Scripture Reading(s)
John 10:1-10
10:1 Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit.
10:2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
10:3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
10:4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.
10:5 They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.”
10:6 Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
10:7 So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.
10:8 All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them.
10:9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.
10:10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly
Reflections
There are many things in this life that will cause us to fall away from God. These things may appear in harmless form or they might be outright detrimental to our faith and yet, somehow temptation is possible to overtake us.
Jesus here was trying to explain to His disciples that the hard core truth of the Gospel and Salvation can only be found in Jesus Christ alone. Anyone else that attempts to offer promises of everlasting life, is preaching a false gospel. He is using the metaphor of the sheep to illustrate how sheep only answer to the voice of their master. They are able to recognize immediately when it is a different voice and they turn away from that one thing that they know will lead them down a dangerous path.
This passage serves as a warning to those of us who are in Christ to be alert of the things that can cause us to stray away from God. As Christians, we are being challenged in this passage to recognize and know when it is God who is leading us and when we are being lead astray.
Jesus Christ is the only means in which one can attain true Salvation and leading in this life. He is the only source of truth and we are called to be vigilant and aware of anything else that is false and harmful. Thank God for His constant care and protection in your life and keep on pursuing Him alone and as the Bible says, He will make your paths straight.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).
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