Our Lord Jesus warned us constantly
to beware of false prophets. The apostles warned us continually
to beware of false prophets. Beware of those who come in sheep's
clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Now, in the
10th chapter of John's gospel, our Lord uses himself as the
example by which he draws the clear distinction between the
true shepherd of the sheep and the false, by which he shows
himself to be indeed our good shepherd, and by which he shows
what every faithful under-shepherd is. and must be. He told us that the false shepherd
is he that entereth not in by the door, but climbs up some
other way. The false shepherd is that man
who refuses to come to God by faith in Christ through his blood
and righteousness, but makes a righteousness of his own and
leads you to do the same. And the false shepherd is a self-serving
deceiver. A self-serving deceiver. He is
motivated by his own lust. That's the reason he does what
he does. I know that may sound terribly
harsh. I hope I'm not a harsh man. I
am trying to be honest. He does what he does because
he's interested in himself. Our Lord says he's a thief. He's
a robber. He only comes for this reason,
to kill, and to steal, and to destroy. And then our Lord Jesus
tells us what the good shepherd is, how the true shepherd behaves. Read the text with me, 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 a robber. Those are not my words, they're
the master's words. 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, and he calleth his own sheep by name
and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his
own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him, for
they know his voice. And the stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice of
strangers. This parable spake Jesus unto
them, but they understood not what things they were which he
spake unto them. Now tonight I want us to focus
our attention on the true shepherd. The Lord Jesus describes himself
and every true shepherd in verses 2 through 5. The shepherd of
the sheep is Christ himself. Of course you know that. He says
in verse 11, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his
life for the sheep. In verse 14 he says, I am the
good shepherd and know my sheep and am known of mine. The Lord
Jesus Christ became the Good Shepherd in covenant grace. He is the Good Shepherd because
he died for his sheep. He died in the room instead of
his sheep. He died in the place of his sheep. He died because of his sheep. He died to save his sheep. He came into the world to seek
and to save his sheep, and he laid down his life in their place. They were condemned, he took
their condemnation. They were guilty, he took their
guilt. They were defiled, he took their
defilement. They were cursed, he took their
curse. And died under the wrath and
justice of God for his sheep. That his sheep might live forever. He's a good shepherd. The Lord
Jesus is the good shepherd because he seeks his sheep. You know what he's been doing
since the day he said, let there be light and there was light?
He'd been seeking his sheep. He'd been seeking his sheep.
That's what he's doing throughout the ages of time. Seeking his
sheep. Seeking his sheep. I don't know
what all the intricacies of the current events in our society
may or may not turn out to be. But I tell you what our Lord's
doing. He's seeking His sheep. He seeks His sheep until He finds
it. We were lost, but He sought us
and He found us. He is the good shepherd because
when he finds his sheep, the sheep that went astray, the sheep
that was lost, he lays the sheep upon the broad shoulders of his
omnipotent grace and holds the sheep in the grip of his omnipotent
hands and carries the sheep all the way home, protecting and
caring for the sheep. Christ is the shepherd. But now
remember, his purpose in this parable is to show a clear distinction
between true shepherds and false shepherds. Between true pastors
and false pastors. So he's warning us to beware
of those men who come up some other way. Those men who make
some other way. Those men whose object is to
steal and to kill and to destroy. Beware of them. Now, I said to the men in the
back, and I say to you again, I'm not going anywhere. I came
here 23 years ago. I told you we're getting married,
and that's where it's going to be. I'm not the least bit interested
in going anywhere, making any move. I wouldn't swap places
with any preacher anywhere in the world. I love you, love this
place. I'm thankful God brought us together.
