 Does this verse prove that sheep can fall away or stray away from Christ? I've been on record to say that there are no sheep, especially in the Bible, no examples of sheep who left Christ there. There's no example of any sheep who has fallen or strayed away from Him. There's no one who is a believer also because of that who will ever walk away from Christ. The Bible, I think, is clear, especially when we go to John chapter 10, one of the verses that I like to look to in regard to this analogy with the sheep. Jesus says that He is the shepherd. We know that part. That's not disputed. But then as regards to the sheep of His fold, of His flock, what does He say about them? He says, when He puts forth all His own, that is His own sheep, He goes ahead of them and the sheep follow Him because they know His voice. Verse 5, here it is. As stranger, they simply will not follow but will flee from Him because they do not know the voice of the stranger. And so according to John 10, it's pretty clear what sheep do. Sheep hear, sheep follow. If sheep hear a stranger's voice, they simply will not listen, but they will turn and walk away. They will flee. And of course, Jesus is making this point that I'm here speaking. I'm calling and you don't come to me. Why? Because you are not my sheep. And even to the Jews, He also references Gentiles. He says, I have a sheep of another fold, verse 16 of chapter 10. And they will hear and they will follow after Him. And He says, they shall never, ever perish. And so the issue comes, will sheep, could sheep? Is it possible for a sheep to follow, for a sheep to stop hearing, for a sheep to stop following? Is it possible even for a sheep to one day not be a sheep, for a sheep to become unshiped, to stop being a sheep? Well, we don't have any examples in the Bible. To me, I think the very definition of unbiblical means that it's not in the Bible. And so therefore, if there's no example of it, well, then we would have to say, at least I would conclude, that it is unbiblical. But still, if someone wants to say that there are passages that state that sheep can follow, that sheep can stop following, well, let's look at them. And one of the such passages is found, obviously, in Matthew 18, as well as Luke 15. They are giving the examples of a sheep going away. And notice what it says in Matthew 18, 12. It says, what do you think? If any man has 100 sheep and one of them has gone astray, does he not lead the 99 on the mountain and go search for the one that is straight? If it turns out that he finds it, truly, I say to you, he rejoices over it, over the more than the 99, which have not gone astray. He says, so it is not the will of your Father who was in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. And then I want to look at 15 as well. It's the same story, same account. So he said to them, what man among you, if he has 100 sheep and has lost one of them, does not lead the 99 in the one pasture and go after the one which is lost until he finds it. When he has found it, he lays it on his shoulder rejoicing, and when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbor is saying, rejoice with me for I have found my lost sheep, which was lost. I tell you the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over the one sinner who repents than over the 99, righteous person who needs no repentance. And so some will say, well, this proves that a sheep can straight, sheep can wonder. However, we need to look at this more closely because I don't think it says that at all. As a matter of fact, notice what he says in Luke. He says that there will be more joy in heaven over the sinner who repents than over the 99, righteous person who need no repentance. And of course, he's 99. He's trying to say that you all are not as righteous as you think you are, but we'll leave that there. But notice what the sheep that's brought back, what's he called a sinner who repents. And same thing in Matthew 18, and I'll make my point in chapter 18, he says, so it is verse 14. It is not the will of your father who was in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. Well, that's the point. None of his sheep, those sheep that he has, not one of them will perish. And remember, what is the will of the father? All that the father has given me. And who are the all that the father has given? Well, if we go back to chapter 10, in John, we're going to see something about the sheep. After he reiterates the point that his sheep hear his voice and that he knows his sheep, and after he reiterates the point that his sheep follow him, he says they have eternal life. And this is the presence they have. He gives them present life according to John 6, right now at this very moment, they have life into the ages. And he says they will never perish and no one will stop them out of my hand. But notice what he says in verse 29, and that's the point here. 29, he says my father who has given them the sheep, my father has given the sheep to me, and he is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of my hand. And so when we make the point that all the sheep that are given to him, he will not lose one. Again, going back to Matthew 18, he says this is not the will of your father who was in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish, which is what he says in John 6, all the father, the sheep that is given to him, they will not perish. Now what that really means is none of the sheep are ever going to stop being sheep. They will never go to hell. In this case, the sheep that Jesus goes after, he's using that analogy, not to say that a sheep of his will ever go somewhere to where he has to be rescued, but even if that were the point, what does, what happens? What is Jesus making the point that if someone were to stray off a little bit or what have you, he is still going to go back and bring them back? That's the point. The point is not one sheep would ever be lost. Oh, by the way, the sheep that's going away, these aren't, we are all wayward. And specifically, as Peter brings up, he's speaking about Jews who are supposed to be the sheep of God, but they're not. And that's what he says about them. He says, for you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and you're guarded of your soul. That is Jesus. So Jesus comes as he says, I have been sent for the lost sheep of Israel. All of Israel, no, because he literally lets the Jews know that some of you are not my sheep. I'm not your shepherd. And that's why you don't hear my voice. And so he's not coming to reclaim all of Israel, but he's coming to reclaim Israel who has been wayward as he says, like sheep who have gone astray. So he comes to reclaim them and those that he reclaims, there's no passage ever stating that those that he goes and reclaims, that he goes and gets those very same ones that have been given to him, there is no passage that states that they will walk away. As a matter of fact, what did Jesus say again? He literally says, they will not. As a matter of fact, if they hear a strange voice, they simply will not follow, but they will flee. And so no, this passage does not prove, nor does any other passage prove or show that a sheep will walk away. Again, there's no example of any sheep or any believer in the Bible ever walking away. And so still, the point still stands, sheep are sheep forever. If you have been given to him, if you're his sheep, if he's your shepherd, he will be your shepherd forever. You will be his sheep forever. There's no example in the Bible of this, of the counter ever happening. Amen.