Sunday, April 26, 2026

John 10:1-10 

Jesus the Good Shepherd 

10 “Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 

7 So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and bandits, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. 

Devotional 

The early days of seminary were tough. I went because I loved serving in ministry and genuinely felt God calling me to do this for the rest of my life. What I didn’t expect was just how much there would be to learn. Philosophy, theology, history, Greek, Hebrew, leadership—oh my! It took a while for my ears and my heart to tune themselves to all of it. 

This passage is as much about Jesus as our Good Shepherd as it is about us learning how to be good sheep. The heart of faithful discipleship is learning to tune our ears to His voice. But how do we do that? Here are a few ways: 

Spend time in Scripture daily. 
God has revealed so much of His heart and mind in the pages of the Bible. Opening Scripture each day—whether through a physical Bible, the YouVersion app, or videos from The Bible Project—helps us recognize the tone and timbre of God’s voice. 

Take time in prayer daily. 
One of the most amazing truths about our God is that He is not distant. He wants to be in conversation with us. You can always use the prayers at the end of our Daily Bread Devotionals, or apps like Lectio 365 or Pray As You Go to help guide your time with Him. 

Surround yourself with believers. 
Join a small group, come to worship, serve alongside others, and talk with people about where you see God at work. As you do, you’ll begin to see His fingerprints show up in more and more places in your story. Not sure where to begin? Start with Discover Peace. 

Tuning your ear to Jesus’ voice doesn’t happen overnight. It happens little by little, day by day. But the more you listen, the more clearly you’ll hear the voice of the Shepherd who knows you by name. 

– Pr. Jason 

Let us pray: Gracious God, we thank you for giving us ways to hear your voice. Thank you for scripture and the way that it illuminates your heart and mind. Thank you for the gift of prayer so that we can talk to each other throughout the day. Thank you for your church and the people that serve as your hands and feet in my life. Amen.