John 10:1-10 (NRSV)
Read John 10:1-10 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 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. Verse 2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. Verse 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. Verse 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. Verse 5They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers." Verse 6Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. Verse 7So again Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. Verse 8All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. Verse 9I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. Verse 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
Devotion
Jesus speaks to the confusion of his listeners by directly and emphatically asserting that he himself is the gate for the sheep. He goes on to claim that all who came before him were thieves and bandits. Surely, Jesus is speaking out of a dispute with religious leaders of the past and present who have misled the sheep. He says that if people go through the gate that he represents, they will be saved. If not, their future is very much in doubt.
This is a comforting word, perhaps, to those who are confident that they are saved. But what about those who for one reason or another cannot believe Jesus’ claims for himself? As in other places in John’s Gospel, the emphasis here is on the uniqueness of Jesus for salvation. These questions continue to arise in conversations between Christians and non-Christians.
Prayer
Saving God, we believe your promises that through Jesus Christ, we can be saved. What happens to those who do not believe we leave to your merciful judgment. Amen.