They would have stoned Him, but He walked
away from them. Jesus left Jerusalem not to
return until it was to fulfill His mission as the
"Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

Jesus sadly left Jerusalem, Luke 13:34-35
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the
prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto
thee; how often would I have gathered thy
children together, as a hen doth gather her
brood under her wings, and ye would not!
Behold, your house is left unto you desolate:
and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me,
until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed
is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

Jesus' claim of His deity excited the opposition
of the Jews. They even took up stones but His
fearlessness stopped them from stoning Him.

Jesus resorted to Psalms 82:6 "Ye are gods;
and all of you are children of the most High."
that man is the offspring of God and made in
the image of God.

If God had sanctified His Son whom He had sent
into the world, it was not blasphemy for Him to
declare Himself as the Son of God.

Then He makes a comment about His diety and
unity of the Godhead.

"I amd my Father are one" John 10:30

Before, He had spoken of a distinction between
the Father and the Son and compared them to
two men (John 8:17-18)

He spoke of the importance of the Godhead.
Man has difficulty in putting the two concepts
together. But both are true. The 3 are distinct
from the other, but none could exist without the
other.

Then Jesus made some remarks that they the
Jewish rulers didn't understand.

"no man is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand." John 10:29

This is a promise for the believer that no man
or devil has the power to take us out of the
Father's hand.

But it doesn't mean that we ourselves can't
walk away from Him if we choose to. He gave
us a free will to abide with Him or go our own
way.

During the

Feast of

Dedication

Jesus came

into the

temple

at a place

called Solomon's

Porch.

The Jews came to Him determined that they
would settle the matter of His Messiahship once
and for all.

" 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."
John 10:24

Jesus answered saying, that the works that He
did showed evidence of who He was. There was
nothing more that He could do or say to prove
it to them. He said, " But ye believe not,
because ye are not of my sheep, as I said
unto you." John 10:25-26

As the Good Shepherd, Jesus also showed that

He had other sheep not of this fold. These were

the Gentiles. He was the Shepherd not of Israel

alone, but the lost sheep of all mankind. He was

ready to lay down His life for them too.

(John 10:16-17)

This parable caused a division among the Jews.

"And many of them said, He hath a devil, and

is mad; why hear ye him?
Others said, These are not the words of him

that hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of

the blind?" John 10:20-21

The purpose of the parable was to encourage
the healed blind man. He saw that it didn't
matter that the Jews had cast him out of the
synagogue.

Jesus was the door of the sheep. "By me if
any man enter in, shall be saved, and shall
go in and out, and find pasture." John 10:9

It also showed that the rulers of the Jews were
hirelings who were in it for what they could get
by fleecing the sheep.

In the mornings the

shepherd would call

his sheep out and

lead them to

pasture.

They will not follow

a stranger because

they do not know their voice.

There are times when a shepherd may endan-

ger himself to protect his flock. Thieves come

to kill and destroy, but the Good Shepherd

came that "they might have life, and that they

might have it more abundantly." He would lay

down His life for the sheep.

But a hireling flees when the wolf comes, "and

the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep."

Affected by the Pharisees and the rulers of the
Jews who had put a man out of the synagogue
because he testified of his healing, Jesus spoke
of the Good Shepherd.

He described the sheepfold and shepherd of
that day. A shepherd knows every one in his
flock by name. Because the shepherd is alone
out in the wilderness, the relationship with his
sheep is very close.

Jesus then made a peculiar statement:
" And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into
this world, that they which see not might see;
and that they which see might be made blind.

And some of the Pharisees which were with
him heard these words, and said unto him,
Are we blind also?

Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye
should have no sin: but now ye say, We see;
therefore your sin remaineth."
John 9:39-41

The Pharisees were getting upset with the man.
"Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost
thou teach us?" They cast him out of the syna-
gogue, one of their old traditions, that a man
born blind was in that condition because of his
sins. The very thing that Jesus said was not true.

When Jesus heard about him being cast out of
the synagogue, He found him and said, "Doest
thou believe on the Son of God?" The man said,
"Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?"
Then Jesus revealed Himself, "Thou hast both
seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee."
The man answered, "Lord, I believe," and he
worshiped Him.

The man (who had been born blind) by now was
really starting to speak up. "The man answered
and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous
thing," (a great miracle had been performed)
John 9:30

"Since the world began was it not heard that
any man opened the eyes of one that was born
blind. (from the beginning of the world no one had
ever done this before)
If this man were not of God, he could do nothing."
John 32-33

The Pharisee couln't believe that now they were
the ones being questioned.