John 10: 30-42 - A Claim To Be God! - Part 2

30.08.09 John 10: 30-42 (NASB)

Audio Sermon File: John 10:30-42, Part 2

Going Deeper: Study Guide

A Claim To Be God! - Part 2

Our setting as we continue this passage is towards the end of Jesus’ public ministry, in the Gospel of John. It is also Jesus’ last offer of salvation to the hard hearted Jewish religious authorities, during the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem (v.22), about 3.5 months before Jesus’ crucifixion. It was here that the Jews encircled Jesus or surrounded Him, out to get something out of Jesus. What the Jews were after was an answer to their question - If you are the Christ, tell us plainly (v.24), in order to get Jesus to outright publicly declare that He is God. This would in their twisted thinking substantiate a charge of blasphemy, giving them reason to kill Jesus.

The answer to who Jesus is - is the whole focus of the Gospel of John - and it will help us to understand whether Jesus is God in human flesh or not. Last time we began to unfold the answer by using CS Lewis’ popular challenge concerning Jesus…that either Jesus is a LIAR, LUNATIC, OR LORD.

The people are faced once again with a decision about who this guy Jesus is. Jesus is making all these claims, so who is He? We also need to answer that question for our selves and decide one of two things:

Accept Jesus as God who will save you from your sins
OR
2. Out right reject Jesus as God and look for any other way to get to heaven.

Here is our inspired text this day: 30 "I and the Father are one." 31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, "I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?" 33 The Jews answered Him, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out [to be] God." 34 Jesus answered them, "Has it not been written in your Law, `I said, you are gods'? 35 "If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, `You are blaspheming,' because I said, `I am the Son of God'? 37 "If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38 but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father." 39 Therefore they were seeking again to seize Him, and He eluded their grasp. 40 And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing, and He was staying there. 41 Many came to Him and were saying, "While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man was true." 42 Many believed in Him there.

Today we continue to examine these three questions. And with the answers we will need to come to a decision our self about Jesus’ CLAIM TO BE GOD - these are the 3 questions:

Is Jesus A Liar?
Is Jesus A Lunatic?
Or Is Jesus The Lord?

As I go through the passage I will be asking these 3 questions repeatedly returning to each question as it pertains to the verses of today’s passage. So let us continue from where we left off, picking up at verse 34.

Is Jesus A Lunatic?

Now as we continue the flow of the discourse here - we began seeing Jesus’ intellectual genius in His crystal clear, logical, and valid defense. As to the charge of blasphemy (v.33) it is not valid. If Jesus were - as the Jews also stated - being a man (v.33) - then yes it would be blasphemy for declaring unity of essence and nature with the Father. But, it is not blasphemy because Jesus is God. And being God, He cannot be taking away any honour, glory, or majesty from Himself - He is who He is - in other words as He declared I AM (Jn. 8:58).

v.34 - As we enter into verse 34 we should recall that these rabbinical Jews were the religious elite, so they loved the Law of God. And so it was also that they were skilled in debate, the premier thinkers of their time, and well versed in the art of logic. So Jesus engages them with their own tactics and uses logic to stump the Jews, by launching the argument from their own claim to love the Law - Has it not been written in your Law, `I said, you are gods'? The word Law is used to refer to the totality of the Scriptures and not just the Psalms. Jesus quotes from their Law, Psalm 82:6. Psalm 82:6 states this - "I said, `You are "gods"; you are all sons of the Most High.' In this Psalm and in the Law - appointed ministers of God were given a title of honour - being called gods (little g). This Psalm is a plea for justice in the midst of the kings and judges - earthly rulers who were abusing their office - pretty much like the Pharisees who were doing the same thing at present in this passage, in Israel. These earthly rulers were supposed to be God’s representatives since they are delegated authority by Him, but God reproves them for dishonouring His name and not following His ways.

v.35 - Jesus uses this portion of Scripture to substantiate His claim. What Jesus is saying is that if human beings could be quote unquote be called ‘gods’ (little g) by God through His revealed word, and it is clearly recorded in the Scripture… then how could they go against Scripture? Even the Jews would agree, that the Scripture cannot be broken - it has absolute binding authority, it cannot be undone, untied, or destroyed - it is inerrant. This also gives us Jesus’ view of the Bible - now if Jesus were a lunatic could He have such a sound judgement about the Scriptures?. The Jews charge of blasphemy is now muddied because of the truth that the Scripture cannot be broken.

v.36 - So Jesus uses a play on words and an argument from the lesser to the greater - to say that if mere men - the unjust judges - can be called gods (little g), then how much more can Jesus the Messiah be called God (capital G). After all He is whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world. The reality of who Jesus is - is magnified because He is sanctified - that is ‘set apart’ as holy….consecrated by the Father - that Jesus is God’s means of demonstrating to the world His power and majesty. Jesus is the One that as it was stated in John 6:27 - On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval. So Jesus is God’s very own, which He sent into the world - for the very purpose that He would reveal and offer God’s means of salvation from our sins. Being sanctified and sent by the Father, are the basis of Jesus’ demonstration that the term God (capital G) is a fitting description of Himself. To drive the point deeper, Jesus asks a rhetorical question - of why He is being accused of blaspheming because He said I am the Son of God? Logically back to the argument from Psalm 82 - it should go without saying that Jesus’ own claim is fully justified by the Scripture to be the Son of God. In other words if mere humans - granted that they are placed into their positions by God - if even they can be called sons of the Most High (Ps. 82:6), then all the more Jesus should be justified in calling Himself the Son of God. Jesus is after all of unity in essence and nature with the Father. Therefore he should not and cannot be charged with blaspheming. In Jesus’ argument, He is setting Himself apart from the unjust earthly judges. As one commentator states of one who is ‘with greater dignity, greater importance, and significance than any mere judge, one ‘whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world.’

Jesus used the Pharisees own games of logic and turned it upon them so that they would be at a loss for words. Jesus appeals to the Old Testament so that the Jews would have a Scriptural reason to consider - objective evidence. Could a lunatic be able to articulate and defend Scripture with Scripture so well?

Is Jesus A Liar?

v.37 - Jesus continues and draws the focus not on Himself, but back to the works that the Father does through Him. In other words, what Jesus says in verse 37 is this - if you reject My authority (which is real), you can judge Me for who I claim to be based on My works (which are verifiable). If - I and the Father are one (and we are) - if I don’t do the same things as My Father does (and Jesus does) - If I don’t act in unity with the Father (and Jesus does) - then you should cease to believe Me… don’t believe Me….then you can reject Me outright.

This doesn’t seem to be the kind a thing a liar would say - would it? Basically a liar lies in order to get people to believe their lies - and not dismantle oneself. What Jesus does here in effect is that He calls upon God’s deeds to verify whether He is lying or not - and challenges the Jews to take the objective evidence.

Is Jesus The Lord?

v.38 - Now here is the flip side of Jesus’ challenge. But…. if I do carry out the works of the Father (which Jesus does) - and you still continue in refusing to believe Me, then you should believe the works (and they are real) - because if you deny those - then you are openly rejecting God. If you don’t posses the faith to believe, but you need the evidence - then you should analyze the works. By doing so these unbelieving Jews would then have to come to terms with the relationship that exists between Jesus and God. So Jesus says all this for the purpose that the Jews would know and understand who Jesus is. The two words know and understand in the Greek are the same word but with different tenses. We can translate, paraphrase, and expand this part of the verse in this way - I want you to come to the point where you know who I am, and then because you have the knowledge of saving faith - you will keep on knowing as a true disciple of Mine, saved by grace and that faith, alone. This knowledge is that - the Father is in Me, and I in the Father …. Jesus is claiming to be Lord. He is saying - I am the great God and Saviour - Immanuel, God in human flesh (Jn. 1:14, Matt. 1:23) - who can do miracles and is the source of them.

