Recognizing the Right Voice

4th Sunday of Easter

Archdeacon John Motis

Laura and I have always enjoyed watching nature at the lake where we live. We see alligators, otters, fish, ospreys, hawks, and Bald Eagles. We enjoy them all, however, our favorites are the ducks. Wood ducks especially. We even put cracked corn on the beach every day to entice them to come near. We have 5 wood duck boxes which are occupied at this time of year. While I’m pretty-much sure that it is pure luck, we occasionally catch the baby ducks plopping down from the box immediately after hatching.  Momma duck is down on the beach under the box encouraging the babies. Shortly after, we see the mother with her brood of babies in the shallow water at the edge of the weeds. While sitting on the screen porch on our upper deck last Sunday evening we saw 2 groups of 10 to 15 baby ducks with their mothers. One group on the neighbor’s beach and one on our beach. Before long they all came together, all mixed up together. Laura was concerned that they would get lost with the wrong mother. As we watched, each mother moved away into the water, each began calling and within seconds, the mixed-up bunch became two separate groups just like before. Each mother moved her babies away to a different weed patch.

 The ducklings know the voice of their mother and they follow her.  They had heard her voice first from the moment they hatched. She called them out of the security of the nest. She leads them into the weeds for protection, and she leads them to food. The follow mom instinct is very strong. She is always on alert. She stretches her neck, lifting her head high above the top of the weeds.  Always watching and always ready to sound the alarm. Over the course of years, we have observed the fate of ducklings who became separated from their mother shortly after hatching. Sometimes they hatch later the rest and sometimes they didn’t follower her despite her calling. When this happens, their mortality rate can exceed 90%. Following the mother is clearly the difference between life and death. If you have ever watched ducklings, they follow closely behind the hen. They stay close because their life depends on it. If they drift, they’re exposed. Their safety is tied to staying near the one who leads them.  Just last night, I noticed a hen with only 1 duckling following behind her.

I think the image of ducklings is a powerful image. But here is the surprising thing- as powerful as that image is. Jesus didn’t call us to be ducklings. He calls us sheep.

Jesus says we are like sheep-dependent, prone to wander, and in need of a shepherd.

Sheep don’t have great direction. They don’t defend themselves well. They’re prone to wander. That’s why everything for sheep is tied to the shepherd. They know his voice. They follow his lead. They stay near for protection.

And Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice and they follow me.”

The sheep know the shepherd’s voice because of the time that they have spent together. Many days and nights. The shepherd doesn’t drive the sheep, he doesn’t push them (they will scatter). He calls them, he speaks to them. Even calling them by name.

It seems simple, doesn’t it?

We live in a world with AI. In a world full of noise-notifications, opinions, influencers, breaking news. It is very difficult to know who to trust. Everyone claims authority. Everyone claims truth.

Our world celebrates independence:

 “Find your own path.”

“Trust yourself.”

“Follow your heart.” (even if it contradicts God) (just this one time)

“Success defines your worth.”

“Truth is what you feel it is.”

From the time we’re young, we’re told that freedom means not needing anyone else.

Jesus says: Those voices are thieves. They steal life-they don’t give it.

In John 10 Jesus speaks into that confusion with a powerful image: He is the Shepherd. We are the sheep.

So, whose voice are you following?

“The sheep listen to his voice-they know his voice.” Sheep don’t follow strangers. Why? Because they ‘ve spent time with the shepherd.

I was on the wrestling team when I was in high school. I remember being in the gym. The band was playing. The crowd was cheering. It was nearly impossible to even carry on a conversation. Somehow it all changed when I was on the mat wrestling in my match. No matter how loud the crowd was, I could hear the coach. His voice was only voice in the whole gym.  In the same way imagine your child in a crowded room. Dozens of voices. Noise everywhere. But when you call their name-they turn instantly. Why? Because they know your voice. Recognition comes from relationship. Time spent together.

The Problem: Many Voices, False Leaders. Not every voice that calls you is from God.

Jesus begins with a warning. “Anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate is a thief and a robber.”

Sheep pens in ancient times had one entrance. A true shepherd came through the gate. A thief climbed over the wall.

I offer you modern day thieves and robbers:

Think about scam phone calls. Scam text messages. Scam emails. They sound real, urgent, and convincing. But they are false.

