John 10:28-30 (NLT)
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.
No one can snatch them away from me, 29 for my Father has given them to me, and
he is more powerful than anyone else. No one can snatch them from the Father’s
hand. 30 The Father and I are one.
Jesus gives this response as people ask Him if He is the
Messiah. Even though Jesus had made this
face clear on several occasions then people did not believe Him. So he states
that those who believe in Him, He gives eternal life. The Father has given them
unto Him and no one can pull them back. Them He states that He and the Father
are one to which the crowd responds by wanting to stone Him for claiming He and
the Father are one.
[Only 12-years-old, and in a moment one Ethiopian girl's
world turned into a nightmare. Seven violent men abducted the pre-teen,
intending to force her into marriage. The men held the girl for seven days,
beating her repeatedly.
Such incidents are common in Ethiopia, as several men
band together to abduct young girls for the purpose of securing a bride. The
girls are typically beaten into submission and raped. In this particular
instance, there was not a human being within earshot to hear the cries of this
girl. But her cries were heard.
The unlikely heroes were three majestic Ethiopian lions.
Famous for their large black manes, these lions are the national symbol of the
country. In response to the girl's cries for help, three large lions leapt from
the brush and chased her captors away. Perhaps the child thought she had traded
one danger for another, but remarkably, her heroes formed a protective
perimeter around her. A half-day later, when the police arrived, the guardian
lions simply stood up and walked away. Sgt. Wondimu Wedajo said, "They
stood guard until we found her, and then they just left her like a gift and
went back into the forest."
Among the explanations for the lions' unusual behavior,
one wildlife expert suggested the girl's whimpering could have sounded like a
lion cub. For whatever reason, the predator served as protector. The carnivore
became a sentinel. "Everyone
thinks this
is some kind of miracle," Wondimu commented.
This 12-year-old girl was helpless, powerless to change
her horrific circumstances. Her deliverance had to come from a power greater
than, and outside of, herself. In the same way, we are powerless to save
ourselves from sin and death. Our only hope is in Christ, the Lion of Judah. [David
Slagle, Decatur, Georgia; source: Anthony Mitchell, "Lions Rescue, Guard
Beaten Ethiopian Girl," Yahoo News (6-21-05); "Lions Free Kidnapped
Girl," CNN.com (6-21-05)]]
Jesus promises that no one will take us away from Him
when we believe he is the Messiah. Place your hope and faith in Jesus and He
will watch over you as the Lion of Judah.
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