But I'm going to die soon. It may be tonight, and it may
be 20 years from tonight. Either way, it's soon. I'm going
to leave you soon. Beware, beware of those who climb
up some other way and those who present another way. I want you
to be crystal clear in your understanding. Be crystal clear. Any man who
mixes works with grace anywhere to any degree has come another
way and he's presenting another way. Any man who mingles law
with gospel, I don't care what reason he uses for mixing law,
I don't care what excuse he gives for bringing you under law, I
don't care what his explanation is for it, he has climbed up
another way and he'll lead you in another way. Any man who calls
bondage liberty and liberty licentiousness, he has climbed up another way
and he'll lead you in another way. Any man, in short, who makes
salvation in some way, at some point, at some time, to some
degree, to be in any way dependent upon you, or determined by you,
has come up another way. He has not entered by the door.
And he will lead you in the way of destruction. Beware. Well, what's our Lord doing in
this passage then? He's using himself as an example
of what all true shepherds must be. The example we must follow. What does our Savior tell us
here about true shepherds, the true pastor? First in verse 2,
he tells us that the true shepherd is one who enters into the sheepfold
by the door. Look at it. He that entereth
in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. He's the shepherd.
Now the door spoken of in verse 2 is commonly referred to as
being the word of God, and certainly it is correct to say that Christ
came in fulfillment of the word of God, came by the revelation
of God's word. It is certainly accurate to say
that any pastor who is called and gifted of God to the work
of the ministry comes to you upon the basis of that which
is revealed in the word of God. But our Lord tells us plainly
in verse 9, I am the door. Now that stumped me a little
bit. How can he say the shepherd, the shepherd of the sheep is
the one who enters by the door, and then turn around and say,
I am the shepherd, and then turn around and say, I am the door?
How could that be? Is he the door? Or did he enter
by the door? Yes. Yes. And be sure you understand it.
This will do you good. Our mediator. Had he stayed on
this earth, had he never borne our sins, had he never been made
to be sin, would have had no need and no reason to enter in
by the door. But when he was made to be sin, he must enter heaven by the same
door. on the same grounds, in exactly
the same way as Bobby Estes. Hold your hands there and turn
to Hebrews 9, I'll show you. That's exactly what he did. Hebrews 9, verse 11. But Christ being come, and high
priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect
tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building,
neither by the blood of goats and calves, watch it now, but
by his own blood, that is, by the merit of his blood. through
the work of his blood, by the acceptance of his blood, by the
atonement in his blood, by his own blood, he entered in once
into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. Our
Savior showed himself to be the good shepherd by entering in
by the door, by the same door through which we must enter the
kingdom of God, that is, by his own blood. Now this is the first
mark, then, of every true shepherd. Those whom Christ sends to tend
his sheep are men who come by the door, by the blood of Christ. They come into the kingdom of
God through the merit of Christ. They have hope before God because
of the blood of Christ. They're overwhelmed with the
blood of Christ, the precious, precious blood of Christ. They're
out of step with the times, deliberately so. They're out of step with
the religious world, deliberately so. I know folks think I'm dumber
than a fence post and I just don't know what's going on. I
don't participate in what's going on because I've determined not
to. I have something better to do. I have something better to
preach. I have something better to proclaim.
Those who are true shepherds speak of sin. And speak of it so that you understand
what they're talking about. They're not talking about what
goes on out yonder. When I talk to you about sin,
Horrible as the moral perversity of our society is, that's not
what I'm talking about. That's just the manifestation
of sin. That's sins. I talk about sin, James Jordan.
I'm talking about what I am and what you are. And we talk about
it because we've experienced the bitterness of it. We've experienced
something in our souls of the great enormity of the evil that's
in us. He speaks a pardon, the free
pardon of sin. He proclaims it incessantly,
because He's been forgiven. He who is the true shepherd proclaims
free justification by the blood, because He justified before God.
