John 10:17-21

John 10:17-21 - Daily Devotion - 6 August 2026 St Barnabas Anglican Church Fairfield & Bossley Park 17 The reason the Father loves Me is that I lay down My life in order to take it up again. 18 No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father.”19 Again there was division among the Jews because of Jesus’ message. 20 Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?”21 But others replied, “These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”REFLECTIONSWritten by Herman TuA fun fact about me is that I am a big hoarder. I love to keep things. I love to keep awards, info sheets, clothes, relics of my high school days, and even sermon outlines. The issue with keeping things is that I also hate giving things up. My coffee machine, my bed, my car. If I am called to give up any of those things, that call provokes fear, anxiety and resistance in me.But in John’s Gospel, we see just how radically Jesus was willing to give things up.In this chapter, we see how Jesus divided the Jews because of what he was testifying about. Some of the Jews accused Jesus of being possessed, while others saw how Jesus could open eyes. They are wildly different opinions on him!So what was Jesus testifying about?From the beginning of his ministry, Jesus spoke about an “hour” that would come (John 2:4). He was speaking about the hour when he would suffer on the cross to drink the cup of God’s wrath against all humanity, and be declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Holy Spirit by his resurrection from the dead (Romans 1:4). As Jesus spoke to the Jewish people, he was clearing pointing forward to that “hour.”But the wonderful thing we see in today’s passage is that Jesus carried out this mission of his own accord (v. 18). Even though he knew the horror of what he would endure in his death on the cross, he willingly, voluntarily, and obediently went to the cross to give up his life for us. I can't even give up my coffee machine, but Jesus gave up his life. How great a love is that?Ultimately, what motivated Jesus was the Father's love for humanity. Jesus received this charge from the Father to lay down his life. God, the Father, so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in HIM will not perish but have eternal live (John 3:16). The Son of God died for us so that you and I can be children of God. That is true love.Give thanks to God for his amazing love for humanity and pray that you can share this great love with others. ABOUT THE AUTHORHerman is a member of our Fairfield Evening congregation.