It's been an honor to be here.
I feel so comfortable here. As I said at the end of the night,
this is the first place we ever came for a conference. your family
everybody's family to us here and so it's like coming back
to a big family reunion every summer and seeing Don Shelby
too and all the different preachers that come through it's just it's
nice it's wonderful and you know children know how blessed we
are to have these men faithfully preach the gospel to us tonight
I'd like to look in Ezekiel chapter 34 and I'd also like to read
a portion of John chapter 10 The name of the message is The
Shepherd of the Sheep. Ezekiel 34, starting in verse
11. And as we read this, I'd like to
note how much the word I is used. It's pretty incredible. You know,
in religion, folks like to use the word I. When I was in religion,
I used to do this all the time, thinking I was the one who made
the decision, and I was the one who came to Christ. And I just
thank God that He revealed to me the Gospel, and revealed to
me that it had nothing to do with me. I was just a recipient
of His grace. Ezekiel 34 verse 11, For thus
saith the Lord God, Behold I, even I, will both search my sheep
and seek them out. Oh, what comfort. As the shepherd seeketh out his
flock in the day that he is among the sheep that are scattered,
so will I seek out my sheep and will deliver them out of all
places where they have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day. Now,
there's a historical context to this, but I like what Brother
Gene said. This morning, this points to
Christ. This is all about Christ right
here, and about His sheep. Scripture says in verse 13, And
I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from
the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed
them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers, and in all the
inhabited places of the country. I will feed them in good pasture,
and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their foal be. And
there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall
they feed upon the mountains of Israel." Oh, what great comfort. And then let's turn over to John
chapter 10, keeping in mind what we just read in Ezekiel. John chapter 10, verse 1. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth
up some other way, the same is a thief and robber. But he that
entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him
the porter openeth. And the sheep hear his voice.
Remember in Ezekiel he said, I'm going to seek him out. I'm
going to seek him out. And he calleth his own sheep
by name, and leadeth them out. And when he put forth his own
sheep, he goeth before them. And the sheep follow him, for
they know his voice. And a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice of
strangers." I was reading A.W. Pink on this, and he says that
that's the gospel being preached by faithful men. The true gospel
being preached. And the sheep hear the voice. When they hear false preachers,
they say, that's not my shepherd speaking. But when they hear
faithful preaching, true preaching, truth being taught, we have the
truth. Then the sheep hear the shepherd's
voice. And a stranger will they not
fall, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice of
strangers. And then in the same chapter, in verse 24. So, we just read where the sheep
hear his voice, and therefore follow him. Then came the Jews round about
him and said, How long dost thou make us to doubt if thou be the
Christ? Tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you,
and you believe not. Evidence of God's sheep is they
believe. They believe. The works that I do on my father's
name they bear witness of me in one of the most chilling verses
in the Bible but ye believe not because ye are not of my sheep
as I said unto you. My sheep, verse 27, hear my voice
and I know them. and they follow me. And I'll
give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. Neither shall
any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father which gave them
to me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them
out of my Father's hands." Wonderful, wonderful truth. One of the most glorious descriptions
of the Lord Jesus Christ in the scriptures is where he's depicted
as a sheep. as the shepherd of his sheep.
Ezekiel again 34.12 says, As a shepherd seeketh out his flock
in the day, that he is among his sheep that are scattered,
so will I seek out my sheep. They're not looking for him.
And will deliver them out of all places where they have been
scattered in the cloudy and dark days. He's the shepherd of a specific
people. And they're called His sheep. They're called His sheep. A specific flock to which He
attends and a specific purpose to do everything in His power
to provide pasture for them and to deliver them from harm. He
watches over His sheep, as we heard this morning, Brother Gene,
from conception until the grave. And He knew them even before
Even before that. Jesus Christ is the one shepherd.
The first one. Jesus Christ is the one shepherd.