In this verse we have Jesus’ last appeal to the unbelieving Jews to be reconciled to God. His last offer of eternal life - as these Jews are standing on the brink of hell because of their rejection of Christ. Even though they have all the knowledge that they need to know Christ - they hang by a fraying rope of faithlessness, dangling over the fires of hell, as the rope strands snap one by one - under the burden of their deep spiritual blindness. Under the weight of their magnitude of sin and unbelief - and they precariously wait until they will plunge themselves into eternal condemnation.

Jesus repeats His claims to Deity and Sonship and through this we see Jesus’ deep love shown for the pinnacle of creation, mankind - even to those who have declared themselves to be His enemies. Even as they are clenching in their fists the very stones to kill the Christ, Jesus is a friend of sinners. What an immensely wonderful Saviour. What a powerful God.

v.39 - Well in closing this confrontation - we have a picture of utter depravity - absolute unbelief. The Jews do not objectively analyze the objective evidence but rather - they were seeking again to seize Him. It seems that the Jews may have wanted to grab Jesus, drag Him outside the temple precinct and then stone Jesus. Or they were wanting to arrest Jesus and take Him to be tried before the Sanhedrin. But He eluded their grasp (the word seize in Greek tells us it is a repeated attempt). Jesus’ death in God’s sovereign will, has not come, so He eluded their grasp (and it is reasonable to conclude that this in itself was a miracle).

Is Jesus A Liar?

v.40 - John closes off chapter 10 with a note on Jesus’ ministry. That Jesus went away again beyond the Jordan, which is probably in a region known as Perea. It was on the east side of the Jordan and it was known as the place where John was first baptizing. John the Baptist began his ministry here and this is where Jesus was now staying. Perea was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipus, so the Jews had no power in that area. There would have been less resistance to Jesus’ ministry so He would enjoy a quieter, less distracting, and less life threatening ministry.

v.41 - In a strong contrast between the Jews of Judea, we find that the people hear that Jesus is in the area and many came to Him. They were more responsive and welcoming of Jesus. It was here that because of John the Baptist’s ministry and witness, that many people were prepared in their faith and readied in seeing the Christ that John had pointed to. These people came to trust John the Baptist and therefore people were repeatedly saying that - While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man was true. Once again there is a contrast where these people believed with faith and didn’t need the miracles, as compared to the Jews who had all the signs but still did not believe.

So we go back to the question - Is Jesus a Liar? John the Baptist certainly didn’t think so. And those close to John also knew that what he said about Jesus was true. This is what John the Baptist said about Jesus in John 1:34 - I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God. John knew this because God revealed it to him.

Is Jesus The Lord?

v.42 - The final contrast is that in Perea many believed in Jesus compared to the many who did not believe in Judea. There are many other people who were not Pereans, who were close to Christ who also believed Jesus’ claim to be God.

We can call upon the Apostle Paul - who in Colossians 2:8-9 states - See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. 9 For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.

We can call upon Thomas who said to Jesus after He appeared to him after Jesus died and rose again, like He said He would - Thomas says in John 20:28: "My Lord and my God!" - In the following verse - it is interesting what Jesus says - 20:29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
We can call upon the Apostle John who wrote this Gospel and in 1 John 5:20, he states: We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true--even in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life (NIV).

Well….Is Jesus A Liar? or Is Jesus A Lunatic? or Is Jesus The Lord?

For all of us who profess to be Christians, we would all be wasting our time by coming here today if Jesus were a liar. If Jesus were a liar He would be the quote unquote (I say this with sarcastically to those who think Jesus is a liar) - then Jesus would be "the most reliable ‘liar’ " that I know of - because everything that He "lied about" would happen to Him, does happen - including His death and resurrection.

We all would be fools if Jesus were a lunatic - because there is overwhelming testimony from the Bible that all His mental faculties were in place and in fact they were sharper than any man before or after Him. He took on the toughest of His critics the Jews. Now if you are fools because Jesus is a lunatic, then I would be the greatest of fools here today because I have committed my work, my life, my all to Christ.

Allow me to close by reading something that I got from my study Bible (MSB) - The Glories of Christ
　
One of the great tenets of Scripture is the claim that Jesus Christ is completely sufficient for all matters of life and godliness (2 Pet. 1:3, 4)! He is sufficient for creation (Col. 1:16, 17), salvation (Heb. 10:1012), sanctification (Eph. 5:26, 27), and glorification (Rom. 8:30). So pure is He that there is no blemish, stain, spot of sin, defilement, lying, deception, corruption, error, or imperfection (1 Pet. 1:1820).

So complete is He that there is no other God besides Him (Is. 45:5); He is the only begotten Son (John 1:14, 18); all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Him (Col. 2:3); the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily in Him (Col. 2:9); He is heir of all things (Heb. 1:2); He created all things and all things were made by Him, through Him, and for Him (Col. 1:16); He upholds all things by the word of His power (Col. 1:17; Heb. 1:3); He is the firstborn of all creation (Col. 1:15); He is the exact representation of God (Heb. 1:3).

He is the only Mediator between God and man; He is the Sun that enlightens; the Physician that heals; the Wall of Fire that defends; the Friend that comforts; the Pearl that enriches; the Ark that supports; and the Rock to sustain under the heaviest of pressures; He is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty on high (Heb. 1:3; 8:1); He is better than the angels (Heb. 1:414); better than Moses; better than Aaron; better than Joshua; better than Melchizedek; better than all the prophets; greater than Satan (Luke 4:112); and stronger than death (1 Cor. 15:55).

He has no beginning and no end (Rev. 1:17, 18); He is the spotless Lamb of God; He is our Peace (Eph. 2:14); He is our Hope (1 Tim. 1:1); He is our Life (Col. 3:4); He is the living and true Way (John 14:6); He is the Strength of Israel (1 Sam. 15:29); He is the Root and Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star (Rev. 22:16); He is Faithful and True (Rev. 19:11); He is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Heb. 12:1, 2); He is the Captain of our Salvation (Heb. 2:10); He is the Champion; He is the Elect One (Is. 42:1); He is the Apostle and High-Priest of our confession (Heb. 3:1); He is the Righteous Servant (Is. 53:11).

He is the Lord of Hosts, the Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of the whole earth (Is. 54:5); He is the Man of Sorrows (Is. 53:3); He is the Light; He is the Son of Man (Matt. 20:28); He is the Vine; He is the Bread of Life; He is the Door; He is Lord (Phil. 2:1013); He is Prophet, Priest and King (Heb. 1:13); He is our Sabbath rest (Heb. 4:9); He is our Righteousness (Jer. 23:6); He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Is. 9:6); He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4); He is Lord God of hosts; He is Lord of the nations; He is the Lion of Judah; the Living Word; the Rock of Salvation; the Eternal Spirit; He is the Ancient of Days; Creator and Comforter; Messiah; and He is the great I AM (John 8:58)!

These titles of Christ form a powerful testimony from God’s Word….. therefore I come to no other conclusion than the truth - which is…. Jesus is the LORD. Jesus is God and I willingly submit everything to Him….what about you?

John 10: 30-42 A Claim To Be God!

23.08.09 John 10: 30-42 (NASB)

Audio SermonFile: John 10:30-42, Part 1

Going Deeper: Study Guide

A Claim To Be God!

If you remember from last time beginning in verse 22 of chapter 10 - Jesus’ public ministry, in the Gospel of John, begins to come to a close. It is also to be Jesus’ last offer of salvation to the hard hearted Jewish religious authorities. All this takes place during the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem (v.22), about 3.5 months before Jesus’ crucifixion. It was here that the Jews encircled Jesus or surrounded Him, out to get something out of Jesus.

