Jeff Englund

February 14, 2019February 13, 2019

Oneness – John 10: 30

“I and the Father are one.”

What does he mean by saying, “one?” A quick look in Strong’s Concordance suggests that the English translation here is every bit as clear and oblique as the Greek. One means one. It can mean ‘one’ as in one thing, or it can mean ‘one’ as in whole, or complete.

“I and the Father are one.”

In the first book of the Bible, Genesis, in the second chapter and the twenty-fourth verse God says, “That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.” What does that mean, “one flesh?” Is that the same kind of thing that Jesus is talking about or different? It is mentioned again and again in the New Testament as an example of oneness.

February 13, 2019February 12, 2019

Assurance – John 10: 27 – 29

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.”

Life is a scary business. We are not always conscious of this truth, but in a moment something critical can change and suddenly we are no longer self-assured; instead, we are scared. And with good reason. There is so little we really know about this life. There is really very little we have control over.

February 12, 2019February 11, 2019

Heart Work – John 10: 25b – 26

“The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.”

Are you a sheep, and if so whose sheep are you? Do you have a sense of belonging? Do you recognize the voice of your Maker when He calls? Do you listen only to the voices inside your own head? Do you want to be able to hear God’s voice?

February 11, 2019February 10, 2019

A Winter’s Walk – John 10: 22-25a

Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, ”How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
Jesus answered, ”I did tell you, but you do not believe.

Over the past several days we have watched Jesus explain himself over and over again to an audience who is unwilling to accept his message. Now, in this passage, the scene has changed again. Walking under the covered porch of the temple wall Jesus is pestered by the Jews. “Tell us plainly,” they say. This is almost a childish simplification of the situation.

February 10, 2019February 9, 2019

Crazy – John 10: 19-21

The Jews who heard these words were again divided. Many of them said, ”He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?”
But others said, ”These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

You can understand why someone might think Jesus was a bit unhinged. Talking about taking laying his life down and taking it up again clearly is the talk of a madman, unless, of course, he really was who he said he was. But that couldn’t be … could it? Naw… The man must be crazy!

February 9, 2019February 8, 2019

Life & Death – John 10: 17-18

“The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

In the third parable about sheep, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” In this passage, he expands on this statement and tells us more clearly what he means.

February 8, 2019February 7, 2019

Listen – John 10: 14-16

“I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.”

Once again, Jesus repeats himself. “I am the good shepherd.” “I am the good shepherd.” If a man is the best at something and he says he is the best, that is not arrogance, it is fact. Jesus is not being prideful here or arrogant, but honest, truthful, and straightforward.

February 7, 2019February 6, 2019

The Good Shepherd – John 10: 11-13

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.”

In this passage, Jesus offers a third parable about sheep. In the first one (John 10: 1-6) Jesus is the shepherd. In the second parable (John 10: 7-10), Jesus is the gate to the sheepfold. In today’s passage, Jesus is again the shepherd, but this time he draws a distinction between the good shepherd and the bad shepherd.

February 6, 2019February 5, 2019

The Gate – John 10: 7-10

Therefore Jesus said again, ”Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”

In the first parable (verses 1-5) the key elements are a shepherd, a gate, sheep, and the thief. In this second parable, we have the gate, the sheep, and the thieves. It is getting harder to ignore the obvious point Jesus is making. Instead of speaking of himself in the third person, he changes tactics and speaks in the first person: “I am the gate…” There are only two other groups in this parable; the sheep and the thieves. Where does that leave the Pharisees…? Even they must have been able to pick up on that!

February 5, 2019February 3, 2019

Understanding … Not – John 10: 6

Jesus used this figure of speech, but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.
”Very truly I tell you Pharisees…” but the Pharisees did not understand what he was telling them.

Understanding requires a willingness to see something that you have not seen before. Sometimes being able to “see” something you have not seen before requires letting go of your present point of view – at least for a moment or two.

The Pharisees held firmly to the point of view that they were God’s chosen people and that they, in particular, were chosen to keep control of the rules that others had to live by. Jesus did not follow their rules (man’s rules) and instead followed rules that they did not recognize (God’s rules).

For the Pharisees to understand what Jesus was telling them, they would have to at least pretend for a moment that Jesus could be who he says he is. If they could have done that, they might have been able to understand what he was saying to them.