John 10:24-30 ESV
“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.’”
Now Jesus Christ, when he lived on this earth, especially in his last three years of ministry, healed the sick and afflicted, raised the dead, delivered people from demons, and performed miracle after miracle, including he miraculously fed thousands of people, at least twice, with very little food to start with. And he preached like no one else ever did, for he shared the Scriptures in a way no one else could because he was the author of them.
But even after he did all of this, so many of the Jews, probably the majority of them, would not accept him as their Lord and Messiah. They would not put their faith and trust in him, believing that he was the one they had been waiting for. But they blasphemed him, and they called him all sorts of things, including they accused him of being of Satan, and they thought he was crazy, and so they plotted and carried out his death on a cross.
So, it isn’t that they could not see who he was by the works that he did and by the things that he taught, but that they would not see him for who he was. So they would plead ignorance as though he had not shown them who he was. And many professers of faith in Jesus Christ are doing that today, pleading ignorance of who God/Christ is and of what he taught, many of them knowing full well what he taught, but to excuse away their behaviors.
So, it isn’t that they couldn’t see it or that they didn’t know it, but that they refused to believe. And Jesus said the reason that they would not believe is because they were not among his sheep. And so I want to take a few minutes here to define “believe” and “sheep” and “follow” and “hear.” For, first of all Jesus defined his sheep as those who hear (listen) to him, and so he knows them, and they are those who follow (obey) him.
So, first off Jesus defined his sheep as those who listen to him. And he is not speaking of us just physically hearing his words with our ears, but this word “hear” or “listen” means to pay attention, to heed, observe, follow, obey, abide by, comply with, conform to, adhere to, and to stick to. So his sheep are those who are not just hearers of the word but they are those who put the word of God into practice. They put what they hear into action.
And his sheep are those who follow him. So, they are those who obey, abide by, keep to, adhere to, comply with, and conform to what they hear him say, i.e. to his teachings. It doesn’t mean they are perfect people, but that obedience to the Lord and following him in his ways is their practice. It is their lifestyle. It is how they live as a normal part of their everyday lives. They don’t let his words just “go in one ear and out the other.”
And to believe in Jesus means to be persuaded, to be persuaded by the Lord. For our faith in Jesus Christ is authored and perfected by Christ, so it originates with God, it is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded by God, i.e. it is divinely persuaded faith. And we can’t even come to faith in Jesus Christ unless God the Father first draws us to Christ, i.e. unless he persuades us. So if this faith is of God, it comes from God, it is gifted to us by God, and it is persuaded of God, then this faith is going to conform to the will of God.
[Eph 2:8-10; Heb 12:1-2; Jn 6:44; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Acts 5:32; Tit 2:11-14; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Eph 4:17-32; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Lu 9:23-26; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Co 6:19-20; 2 Co 5:15,21; Matt 7:21-23]
So, when we read the verses following this we need to apply them according to how Jesus defined those who are his sheep, that they believe in him (with biblical and God-given and God-persuaded faith), that they listen to (pay attention to and heed) him, and that they follow (obey) him. So those who fit that criteria are those who can claim the promises in verses 28-30, not those who merely give lip service to God but who continue living in sin.
Only we can claim the promises that we will have the hope of eternal life with God, that we will never perish in our sins, and that no one can snatch us out of God’s hands – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And these promises are dependent on us continuing steadfast in these walks of faith and in obedience to our Lord in walks of holiness and in righteousness until the very end. For if we walk in sin and not in righteousness, and not in obedience to our Lord, we will not inherit eternal life with God. See:
[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Video Talk
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No Less
An Original Work / March 19, 2012
I can do no less than praise You,
Lord, for all You’ve done for me.
You died for my sins to save me,
So I would be set free.
I adore You! Lord, I praise You!
Jesus, Savior, King of kings!
You provided my redemption.
Your grace has pardoned me.
I can do no less than serve You.
Lord, Your witness I would be,
Telling others of Your love,
And why You died on that tree.
Tell of how You gave of Your life,
So from sin we’d be set free,
So we could worship You forever,
And live eternally.
I can do no less than love You,
Lord, for You have first loved me.
You gave of Your life so willing,
Because You cared for me.
Turn from my sin! Obey freely!
Live for You each passing day.
Read Your word, and follow Your lead,
Lord, as I humbly pray.
https://vimeo.com/125493623
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