Safe in His Hand

If you have your Bible with you, please open it up to John chapter 10.

John 10 · chapter mention

John chapter 10, we are coming down to verse 22 here, a new section.

John 10 · chapter mention

John chapter 22, John chapter 10 verse 22.

John 10:22

Let me read the first couple of verses for us this morning.

Then came the festival of dedication at Jerusalem.

It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple courts, walking in Solomon's colonnade.

So John now gives us a sense of the timeline here in his account of the story of Jesus.

And the last clear indication that we had of that was back in chapter 7 verse 1,

where he told us it was the Feast of Tabernacles.

And it seems that most of what's happened in between then and now happened closer to the Feast of Tabernacles.

But now John kind of fast forwards a few months.

The Feast of Tabernacles happened in the fall.

And this is now another festival, the Festival of Dedication happening in Jerusalem,

which happens in kind of our calendar in December.

And there's another major event that comes in the story of Jesus here.

So I'm going to just share with you a little bit of what the Festival of Dedication is about.

It's not a festival that was commanded in the Old Testament.

In fact, it only started being celebrated 200 years or so before Jesus.

It's known today as Hanukkah.

And it marked the date that the Jews revolted against an oppressive ruler,

the Syrian Antiochus Epiphanes.

They regained independence.

They recaptured the temple and they reconsecrated it and rededicated it to God.

And then every year after that, they began to celebrate this.

It was also called the Feast of Lights.

There's lots more that could be said about it, but that's the gist.

And John tells us that this is the occasion of the next part of the story of Jesus.

This festival is on and the people, again, as they usually do,

all kind of converge on Jerusalem to celebrate and mark the festival.

It's now winter.

And Jesus, John tells us, was in the temple courts walking in Solomon's colonnade.

That was kind of a covered part of the temple, like a portico with large pillars.

So Jesus is walking there.

And John tells us in verse 24,

The Jews who were there gathered around Jesus, saying,

How long will you keep us in suspense?

If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.

This is somewhat amusing to read in the original language.

A little more literally, they say,

How long will you take away our lives?

Tell us plainly if you are the Christ, the Messiah.

In other words, stop wasting our time and just tell us.

Are you the Messiah or aren't you?

Verse 25,

Jesus answered,

I did tell you,

but you do not believe.

The works I do in my Father's name testify about me,

but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.

My sheep listen to my voice.

I know them,

and they follow me.

So the Jews gathered around him.

They're asking Jesus to tell them plainly whether he is the Messiah.

And Jesus says,

I already told you,

and you do not believe.

Notice that it's the present tense,

like you do not believe in me.

Even now, in this moment,

you still do not believe.

And we might be tempted to think,

well,

that's a pretty reasonable question

that they're asking.

Like,

Jesus,

we've been waiting patiently for a long time now.

We've been following your story.

How long are you going to leave us wondering?

But judging by what Jesus says to them in response,

this is not the kind of question that they're asking.

Jesus makes it crystal clear.

They have already heard the things that he's been saying.

I did tell you.

They have already seen the works that he's been doing,

the miracles,

the signs,

the things I do in my Father's name.

They bear witness about me.

And yet they are still refusing to believe Jesus.

More likely,

this question that they're asking

is an attempt to subtly pressure Jesus

into making the claim outright,

publicly,

to be the Messiah.

And they're hoping to use that against him.

to accuse him,

to go after him.

Jesus says to them,

I did tell you.

Now,

it's not as though Jesus has publicly said,

I am the Messiah.

He did say that,

pretty much word for word,

in private,

to various individuals.

the woman at the well,

in John chapter 4.

John 4 · chapter mention

He said,

not quite in word for word,

but basically said,

I am the Messiah to his disciples,

in Matthew 16.

He said,

what equates to,

I am the Messiah,

to the man who had been born blind,

when he tells him that he's the Son of Man,

just a couple chapters ago.

But Jesus has never publicly,

and openly declared word for word,

I am the Messiah.

