Reflection #8 - Unsnatchable

During our COVID-19 shutdown, Pastor Zekveld plans to provide a personal reflection each weekday.

Unsnatchable

I’ve been delighting in Jesus’ promise in John 10:28-29: 

I give [my sheep] eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.

John 10:28-29

Nothing is secure in this world. Even the things we thought were certain are not.

  • The surgery booked for next month was cancelled.
  • So were your plans to go to the game or concert.
  • The airline called to say your flight is cancelled and your tickets are non-refundable.
  • The wedding so long in planning had to be trimmed down to 5 people.
  • The nurses would not let you into the delivery room to be with your wife.
  • Plans for baptism are on hold.
  • You could not visit your dying loved one in the hospital.
  • The plans for expanding your business are suddenly all up in the air.
  • You were laid off from your job after 20 years of steady work at the same company.
  • Your retirement savings just lost 30% of their value and crude oil plunged to $4.53 a barrel.

This is just the beginning of a long list of the unexpected these days. Things we have been counting on have been snatched away from us. Hopefully, we are learning that everything is up for grabs in our world.

How good it is to know that there is something that can’t be snatched away in this world – you.  If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you are unsnatchable. You are not up for grabs because He’s got you in His almighty hands. His loving grip on you cannot be broken.

What’s more, God the Father is also holding you in His hand. God the Father and the Son, who are one, share in a covenant of love to save you from damnation, to hold on to you forever, and bring you safely to Paradise. You are unsnatchable.

The reason for this absolute certainty is that there’s nothing human in it. It is made of nothing from this world - it’s all divine - divine power and love that cannot change or be broken into.  

It’s not for lack of trying! All kinds of forces are at work to sink their teeth into you to pull you away from the Shepherd’s grip.

Jesus spoke of wolves who come to snatch and scatter the sheep. (John 10:12)  They can’t succeed with those who truly believe, but they sure try! Wolves are false teachers who try to deceive you with heresies. They tell you that you are great and Jesus came to make you even better than you already are.

Jesus also said the devil comes around trying to snatch the word away from our hearts. Satan hates the word of God because it is the Truth. He tries his utmost to keep you away from the word and the word away from you. We must resist him standing firm in our faith and as we fight back, we rest in the promise that the word of God lives in us as God’s imperishable seed.

Incredibly, even we can work against our own unsnatchability! The power of sin which still lives in us fights against Jesus’ tight hold on us. We want freedom from Him to sin. Even as His sheep, we are prone to wander away from our Shepherd and look for a better life in pastures of poisonous weeds that will kill us.

  • We flirt with sexual immorality.
  • We drift into spiritual laziness by neglecting sincere Bible reading and prayer, and easily skipping worship services.
  • We climb the pedestal of proud self-reliance and foolishly put our confidence in ourselves, weak sheep that we are.
  • We oppose the Spirit of our Shepherd by giving bitterness and lovelessness more and more place in our hearts. 

But the Good Shepherd’s hold on us is far greater than our sin! He intercedes for us so that our faith will not fail so that we will return to Him who is our Safety. (see Luke 22:32)

The strong arms of Jesus: in a world of so much uncertainty, this is the blessed place to be!

Our unsnatchability has nothing to do with the character of the sheep and everything do with the character of the Shepherd. He is powerful, good and faithful. He lay down His life for you and He who paid such a price for you does not abandon you.

God is greater than all that opposes you – even when that opposition is you.

Knowing this makes all the difference in our lives. It helps us handle uncertainty, disruption, cancellations, and loss, with patience and peace. Let us show our frightened world that Jesus is truly the Man for all Seasons. He is the Place to be, now and always. He is unshakable, unbreakable, and unyielding.