Wednesday, March 25,
2015, 7:26 a.m. – The Lord Jesus put in mind the song “Hear My Voice.” Speak, Lord, your words to my heart. I read John 10 (Selected vv. ESV).
Thieves and Robbers (vv. 1-6)
“Truly,
truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs
in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the
door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear
his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has
brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for
they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from
him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” This figure of speech Jesus
used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
A thief is “one that steals especially stealthily or
secretly” (M-W). To steal is “to take the property of another wrongfully and
especially as a habitual or regular practice” (M-W). Jesus referred to the
false shepherds of the people as thieves because they had not come in among the
people to help them, nor were they present among them to give them true hope
and healing, but they were there to rob them of any true hope, and to fill
their minds with what is false and misleading. Jesus said that these false
shepherds do not come through the gate, but they climb in by another way. Jesus
also said that he is the gate (the door). So, he was referring to those who give
off the appearance of being true shepherds of the people, but they have not
entered into the sheep pen through Jesus Christ. We have many such false
shepherds in our churches here in America today.
So, how do you recognize a false shepherd? There are many
ways, one of which is by the lifestyle he lives, although we must be careful
that we are not testing him against human traditions and rules, but against the
word of God. There are several passages which list the qualifications for
elders and deacons, and which give us insight into the type of lifestyle an
elder or a deacon should live as his consistent way of life, though not in
absolute perfection.
He must be above reproach, i.e. he must live an exemplary
lifestyle free from legitimate accusation. In other words, he should not be
involved in a sinful lifestyle either through conscious acts of sin or via
allowing himself to be entertained by others’ sinful acts. He must be
self-controlled, not over-bearing, not quick-tempered, holy, respectable,
hospitable, and not quarrelsome, etc., and he must manage his own family well.
He must also “keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience”
so he can “encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.” This
is a BIG ONE in today’s world. He must not be “greedy for money, but eager to
serve; not lording it over those entrusted to” him, “but being examples to the
flock” (See: 1 Tim. 3:1-13; Tit. 1:5-9; 1 Pet. 5:1-11). Amen!
The other big way we can recognize a false shepherd is by
what he teaches and practices, which goes back to these qualifications where it
states that “He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been
taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who
oppose it” (Tit. 1:9). So many “shepherds” of God’s flock today no longer hold
to the deep truths of the faith (a.k.a. “sound doctrine”) as was taught by
Jesus and his apostles, but they have gone the way of the world, and the way of
following after the teachings and philosophies of humans, instead, perhaps
mostly out of greed, because they want to make names for themselves and build
big “businesses” in order to compete with other churches (businesses). Some of
these do hold to some of the fundamentals of the faith, though, while denying
the others, so their gospel is only half true, which makes it false and misleading.
So, we must be regularly in the habit of testing everything
we hear against the Word of God to see if it is consistent with the teachings
of Christ and his apostles, and whether it is consistent with God’s divine
character and will, and to test to see if it is actually teaching what is in
direct opposition to the teachings of the apostles, which many are doing. We may
be characterized as disunifiers, troublemakers, hatemongers, bigoted,
judgmental and intolerant for holding to the deep truths of scripture, and for
testing what we hear against God’s holy word, but that is ok. The lies need to
be exposed and the truth needs to be revealed, for many are buying into a false
grace gospel which does not save its hearers.
The Good Shepherd (
So
Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the
sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not
listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and
will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and
destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good
shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired
hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and
leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He
flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good
shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I
know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.”
At
that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, and
Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. So the Jews
gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If
you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you
do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me,
but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my
voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they
will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 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. I and the Father are one.”
Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd. He laid his life down for
his sheep when he died on the cross for our sins. He crucified our sins with
him, buried them, and then rose triumphant over sin, death, hell and Satan. He
did this so we could go free from the curse of sin, and free from the control
of sin over our lives; so we could have eternal life with God, and so we would
be free to no longer walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit
in Christ’s righteousness and holiness, and in the power and working of the
Spirit in our lives. Amen!
He died so we would no longer live for ourselves but for him
who gave himself up for us (2 Co. 5:15). His grace that brings salvation
teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live
self-controlled, upright and godly lives while we wait for his return (Tit. 2:11-14).
He said that if we want to come to him, we must deny our self-life, die daily
to sin and self, and follow him in obedience (Lu. 9:23-25; cf. Eph. 4:17-24;
Ro. 6-8; 1 Pet. 2:24-25). This is what Jesus taught, and it is what the
apostles taught.
Believing in him is not a one-time decision we make at an
altar, but it is a continuous action of believing in him, which involves
repentance and obedience to his commands (instructions). Jesus said his sheep
listen to him, and they follow (obey) him, and he gives them eternal life, and
no one can snatch them out of his or the Father’s hands. Amen!
They Picked up Stones (vv. 31-39)
The
Jews picked up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, “I have shown
you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone
me?” The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to
stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.”
Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? If
he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be
broken— do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world,
‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I am not doing
the works of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though
you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that
the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” Again they sought to arrest him,
but he escaped from their hands.
When we refuse to follow after these false shepherds of the
people, and we expose their lies, and we teach what is true, and what is in
accord with sound doctrine, and we test what is false against the Word of
Truth, we will be hated and rejected even by our fellow Christians and by many of
these false shepherds of the people because they won’t like it that we expose
what is false and that we teach what is true, because that stands as a threat
to their business plans and objectives in trying to build Christ’s church man’s
ways. So, they may come out and attack us openly and try to discredit us, and try
to turn other believers away from us, because they will be protecting their own
territory, as they have been trained to do by those over them or by those who
taught (instructed) them in the way they should shepherd the people and build
their ministries (businesses) according to man, not God.
So, we need to rest in our Lord and trust in his Word, and
call upon him in full confidence of faith, and rely upon him and his
trustworthiness to us so that we do not become disheartened or discouraged when
we come under attack from these false shepherds and/or from their followers. Our
God will never leave us or forsake us. He will always be there to bring
comfort, hope and healing to us. Even when others forsake us, he will receive
us. So, be of courage! Be strong in the Lord! Put on the full armor of God with
which to fight off Satan’s evil schemes against you, and then rest in the Lord
for He is Good, all the time!
Hear my Voice / An Original Work /
July 9, 2012
Based
off Psalm 27
The
Lord is my great salvation.
He’s
the stronghold of my life.
When
my enemies attack me,
My
heart will not fear at all.
Though
a war break out against me,
Confident
in Christ I’ll be.
Of
the Lord, I ask that I may
Live
with Him eternally.
Hear
my voice, Lord, when I call you.
Merciful
to me You’ll be.
Though
my relatives forsake me,
My
Lord God will receive me.
Teach
me Your way, O my Jesus.
Lead
me in Your righteousness.
I
will sacrifice to my Lord.
I
will sing with joyfulness.
I
am confident that I will
See
the goodness of the Lord.
All
the richness of His blessings,
My
Lord has for me in store.
He
asks me to be of courage;
To
be strong and to take heart,
Patiently
as I wait for Him,
And
from Him to ne’er depart.
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