14th Post The Good Shepherd - John 10: 26-29

We spent two hours discussing these three verses in context with the previous verses John 10: 1 - 18. I enjoy and encourage discussion during my Bible studies because when you can put into words your position and then try to defend it Biblically, you better understand your position. It is when defending it Biblically that you can prove your position has merit or not. By hearing what others have to say on the subject can change the way you looked at the verse; they may have seen something you did not. "The Bible can never mean what it never meant." Gordon Fee stated this in his book "Reading the Bible for all its worth." John 10: 26 - 29 picks up where John 10: 1 - 18 left off. In these three verses Jesus says you who are not my sheep because you don't know my voice and don't follow me, you will not receive eternal life which I give you. My Father has given them to Me, no one is greater than Him and no one can snatch them out of My Hand. This is absolutely True the devil can not snatch anyone out of Jesus Hand. Last week we looked at the sheep who are listening to Jesus. If you are familiar with herding animals, they tend to form groups within the flock. Group A is the group that fights for the nearest position to the shepherd. Group B forms just outside group A. Group C forms just behind B. And D are the ones hanging around the fringe just outside group C. All these groups are within ear shot of the shepherd, and are following where ever He goes. Sheep, like us have the ability to attract danger and to misbehave at any time. This is what keeps the shepherd busy and at times he cannot see all the sheep at the same time. The Bible proves this with the stories of looking for lost sheep. If these sheep were constantly listening to their shepherd they would not become lost. Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees when he remarked "you are not my sheep because you don't hear my voice." This is very interesting, the Pharisees considered themselves to be the closest group to God. Here Jesus as the Son of God clearly tells them they are not part of His flock. They chose to dismiss His words because they didn't think He was God. We can make this same mistake today.
Sheep can get used to following each other within the confines of the flock, they stop listening to the Shepherd and become complacent within the flock. They feel they are still part of the flock because they never leave the flock but they won't receive eternal life. In humanity these are the ones who go to Church, don't read their Bible and their life has no fruit to show their belief. They believe that they have achieved the prize without achieving it. To make sure you are not one of these, you need to walk with God daily. This takes a personal commitment to make quality time with God on a regular basis. When you make this commitment your life will show this change, this is what is meant by saying when you accept God your life changes. This is what Baptism symbolizes, when you are put under the water it symbolizes being dead to sin; when you come up you are alive in Christ. This should not be the only proof you have of living for Christ, this should be the start of a long string of events. If Baptism is all you have to look back on then maybe you, like the sheep mentioned above are hanging out with the flock but not really a part of it. It is through reading the Bible that you can find your way back to the Shepherd and being able to hear His voice. When we decide to walk with Jesus, we start the process of becoming more like Christ. When we die we are the most like Christ we can be until He completes this work in us at the ressurrection. This is the goal of all believers to become more like Christ. It requires work and an investment of time with Jesus. There is no short cut to achieve eternal life. Its funny, we go to school and college to train us for something we may do for 20 - 40 years or more; but we neglect learning about what it will take to live forever. The later requires the same kind of diligence. Too bad, we don't always realize how important it is. If we did maybe we would have taken the Bible and Church more seriously.