If you have your Bible this morning,
please turn to the book of John, chapter 10. John, chapter 10. Before we begin our message this
morning, let's go to the Lord in prayer. Our gracious Heavenly Father,
we thank you, Lord, so much for causing us to be here this morning,
Lord. We know, Lord, that you're absolute sovereign in providence,
salvation, and redemption. Lord, we pray, Heavenly Father,
that you will be with us this morning, Lord, and pray, God,
that you'll send your Spirit to us, Lord, for we can do nothing
without you, Lord. We love you and we praise you,
Lord. We give you thanks for all things, Lord, for we know
that all things in this world belongs to you, Lord. We know,
Lord, that you're also sovereign in providence, Lord, and we thank
you, Lord. We pray, God, that you'll send
your spirit and open up our eyes and our hearts, Lord, to what
you have for us to hear from you this morning, Lord. We are
here to worship you and to praise you for the great and mighty
God that you are. We love you, Lord, and we give
you thanks for all things, Lord, for we know that all things work
together to the good. but only to them that love you,
Lord, to them that are the call according to your purpose, Lord.
Be with us as we give this message, Lord. For in the name of Christ
Jesus, our Lord and Savior, we do pray. Amen. We're going to
begin our lesson in chapter 10 of the book of John. As most
of us know, the Bible wasn't written in chapters and verses,
so we're going to back up a little bit and look at chapter 9 just
for a few minutes, and it will help us to understand where the
Lord is teaching from here in chapter 10. In the first verse
of chapter 9, Jesus, He heals. man that was born blind it says
and as Jesus passed by he saw a man which was blind from the
birth that stirred the people up and they got excited about
it and they went and they told the religious leaders of that
day the Pharisees what had happened and It caused a division among
the people. The true gospel of Jesus Christ
often causes a division among the people. There'll be two kinds
of people. One kind will believe the message and one will not
accept the message. But salvation is by the Lord.
It is by His grace and His mercy and His love. It is by the precious
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone. But it says here
in verse 16 of that chapter, it says, therefore said some
of the Pharisees, this man is not of God because he keepeth
not the Sabbath day. And then others said, well, how
can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And as I said,
there was a division among them. And then over in verse 28, They went to this man, and they
talked to him, and they asked him, how did it happen? He said,
I don't know how it happened. I was blind from birth, and this
man caused me to see. And then they went to his parents,
and his parents said, well, he is a man. Go to him and ask him,
ask him what happened. And the man sort of got irritated
because they come to him twice there, you know. But anyways,
but we're talking about the Pharisees, it says they reviled him and
said, they are his disciple, but we are Moses' disciples.
We do not know that God and to Moses, as for this fellow, we
know not from where he is. And this man that had been born
from blind, Since he was born blind, he couldn't understand
why these religious men didn't know him. The man answered and
said unto them, Why herein is a marvelous thing, that ye know
not where he is? And yet he hath opened my eyes.
Now we know that God heareth not sinners, but if any man be
a worshiper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth. Since
the world began, was it not heard that any man opened the eyes
of one that was born blind? If this man were not of God,
he could do nothing. And they answered and said unto
him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and doest not thou teach
us? And they cast him out. What it
was, here this beggar was, here this man that was born blind
was. He was teaching the Pharisees, the elite leaders, the religious
leaders, the shepherds that were supposed to be taking care of
Israel, you know. And they resented that, and they
cast him out. And right here where they say
they cast him out, and they not only threw him out of the church
where the synagogue, but they excommunicated him. And it says
here, when Jesus heard about this, what they didn't know at
the time was that the blind man was one of his sheep. It says
here, Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and when he had
found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son
of God? And he answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might
believe on him? The blind man's faith kept growing,
because he learnt more and more about this man that had given
sight. And Jesus said unto him, Thou
hast both seen him, and he is he that talketh with thee. And
he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. And Jesus
said, For judgment I am coming to this world, that they which
see not might see, and they which see might be made blind. And
some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words and
said unto him, Are we blind also? And listen to what Jesus said
unto him. He said unto them, if you are blind, you should
have no sin. But now we say we see, wherefore
your sin we may have. And that's what brought this
discourse on here. It was a parable that Jesus gave to them here
in chapter 10. In verse first, Jesus says, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door to the
sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, The same is a thief
and a robber. As I said before, these Pharisees,
they set themselves up as shepherds of the flock and the guides of
the people. And the Lord is calling these Pharisees thieves and robbers.
