Now, turn in your Bible again
to John chapter 10, and we'll refer back to John chapter 9
as well. John chapter 10, I want to try
to bring a message from this parable that the Lord declares
unto these self-righteous, self-centered, God-hating religious Pharisees,
and that pretty well sums up I'm taking the title for the
message from what the Lord says twice in verse 3 and 4. To him that porteth openeth,
John 10, and his sheep hear his voice, he calleth his own sheep. Those three words, his own sheep. He calls them by name. He knows them intimately. And then he leads them out. Again,
he says in verse four, when he put forth his own sheep, underscore
those three words, his own sheep, his own people, his own covenant
people. He goes before them, he puts
forth his own sheep, he goes before them and sheep follow
him for they know him. They know his voice. They recognize
his message and they love the shepherd. Now the Lord has, the
Lord God Almighty has a chosen covenant people, a special people,
called his elect, called his jewels, called here in this text
in John 10, he calls them his sheep. Repeatedly over and over
again. He refers to his chosen people
as the sheep of the Lord Jesus Christ our Lord said in verse
26 of John 10 you believe not because you're not of my sheep
as I said unto you my sheep hear my voice I know them and they
do follow me so clearly the Lord has a people and that will hear
the message, He will call them out, they will follow Him, He
gives unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
There is also others who will not have this message, who do
not love the Lord Jesus Christ, who will not hear Him, who will
pick up stones to cast at Him. All humanity, all sinners can
be divided into two groups. Goats we read that Matthew 25
when all nations shall be gathered before him He set the sheep on
his right hand and say come Inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world And he'll set the goat on the
left and he'll say to them depart from me. I Never knew you I never
loved you now the sheep never become goats, and the goats never
become sheep. The Lord came to save his people
from their sin, and they cannot perish. It says in verse 15 of
John 10, as a father knoweth me, even so I know the father,
and I lay down my life for somebody. I lay down, I give my life for
the sheep. He said, this commandment have
I received of my father. So the Lord Jesus Christ came
to save his chosen, and those who are the reprobate, those
who are the goats, are left to perish justly in their sin. The wedges of sin is death. But before we go through this
parable of the sheepfold and the good shepherd, I think we
have to go back to the preceding verses and set the table for
this parable because the Lord speaks this parable as he says
in verse 1 of John 10, Verily, verily, I say unto you, it's
very important to find out who is speaking and to whom he is
speaking and what the subject matter is. Now, you remember
what had happened in John chapter 9, the Lord found this blind
man healed him completely, gave him sight. And he did it on the
Sabbath day. Well, it enraged the Pharisees. And they eventually, they cast
this man out of Judaism. They cast him out of the synagogue. But the Lord, as it says down
in verse 35 of John 9, when the Lord heard that they had cast
him out, And when he had found him, he said, do you believe
on the son of God? The Lord not only restored this
man's physical sight, but also gave him spiritual sight and
eyes to see the Lord Jesus Christ. And it gave him faith to believe
for what the Lord said to him in verse 37, the Lord said unto
him, thou has both seen him and it is he that talketh with you.
And then he said, Lord, I believe I Believe and he worshiped him
this Lord this man not only had his eyes physically open But
he was given faith to believe the gospel. He was given spiritual
sight God commanded the light to shine in his heart he did
embrace the Lord Jesus Christ as all of his salvation and we
know that by the fact that he worshiped him, and he owned him,
believed the gospel of the Lord Jesus. Now look at verse 39 and
following of John 9. And the Lord said, for judgment
I am come into this world, that they which see not might see,
and that they which see or say they see, and that's what the
Pharisee said. They said that they knew all
things, that they which see or say they see might be blinded
judicially so. Now, we know from the record
of Scripture that the Lord Jesus Christ came to judge our sins
in Himself. He bear our sin in His own body
on the tree. The Lord Jesus Christ came to
save His people from their sin. And He did. We also know that
the record of Scripture said that the Lord Jesus Christ didn't
come to call the righteous. The righteous don't need a physician.
Those who were sick, the Lord Jesus Christ came to call sinners
unto repentance. The Lord Jesus Christ died for
the ungodly. This is a faithful saying, and
this is worthy of all acceptation, that the Lord Jesus Christ came
to save sinners. Now, if you're not a sinner,
if you have no sin, you don't need a righteousness. You don't
need an atonement. And that's exactly what these
folks were saying. We're not sinners. We don't need
a Savior. We don't need an atonement. We
don't need you. Those who know themselves to be guilty, they
need a savior, a redeemer to put away their sin. This blind
man was one of those chosen of God in that eternal election
of grace. And in time, the good shepherd
crossed his path, called him out of darkness, translated him
out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God, dear
son, and made him. Here's one who was steeped in
Judaism. one who was trusting himself
for righteousness, and when the Lord crossed his path and gave
him spiritual sight, gave him faith to believe, gave him a
heart to worship God, he was made a new creature in Christ
Jesus by the sovereign command of God. This is one for whom
the Lord had chosen, crossed his path, did a work of grace
in his heart. On the other hand, the Pharisees
said, Some of the Pharisees, verse 40, which were with him,
heard these words and they said, are we blind? Are we blind? Here's what they're saying. Here's
exactly what they're saying. They're saying that we don't
need. salvation. They're saying that we don't
need a Savior, we don't need mercy, we don't need righteousness.
