Other Sheep I Have

One of the most intriguing statements Jesus ever made is found in the Gospel of John.

"And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." (John 10:16)

Most Christians have read that verse many times.

But have we really stopped to think about what He was saying?

At the time, Jesus was speaking in Jerusalem.

His disciples knew about Jerusalem.

They knew about Judea.

They knew about Galilee.

But they knew nothing of the Nephites.

Nothing of the scattered branches of Israel.

Nothing of distant peoples living on other lands.

Yet Jesus plainly declared that He had other sheep.

Not sheep that might someday exist.

Not sheep that future missionaries would eventually find.

He said He already had them.

And He said they would hear His voice.

That statement becomes even more fascinating after His resurrection.

Because according to multiple records, Christ did exactly what He said He would do.

The First Appearance: Jerusalem

Following His resurrection, Christ appeared repeatedly among His disciples in Jerusalem.

He showed them the wounds in His hands and feet.

He taught them.

He comforted them.

He commissioned them.

He strengthened their faith.

These appearances form the foundation of the New Testament witness.

But they were not the end of His ministry.

In many ways, they were only the beginning.

The Second Appearance: Bountiful

The Book of Mormon records one of the most sacred events ever written.

The resurrected Christ descended from heaven and appeared among the Nephites at Bountiful.

Thousands witnessed His coming.

One by one, they came forward and felt the wounds in His hands, feet, and side.

Then something remarkable happened.

Jesus explained John 10:16.

The Nephites were among the "other sheep."

The people in Jerusalem had not known about them.

Yet Christ knew them.

The Father had sent Him to them.

And He taught them the same gospel He had taught in the Old World.

Faith.

Repentance.

Baptism.

The Holy Ghost.

Prayer.

Love.

Unity.

Service.

The doctrine had not changed.

The Shepherd was the same.

The message was the same.

The Third Appearance: Mayntinah

The Nemenhah records preserve another account of the resurrected Peacemaker appearing among His people.

The account is strikingly familiar.

The voice of the Father is heard.

The Son descends from heaven.

The people gather.

They see Him.

They hear Him.

They come forward.

They touch the wounds.

They know for themselves.

As I studied this account, one thing stood out to me.

The emphasis is not on organization.

The emphasis is not on authority.

The emphasis is not on hierarchy.

The emphasis is Christ.

The people are invited to know Him.

To hear His voice.

To walk His path.

To become one.

The same invitation given at Jerusalem.

The same invitation given at Bountiful.

The same Shepherd speaking once again.

The Fourth Appearance: The Northern Remnants

The Nemenhah records also preserve traditions of Christ ministering among additional branches connected with northern inheritances, including the people associated with Corianton and later remnant populations.

This possibility immediately caught my attention.

Because if Christ truly meant what He said in John 10:16, why would we assume there were only two groups?

The Book of Mormon itself suggests otherwise.

At Bountiful, Christ spoke of additional sheep who had not yet received His ministry.

Other branches.

Other remnants.

Other scattered covenant peoples.

The Nemenhah records preserve memory of some of these groups.

Whether every detail can be reconstructed perfectly is not really the point.

The larger point is that Christ's concern was never limited to one nation.

His ministry was larger than Jerusalem.

Larger than Judea.

Larger than any single people.

The Shepherd knew where all His sheep were.

Samuel the Lamanite

One detail I find especially interesting is the connection involving Samuel the Lamanite.

The Book of Mormon records Samuel as one of the great prophets before Christ's coming.

The Nemenhah records preserve traditions that connect Samuel with later events among the remnant peoples.

If those traditions are accurate, then Samuel becomes a remarkable bridge.

A witness known in the Book of Mormon.

A witness remembered among the Nemenhah.

A witness whose testimony points toward Christ in both records.

That pattern appears repeatedly.

The records are not isolated from one another.

They overlap.

They echo one another.

They remember many of the same people.

And they testify of the same Redeemer.

What Did Christ Teach?

As I compared these accounts, I found myself asking a simple question.

Did Christ teach something different in each location?

Did He give one gospel to the Jews?

Another gospel to the Nephites?

A different gospel to the people of Mayntinah?

Something else to the northern remnants?

The answer appears to be no.

Again and again the same themes emerge.

Come unto Me.

Repent.

Love one another.

Care for the poor.

Seek the Holy Spirit.

Hear My voice.

Become one.

Build Zion.

Avoid pride.

Walk in humility.

Trust the Father.

Follow the Shepherd.

The words may vary.

The setting may vary.

The people may vary.

But the message remains remarkably consistent.

One Shepherd

Perhaps that is the greatest witness of all.

The same Christ appears.

The same invitation is given.

The same doctrine is taught.

The same Spirit is felt.

The same call goes forth.

Come unto Me.

John 10:16 is not merely a prophecy about geography.

It is a testimony about the character of Christ.

He does not forget His sheep.

He knows where they are.

He seeks them.

He teaches them.

He gathers them.

Whether they are in Jerusalem.

Whether they are at Bountiful.

Whether they are in Mayntinah.

Whether they are among distant remnants scattered across the earth.

The Shepherd remembers His sheep.

And perhaps the most important question is not where Christ went.

Perhaps the most important question is whether we are listening for His voice today.

Because His promise has never changed.

"My sheep hear my voice."

The more I study these records, the more I believe that has always been the real message.

Not the location.

Not the people.

Not the records.

The voice.

The Shepherd.

And the invitation to follow Him.

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