IN HIS HAND
John 10:28
Morning Meditation 4/15/16
In the Shepherd’s chapter of John’s gospel Jesus says of his sheep, “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.”
What does it mean to be in his hand? There are three references in the Psalms that say something about his hands. Psalm 95:4, 5 and 7 “In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also.” V 5: “The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land.” Verse 7: “For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,”
How wonderful it is to be in his great hands. As we consider this verse let us notice some things that stand out.
First, there is here a picture of security. It says “Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.” These are the words of Christ. He is speaking to his disciples. There are many who have a problem with the doctrine of security. They identify it as a Baptist doctrine. I would like for you to consider this as a statement made by Christ and therefore a Bible doctrine. I am not trying to convert anyone from his church. I want you to see in this statement that I would believe as a Christian no matter what church I belonged to. It is a Bible doctrine. And it is a good doctrine because it is being taught by Christ.
Lets notice where the security lies. It is not because you have your hand in his as if you were holding on to him. It because you are in his hand. He is holding on to you. Guy King gives an illustration on this verse. “See yonder child as she crosses the busy thoroughfare holding the policeman’s hand—why is she so safe, in spite of the hurrying traffic? Not because she has the policeman’s hand, but because he has hers. If she relies on the former circumstance, and oncoming lorry might so easily frighten her, and cause her hand to slip, and her to fall into danger. But, fortunately, it is the policeman’s hand that matters—and though he feels her tiny hand tremble, he will but grasp it the tighter, until he has seen her safely across the road. Of course, she must first take hold of him; but, subsequently, the keep hold depends on him.”
Someone might say “it says, ‘any man’ but the devil might.” But if you will notice in your Bible the word “man” is in italics which means that it is not in the Greek text. Therefore, the literal meaning of the text is “anyone” man or devil. This is a glorious truth that Jesus teaches and it is such a comfort to those of us who see ourselves as unworthy and weak and completely unable to hold out. But the weakest vessel in His strong hand is safer than the strongest vessel out of his hand.
Next, lets look at how long the security lasts. Like the policeman in the illustration above, it will last until he has us safe on the other side. He will not fail us. He will see to it that the truth declared in this verse stands, backed up by the power of God. Jude 24 says, “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.” The word “able” (dunamai) means “to be able, to have power by virtue of one's own ability and resources.” It is a present middle participle. The present tense means it is a truth that has to do with the present tense of our lives no matter what age we live in. He is able at the time you read this verse. The middle voice is where the subject acts and participates in the result of the action, i.e., he is benefitted by the result of the action. Our salvation and security is to the glory of our great redeemer. There will be no one in heaven praising his denomination or particular church or his own ability for his salvation or security. The word “able” has to do with his power. What is he able to do in this verse? “To keep you from falling” is what Jude says. The word “keep” (phulasso) means according to Strong: “to guard or watch, have an eye upon: lest he escape.” It is an aorist active infinitive. The aorist tense looks at his keeping power as one event, i.e., from salvation to the rapture. Amen! You’ll have to excuse me while I rejoice over this truth.
There is a second thing that I want to point out in this verse. It refers to the purpose of service. He does not take us in hand only to save us, but also to use us. When, in 2 Kings 6:7, Elisha’s young man was told to put out his hand and “take ... up” the lost axe-head, it was not only to rescue it from the watery grave, but to restore it to useful service again. So we may be assured that if our salvation is not followed by service we are falling short of the very purpose of our redemption. Jesus said of Saul (Paul), after his conversion on the road to Damascus, “He is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name ...” (Acts 9:15).
We may be very poor instruments, but, in his hand, we may be used mightily. “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and the things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence” (1 Cor. 1:27-29).
Paganini was to preform before a great London audience. A huge crowd hand assembled to listen to the world-famous Impresario, and had paid enormous prices for their seats. When tuning up before the recital, a string snapped; and then another—and a feeling of apprehension passed over the hearers. And when a third string went, there broke out a storm of booing and hissing: after all, many had given big sums for their tickets. But then came gaunt Paganini to the edge of the stage, clutching his beloved instrument, and in a whisper that could be heard all over the vast hall pointing to his damaged violin, he said, “One string and Paganini.” From that one remaining string, he brought such music as thrilled every listener.
We may be like that old violin. One after another of the strings of our moral fiber have been broken, till, in our personal weakness we feel there is little strength remaining in us. It would seem that no melody could issue from out lives now. Yet, in the right HANDS what moving music might still be produced to help and uplift the hearts of the hearers. One string—and the Master.
Third, there is the promise of shaping. Remember he is the Potter to shape us into the kind of vessel he wants us to be. If only we will take our hands off our lives and put them in his worthy hands. His hands are also Carpenter’s hands. A carpenter repairs. There may be someone who thinks he is beyond repair. Not so, in the hands of the right Carpenter.
