So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. — John 10:7-10 ESV

Sometimes when, in his words, my dad thought I was getting “too big for my britches”, he would say to me, “It doesn’t take a genius to see that you aren’t one.” At the time, that sort of a statement was lost on me which I suppose proved his point.

So Jesus comes along and refers to me as a sheep. I’ve seen sheep. There are few animals less capable of independent survival than domestic sheep. Continue reading →

And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.” — Mark 9:33-37 ESV

The disciples, like us, were influenced by the culture around them. And Like chickens, people create pecking orders. We just can’t help ourselves. We think in terms of hierarchy and we recognize signs and symbols of status and influence in the world around us. This is so automatic that we are usually unaware of it. Those of influence are surrounded by those of less influence. It’s how we spot our leaders. Continue reading →