddling with things in their desks, taking apart pens, drawing on their hands, writing notes, distracting others around them, or staring into space. These are the same kids who consistently don’t complete homework. For some of these, it is because they have home issues - parents recently divorced, dad’s in jail, mom’s homeless. Others struggle with attention deficit disorder. It’s hard to be angry with them (although you may want to shoot their parents). Whatever the reason, it sucks all of the joy out of teaching when students aren’t actively engaged in the learning and they just don’t try to learn. It makes you want to give up!

We see here in John 10 a similar situation. Verse 6 tells us that after giving them the analogy of the shepherd, “they did not understand what he was telling them.” Some COULD NOT understand, but most WOULD NOT understand. Did He want to give up? Was He frustrated? We don’t know how He felt at this point, but we do know that He didn’t give up! He didn’t say, as Jon Courson suggests, “You dumb sheep. How can you miss this obvious picture? I’m going to write you off.” Instead, we read that He tried AGAIN:

Therefore Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:7-10).

Here Jesus uses the metaphor of that gate at the entry to the sheepfold. He is saying the HE is the shepherd who is the watchman - guarding the flock so that no thief enters and no sheep leaves. Once those sheep entered His sheepfold, they were safe!

“Whoever enters through me will be saved.” Saved from what? Well, primarily from an eternity in Hell, forever separated from the presence of God! That would be enough! “But wait! There’s more!” It’s not just the “hereafter” that is included in the package. It’s salvation from a wasted life, a life spent following the thief. It’s salvation from a life spent for self. It’s salvation from all of those sins that weigh us down and destroy what we were created to become. And it is salvation INTO an abundant life NOW.

While Satan comes to “steal, kill, and destroy,” Jesus came that we “may have life and have it to the full.” Who wouldn’t want that? And yet, many choose to ignore or outright reject Jesus’ claims and go right on following the thief. It’s heart-breaking! It’s such a waste of a life! These people miss out not only on an abundant, joy-filled life here and now, but they give up eternal life with God. Jesus claims here that HE is the gate or door to the protected sheepfold. We must enter through Him alone. We’ll see next week that those who enter, enter into complete rest and safety!

Today is Good Friday. It’s the day we reflect on what Jesus accomplished for us on the cross. It’s the day we think about the tortuous death He died in our place - to SAVE us from OUR sin. It’s called “Good” Friday, because He finished the job on the cross! The debt was paid once and for all. Easter Sunday celebrates the proof that God accepted His sacrifice: the EMPTY tomb! Hallelujah, What a Savior! May we truly understand and receive the gift!

Happy Easter!
 

John 10:1-6

Much like the 23rd Psalm, this chapter of 10 is one of the most encouraging, comforting passages that reveals the heart of God toward His sheep. In this passage Jesus contrasts the character of the true shepherd, who cares for the sheep, with the counterfeit - the man who is a thief and a robber, only out to destroy the sheep.

“I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman 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.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them. (John 10:1-6)

In Jesus’ day, the shepherds of a village would bring their sheep into a common sheepfold at night. It was a pen with stone walls about six feet high. The shepherds would take turns being the watchman, who would sleep in the entry of the sheepfold to protect the sheep from thieves. In the morning, the shepherds would come and they would gather their own flock from the herd. They were able to identify their own because each shepherd had a distinctive call and his sheep would respond to that.

In the same way, Jesus, our Shepherd brings us out from the crowd with His distinctive call. Those who belong to Him know His voice. They have learned, through the study of His Word, to distinguish His voice from the others calling to them. The more you know Him, the more you will recognize the voice of a thief, and you will learn to run away from any other voice.

In verse 3 we are told that The Shepherd knows His own sheep by name (verse 3)! Now I find that so remarkable and encouraging. Being the youngest of four girls, I was NEVER called by my right name on the first try! Mom would call me “Jodi-Susie-Jackie-Sally” like it was one long name! As a teacher I need to learn about 130 names every school year: those of my own class and the names of all the other fifth graders who come to me for math and science throughout the year. I know how important it is for students to feel like they matter, and knowing their names is an important part of that. So, if I get a name wrong (which happens at least three times a day), I pay that student a Great Job Ticket for that mistake. That way, they don’t feel offended - in fact, they love it!

I cannot even imagine all of the names that Jesus knows and loves to call! He can pick me out of a crowd easily - and He gets my name right every time! I matter to Him!

Verse 4 tells us, “When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.” The shepherds of that day did not drive their sheep ahead of them. Jon Courson points out that driving themselves and others is an American thing to do. No kidding! Instead, the shepherds of the Middle East went out ahead of their sheep. Even in Psalm 23 we are told that He leads us beside still waters and through the valley of the shadow of death. Every trial we go through, every place where we are tempted, Jesus has already gone on ahead of us. He is preparing the way. He never DRIVES us into anything, but He LEADS us, because He has a plan. He knows where He is taking us. We do not need to be afraid of where He is leading us!

It is so easy to become overwhelmed with fear when we are in a bad place: when the bills are piling on top of us and we see no way out of debt; when the doctor’s report shocks us because the cancer has spread; when you get the call from the police station to come pick up your kid; when your husband walks out the door into the arms of another woman. These are terrifying places to be! But there is a reason the Bible says “Fear not,” so many times. Jesus knows where you are! Listen for His voice. Seek Him out in His Word. Let Him lead you through this scary place. He is the Good Shepherd and He will protect you.

 

John 10 Introduction

As we come to one of my favorite chapters, I thought we might need an introduction first. When I was a substitute teaching leader in Bible Study Fellowship, I had the privilege to teach on this chapter. There is so much here!

This life of a shepherd was something with which Jesus’ audience was very familiar. There are so many references to sheep and shepherds in the Bible! Jon Courson writes of the fact that not only were David and Moses both shepherds, but “Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and Zechariah all drew analogies from sheep and shepherds.” (Application Commentary: New Testament, P. 520)

Courson describes the garments and tools of a shepherd of Jesus’ day. He would wear a cotton tunic with a leather cord belt. He hung a sling from the belt, along with a pouch that carried dried fruit or small stones. The sling was used as a weapon against small predators as well as a method for drawing the sheep back into the fold. Remember that David used his sling to take down Goliath.

The shepherd also carried a club or rod that was a weapon against predators. The rod also worked to correct behaviors of straying sheep. If a lamb was continually wandering off, the shepherd used it to break the one of the legs of the lamb. Then he would carry the lamb across his shoulders while the leg healed. The bonding between shepherd and lamb during this time would guarantee that the lamb would not stray again. And finally, the shepherd carried a staff with a hook at one end to help him hook sheep headed in the wrong direction. You can see already why God calls us His sheep! We are prone to wander! This analogy is one with which we can very easily identify - even if we aren’t familiar with the life of a shepherd!

The wonderful old hymn, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing,” has a verse that I just love:

O to grace how great a debtor

Daily I’m constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,

Bind my wandering heart to Thee.

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,

Prone to leave the God I love;

Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,

Seal it for Thy courts above.

We are in such need of a Shepherd who will keep us from wandering! It is in our nature to go our own way. How amazing that Jesus used this analogy to remind us that God deals with us always in grace and love, doing all He needs to do to keep us by His side.

Tomorrow we’ll get into this passage. But for now, for a special treat, here’s a link so you can listen to this lovely version of “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” You'll need to copy and paste it, because I have no idea how to make it a live link in a blog!  :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwFHsX6omvI

Enjoy!