What the Jews were after was an answer to their question - If you are the Christ, tell us plainly (v.24). The dark underlying reason behind this question by the Jewish authorities was that they wanted Jesus to outright publicly declare that He is God. This would in their twisted thinking substantiate a charge of blasphemy, justifying their murderous hatred towards Him, and therefore be able to kill Jesus.

The answer to who Jesus is - is the whole focus of the Gospel of John, and it will help us to understand whether Jesus is God in human flesh or not. Today in our passage we can settle that issue in our minds also. The truth of who Jesus really is - is clearly presented, and it is up to you to receive it in faith or to outright reject it. What ever your conclusion is, the truth of this passage is unchangeable.

The well know author C.S. Lewis in his popular book Mere Christianity wrote these words: "A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic--on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg--or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us."

Through this work of CS Lewis, the argument of a claim to be God by Jesus was crystallized into this popular challenge concerning Jesus…and many of you may have heard someone say this before - Either Jesus is a LIAR, LUNATIC, OR LORD.

And this is what we, like the Jews in our passage are faced with. The push of this passage is a life or death situation.

The people are faced once again with a decision about who this guy Jesus is. Jesus is making all these claims, so who is He? We also need to answer that question for our selves and decide one of two things:

1. Accept Jesus as God who will save you from your sins
OR
2. Out right reject Jesus as God and look for any other way to get to heaven.

Our passage states: 30 "I and the Father are one." 31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, "I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?" 33 The Jews answered Him, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out [to be] God." 34 Jesus answered them, "Has it not been written in your Law, `I said, you are gods'? 35 "If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36 do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, `You are blaspheming,' because I said, `I am the Son of God'? 37 "If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38 but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father." 39 Therefore they were seeking again to seize Him, and He eluded their grasp. 40 And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing, and He was staying there. 41 Many came to Him and were saying, "While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man was true." 42 Many believed in Him there.

Today we are going to examine these three questions. And with the answers we will need to come to a decision our self about Jesus’ CLAIM TO BE GOD - these are the 3 questions:

Is Jesus A Liar?
Is Jesus A Lunatic?
Or Is Jesus The Lord?

As I go through the passage I will be asking these 3 questions. We will be covering only the first 4 verses (so down to and including verse 33) and we will finish the rest next week. So we are going to have a bit shorter sermon, as I try to go slower, so you can understand this very important passage. As we go through our 3 questions - I am not going to be dealing with each question completely one by one, but I am going to return to each question as it pertains to the verses of today’s passage. So As I go through the passage I will be asking the 3 questions several times. Let's begin.

Is Jesus A Liar?

v.30 - As we open in verse 30 Jesus makes a very deep and very powerful statement. It is the culmination and the pinnacle of all that has been revealed by Jesus through out this Gospel, and in the direct context of the verses before this one in chapter 10. And having stated that, we must understand that as Jesus spoke of our salvation, that it is firmly in His grip… and so also He is the guarantor of our salvation.

Therefore as we get into our passage today we now may ask our first question - IS JESUS A LIAR? Jesus says - I and the Father are one. In order to determine if what Jesus had just said is a lie or not, we should try to understand what Jesus is actually saying. Once again we need to keep the immediate context of the passage back in verses 28-29 in focus. It is also important to keep this in context with what is said in the broader context of chapter 10 and even the whole Gospel to come to a sound conclusion. In 10:28-29, what Jesus was saying about His sheep, is that no one would be able to snatch them out of His hand, or the Father’s hand - that this is a work that is of both the Father and the Son. They equally share in this.

So in verse 30 - Jesus is not saying that He and the Father are one person - because an examination of the word one in verse 30 - tells us that the word one is gender specific in Greek. In this case it is neuter and not masculine. Why is this important to understand? If the word one was masculine then it would be that Jesus is the same person as God the Father. Therefore what Jesus is claiming is to be equal in mind, purpose, and action as the Father. Yet Jesus’ statement presupposes His unity in both nature and essence with the Father, as we will discover when we get down to verse 33.

So Jesus is not claiming to be God the Father, which would be wrong because when we look at the Bible and understand the nature of the One true God we understand that there are three persons to the godhead. This is what theologian Paul Enns states: "While there is one God, there are three eternally distinct and equal persons in the godhead, existing as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each is distinct from the other, yet the three are united as one God. The term Triunity may best express the idea."

The full depth of what is presented in the Bible is affirmed by it, but for our finite minds it is impossible to grasp this unique unity of the one true God.

Jesus is God the Son.

If Jesus was one and the same as God the Father, then that would go against what the Apostle John was inspired to declare in his own gospel, back in chapter 1. John 1:1-2 clearly states this - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. So in order for Jesus the Word, to be with God in the beginning - then it should be apparent that Jesus is not the same person as God the Father. Later on in verse 14 we find this: 1:14 - The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

So what Jesus is saying to the Jews is that He and the Father share a common bond of unity, and oneness in purpose. And that is a serious statement to make. This doesn’t mean that Jesus is not claiming to be God. It certainly doesn’t mean that Jesus is another ‘god’ - as at least a couple of the cults claim. This should be clear from the overall context of our Gospel. If we try to answer the question was Jesus a liar? We can look at what Jesus asked of the Jews: 8:46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?

Jesus challenged anyone to prove that He was a sinner. Now if He were a liar then He would be guilty of sin, and everything that He said in His life would be open to question. But no one brought forth any legitimate charge against Him of sin. Therefore Jesus is not a liar. Back to the passage…. what Jesus does say is not misinterpreted by the Jews. Jesus’ truthful response is in answer to the Jews desire from Jesus to tell them plainly, whether He is the Christ or not (v.24) - so He did. They fully understand that Jesus is declaring unity of essence and nature with the Father and therefore He is claiming Deity.

So the question is raised - when Jesus claims to have the attributes of God - is He lying? Allow me to suggest to you the answer NO - because Jesus is without sin, so His statement cannot be a lie. On top of this, is the reason from the text later in verse 33 - of why the Jews want to stone Jesus. Well then ….

Is Jesus A Lunatic?

v.31 - Because of Jesus’ concise declaration, the Jews are instantly stirred into an uncontrollable rage - the plain truth was intolerable to them. So they picked up stones again to stone Him. This was not the first time and if you remember back to chapter 8 - where Jesus made Himself equal to God - He at that point said before Abraham was born, I am! (8:58), using the very own words that God used to identify Himself to Moses. In that incident the Jews attempted to stone Jesus, but He slipped away because it was not according to the will of God. Ha… so Jesus must be a lunatic! Was He? Was Jesus such a lunatic that He risked His life just to make a statement?

v.32 - Now, the same thing as in chapter 8 is emerging. We should note how Jesus lines up His defense, drawing His opponents back to the signs that He performed. Jesus doesn’t back down and cower at the assassination attempt. He doesn’t back down on His clear declaration of equality with God. But Jesus goes forward a notch and pushes His opponents to take a hard look at His many good works which were performed at the bidding of the Father. What I want you to keep in the back of your mind as we go through this passage, is this - would a lunatic be able to have the kind of intellect that Jesus demonstrates in countering His opponents? So we need to ask - Is Jesus A Lunatic?

So Jesus refers to the many good works from the Father that Jesus showed them. Once again there is a close intimation of relationship with the Father through whom the miracles proceed out of. It is interesting to note that Jesus says that these were good works /miracles. It underscored the Pharisees hidden ingratitude not only to Christ who did the miracles, but their hypocritical profession of God as their Father (8:41). These works demonstrated clearly, by offering undeniable proof of what Jesus stated in verse 30 - I and the Father are one. Jesus said back in John 5:36 - But the testimony which I have is greater than [the testimony of] John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish--the very works that I do--testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me. So Jesus response was to extinguish the false charges of blasphemy against Him.