They were not sent from God, they set themselves up. And as
we all know, the only door of redemption is by obedience and
blood. But they come another way. They
come by works and they come by ceremony. And they come by self-righteousness. If you will, turn to Romans chapter
10, verses 1-4. Paul had a great love for his
people. Chapter 10, verses 1-4. And he knew who these Pharisees
was. He says, In chapter 10, he says, Brethren, my heart desire
and pray to God, for Israel is, that they might be saved. For
I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but they
not according to knowledge. For they, being ignorant of God's
righteousness, and doof about to establish their own righteousness,
have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone
that believeth." And then at this point here, go back to John
10, at this point here, Jesus begins his lengthy discourse
on himself as a shepherd of the sheep, one that cares for the
sheep, and one that is a savior of the sheep. As I said before
here, it says, "'Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that believeth
not by the door enter if not by the door under the sheepfold,
but climb up some other way, the same as a thief and a robber."
The Lord Jesus uses the illustration here to the people at that time,
the way that they cared for their sheep. They had a sheepfold. What it was, it was a fence,
a building that was owned by the community, and it had high
walls, and it only had one door. And the shepherds of a community,
they would go out through the day and they would feed their
sheep and everything. When the evening come, they would
come to the sheepfold where the sheep pen and the porter would
open the door and they would let their sheep in. And the thing
to know right here is that there was only one door. And the gatekeeper
would stay there and he would watch over them during the night. But our Lord here in this first
verse, he calls these Pharisees thieves and robbers, they were
not true shepherds of God's people. They were righteous, they were
false teachers, they were not of God. There's only one gospel,
and that gospel is Jesus Christ, and there's only one shepherd,
and that shepherd is our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one that
cares for his sheep. And his sheep are the ones that
God elected for the foundation of the world, placed in him.
It says here that God's Word in Galatians chapter 1, it says,
speaking of our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins,
that he might deliver us from this present evil world. According
to, speaking of false teachers here, It goes on to say in Galatians,
it goes on to say that any man that preach any other gospel
unto you than what you have received, let him be accursed. As I said,
there is only one gospel, and there is a warning out there
by God to preachers and pastors and teachers that preach something
that is other than the whole truthful Word of God. He says
in Jeremiah 23, verse 1 and 2, He says, Woe be unto pastors
that deliver and scatter the sheep of my pastor, saith the
Lord. Therefore have I saith the Lord
God of Israel against the pastors that feed my people. You have
scattered my flock and driven them away and have not visited
them. Behold, listen to what the Lord
says, I will visit you, up on you, the evil of your doings,
saith the Lord. In verse one through four, Jesus
here is the only truth and the great shepherd of the sheep.
He is the elect of God. He comes by divine communication
and by divine authority. Let's read verses one through
four again. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that entereth not by the door of the sheepfold, but climbeth
up another way, the same as a thief and a robber. But he that enter
in by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter
opened, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep
by name, and he leadeth them out. And when he put forth his
own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him, and
they know his voice. He is the prophet, the priest,
and the king. He comes through the door of
electing grace, atonement, and sacrifice. He fulfills all righteousness. Look at Romans 3 if you would
for a minute, verse 25. Romans 3, 25 and 26. Speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ,
whom God hath set forth to be of appreciation through faith
in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission
of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God. To declare,
I say, at this time his righteousness, that he might be just and a justifier
of him which believeth in Jesus Christ. Christ knows the believer
and the believer knows Him. We know His voice. They hear
His voice through the Word. That's how we know His voice. And He opens up our hearts to
the Word that we believe in. We are made to hear His voice
by the effectual work of the Spirit, but it lives within our
hearts. We are in Him and He is in us. He is precious and
we love Him. And He has led us out of false
religion, false teaching, and out of captivity. As his word
says, the Son shall make you free, and you shall be free indeed. Back to John 10, verse 4 says,
And when he put forth his own sheep, he goeth before them,
and the sheep follow him, and they know his voice. They follow Him and they know
His voice. He goes before them. He doesn't go behind them. He
goes before them. He protects us. He watches over
us. And He gives us inner peace. And then verse 5, it says, A
stranger will they not follow, but will flee from Him. For they know not the voice of
strangers. As someone that was in religion
for 28 years, and God led me to the true gospel of Jesus Christ,
he led me to Kingsport, and I thank God for that. But for being here
for six, seven years, I truly know the difference between the
true voice of the shepherd and a stranger. And in the illustration
of that, about knowing a stranger, my mother-in-law has a dog, a
little old Dutch hound. She's had it for about six or
seven years, and that dog is very faithful to her. If she's
sitting on the couch, that dog is right beside her. She goes
out and sits on the porch, that dog follows her. If she goes
into the kitchen, that dog follows her. Wherever she goes, that
dog follows her. And that's what we do, and that's
what the precious Lamb of God does for us. That dog is very
timid. If an electric storm comes and
it hears thunder, it scares it to death, and it'll jump right
up on her lap. And she'll take it and hold it and pet it and
take care of it. That's what the Lord does for his sheep.
