Hey everyone, hope all of you had a good Christmas and have been enjoying your breaks! ive been stuck at home in bipolar michigan weather (it's 60 today and 30 tomorrow..) and boredom has driven me to doing a lot of baking and cooking. other than that, my cousins are staying over for a few days so i've gotten to catch up with them as well as some friends from high school.
So the first part of John 10 is a story that Jesus tells about a shepherd and his sheep. he says that anyone who climbs in to the sheep pen by some other way besides through the gate is "a thief and a robber." these people were those who came before Jesus, those who come "only to steal and kill and destroy" (v. 10). Jesus, of course, is the shepherd, and these sheep are his followers. He illlustrates the idea of the sheep only obeying the shepherd because they recognize his voice and will run away strangers because they do not recognize their voices. a verse i found very reassuring was when the shepherd also "calls his own sheep by name" in verse 3. this just reminds me that God really knows each and every single one of us, it's not some higher authority with a bunch of faceless followers, which is present in other religions. it goes to show that what we have is not just a religion, but ultimately a relationship with God. he wants to know us, his sheep, and for his sheep to know him (v. 14). Jesus also talks about how he is the gate to the sheep pen, "whoever enters through me will be saved" (v. 9).
The second part takes place at the Feast of Dedication in Jeruselum. the Jews still do not believe that Jesus is Christ, even though Jesus has told them many times, and has done many miracles in God's name. they and the pharisees are so stuck to their rules and the strict laws they have formed that they do not believe that Jesus, a man, could be who he claims to be. in verses 34-36, Jesus is saying that they are being hypocritical. the reference to Psalm 82:6 "i have said you are gods" is written in teh context of God's followers being "sons of the Most High" ..but i don't understand how the two connect to each other. could someone explain this?
this is something i really struggle with, putting my faith in God. He lays out all the evidence just like Jesus and his miracles in the passages we've been reading, He hears my prayers, i can see what and all that He has provided, but sometimes i'm just very full of doubt. this is something i really need to work on, so if you guys could pray for me about that please. thank you!
i'm not sure if i covered everything, please add some of your thoughts!
hope you all enjoy the rest of your breaks!
1 comment:
John 10:34-36 is actually pretty tough to decipher. I would just say to remember the context (of the sentence, of the passage, of the Gospel of John, of Psalm 82, of the Bible, and of Jesus' character).
The context of the Gospel of John is found in John 20:30-31.
"Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."
Psalm 82 was about judges who were commissioned by God and called "gods." They abused their power and God will judge these judges.
John 10:34-36 can be paraphrased as:
I know that you refuse to believe My claims (v. 25), and now you accuse Me of blasphemy (v. 33). Let Me remind you that, incredible though it may seem, Scripture says that wicked human beings were called by divine title, simply because they were commissioned by God. It was not blasphemous for them to bear the divine label (and you cannot escape the truth of this, for Scripture asserts it). Therefore how much more may I, the eternal Son of God, go by My divine title? I have received (a far greater) divine commission, and I bear the divine title not by grace (as they did) but by nature. To accuse Me of blasphemy is ludicrous.
More information on this passage can be found at: http://www.answering-islam.org/BibleCom/jn10-34-36.html
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