In Jesus’ response He raises the question to His assailants - for which of them are you stoning Me? So in other words…for what miracle are you wanting to stone me for….and in between the lines as we expand this verse…. since when does the Law prescribe stoning for good works? Of course they would not be able to give an answer to that. Remember that the Jews had the stones in their hands, they probably even had their arms raised ready to pelt the Messiah with as much violent force that they could muster to satisfy their sinful rage. So what we find here is that the Jews, in going against Christ they are reviling God - in fact they are the real blasphemers.

Is Jesus A Liar?

v.33 - So the only thing that the Jewish leaders could say is - For a good work we do not stone You. But this was a denial of the facts - an outright lie - Jesus wasn’t a liar, they were - for that was why they wanted to stone Jesus when He healed the blind man on the Sabbath and made the declaration in chapter 8:58 - "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" Knowing that they couldn’t go down that avenue, they need to come up with something else. Therefore they had to try the tactic of a charge of blasphemy.

What is Blasphemy? It is an insult, irreverence, or contempt towards God, or anything that takes His honour, glory, or majesty away - like saying, I and the Father are one, which is the act of claiming attributes which only belong to God. The Jew’s claim that they knew exactly what Jesus was proclaiming - that He was God - which would be in the Jew’s minds blasphemy, since He was as they state and assume, a man - and the OT penalty was death by stoning if a man were to claim to be equal to, or claim to be God. Therefore in His statement of verse 30 - Jesus does in fact implicitly make [Himself] out [to be] God. Jesus does claim to be God.

So was Jesus a Liar? Well I think it is clear from this passage - and the very words of the Jews spoke - that the Jews took Jesus’ declarations to be true. As an important side note - Jesus claimed Deity…not divinity. Deity is a claim to being God, and divinity is a claim to being God like - there is a big difference between these two words.

Is Jesus A Lunatic?

Now if Jesus was not claiming that He is God - just think about this - and remember the stones…the Jews got their fingers on the trigger - so why doesn’t Jesus say hey wait a moment…wait a moment…please put those stones down…hey you guys got it all wrong …. I’m not saying that I am God…let me clear up this misunderstanding? He doesn’t say anything because, Jesus does - as the Jews state - make Yourself out [to be] God. Jesus acknowledges the claim to be God - as true, because it is.

Now we really begin to see Jesus’ intellectual genius in His crystal clear, logical, and valid defense. As to the charge of blasphemy, it is not valid. If Jesus were - as the Jews also stated - being a man - then yes it would be blasphemy for declaring unity of essence and nature with the Father. But, it is not blasphemy because Jesus is God. And being God, He cannot be taking away any honour, glory, or majesty from Himself - He is who He is - in other words as He declared I AM.

Well we are going to leave this passage at this point, and there is much to digest in understanding what Jesus is stating and claiming. And their is an immense depth of impact of the truth contained here, if rightly understood and believed.

John 10:22-29 Firmly In The Grip Of The Saviour

16.08.09 John 10:22-29 (NASB)

Audio Sermon File: John 10:22-29

Going Deeper: Study Guide

Firmly In The Grip Of The Saviour

This is a letter that a Christian wrote to his pastor that I read from a book:

I’ve been attending [this church] for several years. As a result of a growing conviction in my heart, your preaching, and my seeming powerlessness against the temptations which arise in my heart and which I constantly succumb to, my growing doubts have led me to believe that I'm not saved.

How sad it is, [Pastor], for me not to be able to enter in because of the sin which clings to me and from which I long to be free. How bizarre for one who has had advanced biblical training and who teaches in Sunday School with heartfelt conviction! So many times I have determined in my heart to repent, to shake loose my desire to sin, to forsake all for Jesus, only to find myself doing the sin I don't want to do and not doing the good I want to do.

After my fiancee and I broke up, I memorized Ephesians as part of an all-out effort against sin, only to find myself weaker and more painfully aware of my sinfulness, more prone to sin than ever before, and grabbing cheap thrills to push back the pain of lost love. This occurs mostly in the heart, …. but that's where it counts and that's where we live. I sin because I'm a sinner. I'm like a soldier without armor running across a battlefield getting shot up by fiery darts from the enemy.

I couldn't leave the church if I wanted to. I love the people, and I'm enthralled by the Gospel of the beautiful Messiah. But I'm a pile of manure on the white marble floor of Christ, a mongrel dog that sneaked in the back door of the King’s banquet to lick the crumbs off the floor, and by being close to Christians who are rich in the blessings of Christ, I get some of the overflow and ask you to pray for me as you think best. (from the intro to Saved Without A Doubt - J. MacArthur)

What a gripping letter of the reality that exists in Christians - isn’t it? And perhaps it is a reflection of the way that some of you may be feeling at this moment, or this week, or recently. Have you often wondered, even if you have been a Christian for a long time, why your emotions on the issue of your salvation is like a ship in a storm - tossed here and there? Have you often wrestled with how it is possible that you could be so unsettled in your faith, when you sincerely were drawn to Christ and then came to Him in genuine repentance, but now you are lacking a firm assurance of that faith?

Well it is utterly important to understand that the way that we live our life as a Christian - is tied in directly to the reality of our salvation. If we are wavering in the assurance of our eternal security we will be constantly living in doubt and fear. Our lives will not be as productive as the Lord would desire and we would always be battling the "spiritual blues." So today we are going to examine and focus on that very issue - eternal security. And I want you to see and understand, and apply the truth of this passage to your life. I want you to know that we as genuine Christians are - Firmly In The Grip Of The Saviour. Please open up your Bibles to today’s passage from John 10:22-29.

22 At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem; 23 it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. 24 The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, "How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." 25 Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father's name, these testify of Me. 26 "But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. 27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 "My Father, who has given [them] to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch [them] out of the Father's hand.

Jesus’ public ministry, in the Gospel of John, begins to close from here to the end of chapter 10. In addition our passage begins, what turns out to be, Jesus’ last offer of salvation to the hard hearted Jewish religious authorities.

v.22 - Our passage opens at the time of the Feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem. This would mark this section in terms of time frame, to take place possibly about three months later - which would be about 3.5 months before Jesus’ crucifixion. This feast was a remembrance of the rededication of the temple. Israel for many years had been under the Syrian persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes. Antiochus had pillaged and desecrated the Jewish Temple, in around 170 BC, by setting up pagan altars and sacrificing pigs on it. There was a total sense of violation - it would be like this church being broken into - and completely vandalized - and an occult set up their practices here. Therefore the Jewish people began a revolt, led by a man named, Judas Maccabaeus. It was in about November/December in our calendar, of the year 164 BC that the temple was set free, therefore restoring the worship of God once again. In remembrance, the Feast of the Dedication or what many you may identify with is Hanukkah was established. It is quite possible that the Apostle John mentions the Feast, hinting that Jesus fulfills the hopes of deliverance for the Jews.

It was winter, which would have been the wet and windy season.
v.23 - This may explain why Jesus was walking on the east side of the temple, in an area known as the portico of Solomon. This area was covered and afforded protection from the weather.

v.24 - While Jesus was walking through this area, the Jews gathered around Him - that is they literally encircled Jesus or surrounded Him. These Jews were out to get something out of Jesus and they didn’t want Him to leave without giving an answer. They were held in suspense since the last time they were with Jesus, back in the first half of chapter 10. Jesus had on several occasions made reference to His identity, yet they could not understand it properly, largely due to their own spiritual blindness and rejection of Christ. What the Jews were after was an answer to their question - If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.

They were wrestling with a seemingly unending dilemma in their minds. Most of them were engaged in rejecting the messianic claims of Jesus, but… what if? What if…. Jesus was really the Messiah that was long ago promised to Israel? So it appears that some of them - you could say that they were losing sleep over this issue - therefore they want a clear and definite answer from Jesus - whether He is the Christ OR He is not the Christ - Yes OR No. (And I am going to develop this aspect of this passage more next time).