He always has, and he always will. He said, I have led thee
with an everlasting love, therefore of loving kindness have I grown
thee. And I thank God for that. If you will, go back to John
10, verse six. And it says here in verse 6,
and this is very easy to understand right here, this parable spoke
Jesus unto them, but they understood not what things that were which
that he spoke unto them. Why didn't they understand? because
they were not of his sheep." You know, the only reason that
we understand the Word of God, the true Word of God, is because
His Spirit has come to us and opened up our hearts and our
eyes. Salvation is of the Lord, and I thank God for that. In
verses 7, 8, and 9, it says, "'Then said Jesus unto them again,
Verily, verily.'" It's a very strong statement when he says,
"'Verily, verily.'" It's a truth. It's a very truth. "'I say unto
you, I am the door of the sheep, All that ever come before me
are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If any man enter
in, he shall be saved. He shall go in and out and find
pasture. He is not only the shepherd who
leads and protects his people, but he is the door, and he is
the only door. I would like to read a few scriptures
right here concerning Jesus Christ as being the only door unto the
shepherd. And there is no other way. You
know, I heard a movie star say one time, oh, there's many ways
to God. I don't know what books he was
using, but it wasn't the Holy Bible. But it says here in Acts
4.12, and we're very familiar with this, and this is absolute
truth. Then I love that verse in John
14 verse 6 where Jesus said unto him, I am the way. He didn't
say I am a way. He said I am the way, meaning
he is the only way. He is the truth and he is the
life. The Bible says over in the book
of John, he that believeth on the Son hath life, and he that
believeth not hath not life. I thank God for that. And then
it says here in 1 Corinthians 1.30, but of him are ye in Christ
Jesus. who of God has made unto us wisdom, and righteousness,
and sanctification, and redemption. And then in 1 Timothy 2.5, it
says there is only one mediator. Oh, wouldn't it be a terrible
thing to stand before God in the presence of God by yourself
without a mediator? But it says that there is one
mediator. And that one mediator between God and man is the man,
Christ Jesus. And there is no other. He is
both the shepherd who leads and guides, and he is also the door. He provides a way of redemption
and a way into fellowship with God the Father. And it is all
by Christ. in Christ, through Christ, and
with Christ, that His sheep are accepted. His blood sacrifice
is our justification. His atonement for sin, His atonement
for sin is our ability to be with the Father. His grace is
our salvation. His eternal love is our hope
and our security. Plus, we have His everlasting
mercy. And then in verse 10 and 11,
it says, the thief cometh not but to steal and to kill and
to destroy. And you know, there's plenty
of those in today's world, aren't there? There are so many that
are in religion just for their own good and not for the good
of the sheep of the people. First right here in verse 10
and 11, he says, the thief cometh not but for to steal and to kill
and to destroy. I am come that they might have
life and that they might have it more abundantly. He says here
in Galatians 2 9-10, and listen to this, Christ is in the Father,
and the Father is in Christ, and His sheep are in Christ.
