“I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.”
~ John 10:16
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you like sheep? Would you like to have a pet sheep? Juana’s ma had a pet sheep. Juana’s ma’s pet sheep was a miniature sheep. The Pari Church began as a Bible study on the property that Juana’s ma’s owned in a barrio in Santa Cruz, Bolivia called Pari. Alberto and Juana Céspedes lived with Juana’s ma. Alberto made furniture for a living. Alberto liked to make headboards for the beds that he made. Alberto would carve intricate carvings into the headboards. Also living on Juana’s ma’s property was Zacarías y Justina Choque. Zacarías and Justina became very good friends of your grandmaa and grandpaa. Jesús y Josefa García were another couple who regularly attended the Pari Church. Jesús y Josefa lived directly across the street from Juana’s ma’s house. Right after your grandmaa and grandpaa arrived in Bolivia with your dad and Aunt Lynn, your grandmaa and grandpaa were asked to go to the Bible study that was being held each week in the patio outside Juana’s ma’s house. Within about nine months after your grandmaa and grandpaa began to go to the Bible study that was held weekly in the patio outside Juana’s ma’s house, the Pari Church was recognized. Because your grandpaa could not yet teach or preach very well in Spanish, your grandpaa would sometimes ask someone else to teach or preach during one of the Tuesday night prayer times or Thursday night Bible study times or Sunday morning Sunday School times or Sunday evening evangelistic service times. Except for the Saturday night youth meeting, your grandpaa rarely missed any of the services. Your grandpaa about once a month or so would ask James Davids – who was the Bolivia South American Mission field missionary team’s Field Director, to preach or teach. If it was a wet, rainy night, the guys, gals and kids who showed up for the meeting would meet inside Juana’s ma’s house. Your grandpaa will never forget one of those wet, cold rainy nights when James Davids taught during a Tuesday night prayer time and when all the guys, gals and kids who showed up that night sat together in a tight circle inside Juana’s ma’s house to keep warm. At least twenty guys, gals and kids showed up that night – including a young guy by the name of Julio Roca. As James Davids was teaching, Jauna’s ma’s pet miniature sheep made an appearance. Juana’s ma’s pet sheep had shown up during other meetings but . . . this time Juana’s ma’s pet sheep went to the middle of the floor of the room where all the guys, gals and kids who showed up that night were sitting on whatever and did number one. James Davids kept right on teaching. Juana’s ma’s pet sheep a short time later walked again to the middle of the room where all the guys, gals and kids who showed up that night was sitting on whatever and did number two. This time James Davids injected a comment about sheep and . . . when James Davids ended his teaching, he asked if there was a guy, gal or kid there who would like to make a decision of faith. Your grandpaa thought for sure that Juana’s ma’s miniature pet sheep had all the guys, gals and kids who were there that night watching it instead of listening to James Davids teach. Your grandpaa was surprised to see Julio Roca slowly raise his hand. Julio wanted to make a decision of faith. Julio and Soñia Roca would decide several years later to go to the rural resident leadership/Bible education training center which your grandmaa and grandpaa were instrumental in implementing in Concepción, Nuflo de Chávez.
If you are God’s specially elected kids, you are sheep to God – as God the Son – Who was Jesus Christ. Jesus used sheep to describe the very unique relationship that He will always have with all the specially elected kids that His Father – Who is God – as God the Father, gave to Him to shepherd, to follow Him and to have Him die for in order to save them from death. Apostle John wrote in John 10 about this comparison that Jesus made between sheep and guys, gals and kids. Apostle John recounted what Jesus said in what is now verse 16, “I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.” Jesus referred to Himself as the gate for the sheep pen. Only Jesus can let sheep into His sheep pen. Jesus will only let His sheep – who are the guys, gals and kids who God chose before He created planet Earth to be His specially elected kids, into His sheep pen. The sheep pen can only be entered into by guys, gals and kids who God – as God the Spirit, as led past the blood stained cross on which Jesus – as God the Son, was hung on and nailed to and through the faith/grace door as Christ-followers. No kid is ever born inside Jesus’ sheep pen that is only has Christ-follower guys, gals and kids in it.
How do you feel about being compared to sheep? Sheep are considered to be probably the dumbest animal that God – as God the Father, created among all the animals. Sheep cannot be pushed. Sheep can only be led. Sheep do not sense danger. Sheep will only follow the familiar voice of their shepherd. A shepherd needs to be willing to die for his sheep. God – as God the Son – Jesus Christ, willingly gave His life for His flock of specially elected kids. What does it mean to you to be two of Jesus’ sheep? Have you heard Jesus’ voice calling to you to follow Him? Do you know whether or not right now that you are in the sheep pen – that you are in the ‘body of Christ’ with all the other guys, gals and kids who are Christ-followers? Per Apostle John’s account in his John Book, Jesus also stressed that there has been, are and will be bad shepherds and sheep that have not been and will never be saved. Following Jesus is to be on a blind faith walk – which has a guy, gal or kid believing that Jesus is leading him or her – as His ‘sheep’, in His perfect will in a green, peace filled pasture where there are only Christ-follower guys, gals and kids.
John 10 (563)