One Way

PRAY: Heavenly Father, I long to hear your voice. Please help me listen with my heart as I spend time with you and your Word.

READ: John 10:1-18

REFLECT: At different points in his teaching ministry, Jesus used a variation of the parable teaching style to communicate with his listeners. He used a "figure of speech (v. 6). Instead of telling a story, he presented word pictures or analogies and then used them to describe several nuances of spiritual truth. In our reading today, we find two of these -a gate to a sheep pen and a good shepherd.

The gate. The point of the gate analogy is straightforward: Jesus is the entry point into God's kingdom (v. 9). I once taught a Sunday school class for middle school boys; they had trouble sitting still but asked lots of good questions about Jesus. Sometime later, two parents publicly criticized me for "imposing" on the class my belief that Jesus is the only way to salvation. My reaction was this: "I'm sorry, but that's not just my belief; it's what Jesus said."

The good Shepherd. The second analogy, about the good shepherd, is more familiar. As we've seen earlier in our journey, the Bible often uses the image of a shepherd and sheep to communicate God's relationship with his people (Isaiah 40:11; Ezekiel 34:12). In this passage, Jesus emphasizes two details of the picture. The first is the shepherd's voice. Jesus' followers can enjoy a close relationship with him (John 10:14); they will recognize his voice (vv. 4-5). He is not an impersonal "higher being." He knows your name (v. 3); he cares about you like a shepherd who recognizes and loves his sheep. The second detail is the shepherd's willingness to sacrifice himself (vv. 11, 15). Jesus is clearly foreshadowing what he would later do on the cross.

It's baffling that some felt threatened by Jesus' teaching and chose to reject him (v. 20). But that still happens today. It is sad that people are more willing to accept a distant, impersonal God than Jesus's offer of new life: "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (v. 10).

APPLY: Why do you think some people have so much trouble believing that Jesus is the only way to God?

PRAY: Spend some time praying for one person you know who's struggling with the idea that Jesus is the way to God.