Let's look at Ezekiel 34 again. Verses 22 and 23. Therefore will I save my flock. This is definite. This is definite. And there shall be no more be
a prey, and I will judge between cattle and cattle, and I will
set up one shepherd over them, the Lord Jesus Christ. And he
shall feed them, even my servant David, he shall feed them, and
he shall be their shepherd. There are many religions and
sects in this world. As we left this afternoon, I
noticed a sign out in front of one of the buildings over there,
and it said THE CHURCH. Well, they're looking at the
church as the authority. It's the church of Jesus Christ. At Rescue, I believe it says
over there, the church of Christ. Christ's church are his people. Not a building. Not a meeting
place. His people. His plot. The actual truth is that one
religion is just as good as another in the sense that they all lead
to the same end. Though some of them are effective
in producing morality in the form of devotion, ultimately
every religion out there, which man pursues, will lead to his
destruction. Eternal life cannot be found
in a religion or in morality. but only in Christ, in Him alone. There's only one way, or one
portal, as we read in John chapter 10, to everlasting life. And
that's through the great shepherd of the flock, the Lord Jesus
Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself
said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
There's no other way. We pass through doors. And he
gives us analogies that we go through. Things that we see every
day in life. How many doors do we pass through
a day? He says, I'm that door. We can't
get out of this building without going through a door. He says,
I'm that door. I'm the door. I'm the way. There's
no other way. The way, the truth, and the life.
No man cometh unto the Father but by me. Any man who hopes
for eternal life in any creed or religion or person other than
Jesus Christ will eventually find his hope to be vain, sinking
sand, hopeless. Point number two is Jesus Christ
is the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd. John chapter
10 verse 11 he says, I'm the Good Shepherd, the Good Shepherd
giveth his life for the sheep. Now a good shepherd will do whatever
is necessary to protect his flock. Whatever he has to do, he'll
do it. Now where we are here in our
society here, we don't see a lot of shepherds, but in eastern
countries there's still a lot of them. And they have to protect
them from wolves and other prey that come around and want to
destroy the flock. Turn with me if you would to
Psalm 23. A good shepherd will do whatever
is necessary to protect his flock. Psalm 23. We're all familiar with it. Psalm of David. Who was a shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall
not want. Have you ever been in want since
the Lord saved you? We may have had some stuff that
we may have wanted, but as far as food on the table, clothes
on our back, shoes on our feet, we've not
been in want. And in Christ we have all that
we need physically, and the Lord's providing, and all that we need
spiritually. Amen. He is all sufficient. He provides everything for us.
Verse 2 says, He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He
leadeth me beside the still waters. Peace with God. Peace with God
through the Lord Jesus Christ. He restores my soul. Are we just
saying, revive me again? When we're down and life is,
we're going through some things and what brings us back up? But our great King. But our great
King. He restores my soul. He leads
me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake. The believer
is clothed in the righteousness of Christ. Yea, though I walk
through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil,
for thou art with me. And he said he'll never leave
his people. Never. Never. Remember we read earlier
too, no man can pluck us. No man can pluck us out. No man.
No man. For thou art with me, thy rod
and thy staff, they comfort me. He carries me from my mother's
womb and will be with me when I die. What a blessed Savior
we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. Verse 5 says, Thou preparest
a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Brother Gene,
if God is before us, who can be against us? This is God. God prepares a table
before me in the presence of my enemies. Thou anointest my
head with oil, my cup runneth over and over. and over in spiritual
blessings in Christ. Surely goodness and mercy, all
the mercy of God in Christ. Surely goodness and mercy shall
follow me all the days of my life. And then I'll dwell in
the house of the Lord forever and ever. The mercy of God in
the Lord Jesus Christ. He paid the ultimate price of
dying to secure the redemption of all those who belong to Him. All His sheep. Who are those
who belong to Him? The elect of God. The sheep. When were they given to Him?
Before the world began. Religionists like to completely
warp the truth of this. Joshua picked up a track one
day, we were out and about and he picked up a track and in the
back of the track he read it and he was shocked as he read
this and it said, now that you believe, now your name is just
written in the book of life. And God just picked up his pen
right there and wrote your name. It's not biblical. It puts the
power in man's hands, rather than in God's hands. And truly, this is what Brother
Gene was getting at today. I think when you were talking
about the God of their own imagination, their own delirium. It's not the God of the Bible.
When were God's people's names written in the Lamb's Book alive?
Before the stars ever were, before the worlds were spoken into existence, His people's names were written
in the Lamb's Book of Life. And Beloved, it's God who wrote
them in. The Sovereign, Almighty, Eternal,
Ancient of Days penned His people's names. Turn with me if you would
to Philippians chapter 4. Philippians chapter 4 verse 3.
