“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me…” —John 10:14

Several years ago, I was at my son’s baseball game and I saw something interesting take place. The ball was a hit into the outfield and typical Little League hysteria ensued.

Players in the dugout were shouting, coaches were yelling, and parents were screaming. As a boy rounded second base you could hear chaos from all over the diamond. This translated into utter confusion for the base runner. Then all of a sudden he heard his mama yell from behind the fences to stop and go back. The boy instantly slammed on the brakes and returned to second base. There must’ve been a hundred voices yelling and jockeying for that boy’s attention, including the third base coach who was telling him to run to third base. But the runner only listened to one voice that night and the reason for that can be summed up in one word: Familiarity.

Amidst all the bedlam, this boy knew his mother’s voice. It was the one he was most intimate with.

In John 10, Jesus makes a distinct contrast between the Good Shepherd and the false shepherds of Israel. This comes on the heels of a heated confrontation Jesus has with the religious leaders of his time, regarding a blind man He healed on the Sabbath day (John 9). Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” (John 10:1-5 ESV)

And then Jesus says in verse 14, “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” (John 10:14-16 ESV)

There are two things that jump out for me here. Number one, Jesus always goes before His sheep. He leads, they follow. The sheep never go where the Good Shepherd has not already been. The second is this: His followers are intimately familiar with His voice and recognize where He is leading.

Not much has changed from the days that Jesus uttered these words. Like it was in ancient Israel, we still live in a world replete with political madness, ideological differences, religious bigotry, manipulative leaders, and false teachers. So many myriads of voices are jockeying for influence in our lives and competing for our attention, yet in the midst of all the commotion and confusion, God has given us the ability to hear and recognize His voice.

How do we recognize His voice?

Well, just like our little leaguer running those base paths, you will recognize the voices you are most familiar with. As we spend a daily quiet time abiding in the Word of God and praying in accordance with the Holy Spirit, we train our hearts how to recognize the voice of God. The more time we spend intimately with God and His Word, the easier it is to recognize His voice and His guidance in our lives. Employees in the banking industry are trained to recognize counterfeits not by studying counterfeits, but by studying the authentic so closely that it becomes second nature to spot counterfeit money when it passes through their hands. We should be so familiar with God’s Word that we can immediately discern when something is contrary to His character or His will for our lives.

God wants us to be so keenly aware of His presence and His leading in our lives that He has provided us with all the means necessary for such intimate knowledge through His Word and His Spirit. Our job is simply to take the time and abide in that intimacy on a daily basis. May the Good Shepherd’s voice speak louder than all the other voices in your life as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

Father, thank you for the Spirit of truth in a world of lies. Holy Spirit, teach us to know truth and walk in truth, as we learn the intimacy and familiarity of our Good Shepherd’s voice. In Jesus’ name, Amen

Questions for personal reflection, small group discussion, or dinner table conversations:

1. Who did Jesus say was a thief and a robber? (John 10:1)
2. What kind of relationship do sheep have with their shepherd? (vv2-4) Why won’t sheep follow a stranger? (v5) What effect did Jesus’ words have on His audience? (v6)
3. What did Jesus say He was? (v7) How did Jesus contrast His coming with the coming of a thief? (v10) Why did Jesus say the hired hand would abandon his sheep? (vv12-13)
4. What type of relationship did Jesus say He had with His sheep? (v14) What did Jesus say He did for His sheep? (v15)
5. How can you cultivate intimacy and familiarity with the Good Shepherd’s voice this week?

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The post Knowing The Good Shepherd’s Voice appeared first on Jimmy Larche.

My first childhood dream was to be a Baltimore Oriole when I grew up, dreaming of following in the footsteps of childhood heroes Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken, Jr.

I remember being in the left field bleachers as a kid when my hero, Cal Ripken (#8), hit his first career grand slam right over my head. It was his rookie year, September 14, 1982 vs Yankees (off Mike Morgan). I was 11-yrs old and I can still see that baseball flying over my head today, more the size of a volleyball than a baseball. Things are always bigger through the eyes of child; I think that’s why Jesus told us that unless we had the faith of a little child, we would never see.

My 7-yr old son has been watching Cal Ripken’s training DVDs in preparation for his first little league season. Last night he was drafted by the “Orioles” for his first little league adventure! I also found out they will be wearing the old school uniforms with the logos from the 80’s; the decade I collected my most memorable Oriole experiences. What’s more, he got the number “8”.

Mere coincidence? No way!

God has a really cool way of letting us know He’s always a part of our dreams – even when they look a little bit different when they come into fruition decades later. This season, at 40-years old, I will be an ORIOLE; sitting on the bleachers of every game, wearing my Orioles’ jersey and Orioles’ cap pulling for my favorite baseball hero: Zachary Larche… a.k.a. “Number 8”.

Dreams do come true! And I wouldn’t have wanted it to turn out any other way; being an ORIOLE DAD of the greatest boy on the universe far exceeds being a professional ball player hitting line drives at Camden Yards for a living.

Thank you, Father, for a childhood dream coming TRUE, and for the amazing SON I get to share this dream with as we build memories for a lifetime!

The post Baseball: My son is an ORIOLE and a childhood DREAM is fulfilled… appeared first on Jimmy Larche.