Yet the dark underlying reason why the Jewish authorities wanted to plainly know, which was the predominate reason, was that they wanted Jesus to outright publicly declare that He is God. This would in their twisted thinking substantiate a charge of blasphemy, justifying their murderous hatred towards Him, and therefore be able to kill Jesus.

The answer to this question is the whole focus of the Gospel of John - to present aspects of Jesus’ life, so that we may believe that He is the Son of God (cf. 20:31).

v.25 - Well let us see what Jesus says. Jesus replies - I told you - who He was, but the Jews do not believe. We know that Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well when she asked about the Messiah - there Jesus said I who speak to you am He. Jesus also revealed Himself to the man born blind in chapter 9 - there Jesus asked if the man believed in the Son of Man - and Jesus responded by saying - You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you (9:37). But to the Jews, Jesus never made any clear and unmistakable statements like these - but He did speak with strong implied statements, like back in 8:58 - where Jesus said - before Abraham was born, I am! - so He told them already. In addition Jesus had already given them the answer through the works He did in the Father’s name. It is these works of Jesus that demonstrated Jesus as being the Messiah. Yet because of their faithlessness - they reject Jesus’ words and works - and therefore they did not allow the miracles to testify of Jesus.

v.26 - So the conclusion that Jesus clearly emphasizes is that these Jews are not Jesus’ sheep due to their failure to believe. In fact in chapter 8:44 Jesus clearly stated this to them - You belong to your father, the devil. Now Jesus goes on to elaborate that these hardened Jews were not of His flock. They believed that they were secure in their God, but in reality Jesus is saying - no you are not. Jesus does this by speaking about His real sheep. This is what we are going to focus upon today - that we as Jesus’ flock are Firmly In The Grip Of The Saviour.

Do you remember the Peanuts cartoon character Linus, who had to take his blanket everywhere he goes. Today I am going to offer you a security blanket, which is a better understanding of the nature of our salvation in Jesus Christ. That our eternal security - or can I say - ‘eternal security blanket’ is found in our almighty God. Our text states:

27 "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 "My Father, who has given [them] to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch [them] out of the Father's hand. We will examine verses 27-29 by looking at these realities:

We Are Secure Because We Are Christ’s Sheep (v.27)
We Are Secure Because The Lord Has Decreed It (v.28)
We Are Secure Because We Have A Powerful God (v.29)

1. We Are Secure Because We Are Christ’s Sheep (v.27)

v.27 - Jesus continues and says - My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. In the context of chapter 10 - this was the point made to them back in the first part of chapter 10 also - that Jesus’ sheep know His voice and they love and obey the Shepherd. To make the point stronger Jesus says - I know them - emphasizing the fact that Jesus as the Shepherd and owner - He can identify the sheep in His flock. There is an intimate relationship so Jesus’ sheep will follow Him. It is interesting to note that the Greek tense of the word follow, indicates a continuous habitual pattern of following - the implications are that the true sheep will never depart from Jesus (this is developed in the next verse).

Do you find yourself often with DOUBT? Foremost make sure that you are saved. The Apostle Paul was concerned about this reality in the Corinthian church - 2 Cor. 13:5 - Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith ; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless, of course, you fail the test?

A summary test is to see if there is to examine yourself to see if there is an accompanying holiness to your confession. Ask yourself this question - Is there a continuing and present work of the Holy Spirit in your life? If there is not you have reason to question your assurance. A good place to put yourself under examination is in 1 John. If you pass all the tests that the Apostle John presents then you have good reason to rejoice in your eternal security. After testing yourself against Scripture to see if you are a true sheep, it should go without saying that we should realize that our faith is not dependent upon good works. I bring this up often because when we were saved were came out of a works based society. Even institutions like the Roman Catholic Church place their assurance in faith plus works and NOT in faith alone and in Christ alone. So we need to be on guard for this enemy.

Yes it is true that we are to do good works - that is our purpose in Christ, but our relationship to Christ is what undergirds our works. Works and good deeds are done in response to our salvation. We are saved unto good works and NOT that good works save us. If you are counting on your good deeds to keep you in God’s flock you better think again - that is what the Pharisees were doing. Many Christians can think this way too. Imagine if this is what our salvation depended upon. This would mean that your salvation is only as secure as your lack of faith - and that would be quite insecure, wouldn’t it? You would have little sense of security because if you are not faithful then you would feel that Jesus is going to take back eternal life from you. So what this kind of thinking does is it drives you into a vicious cycle of despair - you serve God with a wrong attitude - you falsely believe that if Jesus is going to take back eternal life, then you want to break free from this pattern, you all the more through human effort do only what Christ’s power can accomplish - that is to set you free from works based righteousness. You would have a miserable and unfulfilled life, because you can never merit eternal life on your own.

We should also note that the other extreme may be true too. That we know that we are secure in Christ, so we don’t bother to grow, we don’t bother to get to know Christ better, we don’t bother to serve Christ and His church, and we maybe even will intentionally sin counting upon our grace (cf. Rom. 6:1). Both these extremes are unBiblical.

Do you find yourself often with DOUBT? Make sure that you hear the Shepherd’s voice. That is submit yourself to Biblical and God centered teaching and serious study. Teaching that is geared towards man will tickle your ears. It will cause you to leave the worship only feeling good - and you might be thinking well that is what I want - what is wrong with that? I need to feel good.
Yes we want to be assured and rejoice, but the issue is not how do we feel about our self, but the issue is how does The Shepherd see us. God centered teaching will provide a balance that we can grow under, so in many cases it may be hard to swallow, because Spirit driven teaching will not flatter our soul, nor soothe our conscience, but it will convict with power from on high. Therefore we are assured in the areas we are pleasing God, and we will be unsettled, in the areas we need to conform to Christ.

Listen to what it says in Eph. 1:18-20 - I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places (NASB).

This passage clearly tells us that our security is not at all dependent upon how we feel, or what we do - but instead it is solely based on (v. 19 beginning) - the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. So our security comes from the objective truth of God’s Word and not of our own feelings. Our hope is not founded upon our faithfulness, but it is founded upon God’s faithfulness - (v. 19 end - 20) - it is the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ. If you feel a little shaky in your faith, then go to God’s Word and read it, believe it, follow it, and you will be assured.

2. We Are Secure Because The Lord Has Decreed It (v.28)

v.28 - Jesus gives His sheep the free gift of eternal life with Him. This begins here on earth as the Father draws a person to Him; then grants faith to that person to believe in, and understand who He is and who Christ is; we hear the gospel; the belief blossoms into recognition that we are sinners; we come to a point were we understand God’s wrath for sin; we understand that God sent Christ to die for our sins so that we could be forgiven; we count the cost of following Christ as God continues to draw us; we sincerely confess and repent of our sin to the Lord; and we are forgiven of all our sin and through Jesus we are granted eternal life - we are a part of God’s family so we have the Holy Spirit living in us to make all those changes which will bring glory to God.

Jesus provides eternal life and it continues on into an unending future. Eternal life speaks of infinite time but we should also remember that it speaks about the quality of that time. It is a quality that we right now can only partly comprehend as revealed through the Bible and then experience through daily living. Though our grasp of what eternal life is limited right now - we know that it will be an absolute blessing - since we will be in the presence of, and in unending fellowship with the Lord in the future.

Christians will never perish. The Greek words translated as never, is a double negative - two "no’s" side by side, which is the strongest and most definitive way to express impossibility. No one will snatch them out of My hand. - that means if a wolf comes, a thief, robber, or even a hired hand - not even Satan - if any desires to take us out of the fold, it will be impossible, because we are guarded by Jesus. So we can be encouraged and comforted that when Jesus calls us to be His sheep, it is immutable (that declaration is unchangeable). He has us in His grip - we are eternally secure. We are eternally His and it is not dependent upon us.