And I entreat thee also true yoke
fellows. Philippians 4 verse 3. And I entreat thee also, true
yoke fellow, help those women which labor with me in the gospel,
with Clement also, and with other my fellow laborers, whose names
are written in the book of life." Now, look at Paul's next line
after this declaration. Rejoice, rejoice in the Lord
always. And again I say rejoice. The
believer's name is written in the book of life. Rejoice! Rejoice! Beloved, before there
was ever a sinner, there was a Savior. Jesus Christ is the
Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. The sheep were
given to the shepherd, and now He's gathering them in to Himself. Gathering them in. He seeks out
the lost sheep, And it's not the sheep seeking that. And those
of us, we know, we know we never sought out God. We may have been
religious. I know I was religious and never,
never sought Him out. Never read the scriptures. But
thought I was religious. Thought I was okay. Thought I
was fine. Until the shepherd came. He revealed
Himself to me through Scripture. Showed me my need for Him. Turn
with me again if you would to Luke chapter 15. I know I've
got us going around a little bit here, but Luke chapter 15. Then drew near unto him all the
publicans and sinners for to hear him. I'm sure glad that's
in scripture. And the Pharisees and the scribes
murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And they
were appalled. And he spake this parable unto
them, saying, What man of you Heaven and under sheep. If he
lose one of them, does not leave the ninety and nine and go into
the wilderness and go after that which is lost, till he find it. Till he find it. And when he found it, he lays
it on his shoulders rejoicing. Now picture this. He finds the
sheep and he puts it on his shoulders. Where is that sheep going to
gaze? right into the face of the shepherd, right into his
face, right there, right beside him. And when he cometh home, he calleth
together his friends and his neighbors, saying unto them,
Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost. I say
unto you that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner
that repented, more than over ninety-nine just persons which
need no repentance. The shepherd sought out the sheep. The sheep was lost and wandered
around and he went and got them. He went and fetched them. Remember Mephibosheth? Go and
fetch them. Go and fetch them. God's sheep
are scattered all through time. All through time. Their sin had
separated them from the Father, but He willingly laid down His
life, Christ willingly laid down His life to pay their sin debt. To remove that wall of separation.
Turn with me one more place if you would to Isaiah 53. Isaiah
chapter 53. The great shepherd seeks his
sheep. Isaiah 53 verse 4. Surely he
hath borne our griefs. 53 verse 4. Surely he hath borne our griefs.
He bore them like they're his own. Like they're his own. And carried our sorrows. Yet
we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he
was wounded for our transgressions. He had no sin of his own. He
who knew no sin was made sin for us that we might be made
the righteousness of God in him. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace
was upon him and with his straps were healed. All we like sheep
have gone astray. We're all like that sheep in
Luke 15, gone and lost. We've turned everyone to his
own way. Remember how you used to think
before the Lord saved you? Remember how you used to think
about God and his people? And how you do now? What a great
change. We were all gone to our own ways. All of us. The Lord laid on Him the iniquity
of us all. Laid it upon Him. He who knew
no sin, as I said, became sin for us. The sinless sacrifice
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not one thought sin. Not one
spoken sin. No sins and deeds. Nothing. Absolutely all I am is sin. And He was totally sinless. And this is just not my sin that's
being laid upon Him here. This is all the sin of all the
elect, of all the ages, being poured out on the substitute. And Scripture says, He bore it. The Lord hath laid on Him the
iniquity of us all. Look at this, He was oppressed
and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth. Why? Because He's the sinner's substitute.
Bearing that sin like it's His own. Not saying, guilty as charged. He is brought as a lamb to the
slaughter and as a sheep before her shears is done. So he opened
not his mouth. Not even a word. Not a word. Sparing the wrath and justice. But He accomplished everything
that was necessary for them, for His sheep to enter into eternal
life, which He promised them before the world began. Scripture
says in Isaiah 53, 10, Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise them.
