John 10 Devotions by Stephen Taylor

John 10:4-6

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 run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what He was telling them.

Do we understand what Christ is telling them and us? Christ is revealing that His sheep know Him intimately and will follow Him completely. By the sound of His voice, they will know and follow Him; they will be drawn to Him by His words.

But He also tells us there is another voice we must be aware of. A voice not of our God but of a stranger and even an enemy. A voice that will lead us away from Christ if we were to follow it. This voice grows louder and louder as the world tumbles further into darkness. The voice of the enemy makes false promises and persuades us to forsake Christ, to choose anything but Him.

But thanks be to God who gives us the victory in Jesus Christ. The sheep do not save themselves but rather are saved by the Shepherd. We, too, must rest in the Shepherd if we want to avoid the wolves. They are lurking, some closer than we even know, yet Christ is even closer to us. He is willing to lead us in Him all the days of our lives, but are we willing to follow? It will cost us things now, but in the end, we will receive much more than we can even imagine.

Whose voice are we listening to today? Is it a voice whose goal is to gratify the flesh and destroy the soul in sin? Or is it the merciful and patient call of our God to repent and follow Him? It amazes me that our God is all-powerful and yet so patient, kind, merciful, loving, and forgiving. For us, the power would be too intoxicating; we would be drunk on it and abuse it time and time again. Yet the Father sent the Son to be a sacrifice for our sins and Savior of the world. He overcame sin and death through His surrender and obedience, not through shows of power as we would expect. Our God is so much greater than us, yet He lowered Himself to save us! I’m so thankful that He still saves wretches like me!

John 10:11- “I am the good Shepherd. The good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”

John 10:17,18- “The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

Thank You, Jesus! God bless! I love you all, but His love laid it all down and would not be denied! Praise, glory, and honor to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 10:17,18

The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

Thank You, Jesus! These verses speak of Christ’s awesome power, eternal authority, and His beautiful willingness to lay down His life for our sakes. It also shows us His heart, for He did not give His life out of selfish ambition, resentment, or anything negative but rather gave it out of love and obedience to His Father!

So, we see Christ’s sovereignty, heart, and character on full display in these verses and in verses like these, so why do we doubt Him? Why do we find ourselves in situations and not have hope or confidence in who He is and what He is about? How easily we can fall victim to doubt when He has shown us time and time again that He is faithful above all else! The answer is simple. We are weak and short-sighted, and yet He knows that and loves us anyway! He knows how weak we are and how we need to be reminded of His greatness, power, and love. That’s one of the reasons why He gave us the Bible., to be able to look at His promises and hold fast to them. He has also given us the Holy Spirit, who makes those Scriptures come to life and fills us with Himself.

We all, at some point, have doubts, about our futures, about our pasts, about our health, about our purpose and the list can go on and on. But what if we took that doubt to Him in prayer instead of letting it fester inside our hearts? What if we said, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” He is faithful to help us in our times of weakness. We need only to bring our open and honest hearts before Him and lay them there as an act of worship. Let Christ do what He does best and breathe life into those dying and dead areas of doubt, worry, pain and fear!

Mark 9:23,24- “‘If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.” Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

God bless! I love you all, but His love walked boldly and willingly toward the cross for you and me! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!

 

John 10:28- 30

"I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will 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. I and the Father are one."

Such a beautiful truth and a powerful promise! What security we have in our God! No one can or will be able to take us from Him. That doesn't mean that we can't walk away from Him, but that's a different post for a different time. Today, let's be encouraged because of Whose hand we're in. We are in the hand of the One who spoke the world into existence. The hand of the One who formed us from the dust and breathed life into our lungs. We are in the hand of the One who allowed a nail to be driven into it to save sinners like me! We are in the hand of the One who wouldn't stay in the grave!

The world is in turmoil, but our hearts shouldn't be. In Christ, we have the only true firm foundation this world has ever known. He is unshakable, unwavering, and undeniably perfect, righteous, and holy. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, and He will never drive away those who are His. These verses remind us that in the midst of confusion, attacks, turmoil, trial, and hardship, He is faithful, and no one can snatch anything out of His hand because He is above all, before all, and, in spite of all, He is King and always will be!

So, if you’re His, then rest in the hand of the One who paid it all and know that you are loved and secure! And if you're not His, open your hearts to Him and say, "Forgive me, help me, I surrender; come, Lord Jesus, come!"

Psalm 62:1,2- For the director of music. For Jeduthun. A psalm of David. Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from Him. Truly He is my rock and my salvation; He is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

God bless! I love you all, but His love reigns eternally! Glory, honor, and praise now and forever to Papa God, Jesus Christ our King, and the Holy Spirit!