Those who have made that profession for Christ and may have even lived like a Christian, yet later fall away - and some of you may have seen this - and they deny Christ and never want anything to do with Him anymore - based on a passage as this, we must seriously consider that their profession was never genuine in the first place - you could say that they were playing Christian, but were never part of the true flock. If Christ saves it is permanent. Salvation - eternal security is guaranteed through Christ’s personal pledge - His decree. Jesus will protect His sheep.

Do you find yourself often with DOUBT? This despite the Lord’s decree, could arise out of an uncertainty to the time of our salvation. Too much emphasis in our day and age by the notion that we have to know the exact time we were saved. Modern evangelist make the act of raising a hand, signing a commitment card, coming forward to the altar, reciting a prayer - the end all, of salvation. Now if that were the acid test, then if you didn’t remember your natural birth date - would that mean that you would wonder if your alive - of course not.

In verse 28, salvation is in the power of Christ who grants eternal life - and Jesus gives that, often in a way were we can’t always pinpoint. This may be particularly true for you, especially if you grew up in the church - we can’t be certain if it was the prayer as a child, or was it the time that I felt really convicted of sin because I did something really bad, or was it through the teaching, or was it ____??

We don’t need to have a specific moment to make our salvation real, but for some of us it may be the case. Our assurance of salvation should come not from the past, but more importantly from the present. Look at the pattern of your life - do you live a holy and righteous life? Do you adorn the attitudes of Christ-likeness? Do posses true Christian character?

Eph. 1:13-14 - is a classic statement assuring us that our faith is secure if we are in Christ - And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory. The indwelling Holy Spirit is the seal that Christians have which guarantees us our heavenly inheritance. Do you experience the life changing work of the Holy Spirit in your life? Is the fruit of the Spirit evident in your life?

3. We Are Secure Because We Have A Powerful God (v.29)

v.29 - The Father protects the destiny of the sheep through His vast and infinite resources. The sheep are granted eternal life, it is not something which the sheep gained for themselves, it was given as a free gift - unmerited and undeserved. So as it is that the Father entrusts or has given the sheep to the Great Shepherd, Jesus Christ. We as sheep are weak, our faith is often weak, and we are ever inclined to waver in our faith, but God has us in His invincible grip - no one can snatch us out of the Father’s hand.

Think about this….if it were remotely possible to remove one’s salvation - to lose eternal life, then what needs to be done first? It would necessitate that whether it is Satan or anyone one else - that God Himself must be overpowered first in order for that to take place. So can God be overcome? Can anyone steal something from God? Is anyone more powerful than our great God and Saviour? NO.

Do you find yourself often with DOUBT? Then you should make sure that you understand God’s grace and mercy. One reason we doubt our salvation is that we don’t really understand the concept of forgiveness. We may have sinned and we don’t think God is powerful enough to forgive us - so we end up on this emotional roller coaster. We all have a conscience and God has given us that to convict us of sin and to bring guilt to bear upon our life - so that we can change. But we need to realize that our conscience does not know anything about grace and mercy.
So if we don’t balance what our conscience is telling us with the understanding of forgiveness - that God has forgiven us completely in Christ - that we have and will continue to receive His grace and mercy as His sheep, then we will be un-necessarily burdened by guilt, which leads to a lack of assurance.

This is very important to comprehend because many Christians live in the fear of temptation. They live their lives fearing the fear of sin. Or we fear the reality that we will sin, until we are glorified in Christ. If sin overcomes you, it is at that point which you will most likely feel the lack of assurance. Fear amputates the growth and maturity that God want for us. We will end up re-hashing over and over again the questions of - Was I sorry enough for my sin? Did I repent enough? What’s wrong with my faith - is it enough?

So in order to counter this kind of fear, it will help us if we understand that we have a powerful God. Jesus is all sufficient for us in all things, He is all powerful…. then we can live in the light of His power and grace and we will not be overwhelmed, but rather our minds will be renewed, and our lives transformed.

We can live in full assurance of our eternal destination, as Paul wrote to the Romans about this issue - Romans 5:1-11 - Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! 10 For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

The truth that we are held firmly in God’s powerful grip is marked out by six aspects of our binding relationship in Christ, as extracted from the passage I just read. These are:

The peace we have with God in Christ (v.1)
The grace we now stand in the light of Christ (v.2)
The hope of glory of God (v. 2-5)
The outpouring and receipt of God’s love through Jesus (v.5-8)
The certain deliverance from God’s wrath against sin (v.9-10)
The joy we have in God through Christ (v.11)

There are many more passages that speak to the issue of our eternal security, and I have barely scratched the surface. But in today’s passage we have the strongest passage on this reality. So we can leave any doubt behind since:

We Are Secure Because We Are Christ’s Sheep (v.27)
We Are Secure Because The Lord Has Decreed It (v.28)
We Are Secure Because We Have A Powerful God (v.29)

When we understand objectively that we are secure in Christ we will be able to live out a fruitful and productive life for the Lord. We will not need to suffer the unnecessary misery of not knowing, and we will live in the newness of life which Christ has granted to His sheep.

The impact of assurance is far reaching as it will give you a right response in worship, grant joy in your life, stir you to faithful service, create a deep passion in prayer, guard you against false teachers, increase your love for Christ, spur you on to true fellowship, help you endure and persevere, and you will look forward to the day that you see Christ and to receive from Him an unfading crown of glory (1 Pet. 5:4).

John 10:1-21 How To Listen To The Shepherd's Voice - Part 2

09.08.09 John 10:1-21 (NASB)

Audio Sermon File: John 10:1-21

Going Deeper: Study Guide

How To Listen To The Shepherd's Voice - Part 2

Today we are continuing on in The Gospel of John, as we started the first section a couple of weeks ago. So we are in part 2 of John 10:1-21. As a result of Part 1, we discovered what being a shepherd involved in Bible times, so that we could understand what Jesus is saying in our passage. In chapter 10 Jesus continues to address the Pharisees, and the formerly blind man whom Jesus miraculously healed, and those who were around in chapter 9.

Shepherding in the Ancient Near East is vastly different from what we may be accustomed to in North America. The shepherd’s job was difficult and varied and the main tasks were to protect his sheep from robbers, wild predators, and to search out pastures and water supply. We also learned that in Biblical times the shepherd would be seen leading the flock - going forward first instead of driving the sheep from the rear. The shepherd of Biblical times would name his sheep and the sheep would be able to recognize the shepherd’s voice. The shepherd loved his sheep and counted his flock one by one as they entered the sheep pen. The metaphor of a shepherd was used extensively in the Bible to depict the duty of kings, priests, prophets, and leaders - that they were entrusted to faithful oversight of God’s people. The image of a shepherd is used of God in relationship to His people, and Jesus being our Chief Shepherd.

It is this very background that we understand what Jesus is teaching us today as He addresses the Pharisees, who failed as Israel’s shepherds for a multitude of reasons. And in the direct context of chapter 9, that they had failed in regards to the case of the blind man - in seeing the clear sign of who Jesus was, due to their own spiritual blindness.

Now I invite you to follow along in your Bibles as I read from John chapter 10, starting in verse 1 to give us the context from last time….reading down to verse 21:

"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. 2 "But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. 3 "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 "When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 "A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers." 6 This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things were which He had been saying to them. 7 So Jesus said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 "All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. 9 "I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have [it] abundantly. 11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 "He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters [them]. 13 ["He flees] because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. 14 "I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, 15 even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 "I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock [with] one shepherd. 17 "For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. 18 "No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father." 19 A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them were saying, "He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?" 21 Others were saying, "These are not the sayings of one demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he?"

