The “word pictures” of John chapter 10, those of sheep and shepherd, are allusions to several Old Testament Passages of Scripture.

Psalm 23 is an obvious example. But we must add Isaiah 53 to the list, called by one Bible teacher “the most important single chapter in the Bible!” Several Paragraphs in Zechariah as well. Like … “Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered: and I will turn mine hand upon the little ones.” (Zechariah 13:7, quoted by Jesus and applied to Himself in Mark 14:27.) But especially Ezekiel 34, virtually the whole chapter. Which contrasts Israel’s list of Bad shepherds with the Lord’s “Good Shepherd!”

Someone asked … How can Jesus be both the “Door of the Sheep” and the “Good Shepherd” simultaneously? Answer … As the Initiator and Medium of our salvation, He is the “DOOR!” Then as the Provider and Protector of the sheep in His fold, He is the “GOOD SHEPHERD!” (The Beginning and the End!)

Sheep are notoriously “dumb” animals, comparatively speaking. But one thing they can do, and do well, is “hear” their Shepherd’s Voice and then “follow” in His Steps!

In class we noticed Jesus’ (and John’s) emphasis on “hirelings,” men who do not care for the flock and tend them (even abusing them at times) only for the money involved, a paycheck. In so doing a verse in John’s longest Epistle came to mind.

Bear in mind, hirelings are also antichrists at heart! “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.” 1 John 2:18-19

One last quote I wish I had included in the video class … “Thousands of sheep have died for their shepherds (in innumerable blood sacrifices in ancient Israel), but only ONE SHEPHERD has died for His sheep!” That’s Jesus!

“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.” John 10:11

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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Jesus as the “Door” …

Remember that the Old Testament Tabernacle had only one door, one gate! And that opening was 30 feet wide! A picturesque way of saying “Whosoever will may come!” (Exodus 38:18)

Come to think of it, the Ark Noah built also had only one door! Only one way to safety, t5o avoid judgment! (Genesis 6:16)

Jesus is the only Way to Heaven!

The Holy Spirit is called “The Spirit of Truth” three times in the Gospel of John! (John 14:17 and John 15:26 and again in John 16:13) It is He Who opens the door to the sheepfold!

The only other Porter I can find in the New Testament is in John 18:16-17. This “door keeper” (the same Greek word as “porter” in John 10:3) is a damsel, a young lady! (I have heard the Holy Spirit characterized as the Feminine Influence in the Godhead, the Trinity! Partly because of His Gentleness and Warmth.) And He certainly does play a vital part in the New Birth, recall!

Hearing or knowing the Shepherd’s Voice (Jesus’ Call) is a recurring theme in John chapter 10. See verses 3 and 4 and 5 and 8 and 16 and 27! That’s amazing! (Add a verse from John’s First Epistle to this “hearing” data … “We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.” 1 John 4:6

A quote I forgot to include … “OUR LORD FEEDS US BY HIS PLAIN SIMPLE) WORDS. BUT HE EXERCISES US BY HIS OBSCURE (HARD) WORDS!”

See if Numbers 27:16-17 sounds like Jesus our sweet Shepherd. “Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation, which may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.”

Compare now to Mark 6:34 … “And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.”

Amen!

This may be Matthew’s way of saying that Jesus is the Door, the Gate to eternal life … “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.”

After several of Jesus’ great “I AM” Statements, He soon issues a Gospel invitation!

This is classic! “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” John 6:35-37

This one is more compact. “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” John 8:12, “I AM” then an “INVITATION!”

And here in our chapter of course … “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” John 10:9-10, any man!

Seems like I omitted a lot!

Still, I invite you to watch the Class now …

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

The Pharisees skeptically asked Jesus in this Text of Scripture, “Are we blind?” (Verse 40) And they were, spiritually!

But they did not know that they were! More precisely, they would not acknowledge that! They considered themselves true “seers!” An Old Testament word for a Prophet! It means “one who sees!” A sad situation indeed! (Like “blind eye specialists!”)

I called our Text (in the video class, the Evening Meditation) a “Reversal Saying” of Jesus. Here are three more, for comparison …

Mark 8:35 … “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it.”

Mark 10:43-44 … “But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: and whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all.”