You can't get Him to shut up about it. He preaches imputed
righteousness, because Christ's righteousness has been made His,
and He is made unto us righteousness. The man who's sent of God preaches
up free grace. He preaches grace until men and
women are made to understand clearly that salvation is by
God's free grace. And when they're made to understand
it and rejoice in it, he goes on proclaiming it because they
rejoice in grace. He preaches security, eternal
security, everlasting security, because he knows in the experience
of his soul the blessedness of being held on the broad, omnipotent
shoulders of the good shepherd in the grip of almighty grace
as he is carried into glory. He that entereth in by the door,
he's the shepherd of the sheep. Without that, no other qualification
will do. All the learning a man can get
in Bible college, seminary, or by his own diligent study will
never make him a preacher. All the eloquence in the world
a man can learn will never make him a preacher. He who serves
Christ as Christ's shepherd to his sheep must enter by the door. There's a second thing. The true
shepherd is one who cares for the sheep. He cares. Paul said unto me, whom less
than the least of all saints is this grace given, that I should
preach to you the unsearchable riches of Christ. I sometimes hear preachers say,
I don't care whether you hear this or not, I care. I don't
care whether you believe or not, I care. I do care. And this care is reflected in
five statements our Lord gives here. To Him, the Porter opened. The Holy Spirit opens the way for Christ into
the hearts of his people. He comes to dead sinners and
gives them life and opens the way. And the Holy Spirit opens
the way for his servants. Opens the way for ministry. Opens the way for the preaching
of the word. Opens the way for the gospel.
To him the porter opens. And the sheep hear his voice. Turn over to 1 John chapter 4.
The sheep hear the shepherd's voice. They hear his gospel. All of them do. Folks can argue
and fuss and babble all they want to about our many and free
will works religion, and folks are saved in all the churches,
and folks are saved no matter what they believe. It just ain't
so. It just ain't so. You can believe
everything that's right and be lost, but you sure can't be saved
and not believe what's right. Not believe him who is right.
That's not possible. God's sheep, all of them, hear
the shepherd's voice. They hear the gospel of God's
free grace. And they hear his voice through
the lips of true shepherds, men whom he sent to preach the gospel
to them. Look here in 1 John 4 verse 5. They, these antichrists,
they are of the world. They are of the world. Therefore
speak they of the world. They keep their ears bent to
the ground and they'll tell you exactly what you want to hear.
Their teachers have engineers, they're good politicians, they
wet their fingers, hold up the wind, see which way it's blowing
and say, let me get in front. They are of the world, so they
speak of the world and the world hears them. We are of God. Now one of two things in this
passage must be true of the man talking to you right now. Either
I am of the world and speak of the world and will be heard of
the world. Or I am of God and speak of God
and will be heard by the people of God. And the same is true
of every preacher in the world. We are of God. He that knoweth
God, heareth us. He that is not of God, heareth
not us. Hereby know we the spirit of
truth and the spirit of error. Here's the third thing. He calleth
his own sheep by name. And let me camp for a little
bit. Without question, this speaks of our Savior's personal, particular,
effectual call of his elect to life and faith in him by the
power of his spirit. But it's also a declaration of
our Master's intimate, complete knowledge of His sheep. He says,
I know them. I know them. I know them. You remember when
our Lord Jesus came, was He going through Jericho as He came by? There was a fellow who ran ahead,
climbed up in a tree, hoping to see Jesus, who he was. Little
did he know that the Lord Jesus had come that way because he
knew him. And when he got to the place
where he was, he stopped right there. And he looked up and said,
Zacchaeus. Nobody introduced him to him.
He knew it. When the Lord Jesus came to Nathanael
when he was sitting under a fig tree, the Scripture says He saw
him. Our Lord Jesus knows His sheep. When He came to Saul the Tarsus,
He spoke to him from heaven and said, Saul, Saul, why persecutest
thou me? He knows us. More than that,
this implies the love Christ has for His sheep. When you love
someone, You love their name. There is no name I love to sing
like the name of Jesus. When you love someone, you love
their name. You love their name. I love this lady over here. I love her name. He says, I call my sheep by name. He loves the names of those for
whom He died. Our names are engraved on His
heart. Our names are engraved on the
palms of His hands. But there's more. Our Savior
gives His sheep a new name. He came to Abram and said, Thy
name shall no more be called Abram, but Abraham shall thy
name be. He came to Jacob and said, Thy
name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel, for as a prince
thou hast power with God. He came to Cephas and said, Thy
name shall be called Peter, which means a stone, a living stone
in the house of God. You see, when the Lord Jesus
calls His sheep, They get a new name. A new name. A new name. Indeed, old things
are passed away, and behold, all things have become new. Look
over in Revelation chapter 3. Let me show you this. A new name. When we come to the temple above,
this is what our Master says. Him that overcometh will I make
a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more
out. And I'll write upon him the new
name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which
is New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God.
