“‘No one can take My life from Me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what My Father has commanded.’”
John 10:18 (NLT)
In the parable of the Good Shepherd, Jesus explains that He knows His sheep and they know Him, just as He knows the Father and the Father knows Him. And because of that love and intimacy, He willingly sacrifices His life for the sheep. Sheep are beautiful, but they are not strong or self-sufficient. They need a shepherd. And we didn’t just need guidance—we needed saving. Eternal life could only come if Jesus gave it to us.
Jesus also makes it clear that His sacrifice was not limited to Israel alone. He would gather Gentiles too, forming one flock under one Shepherd. And He says something stunning here: no one took His life from Him. He laid it down voluntarily. He alone had authority to do that, and to take it back again, because that authority came straight from the Father.
All through John’s Gospel, we see this authority in action. They tried to arrest Him. They tried to stone Him. They tried to seize Him. And every time, He escaped. Not because He was afraid—but because His hour had not yet come. Jesus modeled both fearless obedience and complete authority under God’s command.
When I really grasp that no one could touch Jesus unless He allowed it, and then I consider what Jesus says believers now have authority over, it changes how I live. Scripture tells us the same power that raised Christ from the dead lives in us. The works of God are meant to follow those who believe. And just like many believed in Jesus when they saw His power at the Jordan, many will believe today when they see believers walk in the real authority God has given—for good works that reveal His power.