It pleased the Lord to bruise them. The soul that sins, it
must die. Justice, I remember hearing Henry
this week, I think he said that justice is demanded and mercy
is optional. Justice has to be paid. It has
to be. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise
him. He hath put him to grief when
thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed,
he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall
prosper in his hands. In verse 11 in Isaiah 53, He
shall see the travail of his soul and shall be Satisfied is finished. That which God demands
has been paid. By his knowledge shall my righteous
servant justify many. Why? For he shall bear their
iniquities. He shall. All the law and justice
of God demanded was fully paid for at Calvary's Cross by the
Lord Jesus Christ. Substitution, dying in the place
in the room of His people, in the place of sinners, in satisfaction. It's finished. It's finished. And He has all
the power and man has none. Scripture says in John 17, as
thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give
eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. When was it given
to him? Way before the foundation of
the world. Way back. Regenerated by the
Holy Spirit, begotten by God. The next point is He is the Great
Shepherd. Hebrews chapter 13 verse 20 says,
Now the God of peace that fought again from the dead, our Lord
Jesus, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood
of the everlasting covenant. Death is the enemy of, the great
enemy of mankind, casting its dark shadow over the whole human
race because of sin. The Lord Jesus Christ is called
the Great Shepherd. Because he has triumphed. He
has triumphed over death and the grave. Since he rose from the dead,
his sheep have the promise that they too shall rise in the resurrection of their
bodies. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the
life. He that believeth in me. Do you
believe? Although he were dead, yet shall
he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth
in me shall never die. And then he says, Believest thou
this? Believest thou this? The most
important question, what think ye of Christ? So the believer, he is everything
in life and in death. But death has now lost its sting
for those who have been the recipients of the promise of eternal life
and the great shepherd of the sheep. It's lost its sting. The next point is, he is the
chief shepherd. 1 Peter 5, 4, and when the chief
shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that
fadeth not away. Fadeth not away. The Lord Jesus
Christ came into the world with little fanfare. He took on the
form and oh the condescension of Christ. The one who rules
and reigns in glory becomes a man. Among those whom he has created,
he took the form of a servant and was pleased to dwell in the
earth with a meek and gentle disposition. He laid aside his
glory which was from his from eternity, laid aside, and walked
here as a common man without even a dwelling to call his own. He allowed himself to be led
as a lamb to the slaughter, not even speaking harshly to those
who mistreated him. Instead he prayed for them. He
prays for them, Father forgive them, for they know not what
they do. Now some have assumed since He
humbled Himself in this fashion that He, that that is His eternal
nature to be meek and lowly, but this is a great mistake.
He is high and lifted up, high and lifted up. In the heavens
and earth shall flee away from His presence. And when he returns
to earth with a full display of his power and his glory, Revelation
chapter 6, scripture declares, And the heaven departed as a
scroll when it is rolled together, and every mountain and island
removed out of their places. And the kings of the earth and
the great men and the rich men and chief captains and the mighty
men and every bondman and every free man hid themselves in the
dens and rocks and the mountains. And I heard Brother Henry say
one time, this is the biggest prayer meeting in the world,
and they're praying to the rocks to cover them. And he said to the mountains,
and said to the mountains and rocks, follow us and hide us
from the face of him that sits on the throne, and from the wrath
of the Lamb. For the great day of his wrath
has come, and who shall be able to stand? He shall not appear unto men
in humiliation with which he was clothed when he first came.
He shall come in flaming fire, taking vengeance on all who have
not bowed their knees to His Lordship. And He is Lord. Whether
they bow or not, He is Lord, and they will bow one day. Every
knee shall bow. Every tongue shall confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord. To the glory of God the Father.
He shall gather His sheep, for whom He shed His precious blood
for. and give them a place in His very presence and where behold
His glory for eternity. Turn with me if you would to
Revelation chapter 5 one last time. Revelation chapter 5 Starting in verse 11. And I beheld,
and I heard the voice of many angels round about the throne,
and the beasts and the elders, and the number of them was ten
thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying
with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb. Oh, that's what we
cry here. Worthy is the Lamb. that was
slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor
and glory and blessing. And every creature which is in
heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in
the sea and all that are in them heard I say in blessing and honor
and glory and power be unto him that sitteth upon the throne
and unto the Lamb forever and ever. And the four beasts said,
Amen. And the four and twenty elders
fell down and worshiped him that liveth forever and ever. This
is the great shepherd of the sheep. So who are his sheep? He said
in John chapter 10. To him the porter opened and
the sheep hear his voice. And He calls His own sheep by
name. And they come. They come. They're not... He's not waiting
there for them to make a decision and wringing His hands. Scripture says He calls His own
sheep by name and He leads them out. He leads them out. This
is God. And when he put forth his own
sheep, he goeth before them. He goes before his own sheep.
He leads them. And where he leads, they follow. They follow. For they know his voice. And
a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him. For they
know not the voice of strangers. The question is, do you hear
him today?