“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

John 10:1-5 (Jesus speaking)

In my last few blogs I have attempted to discuss the subject of right and wrong, and who, if anyone, has the authority to determine what is right and wrong. I tried to show how the Bible is the only true source of absolute truth, and therefore, contains God’s standard of right and wrong. All other “truth” sources, then, must align with the teachings of Scripture, or: 1) be changed to align with Scripture, or; 2) be discarded altogether.

For those who identify themselves as Christians, and followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is of vital importance that we submit ourselves to the teachings of Scripture and strive to obey the principles laid out for us there. But how are we to do that? How are we to know what is truly right and wrong? Especially in those “gray” areas where the Bible does not give explicit instructions.

Well, in all honesty, I feel that there is ample “black and white” instructions given in Scripture that will give sure direction in most decisions we face in life. For instance, if we consider the hot button topics in our contemporary setting we will find absolute answers if we will simply search the Scriptures. Abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, gender-neutral phraseology, transgenderism, domestic violence, racism, and so many others, are debated constantly in all forms of media. Each of these can be found in Scripture, and guiding principles can be learned.

But again, how are we to know all that the Bible teaches on these, and other, topics? For the believer in Jesus Christ, it is our responsibility to study the Bible, to delve into the teachings we find there, and to put them into practice in our lives, while at the same time helping others to know what the Bible teaches. But still, can we know everything the Bible teaches on these topics? I have read through the Bible forty-five times, and still have so much to learn. There are still so many principles I have to research when certain topics arise.

But, that’s why the above quoted passage from John’s Gospel is so important for us to understand. It states clearly that once an individual becomes a follower of Jesus Christ, he/she then is able to “hear” the voice of the Shepherd (Jesus) and follow Him. And please listen carefully to the statement of Jesus: his sheep will not follow a stranger because they do not recognize his voice. As a matter of fact, they will actually flee from him!

We should make it our desire to learn the voice of Jesus so well that we cannot easily be deceived by the voice of a counterfeit. We can accomplish this to a large degree by developing a healthy diet on the word of God. Read it regularly. Study it diligently. Apply it stringently. Live by it faithfully. And then listen: listen intently for that voice of the Shepherd. He will guide and direct. He will lead His sheep into the lush pastures of His love. He will guard us against the alluring voice of the enemy.

And when He speaks, we should always – always – follow His voice. Let’s face it, there are multitudes of voices that are striving to get us to follow them. Voices that sound so appealing, so pleasant, even so right. But we must stay the course. We must not allow ourselves to veer off the path that has been clearly established for us by the Shepherd. It is His voice that we should follow.