You get a call that says. “This is your bank. Or this is the Social Security Office. How about this is the IRS.  We need your information immediately.” Sounds official. Sounds urgent. But they are fake.

The difference, they didn’t come through the right channel. We all know that we should never give our information over the phone. We have been told many times that they don’t contact us that way.

The modern-day voice that concerns me deeply is AI. Millions of people use AI systems every day, for all kinds of reasons. It’s hard to deny they can be useful at times. I find them valuable tools for research, for example. I learned how to replace the shocks on our washing machine by searching on Chat GBT.

However, many use chatbots for life advice. Relational questions. AI is always available. Responsive and affirming. Some even have a name for their AI companion. People substitute an AI “companion” for a real relationship. There are even lawsuits where AI even supported suicide.  

I asked Chat GBT if AI can replace Jesus?

The response: “That’s a profound question-and it gets at something deeper than technology.

 Short answer, no, not in any meaningful spiritual sense.

AI, no matter how advanced, is: Created by humans, limited to data and patterns and unable to possess a soul, divinity, or true moral authority.

Because AI is always available it can make them feel like a substitute for Prayer, Spiritual guidance and a Relationship with God.

When a person begins to rely on AI instead of Christ, it can lead to: A self-shaped “truth” instead of God’s truth. Comfort without growth and isolation from real faith community. It becomes less about worship and more about control and customization. AI can be useful for studying scripture. Exploring theology and asking questions. But it should remain a tool, not an object of trust or devotion.

Bottom line: AI can imitate conversation, but it cannot replace: The presence of God. The work of the Holy Spirit. The person of Jesus Christ.

AI reflects you and your inputs. Jesus calls you beyond yourself. AI adapts to your preferences. Avoids challenging you too deeply. It exists to respond.

Then the curious question: “If you’re asking this from a personal or spiritual place, I’d be interested-what made you think about AI in that role?”  You see how easily we can be drawn into something more?

But Jesus tells a different story. We were not created to lead ourselves-we were created to follow a shepherd. Jesus is that, Shepherd. There is no substitute for that relationship.  We are vulnerable: very much like sheep and ducklings. We like to think we’re independent, self-sufficient, in control. We don’t always see danger coming, we drift without realizing it and we follow the wrong voices.

“Distance from the Shepherd isn’t freedom-it’s where life starts to unravel. But close to Him? That’s where abundant life is found.”

Jesus doesn’t just promise survival; He promises abundant life-a life that is full, rich, and deeply connected to Him as the Good Shepherd.

“Abundant life-that’s what Jesus offers when we follow the Shepherd. Not just more years to our life, but more life in our years-life filled with His presence, His peace and His purpose.”

“Abundant life-A life where we are known, led, protected, and never alone.” A life that is full, overflowing, rich in purpose and deeply satisfying.

“Abundant life isn’t a bigger paycheck or a busier schedule. It’s what Jesus gives when we follow the Shepherd-clarity in confusion, peace in the middle of chaos, and pressure, security even in uncertainty, and purpose in the everyday. A relationship with the Shepherd who knows you.”

Following the Shepherd is not complicated-but intentional. We learn His voice through His Word. The more we hear Scripture, the more we recognize what is true and what is not.

Distance happens gradually. We don’t wake up one day far from God-we drift there.

Following means choosing daily to stay near: in prayer, in community and in obedience.

The Shepherd doesn’t always take us where we expect. But He always leads us where we need to go.

Ducklings don’t survive by figuring everything out. They survive by staying close.

Sheep don’t survive by being independent. They thrive by following the shepherd.

And we don’t find life by going our own way. We find life-real, full, abundant life by following Jesus.

Follow the Shepherd and you won’t just survive you will truly live.

Whose voice are you listening to most? Culture? Fear? Success? Or Jesus?

Do you recognize His voice? Are you spending time in Scripture and prayer?

Have you entered through the door? Not just knowing about Jesus, but truly trusting Him?

A Shepherd once said that sheep can safely graze in a dangerous valley, as long as the shepherd is with them.

It is not the absence of danger that gives peace, it’s the presence of the shepherd.

Jesus is: The true Shepherd. The only Door. The giver of abundant life.

And, today, He is still calling: “My sheep hear my voice-and they follow me.

The question is: Will you?

Amen