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They won't follow a stranger. Instead, they will run away from a stranger because they don't recognize his voice."
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Jesus used this illustration as he talked to the people, but they didn't understand what he meant.
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Jesus emphasized, "I can guarantee this truth: I am the gate for the sheep.
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All who came before I did were thieves or robbers. However, the sheep didn't respond to them.
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I am the gate. Those who enter the sheep pen through me will be saved. They will go in and out of the sheep pen and find food.
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A thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy. But I came so that my sheep will have life and so that they will have everything they need.
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"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.
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A hired hand isn't a shepherd and doesn't own the sheep. When he sees a wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and quickly runs away. So the wolf drags the sheep away and scatters the flock.
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The hired hand is concerned about what he's going to get paid and not about the sheep.
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"I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep as the Father knows me. My sheep know me as I know the Father.
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So I give my life for my sheep.