1 Jesus said:
I tell you for certain that only thieves and robbers climb over the fence instead of going in through the gate to the sheep pen. 2-3 But the gatekeeper opens the gate for the shepherd, and he goes in through it. The sheep know their shepherd’s voice. He calls each of them by name and leads them out.
4 When he has led out all of his sheep, he walks in front of them, and they follow, because they know his voice. 5 The sheep will not follow strangers. They don’t recognize a stranger’s voice, and they run away.
6 Jesus told the people this story. But they did not understand what he was talking about.
7 Jesus said:
I tell you for certain that I am the gate for the sheep. 8 Everyone who came before me was a thief or a robber, and the sheep did not listen to any of them. 9 I am the gate. All who come in through me will be saved. Through me they will come and go and find pasture.
10 A thief comes only to rob, kill, and destroy. I came so that everyone would have life, and have it in its fullest. 11 I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd gives up his life for his sheep. 12 Hired workers are not like the shepherd. They don’t own the sheep, and when they see a wolf coming, they run off and leave the sheep. Then the wolf attacks and scatters the flock. 13 Hired workers run away because they don’t care about the sheep.
14 I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep, and they know me. 15 Just as the Father knows me, I know the Father, and I give up my life for my sheep. 16 I have other sheep that are not in this sheep pen. I must bring them together too, when they hear my voice. Then there will be one flock of sheep and one shepherd.
17 The Father loves me, because I give up my life, so that I may receive it back again. 18 No one takes my life from me. I give it up willingly! I have the power to give it up and the power to receive it back again, just as my Father commanded me to do.
19 The people took sides because of what Jesus had told them. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon in him! He is crazy! Why listen to him?”
21 But others said, “How could anyone with a demon in him say these things? No one like that could give sight to a blind person!”
Read John 10:1-21 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!
During one of the times Jesus was preaching the crowds, He uses an illustration that contrasts thieves/robbers and the good shepherd. While reading this illustration, a powerful idea is hinted at early on while Jesus is describing the shepherd.
One of the first distinctive ideas Jesus shares about the good shepherd is that “The sheep know their shepherd’s voice. He calls each of them by name and leads them out.” (v. 3b)
This phrase stands out to me because in it I see a description of a very personal relationship being described. Regardless of the size of the flock of sheep, each sheep has a name, the shepherd uses this name to refer to that sheep, and there has been enough time spent with the shepherd and each sheep that each sheep is able to recognize the shepherd’s voice.
Jesus ultimately explains how He is the “Good Shepherd”, and that He wants to have a personal relationship with each of His sheep. While Jesus does imply that there are those who are not part of His flock of sheep, He doesn’t dwell on them or focus on them at all. Jesus is interested most in loving, caring for, and protecting His sheep, and He even goes as far as giving each sheep a name.
This is amazing in my mind, because as a member of God’s family, God wants to be so close to me that He can give me a new name. We could call this a nickname, or we could adopt God’s name for us as our true name. When God names us, He names us based on how He sees each of us, and at the foundation of each new name is the truth that we have been redeemed/saved through what Jesus did for us on the cross.
This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!
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