Read John 10:11-18 with your family.

Sometimes it is very hard for adults to understand the lessons God is trying to teach us. Kids have an easier time understanding God (which should mean that adults listen more to kids, but sadly that doesn’t happen).

It was difficult for adults to understand in Jesus’ time as well, which is why Jesus used word pictures to help grown-ups understand the lessons of God. Jesus used things like candles, coins, bread, and fig trees to explain what he came to teach. One of the most popular word pictures Jesus used was sheep.

Sheep might be hard to understand in our time if we only ever live in the city, but in Jesus time sheep were everywhere. Even people who did not work with sheep were able to watch sheep and how they behaved.

So Jesus used the idea of sheep, that even when we were in trouble, like a shepherd, God would come find us and take care of us, even when the ‘shepherd’ had to risk their lives to make sure we stay safe.