I Give Them Eternal Life

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish." (1)

"My sheep hear My voice." Jesus is speaking of the followers of the "good shepherd" referred to earlier in John 10, "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep... I know My sheep, and am known by My own.... I lay down My life for the sheep... My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father." (2)

Jesus, by virtue of His sacrifice on our behalf, has the power of the resurrection to give eternal life to those who listen to His voice and follow Him. Who are they that follow the "good Shepherd?" Those who believe in Him, listen to His voice, believe in His values and follow Him. Those who do not believe in Him will not listen to His voice, they do not believe in His values, they will not follow Him, they are not His sheep and they do not have eternal life.

What are God's values? The fundamental value that is the basis of all God's commands is His unselfish love. It is the fundamental value of the ten commandments. A lawyer asked Jesus a question testing Him, "saying, 'Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?' Jesus said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets." (3) To His disciples, Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (4) Paul testified, "For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' " (5)

God and Jesus demonstrated their unselfish love for us. "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (6) "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (7)

When we "hear" and "follow" Jesus, we accept His values, and His values are all about learning to love our neighbor as Jesus has loved, accepted and served us. It's not something that we can do naturally. It is something that He does in us by His Holy Spirit. It is something that will happen naturally as we "walk" with Jesus and "follow" Him. He is the "good Shepherd", our Shepherd and our Friend.

"My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish."

1. John 10:27-28.
2. John 10:11, 14, 15, 17, 18.
3. Matthew 22:35-40.
4. John 13:34, 35.
5. Galatians 5:14.
6. Romans 5:8.
7. John 3:16.