In the more public settings,

he often uses metaphors,

and analogies.

But to anybody who's been listening,

it's pretty obvious,

that in all these metaphors,

and analogies,

Jesus is basically saying,

I am the Messiah.

He's told them that he's been sent from heaven.

He's told them that he speaks for his father,

God.

He's told them that he's the Son of Man,

and all the messianic meaning,

that goes with that,

we've talked about.

He's told them that he's the bread of life,

the bread of heaven,

the light of the world.

Back in John chapter 5,

John 5 · chapter mention

he's told them that he's the one,

who will judge at the end,

with the authority given to him by God.

And now here in John chapter 10,

John 10 · chapter mention

he's told them that he is the true shepherd,

of God's flock.

The one who will shepherd,

and lead God's sheep.

Just like King David,

was God's chosen shepherd,

and king long ago.

So,

I did tell you,

says Jesus.

Not only did I tell you,

but the works that I am doing,

in my father's name,

testify about me.

You want some evidence?

Some proof that I am the Messiah?

Look at the things that I've been doing.

The miracles,

the healings,

the signs.

They're things only God can do.

You've heard all I've done,

and you've seen all I've done,

all I've done,

and yet you do not believe me.

And then Jesus goes a step further,

in verse 26,

and tells them why they don't believe.

You do not believe,

because you are not my sheep.

Or as some translations say,

because you are not of,

you are not among my sheep.

We're going to leave that one alone for today.

It's not the first time we've heard something like that,

that Jesus said,

and it requires careful consideration.

We might come back to it in the weeks ahead.

But for today,

it's enough simply to say,

the reason they refuse to believe in Jesus,

even though they've seen his works,

and heard his words,

is that they are not his sheep.

Jesus then goes on to tell us,

what is true about his sheep,

again,

here in verse 27.

Three things.

He says,

my sheep listen to my voice.

I know them,

and they follow me.

They listen to my voice.

And here,

listening implies more than just listening.

It implies faith.

It implies obedience.

It's not just that they hear what Jesus is saying,

like these Jews that he's talking to right now.

It's that they listen.

They really listen to him.

They accept his words.

They obey them.

They follow me,

says Jesus.

They do what I ask them to do.

They recognize me as their leader,

their shepherd,

their Messiah.

Verse 28.

Jesus goes on.

He says,

I give them,

that's my sheep,

I give my sheep eternal life,

and they shall never perish.

No one will snatch them out of my hand.

Here it is again.

Jesus declares plainly

that he will give eternal life

to his people.

Life that lasts forever.

He says that for his sheep,

they will never perish.

And this translation in English

is a little bit flat.

Literally,

it's,

they will not ever perish

unto the ages.

It's a very emphatic way of saying it.

They will live forever and ever

and never.

Not die,

but perish.

He's not saying they will never die,

but rather that he will give to them

everlasting life.

Life that goes on forever.

And we know from other places

in this gospel

that that everlasting part

of this life

will begin after they die.

When Jesus,

as he said earlier,

raises them

back to life from the dead

at the last day.

And we'll hear more about the resurrection

in the chapter ahead.

I give them eternal life

and they shall never perish.

No one will snatch them

out of my hand.

I love this statement

that Jesus makes.

This is Jesus' way of saying,

you see these sheep of mine,

these followers of mine,

you can't touch them.

Let's think about these words.

These words about snatching the sheep

take us back to what Jesus said

a few months earlier,

earlier in chapter 10.

He was telling us there,

really likening the Pharisees

to thieves and robbers.

Talking about how

the true shepherd uses the gate,

but those who aren't

the true shepherd,

they go in another way.

Like they climb over the wall

to try and snatch the sheep.

He talked about how

thieves and robbers

only really come around

for one purpose.

To steal.

To kill.

To destroy.

They come to snatch

the sheep for themselves.

To steal them away

from their true shepherd.

He also likened

the religious leaders,

the Pharisees,

to the wolf.

