Faith

Last time we saw that Jesus is the Good Shepherd who will lay down his life for his sheep.   Today we’ll be discussing John 10:22-41.

²² At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, ²³ and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. ²⁴ So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”²⁵ Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, ²⁶ but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. ²⁷ My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and the Father are one.”

³¹ The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. ³² Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” ³³ The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” ³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? ³⁵ If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken—³⁶ do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? ³⁷ If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; ³⁸ but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” ³⁹ Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.

⁴⁰ He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. ⁴¹ And many came to him. And they said, “John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.” ⁴² And many believed in him there.

Did you know that The Feast of Dedication, was once called the Feast of the Maccabees?  It is an eight-day winter festival celebrated by the Jews in the month of December or sometimes late November, depending on the  Jewish calendar. Today, this festival is called Hanukkah or the Festival of Lights.

Anyways, we aren’t told where in the Festival timeline we are at, only that it’s being held in Jerusalem.  It’s winter and Jesus was walking in the temple. The Jewish people gathered around him with a question “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 

Jesus continues with the sheep/shepherd picture. Again emphasizing that he and God the Father are one.  He gives eternal life to his sheep, his sheep follow him, and they will remain his sheep forever.  No one will be able to take them away from him.

^{As before, such a statement had the Jews wanting to stone him.  This blasphemy (in their eyes) because of a man making himself out to be God.   That was worth stoning a man for.} 

³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? ³⁵ If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken—³⁶ do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? ³⁷ If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; ³⁸ but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”

I find that an interesting line.  Even if “you don’t believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”   Brings back to mind a story about a devout Christian, who despite the actions and attitudes of those around him, continued to live out his faith, being kind to folks and showing basically Christ to them in how he lived.  When finally, after years of being mocked, someone finally listened to him, asking why he did what he did regardless… his actions proved Christ to the person asking.

I don’t know, It just kinda screams out at me here how important it is to actually ACT like a believer.  To actually do what God would have us go even if those around us don’t want to hear the words we speak.  If they won’t listen, at least they can watch right?

I do knoe the Jewish people there in the mob weren’t happy with Jesus, wanting him to be arrested.   They just couldn’t do so since Jesus escaped from them.

Anyways, he went over the Jordan to where John the Baptizer had first been working.  He stayed there a spell being visited by many people, some of those folks believed in him,. partily because of the testimony of John the Baptizer.

Yesterday we talked about lessons from a Blind Man, today we’ll be discussing John 10:1-21.

10 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
19 There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Back in the day, Jesus would have run into shepherds minding their sheep.  It was a familiar sight to the people.  Sheep were an important part of the economy.   

When Jesus told the tale of a person entering a sheepfold in any way other than by the gate, people would have understood that imagery.  They would understand as well, about sheep listening to the voice of the shepherd and coming when their shepherd called to them. They wouldn’t come for a random stranger calling them, this is one of the reason why sheep could be mixed in a sheepfold.  They would come for their shepherd and not for another. This description the people SHOULD have understood it, but they didn’t understand. 

I wonder if perhaps they were looking for a different meaning and therefore missed the obvious?   Sheep here the voice of their shepherd.  A shepherd comes in by the gate and doesn’t sneak in. The sneakers are thieves and strangers.

So Jesus gives them another word picture.   Now Jesus paints the picture of the door to the sheepfold.  He’s the safeguard.  Everyone who has come before him has been the stranger or thief he just finished telling them about.   The sheep didn’t listen to them.  But now Jesus has come.  If any sheep enters through him, they will be safe and be able to go into safe pastures.  He is the good shepherd and his sheep can go in and out in safety.  He keeps them safe like an owner would, not like a hired hand.   And just like any good shepherd, he knows his sheep, and his sheep know him, heeding his call.   This relationship mirrors the one between Jesus and God. We know this from this line “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.”

But hear this… Jesus has sheep all over the place.   Sheep that know him and listen to him.  All these sheep heed Jesus, and he is going to bring them all together into one flock with one shepherd.   “For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”   Do you hear those words?   Jesus chose to lay down his life for his sheep. It was something HE could do.  God (his Father) gave him that responsibility and no one could take that away from him.

The crowd listening was divided in their response.  Could Jesus be a possessed by a demon and yet…. his words weren’t those of one oppressed by a demon.  And besides… could a demon possessed man heal the blind? The confusion eh?

