I Am The Gate

There is only one way to get to the safe place of rest that God offers his sheep.

John 10:1-9  "I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber!  2  But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.  3  The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

4  After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice.  5  They won't follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don't know his voice."

6  Those who heard Jesus use this illustration didn't understand what He meant,  7  so He explained it to them: "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.  8  All who came before Me were thieves and robbers. But the true sheep did not listen to them.

9  Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through Me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.

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There are two people that were very important in taking care of the sheep, there was obviously the shepherd and there was a lesser known person know as the gatekeeper. We all know that the shepherd was the guy that owned the sheep and they spent most of their time with him out in the fields but we don't hear much about the gatekeeper.

Back in those days the shepherds would bring there sheep into a common sheepfold so that the would have a wall of protection around them during the night. Then the shepherds would be able to go home knowing that the sheep were in a pen and the only way into that pen was through the gate.

The gatekeeper was important for the safety of the sheep, he would accept the sheep from all of the local shepherds and then lock the gate or he would become the gate by bedding down in the opening. The thieves and robbers that tried to harm the sheep had to harm the guy that was being the gate or they had to try to climb the wall which was probably decorated with thorns around the top of it.

Since a live sheep would be difficult to get back over the wall it is very likely that they would slaughter the sheep right there in the pen. The reason they wanted the lamb was to have food or to have the fleece so either way the lamb was going to die.

The Gate Is Narrow
Matthew 7:13-14  "You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

The sheepfold is Israel and God's children are the sheep. Jesus is the only gate that will give you access to God's kingdom and protection from the thieves and robbers. The leaders of Judaism tried to make it as difficult to gain access to God's sheepfold as they could, their false teaching took advantage of the sheep and caused Jesus to be moved with compassion. (Matthew 9:35-38)

Jesus wants us to know that his children have a place of safety and rest and there is only one narrow opening to get you there. (Matthew 11:28, 1 Timothy 2:5) These concepts are difficult for our world to understand. We want God to let us into the sheepfold by our rules, we don't want there to be one way in that he gets to define, we like to be in charge but we don't get to be the boss.

Thank you Lord for caring enough for such lowly, dirty and dumb creatures that you went to the extreme to give them an eternal dwelling place of safety and rest.

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I Am The Good Shepherd

Jesus provides outstanding care and protection for his sheep.

John 10:1-5  "I tell you the truth, anyone who sneaks over the wall of a sheepfold, rather than going through the gate, must surely be a thief and a robber!  2  But the one who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.

3  The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep recognize his voice and come to him. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  4  After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice.  5  They won't follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don't know his voice."

John 10:9-11  Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through Me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.  10  The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.  11  "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices His life for the sheep.

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In the previous post we saw the Light of the world in action bringing light to a man that had never seen it before. This should have been a great reason to bow down and worship Jesus but as we saw there was only one man that responded correctly to Jesus. The Pharisees reaction to Jesus miracle was horrendous, the very men that had been appointed to take care of the sheep made it very clear that they didn't care at all about the condition of the flock. (John 9:39-41) The response that you have to The Light of the World is an indicator of what your spiritual condition is.

The Sabbath rules were more important than the man, we saw the same thing in John 5, when Jesus healed the lame man by the Pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath. They were the worst shepherds, more concerned with making money off of the sheep and promoting their self righteousness, Jesus didn't let their obvious lack of concern for this blind man go without a lesson on how the good shepherd should behave.

The Good Shepherd loves his sheep and he makes his love known by the great lengths that he will go to in order to take care of them. He left the riches of heaven to join us in our world and experience our heartache but he went way beyond our experience and suffered much more than most of us will ever endure.

Who has ever seen love like this? Nobody has ever loved like Jesus loved. I imagine that this blind has never felt love at all, he was a burden to his parents, he was accused of sinning before he was born, he lived in a culture that didn't have any social programs to give him any care or relief from his circumstances.

