the gate of living
The Scripture text of this study uses a color-coding system which might be helpful to you to use in studying your own Bible. The meanings of the color coding are as follows:
color key
Color markings in Scriptures found here are meant as an aid in understanding the topics and princples to which the Biblical phrases refer.
blue = God
red = commands
green = promises
pink = prophecy
orange = truth, wisdom, knowledge and understanding
brown = sin to avoid, effects of sin, or the basic nature of man
red underline = examples to follow
other color underlines have the same meanings, but as a secondary emphasis to the text color
section 1
primary passage
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. niv84
All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. esv
I am the gate; whoever enters through Me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. niv11
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my notes:
section 2
Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.
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john 14:6 esv ephesians 2:18 esv
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cross references
Jesus said to him, "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
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For through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.
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section 3
All who came before Me are thieves and robbers...
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ezekiel 34:1-10 nlt matthew 7:15-16 esv matthew 23:13, 15 nlt
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cross references
Then this message came to me from the LORD:
"Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD: What sorrow awaits you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep?
You drink the milk, wear the wool, and butcher the best animals, but you let your flocks starve.
You have not taken care of the weak. You have not tended the sick or bound up the injured. You have not gone looking for those who have wandered away and are lost. Instead, you have ruled them with harshness and cruelty.
So My sheep have been scattered without a shepherd, and they are easy prey for any wild animal.
They have wandered through all the mountains and all the hills, across the face of the earth, yet no one has gone to search for them.
"Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD:
As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, you abandoned My flock and left them to be attacked by every wild animal.
And though you were My shepherds, you didn’t search for My sheep when they were lost. You took care of yourselves and left the sheep to starve.
Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD.
This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I now consider these shepherds My enemies, and I will hold them responsible for what has happened to My flock. I will take away their right to feed the flock, and I will stop them from feeding themselves. I will rescue My flock from their mouths; the sheep will no longer be their prey.
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my notes:
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
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"What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either.
"What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you cross land and sea to make one convert, and then you turn that person into twice the child of hell you yourselves are!
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my notes:
section 4
but the sheep did not listen to them.
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cross references
"I will make a covenant of peace with my people and drive away the dangerous animals from the land. Then they will be able to camp safely in the wildest places and sleep in the woods without fear.
I will bless my people and their homes around my holy hill. And in the proper season I will send the showers they need. There will be showers of blessing.
The orchards and fields of my people will yield bumper crops, and everyone will live in safety. When I have broken their chains of slavery and rescued them from those who enslaved them, then they will know that I am the LORD.
They will no longer be prey for other nations, and wild animals will no longer devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will frighten them.
"And I will make their land famous for its crops, so my people will never again suffer from famines or the insults of foreign nations.
In this way, they will know that I, the LORD their God, am with them. And they will know that they, the people of Israel, are my people, says the Sovereign LORD.
You are my flock, the sheep of my pasture. You are my people, and I am your God. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!"
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section 5
I am the gate...
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cross references
...whatever you want others to do for you, do also the same for them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.
Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it.
How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.
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my notes:
section 6
...whoever enters through Me will be saved.
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revelation 7:17 esv acts 4:12 esv romans 10:9-13 csb
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cross references
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their Shepherd, and He will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."
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And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."
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If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.
For the Scripture says, Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame, since there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, because the same Lord of all richly blesses all who call on Him.
For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
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my notes:
section 7
He will come in and go out, and find pasture.
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psalm 23:2 esv proverbs 3:5-6 nlt ii thessalonians 1:11 niv11 joshua 1:7-9 esv psalm 121 esv i corinthians 10:31 esv psalm 119:45 niv11 acts 17:28 esv
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He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.
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Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.
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ii thessalonians 1:11 niv11 niv84
...God may make you worthy of His calling, and that by His power He may bring to fruition every good purpose of yours and every deed prompted by your faith.
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my notes:
Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go.
This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go."
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I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?
My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The LORD will keep you from all evil; He will keep your life.
The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.
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my notes:
So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
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I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out Your precepts.
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...in Him we live and move and have our being...
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my notes:
Scripture quotations taken from one or more of the following versions as noted:
ESV = The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®) Copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.
NIV = The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV® Copyright © 1973 1978 1984 2011 by Biblica, Inc. TM Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NLT = The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
NASB = NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE(R), Copyright (C) 1960,1962,1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
HCSB = Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Used by Permission HCSB ©1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 Holman Bible Publishers. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.
NKJV = New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.