Memory Verse:
“And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
(John 10:28)
The 23rd Psalm is and always has been a beloved passage of Scripture. Jesus knew that and used the illustration of Him being a shepherd and of us being the sheep. In Chapter 10, the mid-point of the gospel, we will glean from this study the ability to know when God is speaking to us. We will see our blessed assurance that God who saved us will keep us saved.
Our Lord once again declared His unity with the Father and once again the religious rulers sought His life. The main difference we can see between all of the various religions and Christianity is, “What do they believe and teach about Christ?” Only one religion teaches that Jesus Christ is uniquely the Son of God. Jesus never backed down from His statements to be God in the flesh. And yet, not only was Christ the Son of God, able to save, He was the Son of Man, able to relate with us.
It is marvelous that a shepherd would lead his sheep, but even more for that a shepherd would, in a sense, become a sheep so that the enemy would attack him, rather than the rest of the flock.
Day 22: Morning
The Shepherd, The Sheep And The Thief
(Read John 10:1–21)
If you have ever stayed through the closing credits of a movie, it was likely to see one more video clip at the very end. In movies or on playbills for theatric performances, there are always listings of the cast of characters and the cast members. In today’s reading, see if you can identify who the “cast of characters” are: the door (10:1, 7–9); the thief/robber (10:1, 10); the shepherd (10:2–4, 11, 14–16); the sheep (10:3, 11); strangers (10: 5); the hireling (10:12–14); and the other sheep (10:16).
We start with the Door, the third “I AM” transitive statement. Sheepfolds only had one entrance, and sometimes without a gate, so the shepherd would actually sleep at the entrance and block any coming in or out.
The robbers are those who steal the sheep, by force or deceit. Jesus accused the religious leaders of being false teachings. Others want to kill the sheep or destroy the entire sheepfold.
Jesus plays a dual role in this cast: I AM the Door and I AM the good Shepherd. By His life, He is our Shepherd. By His death, He is our Door. Christians intimately know Jesus, follow Him, and know the Father through Him. A hireling is not a shepherd. When danger comes, hirelings will flee, but a good shepherd protects and gives his life for the sheep.
Strangers will lead sheep away if the sheep consistently listen to those other than the shepherd. This stresses the importance of personal and corporate time of listening to Christ.
The sheep trust Christ as Savior. There is no other way to heaven except through Jesus (John 14:6). If anyone seeks to enter the sheepfold by any other door than Jesus, they are not sheep (Matt. 7:15).
The other sheep are Christians (they have “one shepherd”), namely the Gentiles who come to God the same way that Jesus had called His own people, the Jews--by faith (Rom. 1:16).
Pray this prayer to God: “Savior, like a shepherd, lead me. You gave me abundant life by dying for me. I am Yours. Help me listen for Your voice alone in personal study and through teachers true to Your Word. Amen.”
Day 22: Evening
You Will Never Be Snatched Out Of The Father’s Hand
(Read John 10:22–30)
The Feast of the Dedication, or Hanukkah, was in December, a few months after the previous section, but Jesus continues the analogy of the sheep and the shepherd. The analogy of the sheep and the shepherd reminded the people of God’s faithfulness to keep His flock in the fold. If a shepherd would risk his life to save a sheep from a ravenous wolf, what would he do if a sheep wanders away? (See Matthew 18:12–14)
Those who asked Jesus to plainly tell them if He were the Christ had no intention of believing in Him. What was the reason they did not believe in Jesus?
a) Jesus had not shown enough signs to convince them
b) He didn’t make enough convincing arguments
c) They were not His sheep and would not follow Him
Sometimes we think if only God will do something miraculous for people then they will become Christians. Christ has done all that needs to be done for them to believe, but the evidence is not so overwhelming that people have no choice. Still, we are commanded to witness (to tell others about Christ) and give reason for the hope within us, but their salvation is solely between them and God.
What’s more, Jesus and God are one. They are agreed on this issue. Don’t miss this point, like the people did who picked up stones to stone Jesus. Jesus is saying that if you are one of His sheep, you will follow Him and you will never lose your relationship with God.
If Jesus went to cross for you, facing death and being resurrected, He will not give up His fight for you, even if you fall back into your sins after your salvation. In order to be snatched out of the Father’s hand, the one doing the snatching must be greater than the Father and the Son. Neither you nor your sins nor is the devil greater than the Father and the Son!
