A marvelous time with your pastor
and his sweet wife, his family. I thank God for this assembly. I thank the Lord that he's raised
up a place in Lexington, Kentucky, where the glorious gospel of
God's grace has been allowed to be preached. He holds the candlesticks and
the stars in his hands. He puts them wherever he's pleased
to do so. I love your pastor. He'd been
my friend a long time. And I pray that the Lord is pleased
to bless the services this morning. I'm going to ask you, if you
would, to take your Bibles and turn to the 10th chapter of the
book of John. I asked Brother Todd to read
that 9th chapter. That whole 9th chapter leads
right in to this 10th chapter. There was a man, the scripture
says, that was born blind. He was born blind. And the disciples
asked, who did sin? This man or his parents? That he was born blind. I thought
that was an amazing question. Who did sin? This man? That he
was born blind. I know. Here's a man fallen in
Adam. In Adam, he did sin. He was born in sin. Came forth
from his mother's womb, speaking lies. But our Lord said, this
man was born blind for God's honor and God's glory, that the
works of God might be made manifest. Our Lord took and spit on the
ground and made some spittle and put it on that blind beggar's
eyes and told him to go and wash in the pool of Siloam. And he
did. And he came seeing. I thought to myself, You know,
when it's spit, somebody put some spit on you. That's just, that's repulsive. But when you consider whose spit
that was, I know that the world concerning the glorious gospel
of God's grace, that's repulsive to them. Almighty God would be
pleased to take the preaching of the gospel. Paul said, I'm
not ashamed of that. That's the power of God and salvation. These Pharisees angered because
our Lord had healed a blind man. Healed him on the Sabbath day.
Here's the day of God's rest standing before them. He is our
Sabbath day. Almighty God pleased to heal
this blind man for a reason. They asked this blind man four
different times in particular, insinuated it a few other times,
but here's what they asked him. How were your eyes How? He told them over and over and
over again. A man named Jesus. Who is he? He's a prophet. Who is he? He's a man of God. And in the
good pleasure of our Lord, our Lord came to this man after they'd
kicked him out. Excommunicated him. And our Lord
found him. And ask him, in verse 35, dost
thou believe on the Son of God? And he answered and said, Who
is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him,
Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.
And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him. Oh, that Almighty God might give
us a time of worship. Well, the Lord continued in verse
39 to speak to the fellow that he had healed. He told him, he said, this is
the reason that I came into this world for judgment. I'm coming
to this world that they which see not might see, and that they
which see might be made blind. I came to reveal God's choice,
God's mercy, God's compassion to those that he had everlastingly
loved. I came to see and save. that
which was lost. Now, the scripture says that
while he was talking, while the Lord was talking to that formerly
blind beggar, the Pharisees were listening to what he said. He
said in verse 40, some of the Pharisees which were with him
heard these words and said unto him, and I just imagine, now
you know arrogance, this is arrogance. We blind also. And our Lord said unto them,
if you were blind, if you knew, if you knew by God's
grace that you were in yourself blind, dead, if you knew that Almighty
God had done something for you, called you out of darkness. If
you knew, were blind, you should have no
sin. But now you say, you say, we
see. Therefore, your sin remaineth. Now this conversation continues. Now, and I'd like for us to look.
Chapter 10, verses 1 to 5. And our Lord is going to teach
these Pharisees. He's going to tell them. He's
going to tell them. They kept asking, how? How? How were thine eyes opened? How did He open your eyes? How? And here's the answer. Verses
1 to 5. Now, here And these five verses is the
truth of God's deliverance of His people, of His sheep. Our
Lord continuing in that conversation when He told them, if you were
blind you should have no sin, but now you say, we see, therefore
your sin remaineth. 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. 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 a stranger will they not
follow, but will flee from him, for they know not the voice of
strangers. Now, this first statement made
by our Lord is a rebuke to those that had set themselves up as
the shepherds, as the guides to the people. And when that
blind beggar, formerly blind beggar, stood his ground, they
kept asking him, you know, who is it? Who did that? How'd he
do it? Chapter 9, verse 33, he said,
ìIf this man were not of God, he could do nothing.î And they
answered and said to him, ìThou wast altogether born in sins,
and dost thou teach us?î Do you know who we are? Do you
have any idea who youíre talking to? And they cast him out. They truly believed that they
were God's ordained, qualified teachers. Boy, I was so thankful when they
read that passage talking about those shepherds. They're not shepherds. They don't
feed. You know who you're talking to. Here, our Lord is going to come
and He's going to teach these arrogant, religious men. He's going to teach them who
He is through a very familiar example. He's going to take a
well-known practice and to show them that they weren't. who they
thought that they were. And they didn't know he's going
to show them anything about true deliverance from spiritual blindness. Now in every village, and they
all knew this, there was a large sheepfold. Every village had
a place and it was just common property. And what would happen
is at night, all the shepherds, now there was just all different
kind, there was just different shepherds and all the shepherds
had their flocks. And all of the shepherds would
lead their flocks to the common area. It was just a, it was a
sheepfold. And what they would do is they'd
come to their sheepfold and they would, they'd come to the door. There was a door. There was an
opening. There was a place where you'd come in to the sheepfold. Now that was the place that you
came in. That's the place you'd go out.
