My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. ~ John 10:27-29

In the text above the words they follow is a reference to the sheep of whom Jesus is the Shepherd. In the Greek, this word follow is a verb, and is present indicative active, which means that the action of following Jesus happens in the present time, and that the subject (those who follow Jesus) carry out the action, and that the statement is true.

The implication of this text is that the sheep actively follow Jesus, and will continue to follow Jesus, not that they followed him in the past. Furthermore, the words, hear (My sheep hear my voice) and know (I know them) are also verbs which are present indicative active. Thus the text should be understood as My sheep actively hear my voice and I actively know them, and they actively follow me.

We must be careful that we do not read John 10:27 as if Jesus is saying my sheep heard my voice. Verses 27-30 is not a section of scripture which references a one time believing experience which happened only in the past. Unfortunately, it has often been used for this purpose and some who are not faithful to follow Jesus have taken false comfort in the thought that they are saved, even though they may be living in adultery, or some other terrible lifestyle. Having said a prayer many years ago will not profit you on the day of the Lord if you have lived in wickedness and not followed Jesus from your heart.

Those who are the sheep, who belong to Christ, are those who actively hear his voice and follow him. To be actively engaged in hearing the Shepherd’s voice is to listen. This may be why the NIV translates verse 27 as, My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

The NIV is not the only translation that employs the word listen, many others do as well. The Amplified Bible Classic Edition says, The sheep that are My own hear and are listening to My voice; and I know them, and they follow Me. (Bold added for emphasis)

The word listen is probably an accurate rendering. Have you ever been in the same room with someone and heard them speak but you weren’t listening and couldn’t remember a word they said? I think we all have at one time or another, and I don’t think Jesus is referring to that kind of hearing when he says my Sheep hear my voice. The Sheep recognize and respond to his voice, they listen !

Many sincere Christians struggle with the concept of hearing the voice of God, and this is mainly due to wrong ideas of what it means to hear God’s voice. Jesus is the voice of truth from God, and the Spirit of God abiding within, whom we receive through faith in Jesus, bears witness within us to the truth that is in Jesus. Hearing God’s voice simply means listening to and for the truth in Jesus. and following that truth. As we grow in the knowledge of the truth in Christ, and it takes root within us, we better recognize when the truth is missing, and we won’t follow the voice of another. Consider the following from the apostle John.

Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life. These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you. But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him. ~ 1 John 2:24-27

Notice the words of John in the text above, where he says If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. He follows that statement by saying And this is the promise that he hath promised us, even eternal life.

Here in this section of scripture, John is echoing the very same thing he tells us in John 10:27-29, where the sheep who follow (and continue to follow) the Shepherd have the promise of eternal life. John uses the word if saying,  If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father.

The promise of eternal life belongs to those who remain in the truth and continue in the Son and the Father. John would have never made this statement if there were no possibility that one who is in the sheepfold could not be seduced to follow another. That is why he follows this by saying, These things have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.

Whether we want to hear it or not, a Christian can be seduced and follow another if they don’t continue to abide in the truth that is in Jesus. Paul warns the Corinthians of another gospel, another spirit, and another Jesus.

So how do we avoid being seduced? John answers that by telling us, the anointing (the Spirit) which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing (the Spirit of Christ) teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

When John says you need not that any man teach you, he is not telling us that we don’t need others to teach us the Word of God. Teacher is one of the gifts that Jesus has given to his body. Being under good teaching is a necessity for healthy growth in the things of God. What John is referring to is the abiding truth that is in Christ. Every believer who has come to Christ has come to the truth, and has received the Spirit of truth bearing witness in them of the truth. The Spirit bears witness to the truth, because the Spirit is truth.

Those who seduce people away from Christ do so with a mixture of truth and error. John says they went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us. ~ v. 18

As Christians, if we want the promise of eternal life, we must continue to follow Jesus. Seducers will use Jesus (use his name, his teachings, his miracles and healings, etc), to draw attention to themselves. Seducers, which are false teachers, false prophets, and false apostles do not nurture your devotion to Christ alone. Thus they introduce teachings that get your eyes off of Christ by tempting you to lust after other things such as prosperity, supernatural experiences, etc. Others seduce with extreme legalism and rules about Sabbaths, feast days, and strict religious practices that have nothing to do with genuine godliness from the heart.

The work of seducers is to make you dull of hearing and desensitize your conscience to the voice of the Lord. When this happens you no longer hunger for the truth from your heart, but seek teachers to satisfy your itching ears which have been awakened by your lusts.

The fact that John encourages us to let that which we have heard from the beginning (the truth in Christ) to remain in us so as to not be seduced, ought to teach us that anyone of us could fall from the grace of God if we do not remain faithful to Jesus.

Follow Jesus, and keep your eyes on him!