But Jesus is.

When arguing with a group of opponents, Jesus quoted Psalm 82, referring to people who live like gods yet understand nothing.

Members of the elite were upset because Jesus had just told them, 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.

These little gods refused to believe Jesus came from the Father, despite the miracles he performed (this argument followed the healing of a man blind from birth). Jesus said to look at the evidence, but the gods refused to open their minds to the true God standing before them.

This interaction reminds me that I’m not the shepherd. I have the choice to listen to Jesus and follow (i.e. read the Scriptures and apply his words) or wander off on my own amidst the wolves and thorns.

Many in that crowd chose to believe. Not so much the powerful, although a few turned to Jesus, but mostly ordinary people. People in need of a shepherd.

People like you and me.

John 10 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Biegun Wschodni