My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27).

I don't watch a lot of football, but as a native Buckeye, I was pretty excited when Ohio State won the NCAA championship in 2003.  And I was pretty surprised when God used a televised football game, of all things, to teach me a lesson about Himself!

Late in the game, Ohio State was penalized after one of its offensive linemen made a false start. From the instant replay, you could see that the lineman had moved in reaction to a slight flinch from the defensive lineman across from him. The commentator was quick to explain why the Ohio State lineman had messed up: "He wasn't listening to his quarterback, he was watching his enemy."

Before the play started, all the Ohio State players knew what signal from the quarterback would indicate that they should move. But the lineman had been so focused on his opponent that he forgot to listen for the familiar call from the quarterback. He got anxious and jumped the gun at a crucial point in the game, costing his team several yards.

When I heard the commentator's remark, it suddently struck me how often I am just like that lineman. Time and again, I have tripped up in life, making a false move because I'm so concerned with what my Enemy is doing that I fail to listen to my "Quarterback"--my Good Shepherd. Calling Himself the Good Shepherd, Jesus taught His disciples this same principle: "The sheep listen to [the shepherd's] voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out...and his sheep follow him because they know his voice" (John 10:2-4).

As Christians, we must know our Shepherd's voice. I'm reminded of an illustration about how the FBI learns to detect counterfeit money. You might think they would study examples of fake bills, but it's just the opposite. FBI agents in training never see a counterfeit bill; instead, they study real money extensively. After a while, they know the real thing so well that they can easily spot a counterfeit.

And we must do the same thing. Certainly it isn't smart to ignore the devil completely. But rather than spending our time focusing on Satan and trying to figure out his schemes, and rather than getting distracted or anxious because of what the world around us is doing, we must fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). We must learn to recognize our Shepherd's voice, so that we will not be led astray by the devil.

Those sheep Jesus speaks of, when they have learned to listen for their Shepherd's voice, will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice (John 10:5). Instead of being like that lineman and letting the enemy trip us up, we must be like those sheep: so focused on our Shepherd and His voice that we aren't led astray by the enemy.

--Amy Kaylor

Do you know the Shepherd's voice? And if so, are you listening carefully for it?

© 2003 Kingdom Building Ministries.

Amy Kaylor is a recent graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana. She is currently a communication assistant for Kingdom Building Ministries.