It is so easy for me to sit here and wonder why they couldn’t figure it out.  Why the sheepfold story didn’t any sense to them, their confusion over who (or what) Jesus was.  Hindsight is 20/20 eh?

It was good (at least for me) to see the logic though… that a demon wouldn’t heal the blind.  It doesn’t make sense that such a thing would happen.  It means that some were starting to see Jesus for who he was.  A good thing you know?

My biggest take home of this passage?  Jesus chose to lay down his life for his sheep and God loves him for it.  Isn’t that just an amazing thought?  Instead of me thinking it was just the will of God that Jesus do this, but that Jesus himself made the choice, it was an active involvement.  Even though I KNOW this, it just struck me tonight how this was a charge God made to Jesus, and Jesus made the choice to lay down his life for me. 

Last time we met, we talked about the stubbornness and anger in the Pharisees. Today we look at Jesus healing a blind man in John 9. I figured I would just link up a reading of this chapter.

Jesus left the temple to avoid being stoned.  I don’t know if this next event happens directly after or if it happened at another time.  All I really know is that Jesus was passing by a place and he saw a man blind from birth.  This passage frustrates me and yet helps me understand the attitude of some folks.

You see, I used to work with differently abled folks.  I heard from more than one mom the pain of people asking her what she did wrong to get a disabled child.  The first time I heard such a thing, I was stunned.  How can someone BLAME a mom for her child’s disability?   It’s one thing if you are drinking alcohol and you know better because of fetal alcohol, but you still don’t BLAME THE MOM.  You don’t ask them about what sin they’ve committed that they ended up with a child with needs outside the ordinary.  

Jesus is very clear here when he’s talking to the disciples, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

The man’s disability was so the works of God might be displayed in him. God’s work on display.  Jesus goes on to say that we need to work while we can.  Jesus is the light of the world, work hard then while it’s light. Then Jesus matched action to words and set about healing the man of his blindness.

He made a mud paste with saliva, then told the fellow to wash in the pool of Siloam. The fellow needed to take the next step and actually follow through. 

The questions and uncertainties followed.  Makes sense right?  You don’t expect a blind fellow to start to see again, but the fellow convinced them that it was true and told them the story of how it all happened.  “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.”

You might think that everyone would rejoice that the healing received, but it is not to be so.  The Pharisees found out what happened and made this note “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.”  Not everyone agreed, some noted: “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” I can almost see the argument happening eh?  The yes he is, the no he isn’t.  

It’s so hard sometimes to look past the present isn’t it?   To know there is a certain order and routine to something and then have that order broken.  Makes you only want to see the negative, to think that nothing good can come of having your good order broken. The Pharisees had built up a good system (for a good reason even though it had become more important than it should have).  But they had this good system, DON”T WORK ON THE SABBATH.  Jesus had broken it.  God said don’t work on the sabbath so… Jesus couldn’t be from God.  Yet others saw the deeper layers right?   The doing what was good and right came before keeping the law. 

The divisions among them had them turning back to the healed fellow “What do you say about him, since he opened your eyes?” Makes sense to ask the eye witness eh? 

The response:  The fellow healed said, “He is a prophet.”

I read verses 18-23 and I can just see the Pharisees eh?   This can’t be possible, and so grasping at straws they call in the fellow’s parents.  Imagine them eh?   Called before the Pharisees, being asked questions about their boy now grown, the fear that would have filled their hearts.  All they knew was this: their boy was born blind, had lived blind, and now he could see.  How it happened?  I DUNNO  I wasn’t there, ask him!  Their fear was palpable eh?  They had a life and a community, they didn’t want that to end. 

It’s so hard to change, they got no where with the folks, they tried to question the fellow again (who, by this time I’m guessing was a bit fed up with it all).  I say that based on this comment “I have told you already, and you would not listen.  Why do you want to hear it again?“

Things deteriorated from there and the fellow ended up being cast out by the Jewish leadership.  Jesus found him afterwards and asked him this “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” After learning it was Jesus, the man responded in faith and worshiped him.  Amazing isn’t it? 

Jesus healed him.  Helped a blind man see.  A working of God it was. Jesus turned this event into a teaching.  Showing how the blind can see, and those who see…won’t be able to. Faith matters.  The knowing matters.  Once we know were are blind, even if we thought we could see, once we know it… it shows our guilt.   This is part of Jesus being a person of Judgement.  He sees these things, he shows and teaches, giving us a life of guilt or freedom by how we see. 

See Christ eh?   Just see him, don’t be blind to the truth of who he is.  SEE Him.