We continue our daily meditations on the divinity of Jesus, specifically regarding the great " I AM " statements of Jesus. God revealed Himself to Moses and Israel as " I Am that I Am " (Exodus 3:14). Jesus used those words in Greek along with the statement that He is the gate to eternal life:
7Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. 9I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture (John 10:7-9).
"I am the gate" is the third 'I AM' statement of Jesus. For those who assert that there are many ways to God, Jesus declared that He alone is the gate or door to the sheepfold, which symbolizes eternal life and being safe and secure in Him. There is only one way, and Jesus is the only door. We must come to Him—there is no other way. The apostle Peter expressed similar thoughts:
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12; emphasis added).
We are deceived if we believe there is any way other than God's Son bearing the punishment for sin. If there were another way, wouldn't God have chosen it instead of witnessing His beloved Son being brutally sacrificed as an offering for our sin? Our challenge is that we are easily led astray, much like sheep stray from their shepherd. The prophet Isaiah expressed it this way:
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all (Isaiah 53:6).
In New Testament times, when the weather was warmer, the shepherd took his sheep away from the village for several days, leading them to grassy areas further from town. At night, the shepherd would find either a nearby cave or an enclosure made from the many stones and boulders in the Samaria and Judea mountainous region. Brambles or thorn bushes would prevent any wolves from attempting to breach the walls to reach the sheep at night. There would be only one opening through which the sheep could enter or exit the sheepfold. Jesus said, "I am the gate for the sheep, " or "I am the door," depending on your translation. That would be where the shepherd would rest and sleep for the night, serving as the door of the sheepfold.
When Jesus said that the sheep could come in and go out (John 10:9), He was possibly referring to the sheep that came into Jerusalem and never went out again. Once they were inside the Sheep Gate, they were ready to be sacrificed. Jesus Himself would be in the place of the sheep as the perfect sacrificial Lamb so that His sheep could come in and go out again. He would take their place. They could rest peacefully and securely for the night because they could see the shepherd in the doorway, and they knew He loved them and would protect them from wolves. The prophet Ezekiel, in the 6th century BC, spoke about God coming to look after His sheep (His people) in this way:
11“‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. 12As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness (Ezekiel 34:11-12).
Ezekiel prophesied that the God of Israel would come as a Man to search for His sheep and look after them. Jesus's statement, "I Am the Gate," highlighted how the Shepherd of Israel protects and cares for His sheep. Are there wolves around you? Have you asked the Shepherd if you could be one of His sheep? Keith Thomas
For further reading, maybe you'd like to explore How Do I Become a Christian, either that or what Jesus said about "You Must Be Born Again,” or even How Can I be Sure of my Faith.
From the series in the Gospel of John, click on study 19. Jesus, the Good Shepherd
YouTube video teachings at: https://www.youtube.com/@keiththomas7/videos