There was a door. And there was a porter there.
There was somebody that was in charge of guarding that door,
the porter. And what he did was he protected
the sheep, the custodian. He was watching over all of the
sheep that came in and he was going to protect them from all
the wild animals and thieves and robbers and even from escape. He was going to watch over and
make sure that everything that was supposed to be done was done. He was the porter. Well, in the morning, what would
happen is the different shepherds would return and they would come
up to the porter and when the porter was satisfied that that's
a legitimate shepherd, I know, okay, I know who you are. I recognize you. I saw you last
night. Yeah, you go in, you get your
sheep, they'd go in there and what that shepherd would do,
he would go in and he would call his sheep. And his sheep, his
particular sheep, he would hear, they'd hear his voice and they'd
follow him. The sheep of that particular
shepherd. Now they understood that. They
understood that there was a common ground. And there may be numerous
flocks in there. And different shepherds go in,
get their sheep, lead them out. They understood that. But now
to understand what our Lord was saying to this Pharisee or to
this group of Pharisees, we've got to understand to what our
Lord referred when he spoke of the sheepfold. And when you look
up that word sheepfold, it means the yard, the yard. And our Lord speaking concerning
the sheepfold. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold." What was the sheepfold referring
to? These Pharisees, they claim that
we know. We're shepherds. We're the shepherds.
Don't dispute it. Our Lord set forth that there
was a sheepfold. Now let me tell you what this
sheepfold is not. This sheepfold is not heaven because thieves and robbers don't
climb into heaven. The scripture says, he that entereth
not by the door into the sheepfold but climbeth up some other way,
the same as a thief and robber. So I know the sheepfold, spiritually
speaking, is not heaven. I'll tell you this, the sheepfold
here is not the church. Scripture says, verse 3, to him
the porter openeth and the sheep hear his voice and he calleth
his own sheep by name and leadeth them out. It's not the church. This yard the sheepfold. This is the world. This is the
world. And in this sheepfold, in this
place, all manner of flocks are. There's all kinds of flocks in
this sheepfold. Here we are in the world. And in this sheepfold, there's
some that are the Lord's. There's some. Who are they? These that are His were given
Him for the foundation of the world. Chosen in Him, given Him
by the Father. And all that were given Him by
the Father, they're His. And they're going to come. They're
going to hear. They're going to be saved. And
the scripture says in John chapter 10 verse 16, he says, other sheep
I have not of this fold, them also I must bring and they shall
hear my voice and there shall be one fold and one shepherd.
Now the true shepherd, while they were asking all this how,
how, how do you open your eyes spiritually? How are the eyes
of God's people open? I tell you how. The Lord Jesus
Christ is going to come. He's going to get them. He said,
verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door
into the sheepfold. Now, we've already established
this sheepfold is not heaven. They don't climb in some other
way. It's not the church. He doesn't lead them out of the
church. It's the world. Then let me ask you this, how
about the door? What is the door? The door, that
porter, which was the only way out of that sheepfold, that porter
that had to be satisfied, that door, that porter, this is the
law of God, that Almighty God absolutely sets forth that he
must be satisfied or the sheep are not coming out. He that entereth
in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. It is the Lord
Jesus Christ, by his obedience to God's law and his sacrificial
death, putting away the sins of his people. He hath made him
sin. He who obeyed Almighty God, it
was Christ to whom our Lord spoke. This is my beloved son and whom
I'm well pleased. You hear him. Here's the sheep. And they're
in the sheepfold. They're in the yard. They're
in this world. And He knows where they are.
I know my sheep. All of these other false shepherds. What did they do? They climbed
in some other way. Who are they? The thieves and
robbers. Climbing over. I'll tell you
how to get out of here. I'll tell you how to obey the
law of God. I'll tell you how to get out
of here. Keep all the commandments. Speak
in tongues. Be baptized. This is the way
out. You're a thief and you're a liar.
