Which Door Do You Choose?

I AM WHO I AM #8

I AM the Door

John 10:1-10

After spending a sleepless night at the Mount of Olives in prayer, Jesus had a busy day. You can read the past few devotionals for details of the events which unfolded from John 8:1 up to this point in John 10. And amazingly, His day still wasn't over.

After all the craziness which took place, the crowd was still there. He began talking to them about sheep and the sheepfold. When Jesus talked about the fact that there was only one door into the sheepfold, folks understood what He was talking about because it was a part of their culture. They knew that if a man tried to get into the sheepfold any other way than by that one door, he was probably a thief and had evil intentions. They knew that the sheep were trained to respond to their shepherd's voice and would only go with him when he called them. Then Jesus told them, "I AM the door of the sheep." (See John 10:7-9)

Jesus wanted the people to know there was only one way to the Father and it was through Him. The scribes and Pharisees were other voices crying for the people's attention, but their intentions were for destructive, selfish gain. However, through The Door (Jesus) they could have life and that life more abundantly (John 10:10). They had to learn to recognize the Good Shepherd's voice from those who intended them harm.

Lord, help us to understand that You are the only door to eternal life. It is only attainable through You. You desire to protect us from the lies of those who would want us to stray away from the truth of Your Word. Yes, the path is narrow but the broader way will lead to destruction. May we listen for and recognize Your voice. When we respond to Your voice we will be safe. 

Personal Application

Today there are voices vying for our attention. These voices shout at us through the t.v., newspaper, radio, internet. They're fairly angry voices and quite intent on leading us astray. They would like to convince us Jesus isn't the only way to eternal life; that there are many other doors we can choose to walk through. "After all," they say, "You could be enlightened to the truth if you would open your minds." Good news - we can recognize Jesus' voice amid all the rhetoric. Becoming intimately acquainted with Jesus will help us to recognize His voice thus leading us through The Door to eternal life. Stop. Listen carefully. Obey. Let's respond to the voice we know desires that we live more abundantly.