The I Am’s of John –“GOOD SHEPHERD”

“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.” John 10:9-11 (ESV)

Going from announcing that he is the light of the world we find Jesus making two “I Am” statements in the same conversation (John 10:9-11). “I am the door” along with “I am the good shepherd” pretty much are covering ground on how The Savior feels about our protection. This protection is from those who would be false teachers when we look in terms of Jesus being the door. You see Jesus is letting us know that He IS the Watchman. In Ezekiel 33:2-9 YHVH is quite specific to in assigning Ezekiel as being not just a spiritual watchman but one who has to be very vocal. If he doesn’t blow the trumpet or speak a warning from the Lord, the blood of those who perish shall be on Ezekiel. If they choose not heed what he speaks then they shall die in their iniquity.

This is the same vein Jesus tells how He is the gatekeeper for the sheepfold. When we hear His voice we should be herding ourselves together so that we may find safety in His pen. We could say that by way of application…Jesus is the door to salvation.  He is the guardian against the thieves and robbers who come in to lead the sheep to stray. Back then it was the Pharisees and today it ain’t much different. Jesus knows who is His own and that they recognize His voice but we do have some who just want an ear tickling and they leave the pen.

But then Jesus goes one step farther in this discourse and states “I am the good shepherd.” It’s in here that Jesus will state, four times, that He will lay His life down for His sheep. It may not have been in God’s primary plan for the Pharisees to be the hireling for Israel because they ended up feeling indifferent to their position with YHVH. It was all about paying Temple tax and buying sacrifices for the ceremonies they paid tax towards.  Jesus sets the position of shepherd straight. For Jesus it is about taking a stand and being ready to suffer the wrath of a wolf in order to save the sheep.

The important thing to note here is that this taking a stand and being ready is voluntary. And we need to know that much of the ministry of Christ was geared towards saving the lost sheep of Israel (Matt 10:5-6). But the faith of the Canaanite woman (Matt 15:21-28) serves as a great reminder that even the dogs have their place in the flock. As some of you sheep herders may already know a dog is a useful animal to have when it comes to gathering sheep to go through the gate.

And as I go through these seven “I Am’s” that Jesus proclaimed, the more I am seeing that the response to the proclamations He made came with divisions in a crowd. It was mentioned that He must be a Looney Tune or was demon possessed. One thing was for certain, the erroneous babblings of those Pharisees were reaching an un-acceptance among the masses and they were ready for some Good News. Like the Watchman appointed to the walls of the city, Jesus proclaims Good News. And we should be like sheep, letting the dogs round us up, getting’ us through the door into the safety of the Good Shepherd’s salvation. – Chris Hughes is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy and a regular blogger on Freedom Fighter

Team YOU: Isaiah 5-6; Proverbs 19; 2 Corinthians 11:16-33

Motivations: “Another thing Jesus did that drove religious leaders nuts was tell people their sins were forgiven. Think about that. The only person who can forgive someone is the one who was offended or wronged. You wouldn’t ask me to forgive you for something you did to your mother. You would ask your mother to forgive you. Jesus told people their sins were forgiven when he wasn’t involved in the conflict. Makes no sense.”—Andy Stanley

Practice to Remember: Level 1:Philippians 4:8; Level 2: Philippians 4:25-23

Powered Up:  Prayer means I come in contact with an Almighty Christ, and almighty results happen along the lines He laid down. – Oswald Chambers