The Gospel According to
John 10
42 verses≈ 6 min3 peopleBSB
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In this chapter
Jesus the Good Shepherd
“Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber.
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But the one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
John 10:2
The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.
But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice.”
Jesus spoke to them using this illustration, but they did not understand what He was telling them.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock.
The man runs away because he is a hired servant and is unconcerned for the sheep.
No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord.
John 10:17–18
Again there was division among the Jews because of Jesus’ message.
Many of them
Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?”
Others
But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”
Reflect
Whose voice?
The sheep follow the shepherd “because they know his voice,” and they “will never follow a stranger.” Many voices compete for your attention: fear, ambition, the opinions of others. Which voices have you been following lately? What helps you recognize the voice of the Good Shepherd?
Jesus at the Feast of Dedication
At that time the Feast of Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple courts in Solomon’s Colonnade.
The Jewish leaders
So the Jews gathered around Him and demanded, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
Jesus
“I already told you,” Jesus replied, “but you did not believe. The works I do in My Father’s name testify on My behalf. But because you are not My sheep, you refuse to believe.
My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand. My Father who has given them to Me is greater than all. No one can snatch them out of My Father’s hand.
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Narrated by Bob Souer · BSB audio, public domain
I and the Father are one.”
John 10:30
At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him.
Jesus
But Jesus responded, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me?”
The Jewish leaders
“We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, make Yourself out to be God.”
Jesus
Jesus replied, “Is it not written in your Law: ‘I have said you are gods’? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken— then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?
Psalm 82:6
Whiteboard
Jesus argues from the lesser to the greater. If God’s own word could call those “to whom the word of God came” ‘gods’, how can it be blasphemy for the One the Father “sanctified and sent into the world” to call Himself the Son of God?
Pray
Held
Jesus says of His sheep, “No one can snatch them out of My hand,” and then says it again of the Father’s hand. Bring Him whatever makes you afraid of falling away. Thank Him that your safety rests in His grip, and in a Father who is “greater than all.”
If I am not doing the works of My Father, then do not believe Me. But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father.”
the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father
John 10:38
At this, they tried again to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.
John’s Testimony Confirmed
Stylised map · locations approximate
Where it happened
Back across the Jordan
From the temple courts in Jerusalem, Jesus goes back down to the Jordan, to “the place where John had first been baptizing.” The story of His ministry comes full circle to where John first pointed Him out.
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had first been baptizing, and He stayed there.
Many came to Him and said, “Although John never performed a sign, everything he said about this man was true.” And many in that place believed in Jesus.
Question
Quick question
Jesus was walking in Solomon’s Colonnade when the crowd pressed Him to speak plainly.
Which feast was taking place in Jerusalem?
You’ve experienced
John 10
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A verse to carry with you
I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.
John 10:10
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