(a) Jesus teaches that He is the Good Shepherd and that the Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep explaining that any one who does not enter the sheep-fold by the door but climbs by another way is a thief, but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. Thus, Jesus describes himself as the door and concludes that any one that enters by him at any time will be saved. The gatekeeper opens the door to him and the sheep hear his voice and he calls them by name. He leads the sheep out and the sheep follow him (because they know him and his voice). The sheep will not follow a stranger as they do not know his voice. Christ says that as the Shepherd, he will not flee at the sight of a wolf as a hireling will. Jesus says, he cares for his sheep for they belong to him. The thief / wolf destroys but Jesus gives abundant life.

(b) Relevance to Christians By laying down his life for us, Christ has opened the door to eternal life for everybody that believes and does the will of God. We must recognize Jesus as the only door through which we can enter into a life of happiness / joy. Any other door will mean destruction. If Christ has died for us, we should sin no more. We should always listen to the right voice, the voice of God and follow it. We should be steadfast in serving the Lord, not counting the loss.