And I'll write upon him, gotcha now, What's the name of God? What's the name of the city of
God? I'll write upon Him my new name. Jeremiah 23.6, you can look at
it later if you're not already familiar with it. This is the
name wherewith He shall be called. Jehovah-Zekinia, the Lord our
righteousness. And this is the name she shall
be called, Jeremiah 33, 16. Jehovah-Zekinia, the Lord our
righteousness. New name. The name he earned
as our mediator is the name he gives us, the Lord our righteousness. You see, those who are Christ's
true shepherds, like Christ himself, the good shepherd, love and care
for and are sympathetic with his sheep. He says, I know them. I know them. And if God puts a man in this
blessed work, he causes that man to know his sheep. He remembereth our frame. He knoweth we are dust. And faithful pastors understand
and know that Christ's sheep are just sheep. Sinful, weak,
defiled, helpless sheep. You see, I understand that because
me too. Me too. Me too. I'm just like you. Just like
you. Same corruptions. Same passions. Same lust. Same ungodliness. But like Christ They don't deal
with his sheep according to what they are by nature, but rather
they call his sheep by a new name. They call his sheep his
saints. Indeed, they are one with Christ,
so thoroughly one with Christ that they realize, the pastor,
the faithful man, understands that anything done to those sheep
is done to Christ. We read it twice this evening,
Acts 9. Again, Acts 7. Whatever is done to them. Man,
you do something to one of God's sheep. I don't care whether you
do it with your tongue or with your fist. I don't care whether
you do it with your conniving. You do something to God's sheep.
You've done it to the Master. You've done it to Christ. They're
one with Him. And do something for one of God's sheep? Care for a drink of water? He
said he did it to me. Anything. Anything. Oh, I believe
I'll go visit Brother Joe. He's been down a little bit.
Gonna go visit the Master. I believe I'll entertain some
folks in my house. Some of God's pilgrims in my house. He's entertained
the Master. Anything done to the sheep is
done to Christ. Anything done for the sheep is
done for Christ. Faithful shepherds, like the
shepherd himself, can say with the apostle Paul, our heart is
enlarged to you. Now, this is the lesson that's
exemplified here in this parable, the lesson the Pharisees couldn't
grasp. The lesson the religious world in this day simply cannot
grasp. The lesson that all who serve
as undershepherds must grasp. If we would influence men and
women for good, if we would lead people, if we
would have any power with them, we must lead them with their
hearts. No other way. We must lead them
with the power of love and care and sympathy that they themselves
are convinced of. They must be convinced that we
care for them. I can't expect you to follow me, to hear me, to be directed by
me, to be guided by me, Unless you are convinced in your heart,
convinced in your heart that my heart is one with yours. Now you can force folks, you
can coerce them with religious dogma and religious creeds and
religious rules, religious intimidation and religious fear. But you can't
make communion soul with soul. You can't move the will. You
can't influence the affections except by entering into real,
caring sympathy with God's people. The good shepherd proved himself
the good shepherd. He illustrated what a true shepherd
is by his care, his tenderness, his sympathy toward his sheep.