He talked about

how the wolf comes around

and when he does,

the hired hand runs away

and then the wolf

attacks the sheep.

That's actually the same word

for snatch.

It literally means

to make off

with someone's property

by attacking,

by seizing,

by stealing,

carrying off,

dragging away.

And here Jesus says,

no one will snatch them.

my sheep

from my hand.

And to really appreciate this,

I think we need to put ourselves

as best we can

in the shoes

of Jesus' disciples

right now.

Imagine that you're

one of them.

You're standing there

right now

in Solomon's portico

watching this unfold

between Jesus

and these Jews,

probably many of them

Pharisees

or religious leaders.

here in this moment,

the sparks are flying

between Jesus

and the religious leaders.

They want Jesus dead.

They hate him.

They've been plotting

and scheming

for some time now

about how to take

this guy out.

How do you think

the disciples of Jesus

are feeling right now

in the midst of this?

Do you think

they feel safe?

Do you think

they feel safe?

their master,

who they know

is the Messiah,

is a wanted man.

And he's a little bit

outnumbered,

it seems.

Even though he's managed

to avoid arrest

so far,

even though he's been able

to outmaneuver

the Pharisees

in all of these

public encounters

up to this point,

things are continuing

to heat up.

the tension is rising

between Jesus

and the religious leaders.

In fact,

in just the next chapter

after Lazarus dies,

Jesus will say

to his disciples,

let's go back

to Judea,

to Bethany,

the village of Lazarus,

which is like

right next door

to Jerusalem.

And what does

the disciples say

when Jesus says

this to them?

They say,

but Rabbi,

a short while ago,

the Jews there

tried to stone you.

Like,

we can't go back there.

It's not safe.

Thomas,

one of Jesus' disciples,

actually said,

great,

let's go

and we'll all die

with him.

So what's unfolding

right now

that we're hearing

is the reason

why the disciples

are afraid.

They don't feel safe.

this situation

between Jesus

and the Jews,

the Pharisees,

the religious leaders,

it feels dangerous.

And yet,

what does Jesus say

in the midst of all this?

He says,

no one

will snatch

my sheep

out of my hand.

This is a word

both for his disciples

and for his opponents.

to his disciples,

it means,

don't worry about them.

Don't fret about them.

They will not get you.

Your life

is in my hand

and it's safe

in my hand.

This is a word

for his disciples.

But it's also a word

to these Jews

who aren't his sheep,

Jesus' opponents.

to them,

it means,

you can try

your hardest

to go after

my sheep,

my people.

You can try

to draw them away.

You can try

to poison them

against me.

You can try

to hurt them.

But no matter

how hard you try,

you will fail.

No one

can snatch them

from my hand.

No one

can steal them

away from me.

They are my sheep.

I am their shepherd

and they are secure

in my hand.

And then Jesus

takes it a step

beyond that.

In case there's

any doubt,

verse 29,

Jesus says,

my father

who has given

them to me

is greater

than all.

No one

can snatch

them out

of my father's

hand.

I love this.

It reminds me

of all those

silly little arguments

I had with other

kids at the playground.

background.

This is probably

more a thing

for boys,

but maybe you

remember those

little things.

Like,

you better stop

trying to hurt

my friend.

I'm going to

punch you

in the face.

Well,

if you do that,

I'm going to

get my dad

and he's going

to come

and he's going

to punch

you in the head.

Well,

then I'll get

my dad

and my dad

knows karate

and he'll

block your dad's

punch and

punch him

right out.

All the things

that we said

to each other

when we were

kids,

at least us

boys.

this is a

little bit

like that,

but this is

the holy

and righteous

version of

that.

You can

try to

snatch them

out of my

hand,

but let me

tell you a

little secret.

My father,

God,

is holding

them too

in his

hand.

And he's

the greatest

that there

is.

He's the

strongest,

he's the

most powerful.

Nobody

can snatch

them out

of his

hand.

I hold

my sheep

safe and

secure and

at the

same time,

so does

he.

