John 10 - The Life Recovery Bible

10:1-5 The shepherd knows each of his sheep by name, and they know and respond only to his voice. In like manner, Jesus knows our personality, needs, feelings, and desires. He even knows our faults and our sins, yet he still loves us! He calls out to us and leads us in the way that is best for us. To be set free from the pain of our past, we must respond to the guiding voice of our shepherd, who knows us fully and loves us completely.

10:7-18 At night shepherds in Bible times led their flocks to lie down in a sheepfold (an area boxed in by brush or rock). The shepherd slept in the opening and literally became the gate to the sheepfold. He protected the sheep from wild animals and robbers with his own body. Jesus, our gate and good shepherd, does this for us. By sacrificing his life he has provided the means for our salvation and protection from temptations and addictions. In Christ we can find security and serenity, even when we fail. God is able to use our sins and failures to bring about our ultimate good if we trust him and obey his plan for our life.

10:27-29 When we entrust ourself to Jesus, we can feel safe and secure. No one can take us away from him and his care, not even the Devil! Such security is sometimes hard for us to grasp emotionally, especially if we have been a victim of abuse; we may have been so emotionally damaged that life can seem very unsafe. Unsure of whom we can trust and not wanting to be hurt again, we keep everyone at a distance—even God. Recovery from abuse can occur only in a safe relationship that God offers to us in which divine love and protection are expressed.

10:30-38 Jesus said that he and the Father are one; this was a clear claim to divinity. Jesus was God in human flesh (1:14). He was one with his Father in essence, in purpose, in words, and in thoughts. All of Jesus’ miracles attest to his divine authority (10:37-38), as do the Scriptures (5:39). Only a God-man could perfectly understand our human weaknesses yet command our complete trust. Only the divine miracle worker, Jesus, can effect the everyday and everlasting recovery that we need.