He lived for them. He walked with them. He toiled
and hungered and suffered with them. Our good shepherd was and
is one with his sheep. He entered into mortal life just
like we do through a mother's womb. He passed through life
by the same toil of daily care as we do. He made his exit from
this life through the portals of death and suffering just like
we must. In life, in death, he walked
with the sheep. And therefore, he could say,
I am the good shepherd. Not merely because my father
commissioned me to be the Good Shepherd. Not merely because
I wield the power of omnipotence as the Good Shepherd. Not merely
because I have the title Good Shepherd. He said, Bobby, I am
the Good Shepherd. Because I know my sheep. I know my sheep. Oh, how I pray
God will make me such a shepherd. Here's a fourth character of
the true shepherd. He goeth before them. I don't guess I have ever seen
a shepherd in this country. I have seen them in others. The
shepherd always goes before his sheep, and the sheep follow him. When he says, let's go down to
the well, they follow him to the well. When he says, let's
go down to the luscious valleys and rest, they follow him to
the valley. When he says, let's go down to
the dark, dark valley, they follow him into the dark valley. Our
Lord Jesus Christ is just that kind of shepherd. He never calls
his sheep to go where he hasn't been. He never calls his sheep
to do what he hasn't done. He never calls his sheep to feel
what he hasn't felt. Nothing. Our Savior went into the depths
of sorrow, heart sorrow, soul sorrow, the very sorrows of hell to redeem
us. We ought never be surprised then
when he sends a little sorrow our way. We just ought not be surprised.
He'd been there. And he learned obedience through
the things which he suffered. He'll take you there if you're
his, that you may learn obedience through the things you suffer.
But don't be afraid to put your tender feet where He put His.
He still goes before you. Don't be afraid. Christ is always
with you, always before you. When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee, He says. And so it is with faithful
pastors. True shepherds are men who go
before and lead the sheep. They don't whip them. They don't
bind them. They don't frighten them. They
don't drive them. And they don't drag them. They
just don't do it. I know the religious world teaches
you that. I know folks expect that. Folks expect it. But I'm not going to drag you.
And I'm not going to bind you. And I'm not going to beat on
you. And I'm not going to whip you. I'm not going to try to
force you to do things. No, no. But I want to lead you
by the Word, by the doctrine of God's free grace, by faith
and faithfulness, by example. Paul says, Be followers of me,
even as I also am of Christ. Turn over to Hebrews 13. Let
me show you this. Paul said to the Thessalonians, you became
followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much
affliction with joy of the Holy Ghost. Hebrews 13 verse 7. Paul wraps
up this message to the Hebrew believers and he says, remember
them which have the rule over you. That's what a shepherd is.
He's responsible for you, that means he has the rule. He has
the rule. And that sure doesn't sound like
what things are in churches these days, does it? I had a preacher
recently kind of whining to me. He said, oh, I'd give anything
to have a free pulpit, would you now? Would you? There ain't
but one reason why you don't have free pulpits, because you
don't make it free. Because you're willing to be
ruled by men who control your wallet. You wouldn't be ruled
by a man who controlled your job. Now I don't feel sorry for
a man who doesn't have a free pulpit. That's because he's not
a man. That's exactly right. Not God's servants. Remember
them which have the rule over you, who have spoken to you,
who have preached to you the word of God, whose faith follow. Follow. Considering the end of
their conversation. The end of their life. Verse
17. Obey them that have the rule
over you, and submit yourselves. Why should I do that? For they watch for your souls. Is that good enough reason? Is
that good enough reason? They watch for your souls. Well, I know lots of fellas who
look prettier and lots of fellas who sound sweeter and lots of
fellas who are more acceptable. Yeah, I do too. But they watch
for your souls as they that must give account. That's what a shepherd is. And they watch for your souls
as they that must give account that they may do it with joy
and not with grief. Because that's profitable for
you. I recall, oh, it's been several years ago. I guess well
over 25 years ago. My good friend, Brother Watson
Dufour, pastor of Beacon Church in Anstead, West Virginia, died.
His boy called me up. He said, Don, I would ask you
to preach the funeral, but Dad wants the Deacons to do it. And
I said, that's fine. I'll be there. Honored to be.
