John 10:1 “Yes, indeed! I tell you, the person who doesn’t enter the sheep-pen through the door, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 But the one who goes in through the gate is the sheep’s own shepherd. 3 This is the one the gate-keeper admits, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep, each one by name, and leads them out. 4 After taking out all that are his own, he goes on ahead of them; and the sheep follow him because they recognize his voice. 5 They never follow a stranger but will run away from him, because strangers’ voices are unfamiliar to them.”
6 Yeshua used this indirect manner of speaking with them, but they didn’t understand what he was talking to them about. 7 So Yeshua said to them again, “Yes, indeed! I tell you that I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All those who have come before me have been thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. 9 I am the gate; if someone enters through me, he will be safe and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only in order to steal, kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, life in its fullest measure.
We understand this so well, don’t we? Yeshua is the Gate for us to enter into Life. Simple.
Does understanding translate into obedience, though? Not generally. Knowing what to do and actually doing it are vastly different things.
How are you supposed to know for certain whether you are entering in through the gate?
The key lies in two contrasting details:
What voice do you hear? It’s important to spend a lot of time around this question because it is a very serious issue. Life and death level of serious.
Ever heard this before?
We’re not talking about Genesis here. We’re talking about people using these words to explain (or justify) a decision they have made.
Anytime someone uses this phrase, the conversation is over. Even if the stuff that follows is anti-Biblical and clearly not something Abba would ever say. But you are wasting your time if you even try to bring a bit of reasoning into the fold. There is nothing you can say and, even worse, nothing in the Bible that will change their minds -- because God said.
There have been times in the past where people have said things that would have to make the Messiah cringe. From justification for hating people to poor life decisions to blatant violations of Abba’s commands. “God” said it to them so that’s what they’re going with.
What are people hearing when they make these claims? More importantly, who is saying it to them?
Looking at someone else’s life and seeing the lack of protection is somewhat of a Biblical pastime. I think we all have spent plenty of lazy summer afternoons inspecting the shortcomings of just about everyone we know. Given the opportunity to speak, we’d have their lives cleaned up in just a few short moves, right?
But how about us? Why can’t we see these same few things that would revolutionize our own lives? Is it because we’re blind? If so, we talked about that before with the Light of the World. Here, however, we are considering hearing and the subsequent safety, or lack thereof. It seems the root of this lies in the fact that we can’t hear. Or if we can hear, we can’t hear the correct voice.
“Blasphemy!” you say, “If I heard the wrong voice that means I can’t show off my superior ‘God said’ skills because that power argument could be flawed. No sir, not me.”
But consider your life. Are you under attack? Do you seem to continually be fighting some hidden beast and getting your butt whooped time and again? If so, where is that pasture you have promised here? If you're getting destroyed, why not go through the Gate if it is so easy for you to do?
The thief comes only in order to steal, kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, life in its fullest measure.
There is a battle for your mind. There is a battle for your heart. There is a battle for your life.
If the stranger can get you listening to him you will be lost -- following someone that has only one thing in mind for you: to steal from you, to kill you, and to ultimately destroy you.
Identity gets stolen. Shalom gets stolen. Relationships get stolen.
Your faith dies. Your heart dies. Your body dies.
Once you have no identity, no shalom, no relationships, a loss of faith, a loss of heart, and physical death, you are completely destroyed. This is the path the stranger wants you on. And sometimes, we want to be on this path also. Seemingly, lots of fun and no accountability -- the dream of every teenager to ever live, right?
But…
If you can train yourself to hear the true Shepherd, you will not be lured off by the promises of the world. You won’t seek the things designed to destroy your life. No, you will hear Him and know where to find pasture. It’s through Him that you gain access to the very thing you’re seeking: your life.
Your identity is solidified, you rest in His shalom, your relationships grow. Your faith becomes strong and your heart becomes a heart of flesh. You will then live an indestructible life. Forever.
But you must learn to hear, understand and obey. Sh’ma. This isn’t hard. It’s our bullheaded quest to feed our flesh that’s hard. Disobedience is pretty hard to manage long term.
If you’re new to the praying game you may be struggling to sort out the voices that you hear. If that’s the case, read your Bible. One thing I know for sure is that you will not hear anything that is contrary to His Word. The more you climb into the Word, the more solid your hearing will become. You’ll hear, then find the second witness in the Bible. Solid plan and well supported.
For all of the prayer veterans out there though, you know that you can pray and never even read your Bible, right? Most people were trained in prayer without ever opening a Bible. Is this good though?
Well…
Have you ever prayed, got a response, acted on it, and that thing almost killed you? Or something broke in no time? Or it caused turmoil of some sort? In summary, it brought death instead of life.
Was this God?
There is no way Abba would grant you something that would destroy you or your family. That’s not His character.
Now, if He can teach you a lesson without destroying you then that’s a totally different story. If it is Him that says “go ahead” then it’s likely because your heart is dead set on it so He is giving you your heart’s desire. Not that He wants you to do it, but you’re wanting it so badly you can’t hear clearly otherwise. But we’re all hard headed teenagers and we know what’s best for us. So you get it. Then you really get it. And that is horrific.
After all of this, maybe you’ll learn. As you sit and humbly lick your wounds, maybe your pride gets suppressed enough to allow Him to finally speak in your life.
Maybe.
Is it time to go back and start your prayer practice over again? Reading His Word over and over and over until it is so deeply ingrained you know right away when He speaks.
The one thing for sure is that His Word is Life and brings Life. Read it so when you hear it you know for certain your Shepherd is speaking.
This is the one the gate-keeper admits, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep, each one by name, and leads them out.
Listen for your name to be called. But more importantly, be sure it is the right Voice speaking it.