John 10:5

“There is no way my sheep will follow a stranger,” Jesus adds. “On the contrary, they will run away from anyone who does not sound like me. My voice makes all the difference—they either follow or flee!” John 10:5 EFP 

This text speaks to me in a very powerful way. Jesus says that his sheep will by no means follow a stranger. His sheep will in fact flee from him or her on the basis of the sound of the voice. They want nothing to do with any voice that does not sound like their shepherd.  So how does that work? And why does that not consistently work with me?

The truth is that I want to listen to God. There is no doubt that I recognize that it is better to follow God’s leading than to wander away and do my own thing. And truth be told I follow the voice of my shepherd most of the time. That is small comfort. I do not have time to celebrate the times I let God lead in my life—those moments are obliterated by the times when I follow the stranger’s voice and reap a bounty of bad! Does that mean I am not one of His sheep? Does that mean that I do not know His voice? Or does that mean that the enemy is simply a good impersonator of the “small, still voice”? Am I simply tricked into wandering?

I sense there is a bit of truth in all of these scenarios. Satan is good at luring me in his direction because he is able to disguise marginal things and make them sound good. But I must admit that there is more truth in the fact that I recognize my Shepherd’s voice, but I choose at times to go in another direction. I am led by the other voice into fields of malaise and spiritual malady. I am hounded by spiritual powers that seek my destruction and demise. I am bloodied and battered in rocky roads of compromise and contempt (with emphasis on “tempt”). I am lost and dying.

But then I hear the familiar voice of my Shepherd who has gone out to find me. That is the voice I hear when I am caught in the thickets of life. The voice that lured me now reveals itself with words of condemnation and criticism. I know to whom I belong. I bleat sadly for the salvation I turned my back on. The voice of my Shepherd becomes louder and louder. I cry out and he hears me, he finds me, he binds my bloodied body, he lifts me up and takes me back home. I belong to the Good Shepherd. I do not want to wander anymore!