John 10:7-10 (NKJV) “Then Jesus said to them again, “Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”
Jesus is telling us that He is not only the shepherd of the sheep, but also the door of the sheep. In doing so, He is vividly contrasting Himself with that of the religious leaders of His time whom He describes as “thieves and robbers”. When Jesus says, “I am the door,” He is reiterating the fact that only through Him is salvation possible.
In G. Campbell Morgan’s commentary, he talks about a conversation he had with a shepherd in the Near East. He described seeing the sheepfold. He asked the shepherd, “That is where you go at night?” The shepherd said, “Yes. And when the sheep are in there, they are perfectly safe.” Morgan replied, “But there is no door.” The shepherd said, “I am the door.” This shepherd wasn’t a Christian. He was an Arab, but he was using the same language Jesus used. The shepherd continued, “When the light has gone, and all the sheep are inside, I lie in that open space, and no sheep ever goes out, and no wolf comes in unless he crosses my body; I am the door.” So, when Jesus says He is the door of the sheep, He’s saying He’s the only door.
Jesus is the only door of salvation. The door is open to anyone who comes and enters by Him. Secondly, Jesus is the security door. This is the main idea behind the picture of sheep going in and out to find pasture. This was the Jewish way of describing a life that is absolutely secure and safe.” If the country was under siege, people had to stay inside the city walls. But when they were at peace and the ruler was upholding law and order, people were free to come and go as they wished.
Psalm 121:8 (NKJV) “The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in”
The sheep know they are safe because the shepherd is protecting them.
Psalm 23:4 (NKJV) “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.”
Ezekiel 34:25-31 (NLT) “I will make a covenant of peace with my people and drive away the dangerous animals from the land. Then they will be able to camp safely in the wildest places and sleep in the woods without fear. 26 I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill. And in the proper season I will send the showers they need. There will be showers of blessing. 27 The orchards and fields of my people will yield bumper crops, and everyone will live in safety. When I have broken their chains of slavery and rescued them from those who enslaved them, then they will know that I am the Lord. 28 They will no longer be prey for other nations, and wild animals will no longer devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will frighten them. 29 “And I will make their land famous for its crops, so my people will never again suffer from famines or the insults of foreign nations. 30 In this way, they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them. And they will know that they, the people of Israel, are my people, says the Sovereign Lord. 31 You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture. You are my people, and I am your God. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”
