His sheep know His voice

[B-A-C]

I was watching a silly comedy on TV not long ago. A teenager wanted to stay home from school,so he lowered his voice and called the school
office and tried to sound mature and told them he was Billy's dad and Billy was sick today so he couldn't go to school. Unfortunately for Billy
it wasn't the school secretary who answered the phone, but Billy's mom who happened to work in the cafeteria at the school. Needless to say, Billy
had some explaining to do.

Knowing someone's voice can make a big difference.

John 10:2; "But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep.
John 10:3; "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
John 10:4; "When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.
John 10:5; "A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers."

Do you know the voice of Jesus?

John 10:12; "He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.
John 10:13; "He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep.
John 10:14; "I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me,

I wonder how many well known Pastors of large churches have fallen and left the flock lost and wondering what to do? It's a good thing these clergymen aren't Jesus.
Yet many people follow their church leaders as if they were Jesus. Some pastors know people in their congregations pretty well, they visit them, pray with them
and get to know them. Other pastors know more about the collection plate than they do about the congregation.

I have a relative, she is about my age. She goes to church and posts many things on facebook about how she loves Jesus, and how he loves her.
In the last 6 months she has been in and out of several relationships, three men have actually lived with her for a month or so each time. She is currently
single again. She posts everything about her relationships good and bad of facebook, when she meets someone and when she breaks up with them. Who is
living with her this month, and who isn't. She has a lot of support from her church, many of her church friends post messages that say they are sorry for her and
they are praying for her, Even her pastor made the comment -- "well, he wasn't right for you anyway" in one case.

There is a lot that could be said about this, and what my cousin is doing.
But I would like to put all that aside for a minute, I don't agree with what she is doing, and much could be said about fornication here.
But what really strikes me in this situation is her church. Her pastor and her "Christian" friends. They know what she is doing, (in fact it seems
a few of the others are doing the same thing) and yet they are OK with it. They support her in doing this, and they keep telling her its going to
be alright because Jesus loves her.

Now maybe you could say "Shouldn't the church try keep her in the church and persuade her to repent and do the right thing". Well, that would
be great if they were telling her to repent, but they aren't.

Sometimes we need to know the character of Jesus. We need to know His voice. We need to know what He would have said to her in this situation.
Perhaps he would tell me "Let him who is without sin cast the first stone", but He would also tell her "Go and sin no more". I believe He would have also told her...
- "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.
- "These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man."
Some shepherds are throwing the sheep straight to the wolves, maybe they know it maybe they don't, but is that an excuse? I partly blame her
church for this, but I also blame her. Because she grew up in a church that didn't teach this, and know her mother when she was alive wouldn't have
approved of this. Maybe she has forgotten what His voice sounds like. But His sheep know His voice, and they will not follow the voice of a stranger.

 

[Travis]

They say that if you take a lukewarm glass of water and put a pinch or two of salt in it, and then try to drink the whole glass, you will puke.

I find this is what much of the "church" in the west is like today, its almost impossible to stomach without puking. I'm not anti-church by any means, Jesus loves his church/bride/body, but not every church that is thus named is really as such.

“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet."​

I think that verse speaks sufficiently for itself.

Travis

 

[TC4JC]

BAC,
Have you discussed this with your cousin?

 

[B-A-C]

BAC,
Have you discussed this with your cousin?

Not just myself but other people I know have talked to her, She says her church is OK with it, so Jesus must be OK with it.

 

[TC4JC]

It might be that she is to be handed over to Satan and her church also. Maybe some sifting is needed for her to see her sinfulness.

 

[B-A-C]

It might be that she is to be handed over to Satan and her church also. Maybe some sifting is needed for her to see her sinfulness.

You may be right, I have thought a lot about 1 Cor 5 which seems close to this situation in many ways.

1 Cor 5:1 It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father's wife.
1 Cor 5:2 You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.
1 Cor 5:3 For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present.
1 Cor 5:5 I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
1 Cor 5:9 I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people;
1 Cor 5:10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world.
1 Cor 5:11 But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler--not even to eat with such a one.
1 Cor 5:12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church?
1 Cor 5:13 But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.

 

[RJ]

I often wondered why God refers to us as sheep. We raised sheep on our ranch when I was a boy and there isn't anything dumber than a sheep. I am sure there a lot of Biblical conotations when it comes to the term "sheep" but with regards to Jesus, Master is the most significant; we can't even comprehend his majesty and power.
I feel that scripture is full ways to know the Lord but, If you could catergorized Christians (Sheep), I would regard myself as not very smart when it comes to understanding Jesus fully.

But, he talks to me. I am not sure eactly how but I know his voice; I know he is there, The only way to explain it, is that it started when I was Born Again. Maybe it is in my conscience, I at least know I am more aware of this, right and wrong for instance and what is sin. It is hard for me to put into words but, I know a change, before I knew of God and now I know God.

Being a believer and saved is the answer; others just don't have much of a chance to get it , much less hear his voice.

If one is concerned about whether another hears the voice of Jesus, it can come from scripture, another person, even here at TJ but the key element is having him living inside you.
So, our charge is to tell others of his love and salvation, the rest is up to God.