Psalms 23:1-6  The LORD is my shepherd; I have all that I need.  2  He lets me rest in green meadows; He leads me beside peaceful streams.  3  He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to His name. 4  Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for You are close beside me. Your rod and Your staff protect and comfort me. 5  You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings.  6  Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.

Jesus is the Shepherd that we need, the only source of salvation, safety, and sustenance for the sheep, his personal care for the sheep reminds me of the intimate relationship that David had with God. I don't think that anybody else has ever spoken of their relationship with almighty God in such a warm affectionate manner.

God Provides What Is Best

God is almighty, powerful and we should fear him but that isn't a good way to build a relationship with anybody. The Warren Wiersbe Bible study points out that many of the compound names for Jehovah in the Old Testament focus on the type of relationship that David talks about in Psalm 23:

"I shall not want”

Jehovah-jireh, “the Lord will provide” (Genesis 22:14)

"He leads me beside still waters”

Jehovah-shalom, “the Lord our peace” (Judges 6:24)

"He restoreth my soul”

Jehovah-Rophe, “the Lord who heals” (Exodus 15:26)

"He leads me in the paths of righteousness”

Jehovah-Tsidkenu, “the Lord our righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16)

"thou art with me”

Jehovah-shammah, “the Lord is there” (Ezekiel 48:35)

"presence of mine enemies”

Jehovah-nissi, “the Lord our banner” (Exodus 17:15)

"anointest my head”

Jehovah-M’Kaddesh, “the Lord who sanctifies” (Leviticus 20:8)

David said that because we have such a Good Shepherd there isn't anything else that we need.

Despite God’s Care There Will Be Danger

It is interesting to me that even though he "guides me along right paths" sometimes those right paths will lead us to places that we don't really want to go. Sometimes the right paths will lead us to the dark valley but we do not have to experience the scariest places in life all alone.

Isaiah 43:1-2 But now, O Jacob, listen to the LORD who created you. O Israel, the One who formed you says, "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are Mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.

The Good Shepherd will be there with his rod and his staff to defend us from danger and to pick us up when we fall. Jesus isn't going to throw away something that he paid such a high price to obtain, he has already given his life to protect his sheep from the sting of death, so don't you think that he will take care of you through any other catastrophe that comes?

God Gives Special Attention To His Guests

I have an invitation to God's house, a house that he has been preparing for me to live in, he has been preparing this place for a long time because I will live there forever. The house is amazing but the host is even better.

The Shepherd honors me by anointing my head and he prepares a feast for me, a benefit that my enemies do not have, and he also takes care of the enemy so I can enjoy being at his table. Imagine how refreshed I am and ready to cope with anyone that is against me.

Jesus provides outstanding care and protection for his sheep.

Under the old covenant, the sheep died for the shepherd, but under the new covenant, the Shepherd died for the sheep! The old covenant had been twisted into a huge burden that kept the sheep in bondage, there wasn't any thought of allowing for mercy, the shepherds of God's flock told them that you had to do everything right or else. (Matthew 9:13)

We will have trouble in this world, Satan is against us, we are objects of scorn because of our attachment to the Shepherd. (John 16:33) We may suffer, we may loose our family, our job, we may be deprived of our rights but in every circumstance we should look to the one that loved us enough that he "made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross,” (1 Peter 2:25)

Christ Passion For His Lost Sheep

Jesus wants to heal his lost sheep so much that it makes him cry.

Luke 19:41-44 But as they came closer to Jerusalem and Jesus saw the city ahead, he began to weep. 42 “How I wish today that you of all people would understand the way to peace. But now it is too late, and peace is hidden from your eyes."

43 "Before long your enemies will build ramparts against your walls and encircle you and close in on you from every side. 44 They will crush you into the ground, and your children with you. Your enemies will not leave a single stone in place, because you did not accept your opportunity for salvation.”