There are 3 responses for us to make in response to God’s Word. If you want to know how we can listen to the Shepherd, Jesus - it is achieved through 3 areas:

1. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice By Knowing The Saviour (v.1-10)
2. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice Through Commitment (v.11-16)
3. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice Through Love And Obedience (v.17-21)

Last time we covered only the first application - point 1, which I will give a brief review…
1. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice by Knowing The Saviour (v.1-10)

Once again Jesus has something important to state - Truly, truly, I say to you… adressing the religious teachers and priests in the way that the people viewed them as the shepherds of the people of Israel. Jesus contrasts this with those who are indeed true shepherd’s that belong to Christ.

In Jesus’ time sheep were kept in herds in an open sky fold of the sheep, that was enclosed usually with a stone wall. There was one entrance to the fold of the sheep, guarded by the shepherd or by a hired hand. The shepherd would guard the sheep by sitting or lying down in the entrance. Anyone who does not enter by the door into the fold - that is one who climbs over the wall - clearly was up to no good. This is how the thief and a robber would enter, circumventing the normal entrance guarded by the shepherd. Only the shepherd, has the right to go in by the door. The doorkeeper would open the gate for him, and because the Shepherd calls his own sheep by name and they know their master’s voice, so they respond. Now that all his sheep are brought out the shepherd leads them out by going ahead of them. When the shepherd used his voice his sheep follow him.

Now if a stranger tried to lead the sheep, they will not follow that person - even if it was a shepherd of another flock - rather the sheep would flee because they are so in tune with their master’s voice.

So Jesus used this figure of speech - addressing the Pharisees, but they did not understand any of it because they were spiritually blind. Therefore Jesus now gets more direct and declares - I am the door of the sheep therefore applying these figures of speech to Himself. Once again we see Jesus using the emphatic I AM statement - expressing His Deity and metaphorically His role in the salvation of those who would believe in Him and truly enter into His fold. In contrast all those who came before Jesus whether false Messiahs, false teachers, false leaders - they are the ones who entered the fold by climbing over the wall - these are the thieves and robbers (like the Pharisees). These were you could say the wolves in shepherd’s clothing.

Very plainly and simply Jesus is the door. This emphasizes the reality and truth that Jesus is the only way to enter into a saving relationship with God.- If anyone enters through Jesus Christ, that person will be saved - there is no other means of being saved from your sins - this is God’s only ordained method. If you enter through the gate - that is Jesus Christ - then you are delivered from the wrath of God for your sins and brought inside to be a part of God’s flock to be able to enjoy the rich blessings of God’s pasture.

Jesus now expands upon the character and motives of the thief which is self-centered. For the thief comes to do damage to the flock, and stays only to steal but is also prepared to and kill and destroy. By emphatic contrast - Jesus has come to offer abundant life to His sheep - and have it abundantly. It is through God’s Word that God gives us the most intimate glimpse of who He is, who the Shepherd is, and His eternal plans.

As Jesus states - I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved (v.9). As God draws and you respond, the one who comes in humble faith to Jesus will be transformed by the Word, and will be given the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, upon being saved. The Holy Spirit is our resident truth teacher. Without the Holy Spirit we will not know the Shepherd’s voice… we will not be able to interpret and apply God’s Word. If you don’t enter in at the right gateway your efforts at hearing the Shepherd’s voice will be ineffective because in order to intimately know the voice of the Shepherd we must be born again. If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Saviour then you cannot know how to discern His voice from the rest of all the other multitude of voices in this world.

If we do have Jesus as our Saviour then we can hear His voice through His Word, the Bible. This is His way of communicating with us. We Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice By Knowing The Saviour - through God’s Word and His salvation from our sins. Not only this but as we get into our text for today starting in John 10:11 we find that -

2. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice Through Commitment (v.11-16)

v.11 - Once again we see Jesus using the emphatic I AM statement - Jesus says in verse 11 - I am the good shepherd. The word good in the Greek does not mean morally good - but has a deeper meaning - it means total beauty and loveliness. In other words Jesus is saying that He is the pre-eminent good One, excellent in every way, lovely and beautiful in every regard. This is a comforting statement for Christians of all time and for us today. Jesus takes care of us in every way as a shepherd does to his own flock. Jesus is our consummate Ruler, Leader, Comforter, and Protector. Jesus is the good shepherd because of something greater that Jesus has willingly and voluntarily done for us - that is the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep - He is the good shepherd and not just a shepherd - there is no other Shepherd (it should bring to mind Psalm 23 - The Lord is my shepherd…). This is the ultimate care that Jesus affords for His sheep.

It was in Jesus’ day that a shepherd protect the flock, but it was rare that a shepherd would go to the extent of dying in order to save a sheep. If a shepherd did die in trying to save one of the flock, it was most likely by accident. A shepherd’s death would mean disaster to the flock, but with Jesus’ death He offers true abundant life - eternal life for those who would be a part of His flock. So Jesus’ words are somewhat shocking because of the extent of care and protection that Jesus offers - yet this was the very purpose of His mission here on earth.

1John 4:10 speaks of the great love which the good shepherd has for His sheep - In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son [to be] the propitiation for our sins. Jesus sacrifice is the propitiation, the appeasement or the satisfaction…. in simpler terms Jesus’ death on a cross satisfied the demands of God’s holiness for the punishment of sin - when Jesus died in our place, He was able to satisfy God and avert His wrath upon those who believe.

v.12 - Jesus contrasts the results of what a hired hand would do. Since he is not the owner of the sheep, so he has no genuine attachment to the flock. Instead, what does he do? When he sees the wolf coming, he leaves the sheep and flees - boom… the guy is instantly outa there. The result is that the wolf snatches them and presumably the wolf is able to kill some of the sheep, and then the rest of the flock is running in all different directions for ‘dear life’ - they scatter.

v.13 - The man flees because he is a hired hand - this guy is not going to stick around and risk his life because the bottom line is that he is not concerned about the sheep - he is only getting paid, and this is just a job to him - he’s in it for the money. These statements about the hired hand are directed squarely at the Jewish religious leaders. They did not care for God’s sheep, in fact were the stranger, robbers, and thieves - they were spiritually blind… therefore Jesus is saying to them that they were religious hired hands, solely in it for the money and status.

Today there are many who are hired hands that they do ministry for the money - religious mercenaries. You can see scores of these ‘hired hands’ on so called religious TV programs - all decked out in flashy clothes, glitzy sets, and sometimes in unbelievably thick make-up, and big hair. Then there are those who by their outrageous claims to miraculous powers - and if you ever notice it is always tied back to money - entice you to give and you will be blessed …. Send a donation and we will send you special anointing oil….and the underlying message is that if you lack faith you won’t give - and then you won’t get from God.

There also exists in the church these paid professionals who are pastors, preachers, teachers - and how we spot them is that when the going gets tough or when another ministry is more lucrative they are the first ones to split - they have no care nor love for God’s sheep and what will happen to them - because they place a price on the ministry. These are the ones who do just enough to make their stay in the ministry comfortable, profitable, and to go beyond the call of paid duty is out of the question. You could say that they are out to fleece the sheep.

With warning we should be awaken to our own motives in serving the Lord - those engaged in ministry. We too can lack that commitment to Christ and do ministry because we are going to get something in exchange - maybe we after prestige, power, maybe we think that God is now obligated to bless us. We are committed for what we can get out of the Lord and not because of our commitment to the Lord. To serve Him, must solely be a response to His saving grace - with no strings attached from us.

v.14 - Once again Jesus highlights that He is the good shepherd. Jesus says - I know My own - the word know as I have mentioned in the past is the Greek word that expresses intimate, personal, experiential knowledge. In the same way Jesus says - and my sheep know me - the same Greek word for know - in the same way that Jesus relates to His sheep, His sheep also relate to their Master.

v.15 - This is not a superficial relationship, but it is a deep and far reaching commitment. This relationship between Jesus and His sheep is comparable to the relationship between Jesus-God the Son… and God the Father. It is in this context of relationship and love that Jesus says again - and I lay down My life for the sheep. Jesus has a vested interest in His flock and because of this Jesus doesn’t abandon the sheep, but He gives His life for His sheep without hesitation.

