John 10:1-10
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
7 So again Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."
Devotional
Do you know Jesus’ voice? Do you practice listening to Him? When we spend time speaking to Jesus and listening to Him, we practice those muscles and learn to hear His voice in a very intimate way (v. 4b). In the same way that bank tellers are trained only with real currency so that if they ever handle fake currency they will immediately know the difference, it is important that Christ be the only One we seek so that we can be more and more in tune with Him as life throws challenges and temptations our way.
Taking the time to spend with Jesus can feel difficult and overwhelming, but let us take encouragement from two points in this passage:
1. We are known by name by our Father (v. 3b) – He loved us first, and now we have the joy of loving Him!
2. Jesus wants to give us the most abundant life we can imagine (v. 10)! This is not to say that life will be perfect when we follow Him - but we will know that He is with us through the journey, and that is the best life we could dream of.
Prayer
Jesus, thank You that You know me. Thank You for caring for me so deeply and wanting the best for me. Please help me to continually come to You in prayer, voicing my thoughts and seeking to hear Your voice for my life. Thank You for being with me every single moment of every single day. Amen.
Rachel dos Santos, Office Manager