When you think about that, it's hard to enter into. But it says
here that we may have life more abundantly. It says in Glossary
2, chapter 10, for in Him dwell all the fullness of the Godhead
body. And we, who are we? The sheep,
the elected of God, are in Him. And I thank God for that. And
it says that we are complete in Him. And Christ Jesus is the
head of all principality and power. If in Ephesians 1.3, the
Word of God says, Blessed be the God and the Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who have blessed us with all spiritual blessings,
In Christ Jesus, the Bible says, I have not seen nor hear, neither
therein or in the heart of man, the things that God has prepared
for His sheep, for His people. We cannot even comprehend what
is in store for us, but He is the Good Shepherd. In verse 11,
it says, I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd give us
his life for his sheep. As I said before, his blood sacrifice
is our justification. His sacrifice for sin is our
atonement. His grace is our salvation. His
eternal love is our security. And I thank God for that. In
verse 12 and 13, it says, but he that is a harlan and not the
shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf cometh,
and the leaveth of sheep, and fleeth, and the wolf catcheth
them, and scattereth the sheep. The harlan fleeth, because he
is a harlan, and care if not for the sheep. The harlequin
here is a symbol of the Jewish religious leaders and all the
false shepherds who was in it just for the money and for the
prestige and for the glory and for themselves and for self-righteousness. States here in verse 14 and 15,
I am the good shepherd and know my sheep, and am knowing of mine. As the Father knoweth me, even
so I the Father, and I lay down my sheep, my life for my sheep. The word no, the word here signifies
love. You know, you could take this
word right here where it says, if a father loved no of his sheep,
you could use the word love. And then where it says, every
sheep I have. but are not of this foe." That's
speaking of Gentiles. If you're not a Jew, you're a
Gentile, regardless of what country you're from, what nationality
you are, or what color you are. If you're not a Jew, you're a
Gentile. And it says, and every sheep
I have which are not of this foe. Them also I must bring,
and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one foe, one
foe and one shepherd. And I thank God for that. In
verse 17 and 18 right here, beginning in verse 17, it says, therefore
doeth my father love me because I lay down my life, but I might
take it up again. He laid it down, nobody didn't
take it away from him. His perfect obedience is our
righteousness. No man taketh it from me, but
I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down,
and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received
of my Father. He spoke of laying down His life
and taking it again by His own power. And why could He do this? Why could Christ Jesus do this?
Christ Jesus the Lord, Christ Jesus the Good Shepherd, because
He is God. That's why he was able to do
it. The Father loved the Lord Jesus because of his willingness
to die and rise again in order that the sheep might be saved. You know, God the Father has
always loved the Lord, his only begotten Son. before the beginning
of the foundation of the world, but what he's talking about right
here, the father loved him because he was a servant. He was obedient
to him, and he fulfilled the work that he sent him to do.
Verse 18, Acts 2.23 says, him being delivered by the determinate
counsel and foreknowledge of God. You have tooken him by wicked
hands, have crucified and slain." You know, a lot of people think
that it was the Romans and he thinks that it was the Pharisees,
an evil man that placed Christ Jesus on that cross. but it was
God the Father that put him there as a sacrifice for his bride,
for his people. In John 19.30, it said when Jesus,
after he had been there, he'd done everything that he had been
commanded to do, he had finished the work, it says in John 19.30,
when Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, it is finished. And he bowed his head and he
gave up the ghost. And he said he also had the power
to take it up and to lay it down. In John 2, 19, he was speaking
to the Pharisees. Jesus said, he said unto them,
destroy this temple and I will raise it up again in three days.
They didn't realize, they thought he was talking about the building.
They didn't realize he was talking about his person, about him. And he did, he raised it up in
three days. As a shepherd, In Hebrews 13,
5, he says, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. And then
in verse 27-30, it says, My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they
shall never perish. "'Oh, this is such absolute proof.
"'Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. "'He loves
us as five of ourselves. "'My Father which giveth me is
greater than all, "'and no man is able to pluck them out of
my Father's hand. "'We are in the Father, and the
Father is in Christ, "'and Christ is in the Father, and I thank
him for that. "'You know, Christ Jesus is our
shepherd. "'Christ Jesus is our good shepherd. "'Christ Jesus is our great shepherd. Christ Jesus, him and him only. He is our chief shepherd, and
I thank him for that. You're dismissed.