We can sometimes only can begin to comprehend what it means that Jesus knows us. It is Jesus’ intimate knowledge of us that we can cherish for He knows our weaknesses as well as strengths. He realizes if we are fully submissive to Him or whether we are stubborn to His shaping of us. Jesus knows the very needs that puncture our hearts and He brings healing. Jesus our Great Shepherd cares for us and leads us to trust and love Him more.

v.16 - In verse 16 Jesus speaks of other sheep, which are not of this fold - these are His sheep, faithful followers of Christ, which are not in the context - those who are of Jewish descent. This statement speaks of the breadth of the gospel and the scope of salvation - it is not limited to the Jews, but is offered to all who believe. These already being Jesus’ sheep - will hear His voice with anticipation and eagerness ready to respond. So Jesus with a sense of mission has the urgent task to bring them also, together into the one flock of Christ, with Him as their Great shepherd. In Christ through the gospel, He through His power is able to unify diverse people into the one big family of God. And this should be the vision of all churches, in our local context, to bring together into the church God’s sheep - no matter what your history is, your social status, cultural background - we should seek as Christ does to be committed to being one big family under the Great Shepherd - without any distinctions - an all nations church, which is a great commission church.

Jesus’ knowledge of us is deep as it is wide, and we can know His voice if we are committed to Him the Good Shepherd. Let me remind you of Romans 8:35-39 - Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Finally…

3. You Can Know The Shepherd’s Voice Through Love And Obedience (v.17-21)

v.17 - Verse 17 is a little bit tricky to understand upon first reading. It may be taken wrongly by thinking that the only reason that the Father loves Jesus the Son is because He sacrifices His life - so a faulty conclusion is that apart from Jesus’ act to lay down His life, there is little or no love from the Father. But instead the correct understanding is this - the Father’s love is drawn out, or you could say magnified or exhalted, when Jesus will lay down His life voluntarily for His sheep, when He bore our sin upon Himself to satisfy God’s wrath. 2 Cor. 5:20 states - He made Him who knew no sin [to be] sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (NASB). But this is not all - Jesus treats as one event His purpose in dying - as He states in verse 17 - so that I may take it again - which ties in His death with the crowning purpose which is His resurrection. Jesus dies in order that He be raised to life.

Death for Jesus was in a sense looked forward to, it was a joy to Christ to submit to the Father’s will because of what lay beyond the cross. The cross was not the end, but it was the beginning of something far greater. That which is far greater is the redemption of you and me unto eternal life through the forgiving of our debt of sin, if we believe. Hebrews 12:2 encourages us to turn to Jesus - to see His joy as He endured death - Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith,- ….now listen carefully to this - who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus looks beyond the cross to see His exaltation as our Great God and Saviour, Christ Jesus (Titus 2:13).

v.18 - As we enter v.18 it clearly answers a theological question that some of us may have asked before - Who Killed Jesus? The answer is no one. According to the sovereign plan of God - Jesus underscores the reality that His death is not going to be due to the will of the Pharisees, Romans, the Jews, or anybody - but His death is completely voluntary. No one has taken Jesus’ life from Him. Instead Jesus lay it down on His own initiative. Jesus’ death was under no man’s authority, but was fully and completely under His own authority.

Jesus in regards to His life - has the sovereign authority to lay it down, and He has the authority to take it up again - death and resurrection is all under Jesus’ authority. Remember in chapter 9 I talked about divine initiative? That Jesus sought out the blind man and initiated saving faith, and then granted it also - here we once again have the continuance of that divine initiative, to bring about the one perfect solution to man’s chief problem - sin. Listen to 1 Peter 3:18 - For Christ also died for sins once for all, [the] just for [the] unjust, in order that He might bring us to God… (NASB). What an awesome picture of the power of Deity - isn’t it?

In this verse does Jesus act in isolation? No - He takes the commandment from the Father, submitting to His will - so what we see is a balance between love and obedience. The Father loves the Son, Jesus loves the Father, and they love us - and out of this love relationship must be obedience - so Jesus lays down His life for us according to the commandment of the Father. Love and obedience are inseparable, as we will see this truth concept later in the Gospel, and in a moment I will read that to you.

How well do you listen to the voice of the Shepherd? Do you love Him? Now I am going to ask you a very searching question…how much do you love the Lord? I know that most of you will say that you love God…isn’t that right? And many people who even have a secular sense of spirituality will say the same. So I am not talking about a superficial love - an 1.5 hour on Sunday kinda of love. If you are a Christian you may say that you love God a lot. But love and obedience are inseparable - and here is the test…. How much do you really love the Lord? Does your profession match your obedience? We’ll I love the Lord, you say - well the Scriptures say you are to study the Word - do you love the Lord enough to study His Word? Well I love God, but I just don’t study too much.

We stand up for Jesus and sing the song - but the Scriptures say worship the Lord your God - do you love the Lord enough to worship Him? Well I stand up for Jesus, but I can’t always make it to church. You get the point…you love Jesus so much that you don’t bother to go to fellowship, you love Jesus so much that you don’t have time to be at prayer meeting, you love Jesus so much that your life is so full… that there is no time to serve Him - no time to be with Him - and your life is running on empty. Hearing the voice of the Shepherd calls for….and listen to these words… self sacrifice - it is a cost of following Christ.

This is what John 15:9-14 states - As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command.

Christ’s relationship to the Father is defined by love and obedience. If we belong to Christ… we follow Him…then our relationship to the Father should be the same… love and obedience.
You can know the Shepherd’s voice by knowing the Saviour, You can know the Shepherd’s voice through commitment, and You can know the Shepherd’s voice through love and obedience. All three are inseparable if you are faithful in your commitment to God’s Word. As we close off our passage…

v.19 - As a result of these mind blowing realities - the words of Jesus once again set off a spark in the hearts of the Jews - and there is division in their reaction and opinion.

v.20 - Once again the charge that Jesus was demon possessed arises, as we saw back in chapter 7 and 8. In addition they label Jesus as being insane. It was the easiest way for some of these ‘hard liners’ to discredit Jesus and to write Him off. They maliciously claim that this guys possessed and crazy….Why do you listen to Him?

v.21 - Once again there were those Jews who were a little bit more open to Jesus. These people were more reasonable and from their experience - raised the thought that the things Jesus were saying were not the things that a man demon-possessed would say. In addition they posed the inescapable question - A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he? This was a rhetorical question expecting an answer of no.

So there we have it again, that at the revelation of truth, those who oppose the work of God rebel all the more. Yet by the grace of the Holy Spirit there are some who are stirred to think about spiritual blindness.

Jesus Christ is the gate, He is the Good Shepherd who intensely loves His sheep, gathers them together, and demonstrates this through His sacrifice for His sheep ….pouring out His life upon the cross so that we might have eternal life. That is how much Jesus loves you…He wants you to know Him in a personal and intimate way - He wants you to be identified with Him - conformed to His image - joint heirs > …heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with [Him] in order that we may also be glorified with Him (Rom. 8:17).

If we really love the Shepherd, all we want to be is to be with Him, to listen to His voice - we will want to totally identify with Christ - in His life, death, resurrection, sufferings, and all that He is. If this is what you want to do - if this is the kind of love relationship you want with Christ then… brothers and sisters… let us consider developing the discipline of listening to His voice more and more each day - there is no love without obedience, there is no love and obedience without commitment, and there is no love, obedience, nor commitment without knowing the Saviour. If all these areas are found in your life and you are faithful to the Lord - there is no greater joy.