Leaving Beyond – Grounded In Scripture

Written by: April J. Buchanan

John 10 speaks of Christ’s sheep hearing His voice. That much is abundantly clear. What is not present in the text is the modern idea that believers should be hearing new, personal, private words from Jesus. That meaning is imported into the passage, and when it is, the text is robbed of its beauty, its glory, its assurance, and its clear distinction between those who belong to Christ and those who follow thieves and robbers.

This passage makes unmistakably clear that those who hear Christ are those who are truly His. It is not teaching that Christians should be listening for fresh revelation. Not at all. It is saying something far more beautiful, far more personal, and far more assuring.

Not all hear the effectual call. Not all belong to Him. A clear distinction is being made. Those who hear Christ’s voice are those whom the Father has given Him. They will hear. They will respond in repentance and faith. They will follow Him. And they will never perish. He will lose none of them. No one will snatch them out of His hand.

This text also draws a sharp contrast between Christ the Good Shepherd and the thieves, robbers, and wolves. His sheep hear His voice and follow Him. The thieves lead by another way. And no thief, no robber, no wolf can snatch a single one of Christ’s sheep from His hand.

This passage has nothing to do with what the modern “hearing the voice of God” movement reads into it. That movement turns the thieves and robbers into the devil attacking people’s dreams, riches, or version of the “abundant life.” What they fail to see is that they are the thieves and robbers in the passage. They lead men by another way. They promise what the devil promises. And they rob people of what the abundant life in Christ actually is.

They teach men to look inward, to listen to their own hearts for supposed new revelation, and to believe they should be hearing God speak to them constantly. That idea is not even implied here. It must be forced into the text by isolating the phrase “My sheep hear My voice” from its context. In doing so, gullible souls are robbed of hearing what the passage actually says and means.

Christ is calling all who are His to Himself. They will hear. They will follow. And no thief, no robber, and no man can snatch them from His hand.

How is that not more beautiful than impressions, inner whispers, or mystical words that leave people wondering whether the voice they heard was their own, the devil’s, or God’s?

This passage promises something far better: that those for whom Christ died will hear His voice, will respond in repentance and faith, will follow Him, and will never be lost.

How is that not better?