Pray this prayer to God: “Lord, I commit my life to follow Your light. As long as You shine Your will clearly in my life, I will do my best to walk in Your time and in Your truth. Thank You for the precious promise that no one, not even me, can snatch me out of Your hand. Amen”
Day 23: Morning
Is Jesus God?
(Read John 10:15–33)
Did Jesus ever proclaim Himself to be God? Today’s passage is a clear proclamation from Jesus and those who heard Him. They were going to stone Him for His “blasphemy.” But then Jesus quotes Psalm 82:6–7.
Imagine this: Jesus has always been God. He says He was the Son of God. The Jewish leaders then wanted to stone Jesus because He claimed to be God’s Son, even though there are many Old Testament verses which say God is our Father (see Deut. 32:6; 2 Sam. 7:14; 1 Chron. 17:13; 22:10; 28:6; Ps. 68:5; 89:26; Isa. 63:16; 64:8; Jer. 3:4; 3:19; 31:9; Mal. 1:6; and 2:10). Other times it is strongly implied: (see Exod. 4:22–23; Deut. 1:31; 8:5; 14:1; Ps. 103:13; Jer. 3:22; 31:20; Hosea 11:1–4; and Mal. 3:17).
Whew! Did you look all those verses up? Didn’t think so. That’s okay, but if you ever want proof, there you have it! So what does Jesus do? He exposes their ignorance even further by referring to a Scripture where God calls unrighteous humans “gods.” We will discuss this more this evening.
Jesus also said the “Scripture cannot be broken.” The Word of God is sure and Jesus gave numerous statements which proclaimed that we could trust God’s Word.
Just as an author can interject himself into his novel by having one of his characters say what he wants to say, so God came down to humanity by casting Himself as the part of Jesus Christ! John’s gospel has numerous references confirming Jesus is God, but here are just a few of Bible verses outside of this gospel.
Matthew 1:23--they shall call His name Immanuel, …“God with us.”
Colossians 1:19; 2:9--For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell. 2:9--For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily;
1 Timothy 3:16--…God was manifested in the flesh…
Heb. 1:8--…to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever…”
Pray this prayer to God: “Heavenly Father, I confess that Jesus Christ is the true Son of God. Only by receiving Him could I be adopted into Your family. Help me to live out Your unbreakable Word of Scripture in my life. In Jesus’s Name. Amen.”
Day 23: Evening
Are We Gods?
(Read John 10:34–42)
Read Psalm 82, especially verses 6 and 7. There is only one God, the Creator of the universe. However, the Bible acknowledges there are false gods (little “g”), as explained by Paul in 1 Cor. 8:4–6. Humans have responsibilities similar to what God has. The judges were sinful and did not exact true justice. God told these mortal humans “to whom the word of God came” that they were responsible for representing God to the world.
God asked, “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?” He then commands the judges to “defend the poor … do justice to the afflicted and needy …You are gods (elohim), and all of you are children of the Most High. But you shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.”
There was no delusion that these were even godly judges, let alone “gods.” But as God’s representatives, they should have known better than to mistreat the poor, afflicted and needy.
There is a phrase “You may be the only Bible some will ever read.” Another is “You may be the only Jesus some will ever see.” Those phrases don’t mean you are a literal book or Jesus Christ. That’s what the psalmist meant about humans being “gods.” Sinful human beings have responsibilities akin to God, and yet they were going to stone Jesus for claiming to be the Son of God.
Unlike the judges in Psalm 82, Jesus was the “visible image of the invisible God” (Col. 1:15), He was the manifestation of God in the flesh (John 1:14). He had the right to be called the Son of God. Jesus was not “proof-texting” the Bible to get out of a tough spot. He was saying (my paraphrase), “My Father, in His holy and unbreakable Word, said that sinful judges were to act like God. And you think it’s blasphemy because I claim to be the Son of God?”
(I would even add in my paraphrase, “GIVE ME A BREAK!”)
His answer did not and was not meant to calm them down, as evidenced in verse 39. It was a bold, declarative statement that He was the only begotten Son of God, equal with His Father in Heaven.
Pray this prayer to God: “Dear Lord, I ask you to live in me today, so that I could be a good representation of You. Thank You for giving me Jesus Christ as an example for me to follow. In Jesus’s Name. Amen.”
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