And then

Jesus says

it in

verse 30.

I and

the father

are one.

I love

it.

The ultimate

statement

of unity

between

father and

son said

by anyone

else,

absolute

blasphemy,

but by

the divine

son of

God,

the word

who became

flesh.

This is

the truth

about who

Jesus is.

It's as

though Jesus

is saying,

not only do

we work

together,

my father

and I,

but we

are

together

one.

One

and the

same

God.

Again,

his Jewish

opponents

picked up

stones

to stone

him.

But Jesus

said to

them,

I have

shown you

many good

works from

the father.

For which

of these

do you

stone me?

We are

not stoning

you for

any good

work,

they replied,

but for

blasphemy,

because you,

a mere man,

claim to be

God.

God,

the Jews

who were

there that

day understood

perfectly well

what Jesus

was claiming

when he

said,

I and the

father are

one.

It was a

claim to

share in

the same

divine nature

as God,

to be

united,

to be

one with

God,

the father.

I asked a

little earlier

if you thought

the disciples

of Jesus

felt safe.

how about

now?

Jesus'

opponents

now have

stones in

their hand

and they're

ready to

let fly.

I can only

imagine the

disciples'

hearts probably

pounding,

racing,

and their

thoughts,

what do we

do?

Do we run?

Where are we

going to meet

up later with

Jesus if we

get away?

What do we

do?

Well, for the

moment, Jesus

manages to hold

the stones at

bay simply

by speaking.

He asks them

a question.

He calls

them to

consider again

the good

works that

he has been

doing.

Could he

be doing

such things,

the things

of God,

while at

the same

time blaspheming

God and

trying to steal

his glory?

But sadly,

Jesus'

opponents don't

seem to care

too much about

the countless

signs and

miracles that

he's been

doing.

It's just

like earlier,

the Pharisees,

they didn't

give a rip

about the

man who

had been

born blind

that was

now healed.

They're

focused on

one thing,

taking Jesus

out.

Verse 33,

we are not

stoning you

for any

good work,

but for

blasphemy

because you,

a mere

man,

claim to

be God.

This is at

the heart of

the issue.

In the eyes

of these

Jews,

Jesus is

just a

man,

a mere

man,

and therefore

they accuse

him of

blasphemy,

despite the

fact that he

is doing

the things

that only

God can

do.

So the

stones are

ready to

fly at

Jesus.

And let's

imagine for a

moment again

that you are

one of his

disciples.

Let me ask

you again,

do you feel

safe in this

moment?

And yet,

even though

they might not

feel safe,

they are

safe.

even though

they might

feel threatened

and in

danger,

are they

in danger?

No.

What did

Jesus just

say?

I give

my sheep

eternal

life,

and they

shall never

perish.

No one

will snatch

them out of

my hand.

My Father

who has given

them to me

is greater

than all.

No one

can snatch

them out

of my

Father's

hand.

what's the

worst they

can do?

Pelt us

with stones?

Destroy our

reputations?

Make life

miserable for

us and our

families?

Arrest us?

Kill us?

I give

them eternal

life,

and they

shall never

perish.

snatch.

No one

can snatch

them out

of my

hand.

Even

though in

this moment

the disciples

do not

feel safe

and secure,

the truth

is they

are,

because Jesus

holds their

lives in

his hand,

and he is

very capable.

He is the

good shepherd.

He will

lay down

his life

for his

sheep,

and after

rising from

the dead,

Jesus,

just as he

promised,

will raise

all of us

who believe

back to life

from the

dead,

never to

die again.

And so

even if they

kill us,

through Jesus,

our shepherd,

we win.

We have

life

forever.

he will

raise us

up.

And so

these words

of Jesus

should put

a boldness

and a

confidence

in our

hearts.

They should

give us

peace.

Our

ultimate

hope

in

Jesus,

through

Jesus,

we are

untouchable.

Nobody

can take

it away

from us,

this life.

no one

can snatch

us

from our

Savior's

hand.