And Matthew 23:12 … “And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.”

Wow!

In the Book of Isaiah particularly, when the Messiah comes blind people will see. That’s Bible prophecy and it happened during Jesus’ Ministry! Again, I give you a few among many …

Isaiah 29:18 … “And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness.”

Isaiah 42:18 … “Hear, ye deaf; and look, ye blind, that ye may see.”

Then in reverse … Isaiah 6:10 … “Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.”

Isaiah 56:10 … “His watchmen are blind: they are all ignorant, they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber.”

In our Passage yet again, I had not time to say that Jesus was often misunderstood …

John 2:18-21 … “Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body.”

John 3:3-4 … ” Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?”

John 4:10-11 … “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?”

John 6:50-52 … “This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

Listen to Jesus describe these Pharisees in Matthew 15:14 … “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”

Wow!

But I did not leave out lots of other information! Watch the Class now and you will “see” …

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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One of the loveliest Stories (though an actual historical account) in all the Gospels, full to the brim with faith, saving faith!

John 9:1-38 recounts the healing of a man born blind, a poor beggar in fact. Gradually through the Chapter his apprehension of Jesus grows! First, He’s a man. Then a man named Jesus (meaning Saviour)! Next the ex-blind man decides Jesus is a Prophet! Then He is “of God,” coming from God Himself! And finally Jesus is the “Son of God!”

Someone wrote of this new believer … “Before the Pharisees he was bold as a lion! But before Jesus he was meek as a lamb!”

I (in class today) did not have time to tell you this …

Jesus Self-Discloses Himself as “God the Son” four times in John’s Gospel!

In John 5:25 … “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.”

John 9:35-37 … “Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God? 36 He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? 37 And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.”

John 10:36 … “Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?”

John 11:4 … “When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.”

Wow!

The trajectory of this once blind man’s life is amazing, his “spiritual history.” It is an apt illustration of Philippians 1:6 … “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath BEGUN a good work in you will PERFORM it until the day of Jesus Christ.”(Until Jesus comes again!)

Amen!

Now, why not watch the entire class?

Glory to God!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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When the Pharisees (the “Jews”) commanded the now healed blind man to “Give God the praise,” they as much as took God’s precious Name in vain! They actually used God’s reverent Name to attempt to trick the ex-blind man into denying his healing miracle (!!!) and further denigrate Jesus.

The Clause (“Give God the praise”) remembers (maybe even partially quotes) Joshua 7:19 and Jeremiah 13:16. As used in the Old Testament these Words at least form a threat of judgment! Or demand some kind of confession!

They were trying to get this latest recipient of Jesus’ healing Power to turn on the Saviour and agree that He was a sinner! Wisely he responded to their badgering with the words … “Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.” (John 9:25)

I failed to share with you this quote … “The ex-blind man’s courage here increases as does his eloquence!”

Another noted … “Truth (the man was always a truth-teller) is the route to Jesus!”

This Statement led me to wonder, is John 14:6 perhaps sequential? Is Jesus first the Truth then the Way and finally the Life? (“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”) If so, TRUTH leads to LIFE!

Why do these Jews, these Pharisees HATE Jesus so much? I honestly believe I know the reason! I found it in Matthew 27:17-18 … “Therefore when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them, Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ? For he knew that FOR ENVY they had delivered him.” And Mark 15:10 agrees … “for envy” they had Jesus killed!

“The Pharisees had a DOGMA, the healed man had a FACT!” They had Moses, the blind beggar had Jesus!

A beggar teaching the Sanhedrin! Because they were living the spirit of 2 Timothy 3:7. “Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” Or Romans 1:22 … “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.”

“One thing I know,” quipped the poor (but now seeing very well) man, sounding like us Christians often do …

2 Timothy 1:12 … For the which cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I KNOW whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

Job 19:25 … For I KNOW that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth.

1 John 3:14 … We KNOW that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.

Romans 8:28 … And we KNOW that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

1 John 3:2 … Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we KNOW that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

One more quote … “Moses, among all his miracles, never gave sight to a blind man!”

The man Jesus made well, to whom He gave sight … “testified by LIP and by LIFE!”

Wow!

Now, watch the whole Class if you can …

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

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