“Jesus, The Certain Gate”

Scripture: John 10:1-10

Some people aren’t too keen on the thought that scripture compares us to sheep. And the truth is, the image isn’t very complimentary! Sheep aren’t very smart – they eat with their heads down, never looking up, and just wander wherever there is something to chew on. They don’t seem to care whether the fodder in front of them is good for them or bad – whatever is there gets eaten. Sheep are dumb.
And many don’t like the thought that the image of heaven includes a “gate”. Why should anyone be kept out? How can a loving and compassionate God be so exclusive?

And yet, scripture is full of these references, and we had better get used to them! Not simply because the Bible includes them, but because they are important for our lives!

Read John 10:1-3

The sheep pen isn’t some device that is used as a means of punishment. It exists to create a safe haven for those who are inside. In that day, there were many wild animals prowling the hillsides of Judea, and the sheep could easily become a tasty meal for them. The shepherd’s main job was to see to their well being – to lead them safely into areas that had good grass and water during the day, and even more importantly, to keep them safe from marauders during the night. The shepherd would see his sheep safely into the enclosure in the evening, and would then lie down in the entrance to sleep. Anyone trying to get in or out during the night would have to negotiate their way over the shepherd. He would, in all actuality, become a gate for his sheep.
Jesus uses this image of sheep and shepherd in our passages for the next two weeks. Today we look at this concept of a “gate”.

The first issue that Jesus presents is who is allowed to enter through the gated entrance. He tells us that it is only the sheep of the shepherd’s own flock that are permitted entry. Sheep from someone else’s flock do not get a pass. And, of course, the wild animals who intend to do harm to the flock are also excluded. Anyone – human or animal – who tries to enter by some secretive or cunning means will not succeed, and can only be described as dishonest and up to no good!

And we need to know that there is also a gate that bars the way to heaven. It isn’t a locked door, it isn’t an armed sentry, it isn’t some secret password or code. The restriction is more public than any security system in use today, and at the same time is more unbreakable than any system could possibly be. It can’t be bypassed. It can’t be defeated. It can’t be fooled. And there is no other possible port of entry.
And yet, folks continue to think that they can bypass the procedure, and create their own way to get inside.

Read John 10:4-6

As I think you all know, we have two cats. Sometimes they act as though they run the place, but the truth is, I have the upper hand – I know how to open the door to let them in or out of the house, and they don’t! It kind of makes me indispensible to them. I have to admit, though, that they can be very irritating when they want to go out, and I don’t jump as soon as they call! But as hard as they scratch and claw at the door, or meow as though they are being subjected to some great wrong, they still haven’t found a good way to open the door except to get me to do it! And on the other hand, if I go outside and call them to come in, especially after they have been outside for a while, they come running as if I was their best friend. But if someone else is trying to get their attention, especially with the older cat, they head in the opposite direction. They know my voice, and they know that they can trust me. With others, they aren’t so sure.

The shepherd’s flock is similar in nature. They come to trust the shepherd and know that he has only their best interest at heart. If he calls out to them, they respond. If some else tries to get their attention, they ignore him.

But the people who were listening to this teaching didn’t get the message. Jesus, as we all know, taught using parables and other examples that had hidden meanings. It didn’t matter if it was his disciples, or the crowd, or this group of Pharisees, he was equally adept at confusing them all. Those who heard his teaching always tried to take him literally and it never seemed to make any sense to them. In this instance, the analogy of “sheep and shepherd” was just as bewildering to the Pharisees as it would have been if Jesus was introducing the subject of quantum mechanics. They missed the issue of relationship in the discussion, and since they didn’t recognize Jesus as either a Shepherd or Savior, it was totally devoid of any meaning for them.

From the devotional “Streams in the Desert”:
The shepherd is responsible for the sheep; not the sheep for the shepherd. The worst of it is, that we sometimes think we are both the shepherd and the sheep, and that we have to both guide and follow. Happy are we when we realize that he is responsible, that he goes before and goodness and mercy shall follow.
--Streams in the Desert

The Pharisees wanted to be the leaders, and they strongly objected to anyone who tried to take that position away from them. They wanted others to listen to their teaching, not that of others. But Jesus would never give up trying to show them the truth.
It was a hard lesson for these learned men, and most of them failed to learn it.

Read John 10:7-10

And Jesus explains that He is the gate that protects the sheep – his followers - and that all of the teachers of false salvation are just thieves and bandits. The “gate” of heaven is the most secure of any portal that has ever existed throughout all time. There is no key, no combination, no toll booth – the gate will open wide only in the presence of a sure and certain relationship with the shepherd. And it can never open under any other circumstance. And as secure as entry may be, this procedure for entry is given to all who wish to enter. Why do people try to make it so difficult?
The Psalmist reiterates this theme in Psalm 118:19-21. We can’t open the gate – it must be opened for us! It isn’t a gate that everyone will pass through – it is only for the righteous, and righteousness can only come through a relationship with the Divine Shepherd. But it is available to all who will ask.
And entry brings not just safety, but life! Can it possibly get any easier?

Do you think that the Pharisees may have cringed a little at this teaching, especially when Jesus implied that those who teach in opposition to Him are nothing more than thieves who “steal, kill and destroy”? You know that they did. And the “Pharisees” of today had better cringe, too!
There are no other entrances into heaven, there is no other entry criteria, there is no other gatekeeper, no other shepherd, no other opportunity for finding a different way in.
Every other teaching is nothing more than an attempt to grab the promise of eternal life right out of the hands of Christ’s faithful. They are thieves - no more, no less.

So how do we recognize these present day thieves? We know them only by knowing the teachings of Jesus Christ, and being able to compare the two thoughts. Know Jesus’ words, and be confident in them. “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.”
These are words that leave very little to the imagination – salvation is only in Christ – the Divine and certain Gate. We give him our lives, and he gives us new life. We give him our trust, and he gives us his ministry. We give him our all, and he gives us even more.

It’s as simple as that. Know his voice, his call, his touch. They are unlike any other.