And there

are a couple

other places

where this

comes out

so wonderfully.

I have to

highlight a

couple of

them.

Luke

Luke 21:16

chapter 21

verse 16,

Jesus is

talking to

his disciples

there about

how things

are going

to be at

the very

end of

the world.

And he

says this

to them,

he says,

you will

be betrayed

even by

parents,

brothers and

sisters,

relatives and

friends,

and they

will put

some of

you to

death.

Everyone

will hate

you because

of me,

but not

a hair

of your

head

will perish.

Stand

firm

and you

will win

life.

I love

that.

In the

same breath,

Jesus says,

they will put

some of you

to death,

but not a

hair of

your head

will perish.

Nothing,

no one

can snatch

my sheep

from my

hand.

Or take

the words

of the

apostle Paul

in the

beloved

passage,

Romans

Romans 8:35

chapter 8

verse 35.

Who shall

separate us

from the

love of

Christ?

Shall

trouble

or

hardship?

How about

persecution?

Or what

about famine?

Nakedness?

Danger?

What about

the sword?

As it is

written,

for your

sake,

we face

death all

day long.

We are

considered as

sheep to be

slaughtered.

no,

in all

these things,

in all

these things,

we are

more than

conquerors

through him

who loved

us.

For I'm

convinced,

said Paul,

that neither

death,

do you hear

that?

Neither

death

nor life,

neither

angels

nor demons,

neither the

present nor

the future,

nor any

powers,

neither height

nor depth,

nor anything

else in all

creation will

be able to

separate us

from the

love of

God that

is in

Christ Jesus,

our Lord.

Nothing,

not even

death,

can separate

us from

the love

of our

Lord Jesus.

If you

belong to

Jesus,

no one

and nothing

can snatch

you from

his hand.

So how

do these

words speak

to us

today?

Well,

this good

promise of

Jesus is

only for

his sheep.

So let me

ask you,

are you one

of them?

Do you

have Jesus

as your

shepherd?

And if

not,

I urge you

to come to

Jesus to

repent of

your sins and

to believe in

his name.

him?

And if you

do,

his promise

is that

you will

be saved

and you

will have

him as

your good

shepherd.

Most of

you here,

I think,

have already

done that.

And so for

you,

this morning I

have a

different

question.

As you

look around

at what's

happening in

our world

today,

do you

feel safe?

Do you

feel safe?

Are you

worried?

Are you

fretting?

Are you

panicked?

Like Jesus'

disciples are

in this

moment.

Do you

feel safe?

If Jesus

is your

shepherd,

you are.

Let your

heart hear

these words

one more

time.

I give

my sheep

eternal

life.

They shall

never perish.

No one

will snatch

them out

of my

hand.

my hope

and my

prayer is

that these

words will

sink deep

into our

hearts.

And that

as a result

we will have

peace.

We will have

a calm in

our hearts.

Even as we

look out at

what's going

on in our

world today,

we are going

to be just

fine.

We are in

the care of

our Lord

Jesus.

We are in

the care of

God,

the Father.

Father,

we don't

need to

hide in

our homes.

We don't

need to

worry about

what will

happen if

we can

have confidence,

we can have

boldness,

because this

is the end

of our

story.

And my

hope and

prayer is

that that

will enable

us to

continue to

reach out to

the people in

this community,

to love

them, to

invite them

into our

homes, to

go over to

their homes,

knock on the

door,

share with

them the

love of

Jesus and

the truth

of Jesus.

Let's

pray.

Lord Jesus,

thank you so

much for

these words.

You are the

ultimate.

Father, you

are the

ultimate, the

one true

God.

Put our

hearts at

rest, we

ask.

you know

the things

that we've

been thinking

about this

week, you

know the

news articles

that we've

read, you

know the

media posts

that we've

seen.

Put our

hearts at

rest, Lord,

with these

words.

Thank you

for an

unshakable hope

and confidence

that will

come true

when you

return.

Lord.

We pray this

in your

name.

Amen.