“And his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice” (John 10:4-5).

The topography of Judea is such, quite often, there are multiple herds grazing on the same hillside. What is remarkable is that each sheep know their shepherd’s voice. They will not follow another. Only the voice of their shepherd will they heed. Multiple shepherd’s can call out for their sheep at the same time, and the sheep will only follow their shepherd’s voice.

It’s kinda like when your child is playing in the playground and there are dozens of kids at play. But when your child cries out, you hear your child’s voice.

This is the context in which Jesus referred to himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep.

The understanding is that his sheep would know his voice.

Do you? Can you discern his voice from the chorus of voices shouting out for your attention and loyalty? Can you discern his voice and guidance from the voices and guidance of others?

The only way to know the voice of the shepherd is to know him through his word. How else will we know Jesus? Our spiritual experiences? dreams? personal whims?

If we love Jesus, we love his word. Ignorance of the scriptures is ignorance of the Shepherd.

Set aside 10-15 minutes every day to read through God’s word. Get his word in you. If you’ve never read through the Bible, start with the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. For help and guide to read through the Bible in a year, YouVersion is a fantastic free resource. You can find many different Bible reading programs.

Knowing the shepherd’s voice is essential to the well-being of sheep. Sheep’s life depend on it.

You see, the devil doesn’t fear sheep. The devil only fears the shepherd. When it comes to sheep, the safest place for sheep is in the presence of its shepherd.

Know your Savior’s voice. Know his word.

“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” (Matthew 6:33).

Before the days of satellites and GPS the only way for sailors to get their bearing out at sea was by “shooting” the sun. Only by locating the sun and their position to it could sailors figure out where they were and which direction they were to sail in order to reach their destination.

Without the sun, they were hopelessly lost.

What was true for sailors is true for us. The only way for us to find our bearings is by looking at God.

Without the Son, we are hopelessly lost.

So, how does this work in real life? What does it mean to seek God first?

There are times when there are more uncertainties than there is clarity. Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you didn’t know where to go, what is best, which way to turn? What do you do when you don’t know?

This is where seeking God first comes to play.

When you find yourself in a situation where you don’t know, stick to what you know. Fall back on the things you know with absolute certainty and do those things. In time, as you are busy doing what you know uncertainties become clear.

So, what are some things you know with absolute certainty?

• God loves you. God wants what is best for you. God knows better than you what is the best for you
• Since that is the case, worship him, read his book, pray to him. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• You married? Stay absolutely faithful to your spouse. Love them. Serve them. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Single? Stay chaste and holy. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• Love God and serve others. There is never a time when this is not God’s will for you.
• The list could go on and on. You know what belongs on this list of certainties.

You see, even in those times when we don’t know what to do with certain particulars, there is much we do know. In times of uncertainty, turn to what you do know and do those things.

“Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But that is not what God desires; rather, he devises ways so that a banished person does not remain banished from him” (2 Samuel 14:14).

I love this verse.

God disciplines, rebukes, and corrects those whom he loves. He has to. He cannot leave us in our sins. He cannot leave us in our addictions and our failures. God has to change us. God has to correct us, discipline us.

But, God never disciplines for discipline’s sake. God always disciplines, corrects, and rebukes in order to restore us.

I love the truth expressed in this verse.

John Calvin said that the three signs of the true church of Jesus Christ are:

• Where the word of God is faithfully preached and heard
• Where the sacraments of God are faithfully administered
• Where the discipline of God is faithfully practiced

Church discipline is a necessary marker of the church.

I will be the first to admit that the church has not always practiced church discipline well. Too often we have disciplined in order to punish instead of disciplining for correction and restoration.

But here’s the thing about restoration. The only way church discipline works is when we are humble enough to accept the discipline of the church. Too often, when we are on the receiving end of church discipline, we bolt. We leave. We say, “This is yucky. I don’t like it.”

And the byproduct of this is that we never grow. The only way we will grow and mature in our faith is to mutually submit and surrender to the discipline and correction of the church.

Friends, I pray that we are a church that practices Godly correction and discipline in order to restore people to God’s family. And, I pray that we will all humble ourselves to receive correction, rebuke, and discipline.