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The nation of Israel has been called lost sheep for a long time, the Bible calls them lost sheep over and over again, it started way back in 1 Kings 22:17. Our Savior saw the lost sheep from the beginning of his ministry, he was moved with compassion and now as his ministry comes to it's end, he is still looking at lost sheep all over the place. (Matthew 9:36)

Most of them had rejected the shepherd, they had only accepted him for the political gain that they sought after, only a small crowd had accepted him as Messiah in the previous verses known as the "Triumphant Entry" Jesus longed for them to know peace, he longed to heal their wounds, if they would just come to him and accept him. The Good Shepherd had offered them true lasting peace but they didn't accept him. (Romans 5:1).

Jesus told them that it was too late for them now, their spiritual blindness had kept them from seeing the Good News that our Savior had brought to them, the benefits of a personal relationship with him were out of reach now. (2 Corinthians 4:4)

Isaiah 40:11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young.

Jesus cries for us, he wants to heal us, hold us in his arms and protect us, he knows how much better it will be for us but he knows that men love darkness more than the light, he knows that we are prideful and we attempt to be self sufficient. He allows us to make our own choice no matter how devastating the consequences.

Thank you Lord for healing my greatest wound. Sin no longer has a death grip on me thanks to your willingness to be the sacrificial lamb.

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Feed My Sheep

The Good Shepherd gave us an assignment

John 21:15-16  After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love Me more than these? " "Yes, Lord," Peter replied, "You know I love You." "Then feed My lambs," Jesus told him.

16  Jesus repeated the question: "Simon son of John, do you love Me?" "Yes, Lord," Peter said, "You know I love You." "Then take care of My sheep," Jesus said.

John 10:9-11  Yes, I am the gate. Those who come in through Me will be saved. They will come and go freely and will find good pastures.

10  The thief's purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.  11  "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices His life for the sheep.

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Lost animals are very sad to see, most of the time in our society we see lost dogs instead of lost sheep but the look is the same, they have a desperate look and seem about ready to panic.

Jesus saw the crowds of people that were under the care of the religious leaders and he had to sympathize with the lost sheep of Israel, they were desperate for a shepherd. They didn't have a leader that would tend to the flock and protect it, instead the religious leaders were exploiting the sheep and watching out for their own interest. (Matthew 9:36) 

Just before Jesus left this world he told those of us that are leaders in the church to be his hands and feet while he is gone. The Great Shepherd took care of his sheep, he laid down his life for the sheep and then after he rose from the dead he told us to carry on his work and feed, guide and protect his sheep until he returns.

1 Peter 5:2  Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly--not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God.

Jesus transferred the responsibility to us, I need to be found faithful to my duty and be a better shepherd than the ones that he found the last time he was here.

You might like to read: Commands of Jesus blog series.

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Hear God's Voice

What are you listening to?

 Mark 4:9   Then he said "Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!"

John 10:26-27  But you don't believe Me because you are not My sheep. My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.

Luke 11:28  Jesus replied, "But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice."

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We all know that it is a noisy world that we live in. There are a thousand voices trying to get noticed, people trying to sell you stuff you don't need, people trying to get your sympathy, people trying to get you to respond  to their demands. There are some good voices coming at us too but even they can keep you too busy to hear a still small voice.

Many times after Jesus taught an important lesson he would let the people know that they need to listen up and pay attention to his words. That's because sheep aren't the smartest animals around but there is one thing that they do know and that is their master's voice and when they hear that voice they react. How many times has the Shepherd spoken to me that I either didn't hear or I made a choise and decided not to react?

Luke 6:46  "So why do you keep calling Me 'Lord, Lord!' when you don't do what I say?

I need to listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd, it is a choice that I have to intentionally make, filtering out all of the other input that is trying to have a say on how I live.

Jesus, I want to be busy hearing and putting into practice the things that you desire for me to do. Help me to filter out the negative influences that try to get me off task.

