John 10:1-21
"I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to 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 run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice." Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. "I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. 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." At these words the Jews were again divided. Many of them said, "He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?" But others said, "These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"
Slowly and carefully read the text, asking God to guide your thoughts. Please read all of John’s 10th chapter.
What is the overall point of this passage? How would you summarize it in a sentence or two? How does it fit with the entire Gospel?
What are some of the characteristics/descriptions of a good shepherd?
How is Jesus a shepherd? How is he a gate?
What are some of the characteristics/descriptions of a theif?
What is the reaction to the teaching of Jesus?
What else is on your mind this week?
Sunday, July 27, 2008
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6 comments:
Hey, how's it going?
I'm thinking of taking a blog break for a few weeks and then relaunching with a new look and approach. I am just thinking about that. It seems that we have stagnated or something, or it may just be the summer thing.
What do you think?
I know the next few weeks are packed with a couple extremely emotional events for me. Lester gets married and then 9 days later Luke leaves for college. That's a double whammy. The consulation is that I could not be happier about both events. I am just going to miss having those 2 around. It's hard to explain how much I am going to miss having those 2 around.
I did a wedding today for an old friend. It went well. They are about my age, and they wanted it to be fairly light in tone. They wanted to avoid the deep emotions associated with lost parents etc. Mission accomplish.
I had that today. Tuesday I have a funeral. Wednesday I am speaking at another church. Thursday I am speaking at Camp. Who says I only work on Sunday?
I sure am missing Ben this morning. He went to Florida with Matthew and Jean to serve as a "nanny," i.e. he is entertaining Emma and Anna.
He has had some adventure, beyond the nanny thing. He got stung by a jellyfish, and then, while in the water, saw a shark about 5 feet from him, after hearing people on shore shouting, "shark!".
He'll be home on Thursday.
I am finding John a very difficult book to preach! Now I know why I had never preached through it. The stories are long, really long, which makes it very difficult. I am looking at John 10 this morning. I plan to focus on the first 21 verses and just mention the rest of the chapter, which will be "the reading" in our worship assembly.
I am also working on the Text Experience Sheet for John 11. Wow, how do you cut that down to a manageable size?
I find John really challenging on several levels. He presents a different view of Jesus, a view I think that is often neglected.
The whole study, while challenging, has been enjoyable for me.
allen
i have noticed a lull in the blog interest lately too and dont have an answer or real thought as to why. i still read it almost every day even if i dont participate.
cant imagine the emotions you and kedra will be going through here in the next few weeks. good boys though so you should take comfort in that you have raised them well.
sounds as if ben has had a nice adventure. ha!
i can understand your issue with john.
rr
We have had a busy summer at our house with events that have stirred every emotion you can have as a human. I returned yesterday from the funeral of a dear man in my early faith whose family influenced me in so many positive ways and lit a path of faith that I have chosen to follow for many years. Clarence Wools was a saint in every way. His wife Annalee and their daughters, Pat and Peggy were and are dear friends as we grew up in the church at Jasonville. He always had open arms and a hug and he had a laughing smile that never left his face. So many warm and funny stories of his and Annalee's rich lives of guiding many children to Christ with firm but loving care were reflected in the many written and spoken memories expressed by so many yesterday of every age. My 45th class reunion was in July and for that and for Father's day Brent and his freinds painted and got Bill's '51 Ford finished in time for the reunion where he took people cruising. After that we were invited to Myrtle Beach by our friends, Louhon & Carolyn Tucker, also lifelong friends. Having known he had some pretty serious test results awaiting we suspected they had something to tell us. After we settled in he cheerfully told us he has CLL, Chronic Lymphatic Lukemia and there is no cure or treatment but that he could live as many as 10 to 20 years and they didn't want to tell us at the reunion and spoil it for us. We visited Outer Banks, NC in May and for the first time we climbed a lighthouse, Cape Hatteras two times, a dream I have long held. A wonderful week of history and sights and we are so thankful to have been able to do that. On our way home we stopped in Sedley, VA to visit my best friend from childhood and fellow Christian. We have kept in touch ever since and when she was at Spring Mill with her family for their reunion I met them for dinner and we came back to the house for a short visit. She had never been to my house. We have since had so many wonderful phone conversations and so many wonderful memories to share and to bring each other up to date on our lives has been wonderful. I have written alot of poems this year, just felt inspired. God has blessed our summer richly with so much from the Bryantsville singing and seeing those connected with my early faith in Greene County to here and now. It's been wonderful. Sorry to ramble on. Noone is reading anyway so I am most likely talking to myself but I have seen the providence and blessings and the rewards of following Christ so vividly this year. God bless all of you. Love, Sherron Fields
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