You're a liar. You are a liar. Almighty God
wants to save you if you'll let Him. You're a liar. All that entereth not by the
door. They're thieves and robbers. Our blessed Lord, He alone who
entered in by the door, all the others who were thieves, one
thought on their mind, I want the glory. I desire God's honor. I will exalt myself. I will be
as the most high. You're a thief. You're a robber. You're a liar. Our Lord Jesus
Christ came into this world to seek and to save his people. And he walked before God Almighty
and in word and thought and indeed he obeyed God. And when He came into this world,
obeyed in all points, never deviating, and the Scripture says in verse
3, to Him the porter openeth. To Him the porter opened up. You're worthy. You're worthy. You're worthy. And he goes in
there and he calls his sheep, and his sheep hear his voice.
I was reading the other day, and
he walked by, and it was Matthew, and he said, follow me. Saul! Saul! when He calls in power, when
He calls on purpose, His sheep hear His voice. Only to Him who
has pleased Almighty God, only to Him whom God is satisfied,
He who has answered in life and death by His broken body and
shed blood, Only Him who has earned the righteousness of God,
the man, Christ Jesus. To Him, the porter opens. Oh, I thank you. Lord, you're
worthy. You're worthy to receive all
the honor and glory and praise. To Him, the porter opens. that he enters in. Everybody
else, everybody else is a thief and a liar. Everybody else. And all of these false shepherds
in there with their particular flocks, I can tell you how to
get out of here. I can tell you how to leave. I can tell you
how to, I can tell you how to get out of this sludge. I can tell you how to be saved.
To him, a porter opens. And He enters into the sheepfold,
enters into the yard, enters into the world. Galatians 2.23 says, But before
faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith
which should afterwards be revealed. Until Christ, the object of our
faith, came, fulfilled, satisfied the law, we were kept Law showing
us, instructing us what we are. It's what you are. Sinners, helpless. And I tell you this, I want you
to notice this, the porter didn't call. The porter opened to him
that called. To him the porter openeth. And when he calls in power, Those
sheep, look at verse, look at John 10, 27. My sheep hear my
voice and I know them and they follow me. Salvation is so, it's
true, it's sure. How many are going to be found
with Him? in glory, beholding the glory
given him from before the foundation. How many? All of them. Every
one of them. He enters into the yard, the
sheepfold. The scripture sets forth. John 6.37. How many times have
we read this? And Brother Todd quoted it. John 6, 37. All that the Father
giveth me shall come to me. Him that cometh to me I will
in no wise cast out, for I came down from heaven not to do mine
own will, but the will of Him that sent
me. And this is the Father's will which has sent me, that
of all which He hath given me I should lose nothing, but should
raise it up again. at the last day. And this is
the will of Him that sent me, that every one which seeth the
Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life. And I
will raise Him up at the last day. Here our blessed Savior came
into this world. Matthew 15, 24 says, He said,
I'm not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
but is God's prophet. In the discharge of his ministry,
I know that he was sent to the Jews. Romans 15.8 says, Now I
say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth
of God to confirm the promises made unto the fathers, but is
our Lord the priest, Savior, Redeemer, He was sent to make
satisfaction and atonement for the sins of all his elect. John
10, 16 says, Of the 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. Now, how? With thine eyes open. How? Well, here's the answer. There's a sheepfold that holds
all manner of flocks in this world. Here's Lexington, Kentucky, and
there's a lot of people in Lexington, Kentucky. It's just a yard But
within this yard, just like the yard of this world, it's just
a mini yard right here. But in the yard, in the sheepfold
of this world, God has a people. He's gonna have them. And within that sheepfold, within
that place where all men are, there's some wheat. in amongst
the tares, and God's porter, God's law had to be satisfied
before any of them are going to be called out of darkness.
And not one of the sheep ever could satisfy. Not one of the
sheep could obey God. They were dead. And our blessed Savior came into
this world, and to Him the porter opened, and He entered by the
door. One way. One way. He entered by the door into the
sheepfold, satisfied its every demand. All the others tried
to enter in, draw out their flocks. The Lord said, you're just thieves,
robbers. He came in, and He's calling
His sheep out, and He's pleased with the preaching of the gospel
of God. And He sends preachers, and they
preach and stand proclaim Christ dead. And His sheep when it pleases
Him, they hear His voice. And He leads them out. They follow
Him. And they're not going to follow
the voice of a stranger. A stranger, verse 5, will they
not follow? They'll flee from Him. For they
know not the voice of strangers. Oh, may the Lord be pleased to
bless these words to the calling out of His sheep. May God be
pleased as He's calling out His own, just as He called out His
own in the day this blind beggar, why was that man born blind?
that the works of God might be made manifest. Lord bless these
words to our heart for Christ's sake. Amen.