The Door of the Sheep

Verily, verily,
I say unto you,
He that entereth not by the door into the fold of the sheep,
but climbeth up some other way,
the same is a thief and a robber.
But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

Jesus therefore said unto them again,
Verily, verily,
I say unto you,
I am the door of the sheep.
John 10:1-2, 7 RV

The "verily, verily" saying of Jesus are peculiar to the Gospel of John. I like them. They are profound, rich, and useful.

These two from chapter 10 are particularly strong. Here Jesus tells us that there are many ways to look after people, but only one true way: through him.

He that entereth not by the door into the fold of the sheep,
but climbeth up some other way,
the same is a thief and a robber.

Here Jesus tells us that there are others ways to lead people; one can think of many things: money, power, false beliefs, ideologies....the list could go on and on. What Jesus tells us is that the only thing worth following is Him. Other ideas will only lead to disappointment, or worse, destruction.

One can visit many churches and see they are being honestly led by the Gospel. However, many may be being led by some other idea. Where a church starts to care more about what goes on the collection plate, or it's public image, and not about the sick, poor or oppressed, it is being led by a false Gospel.

Of course, it will never be that obvious. It is very easy to twist the Gospel for selfishness. One needs to be constantly alert and prayerful to avoid such misinformation.

The danger lies in not being able to see the difference.