You might like to read: Commands of Jesus blog series

Consider The Evidence

scripture

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John 10:22 It was now winter, and Jesus was in Jerusalem at the time of Hanukkah, the Festival of Dedication. 23 He was in the Temple, walking through the section known as Solomon’s Colonnade. 24 The people surrounded him and asked, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”

25 Jesus replied, “I have already told you, and you don’t believe me. The proof is the work I do in my Father’s name. 26 But you don’t believe me because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my Father has given them to me, and he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.”

31 Once again the people picked up stones to kill him. 32 Jesus said, “At my Father’s direction I have done many good works. For which one are you going to stone me?” 33 They replied, “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a mere man, claim to be God.”

34 Jesus replied, “It is written in your own Scriptures that God said to certain leaders of the people, ‘I say, you are gods!’ 35 And you know that the Scriptures cannot be altered. So if those people who received God’s message were called ‘gods,’ 36 why do you call it blasphemy when I say, ‘I am the Son of God’? After all, the Father set me apart and sent me into the world. 37 Don’t believe me unless I carry out my Father’s work. 38 But if I do his work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don’t believe me. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in me, and I am in the Father.”

39 Once again they tried to arrest him, but he got away and left them. 40 He went beyond the Jordan River near the place where John was first baptizing and stayed there awhile. 41 And many followed him. “John didn’t perform miraculous signs,” they remarked to one another, “but everything he said about this man has come true.” 42 And many who were there believed in Jesus.

observation

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How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.
After all this time, after all the evidence, after all the previous assertions that Jesus made…just tell us one more time, maybe this time we will believe you. I don’t think so! Get out a red letter edition of the New Testament and see what he has been saying about himself, he has told them over and over again that he is the Messiah and better yet he has proven himself by his works, one miracle after another.

Talking a good talk is not as important as walking the walk. What you believe affects how you behave, if you believe murder is wrong then you don't murder, if you think that robbing the bank is wrong then you don't do it. If you believe in the teachings of Christ then it has to affect your behavior. Jesus said believe in who I am because of the things that I do, how many times does our behavior testify against who we claim to be as a child of God, Jesus said:

John 10:37 Don’t believe me unless I carry out my Father’s work. 38 But if I do his work, believe in the evidence

Here is what the problem is, you are not my sheep.
The evidence is there he told them plainly that he is the Messiah, the “I Am” the one that they have been waiting for so long to see. Then Jesus tells them what their real problem is, “I have told you who I am but the real issue is that you have a hearing problem.”

If you can’t hear the masters voice then you must not be his sheep, His sheep hear his voice and they follow him wherever he leads them to with complete trust, they don’t think that there must be a better way or a short cut, he speaks and they follow. If we would just give up control and follow the voice of the shepherd he will lead us to eternal life, and we will never perish.

“John didn’t perform miraculous signs,” they remarked to one another, “but everything he said about this man has come true.” The question is what did John say?

John1:23 John replied in the words of the prophet Isaiah: “I am a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Clear the way for the Lord’s coming!” Then the Pharisees who had been sent asked him, “If you aren’t the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet, what right do you have to baptize?”

26 John told them, “I baptize with water, but right here in the crowd is someone you do not recognize. 27 Though his ministry follows mine, I’m not even worthy to be his slave and untie the straps of his sandal.” 28 This encounter took place in Bethany, an area east of the Jordan River, where John was baptizing.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 He is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me who is far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’ 31 I did not recognize him as the Messiah, but I have been baptizing with water so that he might be revealed to Israel.”

32 Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. 33 I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.”

application

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Can you tell from all the miracles and the testimony that Jesus is the Messiah? The evidence is irrefutable.

Am I acting like a sheep? I need to be faithful in follow Jesus and I have to be careful that my actions don’t refute what I claim to believe.

prayer

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Thank you Lord for saving this lost sheep, I want to follow you everyday so that others can see the evidence and there will be proof of what I say that I believe.