John 10

1. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth. The man who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber.

Jesus is still talking to the Pharisees. He says, “Because you say that you are not blind you must be able to see that I am from God. You are trying to hurt the sheep by teaching them that they can go to heaven by climbing over the wall instead of going through the door. If you want to go through the door, you are going to have to come to Me.”

The Gospel shows us that there is no other way. The world’s religions say, “There are many ways to heaven. One is as good as another.” This is a lie of Satan to make an excuse for people to live any way they want to.

2. The one who enters by the door is the Shepherd of the sheep.

We can say, “I am not my own shepherd. I do not lead myself. I wait for the Lord to show me before I go ahead. When someone tries to push me I will wait first. It is not the end of the world if I wait first to see what God shows me before I make a decision.”

3. The man who guards the door opens it for him. And the sheep listen to the voice of the shepherd. He calls His own sheep, using their names, and He leads them out.

I will give to each one a white stone, and on the stone will be engraved a new name that no one understands except the one who receives it. Revelation 2:17

And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. Matthew 10:30

4. He brings all of His sheep out. Then He goes ahead of them and leads them. They follow Him because they know His voice.

A shepherd goes into the field and checks that everything is safe before he brings the sheep there. He makes sure there is nothing growing there that would make the sheep sick. This is what a real pastor does.

Jesus is telling the Pharisees, “The sheep are not going to continue to follow you because they can see that you are liars.”

5 – 6

But they will never follow a stranger. They will run away from him because they do not know his voice.” Jesus told the people this story, but they did not understand what it meant.

True believers will not listen to the Pharisees. The know the Shepherd’s voice because they have spent time with Him. If you are not in the Word spending time with the Lord then you will not know His voice.

7. So Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth. I am the door for the sheep.

Shepherds lead the sheep into a place with a fence around it to protect them. There is only one way to get into this place. The shepherd stays in the doorway so that nothing can come near the sheep because he is guarding the door.

8. The sheep did not listen to the thieves and robbers who came here before Me.

Jesus is standing near the temple, and saying that there have been false teachers here before I came.

9. I am the door. The person who enters through Me will be saved. He will be able to come in and go out and find pasture.

Church history says that James was asked what Jesus meant by this verse. James said, “He was talking about the door of heaven.” They killed James for saying this.

10. A thief comes to steal and kill and destroy. But I came to give life—life in all its fullness.

What does the devil want to steal from you? What does the devil want to kill inside of you? This is how we know demonic activity, when something is trying to destroy us on the inside. The devil wants to live his life through us but we want the Lord to live His life through us!

11. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

Jesus is saying that He is going to give His life for the sheep. He is preparing the ones who are listening to understand what is happening when He is on the cross.

12. The worker who is paid to keep the sheep is different from the shepherd who owns them. So when the worker sees a wolf coming, he runs away and leaves the sheep alone. Then the wolf attacks the sheep and scatters them.

A false shepherd gets paid for letting the sheep die.

As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, you abandoned My flock and left them to be attacked by every wild animal. And though you were My shepherds, you did not search for My sheep when they were lost. You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to have nothing to eat. Ezekiel 34:8

13. The man runs away because he is only a paid worker. He does not really care for the sheep.

It is easy to see someone who is a false shepherd because he is always taking care of himself more than he takes care of the sheep.

14 – 15

“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. I give My life for the sheep.

If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Will he not leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? Luke 15:4

16. I have other sheep that are not in this flock here. I must bring them also. They will listen to My voice, and there will be one flock and one Shepherd.

Many false teachers say that their group is the lost sheep that Jesus is talking about. Jesus is letting the Pharisees know that He came to save the world, not only the Jews.

17 – 18

The Father loves Me because I give My life. I give My life so that I can take it back again. No one takes it away from Me. I give My own life freely. I have the right to give My life, and I have the right to take it back. This is what My Father commanded Me to do.”

Jesus life was not taken from Him, He gave up His life. Matthew tells us that Jesus sent His spirit out of His body. Then Jesus cried out again, and He released his spirit. Matthew 27:50

19 – 20

Again the Jews did not agree with each other because of these words Jesus said. Many of them said, “A demon has come into Him and made Him crazy. Why listen to Him?”

This is what evil spirits tell you after your spirit has been brought low. They will tell you that you are crazy.

Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence. Psalm 42:5

21. But others said, “A man who is crazy with a demon does not say words like this. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

The original language here says that these are personal words. Each one felt the words of Jesus speaking to them personally.
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

22- 23
The time came for the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. This was during the winter. Jesus was walking in the temple in Solomon’s Porch.

Before the time of Jesus, the evil ruler Antiochus offered a pig in the temple. When the Jews dedicated the temple to God again they only had a small amount of oil for the lamps but it continued to burn while the temple was being cleaned out. This holiday is now called Hanukkah.

24 – 25

The Jews gathered around Him and said, “How long will you make us wonder about You? If you are the Christ, then tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I told you already, but you did not believe. I do miracles in My Father’s name. Those miracles show who I am.

Jesus is saying, ”You are keeping yourselves in suspense because you already saw the miracles God can do in people’s lives.”

26 – 27

But you do not believe because you are not My sheep. My sheep listen to My voice. I know them, and they follow Me.

If someone already has a born-again spiritual leader, do not try to become their leader. If you try to lead them you will find out that they are really not listening to you.

28 – 30
I give them eternal life, and they will never die. And no person can steal them out of My hand. My Father gave My sheep to Me. He is greater than all, and no person can steal My sheep out of My Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.


Some teachers say that this means that a Christian can never fall away from the faith. There are many scriptures to balance this question. No one can take us out of His hand but we can turn away of our own will.

For it is impossible to bring back to repentance those who were once enlightened—those who have experienced the good things of heaven and shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come —and who then turn away from God. It is impossible to bring such people back to repentance; by rejecting the Son of God, they themselves are nailing him to the cross once again and holding him up to public shame. Hebrews 6:4 – 6

If we continue sinning after we have received knowledge of the truth, there is no longer any sacrifice that will cover these sins. Hebrews 10:26 – 29

31 – 36

Again the Jews picked up stones to kill Jesus. But Jesus said to them, “I have done many good works from the Father. Which of these good works are You killing Me for?”

The Jews answered, “We are not killing You for any good work you did. But You say things that are against God. You are only a man, but You say You are the same as God!”
Jesus answered, “It is written in your law that God said, ‘I have said you are gods!’ This Scripture called those people gods, the people who received God’s message and Scripture cannot be changed.

So why do you say that I speak against God because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? I am the One God chose and sent into the world.

To the Jews, judges were called gods because they gave God’s judgment on cases in court. They were used as tools of the Word of God. They were supposed to act in the place of God. Jesus is saying if you call men “gods” because they are being used to decide what the Word of God says then why do you become angry when I say that I am God’s Son? Psalm 82:6

37- 38

If I do not do what My Father does, then do not believe Me. But if I do what My Father does, even though you don’t believe in Me, believe what I do. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in Me and I am in the Father.

The prophets said that the Messiah would heal.

The Sun of Righteousness will arise with healing in His wings. Malachi 4:2

39 – 42

They tried to take Jesus again, but He escaped from them. Then Jesus went back across the Jordan River to the place where John had first baptized. Jesus stayed there, and many people came to Him. They said, “John never did a miracle. But everything John said about this man is true.” And in that place many believed in Jesus.

Jesus went to the followers of John the Baptist and explained the Gospel to them. Some of them believed, but we know that some of them stayed in the desert and became part of a group called the Essenes.