And we stood by the graveside. And one of the Deacons in that
little church on the side of the mountain in West Virginia,
in Anstead, West Virginia, made this prayer. as they interred
Watson's body to the ground. I don't think I'll forget it
till I die. He said, Lord, we've followed our pastor as far as
we can follow him. Give us another pastor and teach
us to follow him. Obey them that hath rule over
you, whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.
Now here's one more thing, back in our text, John 10, verse 11. Here's one more thing that distinguishes
true shepherds from false. Our Lord says the good shepherd
giveth his life for the sheep. The thief cometh, he says in
verse 10. He cometh not but for to steal, and to kill, and to
destroy. I am come that they might have
life, and might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that
is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not,
sees the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth, and the
wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth
because he's a hireling. You just don't expect anything
different from him. Because he doesn't care for the
sheep. I am the good shepherd, and I
know my sheep, and they're known of mine. As the father knoweth
me, even so know I the father, and I lay down my life for the
sheep. You see, hirelings And all false shepherds are hirelings. All of them are. Brother Gary
Perkins has a quaint way of putting things. He said churches would
quit paying preachers, pull pits all over America, be empty permanently
tomorrow. Just like that. Because they're
hirelings. They're hirelings. They don't
care for the sheep. They care for themselves. Because
they don't care for the sheep, they will always abandon the
sheep whenever they can serve their own interest better by
doing so. Not the good shepherd. Our Lord
Jesus came into this world, lived for and gave his life for the
sheep, that they might have life and that they might have it more
abundantly. And true shepherds Learn shepherding from the master. And let me tell you something
about a true shepherd. A true gospel preacher. It doesn't matter
whether he's 20 years old or 70 years old. The true shepherd's
life is wrapped up in the sheep. In serving the sheep. Gospel preachers are worthy of
their hire, but they're not hirelings. Hirelings can be bought off and
bribed, not a shepherd. Their lives are wrapped up in
serving the sheep, serving their eternal interest. The true shepherd gives and lays down his life
for the sheep. Let that say what it may about
the man talking to you. That's just fact. If I am a true
husband to that lady sitting there, if I am a true husband
to her, if I'm a true husband to I have laid down my life for
her. My life is not motivated. It's
not governed. It's not controlled. Decisions
aren't made because of my interest, but because of her interest.
If I'm a true father, that's the kind of father I am. I laid
down my life for my family. That's what a father does. That
doesn't mean you're willing to if it comes to that. No, no,
no. That's an easy cop out. That
means you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And you do it. And if I am made
of God, to be an under-shepherd to Christ, to your souls, I lay
down my life for the sheep. That's all. That's all. Not my
interest. And if I serve my interest, Lindsay
Campbell, I'm not serving yours. That's just fact. That's just
fact. You can't serve both. Just can't
be done. Just can't be done. I have folks sometimes out of concern,
sometimes because they're busybodies, who say, well, you've got to
quit doing this. You need to slow down. You need
to take more time for this. You need to come and go rest
a while. You need to, well, I'm not serving IBM or Lexmark
or Reynolds Tobacco Company or the United States of America.
If I were, I'd seize every opportunity I could to go fishing, play golf,
and rest. Because if I were serving them,
I'd be serving only one interest, mine. My concern is the kingdom
of God, the glory of God, the people of God. Now, all these
things I've said, And I hope God will be pleased to give you,
when I am gone, a faithful shepherd. And you deal with him and treat
him as you have dealt with me and treated me these past 23
years. And he will be a blessed man.
And you will be a blessed people. And these men who are coming
to us in a few weeks for our conference, we're going to have
the privilege of having eight faithful gospel preachers, faithful
shepherds. I know them every one. I know
them every one. Every one of them who's coming
here could be my pastor right now. Right now. I'd be delighted
to sit down and have them as my pastor. You'll have the privilege
of hearing them, get to know them, pray for them, highly esteem
them as the shepherds God has given his church in this generation.