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Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"
Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, on Solomon's porch. Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."
- John 10:19-30
Throughout chapters 7 and 8, Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem at the Feast of Tabernacles (see readings from Friday, February 7 through Saturday, February 15). As He passed out of the temple (and avoided being stoned), He met and healed a man blind from birth (see What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes? and For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind). Yesterday, Jesus continued speaking with the Pharisees who questioned Him: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which He spoke to them. Then Jesus spoke to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father, and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd. Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father."
Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?" Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?" Again, we must note the divisions expressed in the text. While the term "the Jews" is used to denote the religious leadership, what John's Gospel is telling us here is not all of these leaders are in agreement with one another. They are divided over Jesus. There are those who are trying to truly examine what is happening here.
Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. And Jesus walked in the temple, on Solomon's porch. This next section of John's Gospel takes place at another festival. My study bible says, "This encounter with the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem takes place approximately three months after the Feast of Tabernacles (chs. 7-9). The occasion of Christ's presence in Jerusalem is again a religious festival, the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah), the festival of lights. This Feast commemorates the rededication of the temple to the God of Israel after the Seleucid king, Antiochus Epiphanes, desecrated the temple in 167 B.C. (see 1 Macc. 1-4). The leaders of Israel's past are commemorated, many of whom were literal shepherds."
Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly." Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one." Again, we see the importance here of witnessing, as Jesus has done by offering several witnesses to His ministry in other parts of John. Once again, He cites the works (or signs) He's given as witnesses to His identity. He then refers back to His previous speech to them, in which He spoke of His sheep, and the recognition in them: My sheep hear My voice. They don't hear Him. They don't recognize Him. His sheep are given Him by the Father. In the final statement here, "I and My Father are One," He clearly declares Himself.
The religious authorities seem to be waiting for some stupendous sign, some proof that will give Jesus an absolute right to call Himself Messiah. It's perhaps a question of force they're waiting for. But Jesus does none of that; instead, the things He offers as witness to His identity are the works He does in the course of ministry. Healing a man blind since birth is a stupendous sign, something these experts in Scripture should understand. But I think His emphasis on the works themselves that speak for Him, and also the sheep who know His voice tells us that they simply aren't ever going to come to any recognition at all -- and furthermore, nothing in His ministry speaks of force. And this is the true sense we get here about Jesus. He wants volunteers, He wants the sheep who know His voice. There is something deep within the sheep that responds to Him, and this is what He is looking for. This is how He knows His sheep: they know Him, and they know His voice. Nothing will happen by force. For whatever reason, the authorities do not want to hear His declaration, "I and My Father are one." A plain statement is not what they are looking for. It's as if they want proof by force, proof that requires none of their faith, proof that leaves them out of any assent. But Jesus wants the sheep who know Him and love Him. He wants the sheep that are given to Him by the Father. He wants a response of love to love. No matter how we read the text, this is what we are going to find, and this is what we are going to come to over and over and over. There is one force ruling this universe: it is a God of love who wants us to respond in love. "My sheep hear My voice."
