John 10:1ff
The Door of the Sheepfold
Eva Watts says that as she traveled with a friend though the land where Jesus lived, “We reached a high ridge overlooking the village of Bethlehem. There we found a sheepfold, and went right in to inspect. It was not long before the owner appeared—a veteran, like Moses, with a long beard. ‘This is your sheepfold?’ my friend asked.
‘Aye.’
‘And is this where the sheep sleep,’ pointing to a rough shelter thrown up against the rock in a corner.
He nodded.
‘But you’ve no gate to the fold; how do you close them up at night?’
The old man looked at us as if we ought to have known better. ‘I am the door,’ he said with emphasis; and, gathering his loose robe tight about his ankles, he was down in a moment, squatting in the doorway, back against one post, feet against the other, his knees drawn up and clasped by his weather-beaten old hands. Gently he bowed his head and closed his eyes, as many a time he had closed them to catch a few hours’ sleep under the starlight. ‘I am the door,’ he repeated. ‘I keep watch here at night. If thieves or wild beasts attempt to enter, they have to tackle me first. I have never lost a lamb from the fold yet.’”
John 10:4
My Sheep Know My Voice
A man in Australia was arrested and charged with stealing a sheep. But he claimed emphatically that it was one of his own that had been missing for many days. When the case went to court, the judge was puzzled, not knowing how to decide the matter. At last he asked that the sheep be brought into the courtroom. Then he ordered the plaintiff to step outside and call the animal. The sheep made no response except to raise its head and look frightened. The judge then instructed the defendant to go to the courtyard and call the sheep. When the accused man began to make his distinctive call, the sheep bounded toward the door. It was obvious that he recognized the familiar voice of his master.
John 10:10
Howard Hughes
All he ever really wanted in life was more. He wanted more money, so he parlayed inherited wealth into a billion-dollar pile of assets. He wanted more fame, so he broke into the Hollywood scene and soon became a filmmaker and star. He wanted more sensual pleasures, so he paid handsome sums to indulge his every sexual urge. He wanted more thrills, so he designed, built, and piloted the fastest aircraft in the world. He wanted more power, so he secretly dealt political favors so skillfully that two U.S. presidents became his pawns. All he ever wanted was more. He was absolutely convinced that more would bring him true satisfaction. Unfortunately, history shows otherwise. This man concluded his life emaciated and colorless; with a sunken chest; fingernails in grotesque, inches-long corkscrews; rotting, black teeth; tumors; and innumerable needle marks from his drug addiction.
Howard Hughes died believing the myth of more. He died a billionaire junkie, insane by all reasonable standards.
John 10:30-33
Resource
- Evidence That Demands a Verdict, p. 92
John 10:34-6
Resource
- The Other Jesus, L. J. Ogilvie, Word, 1986, pp. 84ff
John 11:35
Resource
- A. T. Robertson, Greek N.T., p. 92
John 10:38
Resource
- A. T. Robertson, Greek N.T., p. 95
John 11
Resources
- Christ At The Crossroads, C. Swindoll, 1991, p. 47
- God Came Near, Max Lucado, Multnomah Press, 1987, p. 67
John 11:21-48
Resources
- Living Dangerously, S. Briscoe, Zondervan, 1968, pp. 7ff
- Living Dangerously, S. Briscoe, Zondervan, 1968, pp. 47ff
- Living Dangerously, S. Briscoe, Zondervan, 1968, pp. 90ff
John 11:30-44
Miracle or Obedience
Jesus performed a mighty miracle in raising Lazarus from the dead. But He did not take away the stone from the door of the sepulcher, nor did He remove the grave clothes when His resurrected friend came out of the tomb, “bound hand and foot” (John 11:44). Commenting on this fact, J. Boyd Nicholson wrote, “Standing before the grave of Lazarus, whose body was corrupting, the Lord demanded something of those who longed for a miracle. They might have questioned, ‘Lord, You are going to raise the dead; why not move this heavy stone with but a word—a thought?’ Herein lies a great principle: The Lord will not do by a miracle what we are to do by obedience. Is there a stone He wants you to roll away? Is there some hard, unyielding attitude; someone you will not forgive; some unconfessed sin; some step of obedience He awaits? It is ours to obey, it is His to do the miracles.”