John 10 Verses 14-18 

John 10:14 “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. 15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. 17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18 No man taketh 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 commandment have I received of my Father.” 

“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.” Since all the elect were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world, it stands to reason that Christ as the good shepherd would know his sheep.  But how is it that the sheep know him?  When Christ asked Peter who he was in Matt. 16:15-17: “He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”  No man had revealed to Peter who the Lord was, but this revelation was by the Father in heaven.  Further we read in Heb. 8:10 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: 11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.”  It is because God has written his laws in the hearts and minds of God’s elect that they do not need someone to teach them to know the Lord, but God has taught them who the Lord is by writing his laws in their hearts and minds. 

“As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.”  The Lord’s will is identical to the Fathers will as He stated in John 6:37 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. 39 And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.”  Moreover, the Lord had told Philip: John 14:9 “Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?”  Moreover, the Lord’s laying down his life for the sheep was according to the will of the Father.   

“And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.”  Up to this point it was a generally believed concept among the Jews that only the Jews were God’s elect sheep.  The Lord is here revealing that he had another people of another fold (Gentiles).  Moreover, he was revealing that like as his sheep in the Jewish fold, those in the Gentile fold would also hear his voice and he would bring them and that as a result there would no longer be two folds, but the two folds would then become one fold and He would be shepherd over that one fold. 

“Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.  No man taketh 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 commandment have I received of my Father.”  There is a common misconception that man took Jesus life.  While it is true that that was the intent of the Jews and the efforts of the Romans, yet man did not have the power to take Jesus life.  Jesus had to lay down his life and this he did.  Moreover, Jesus took back his life by the power of God.  Jesus laid down his life for his elect family and he arose so that his family may have hope that they too would one day arise.   

John 10 Verses 19-29 

John 10:19 “There was a division therefore again among the Jews for these sayings. 20 And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him? 21 Others said, These are not the words of him that hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind? 22 And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter. 23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. 24 Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. 25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. 26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”   

“There was a division therefore again among the Jews for these sayings. 20 And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad; why hear ye him? 21 Others said, These are not the words of him that hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind?”  The division among the Jews was between those who believed he was the Christ and those who did not believe he was the Christ.  It didn’t matter to those who did not believe he was the Christ that his miraculous works were of God, because they simple assigned them to the work of the devil.  However, Satan cannot cast out devils.   

“Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.”  The Lord had already told them, but they did not believe.  Their asking Christ this question was not to arrive at the truth, but rather to see if they could find some cause to put him to death. 

“Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me.”  Thus, both Jesus words and his works bear witness to the fact that Jesus is indeed the Son of God.   

“But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.”  The unbelief of these Jews was because they had not been born of the Spirit of God and therefore they could not believe.  They were not of the elect of God and therefore, they would never believe. 

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.”  All of the elect during their lifetime hear the still-small voice of the Son of God and as a result are born of the Spirit.  They are eternally preserved from perishing by the Son and the Father.  For them to perish, both the Son and the Father would have to be overthrown and that is impossible that either could ever be overthrown.  Eternal glory is their final destination and they are preserved unto it. 

John 10 Verses 30-42 

John 10:30  “I and my Father are one. 31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? 33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. 34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? 35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; 36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? 37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him. 39 Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand, 40 And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode. 41 And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true. 42 And many believed on him there.” 

“I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?  The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.”  For the saying, “I and my Father are one,” the Jews took up stones to kill the Lord.   

The Lord then asked them saying, “Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?” “The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.”  Noted is the fact that they didn’t even try to deny that He had done many good works and manifested great miracles that only could be done by the power of God.  Rather the Jews accused the Lord of blasphemy for saying that he was God.  The works declare that what the Lord said was true, but they refused to believe the works and had previously accused him of doing the works by the power of Satan.   

“Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?  If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;  Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?  If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.  But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.”  The Lord knew that those who were not of his sheep would never believe under any circumstance.  The Lord, no doubt, said the above for the benefit of those among them that had believed that he had done the mighty works by the power of God, who, of course are of his sheep.

“Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand, And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.  And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true.  And many believed on him there.”  The unbelievers who were not of His sheep sought again to take him.  However, they were powerless to take him for it was not yet his time.  He simply escaped out of their hand.  Then Jesus went away to the place where John at first baptized.  Those who believed the miracles were of God resorted unto him and said, “John did no miracles: but all things that John spake of this man were true.”  While there, many believed on him.