These self-righteous sinners were justly left to perish in
their spiritual darkness and the Lord judicially hardened
them and blinded them. in their sin. There's an article
in the bulletin today, don't read it now, you can go back
and read it later, and I picked this out of someone else's bulletin,
an article by Charles Spurgeon, and I think it fits good with
what's said in verse 39, 40, and 41 of John 9. And here's
what it says, righteous men who are truly righteous in Christ
Jesus know themselves to be sinners, don't they? know themselves to
be sinners. We can say with the Apostle Paul,
O wretched man that I truly am. Those who are justified in Christ
Jesus know what they are by nature. We are sinners. On the other
hand, sinners believe, that is the self-righteous, the Pharisees,
they think themselves to be righteous by what they do. You see, righteous
men know themselves to be sinners But these self-righteous sinners,
they believe themselves to be righteous by what they do. And that's exactly what's being
said here in these verses. They said, are we also blind?
Look what the Lord said in verse 41. If you were really blind,
if you were really in need of mercy, if you were really a sinner,
You would have no sin. But now you say, you say, remember
our Lord said to those Pharisees on another occasion, you or they
would justify yourselves before men. But God knows your heart. That which is highly esteemed
among men is an abomination in the sight of God. But now you
say that we see. We see, we have no sin. Look
what the Lord says, therefore your sin remaineth. Your sin remaineth. If you were
really blind, if you were really a sinner in need of mercy, you
would have no sin. For the Lord Jesus Christ came
to save sinners. Who, for whom did the Lord Jesus
Christ die? When we were yet without strength,
the Lord Jesus Christ died for, what's that next word? the ungodly. God committed His love toward
us and that while we were yet what? Sinners. Christ died for
us. But now these folks said, oh
we see. They boasted of their spiritual
knowledge. You remember in John chapter 8 they said, Abraham
is our father. Well, the Lord said to them,
if you were Abraham's children, you would believe me. Abraham
rejoiced to see my day. He saw it and was glad. And then
they said, well, God is our father. Remember what the Lord said?
If God were your father, you would honor me as God honors
me, as the God sent mediator. Now, what a contrast here. Turn
back over here to John chapter eight for just a minute. I want
to look at this verse right here for a moment. John chapter eight.
What are the implications here of those who say that they're
not sinners, who do not need a savior, who do not believe
the gospel? Look at John 8, 24. I said therefore
unto you that you shall die in your sin, for if you believe
not that I am, you'll die in your sin. The Lord said to them, if you
were blind, back at John 9, 41, you should have no sin. But now you say, we see, therefore
your sin remaineth. What a contrast between you should
have no sin. There is therefore in Christ
Jesus no condemnation. Who can lay anything to the charge
of God the let? It is God who would justify.
Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that is died, yea
rather is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God.
Thank God he came to put away our sin. Blessed is the man whom
the Lord will not charge sin. To the believer there is no condemnation
because in Christ Their sin is put away. You should have no
sin. But now you say, we see, we don't
need Christ. We don't need an atonement. We
don't need a high priest. Therefore, your sin remains on
you, not only now, but for all eternity. Your sin remaineth
on you. What a contrast. It's a difference
between life and death. It's a difference between salvation
and condemnation. It's a difference between a message
of salvation by grace and that of works. Now, having said that,
that sets the table for what's said in John 10 verse 1. Because the Lord said, truly,
truly, I say unto you, you who say you have no sin, you who
need no salvation, I say unto you, the self-righteous crowd.
And then He gives this parable. Let's read verses 1 through 5
one more time. He that entereth not by the door,
into the sheepfold, but climbs up some other way, the same would
be a thief and a robber. Now we can use this analogy,
I think, without doing any great harm. When you go home, what
do you do? You don't climb up some other
way. I mean, you don't climb up the wall, up through the roof
and start tearing off the shingles, do you? No. Who does that? Thieves and robbers. When you
go into your home this afternoon, what are you going to do? You're
going to walk right through the door. Why are you going to walk
right through the door? Because you own the house. You have access into everything
that's in that house belongs to you. He that entereth not
by the door into the sheepfold, but would climb up some other
way, that is apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, seeking salvation
some other way, the same as a what? Thief? That's a pretty bold accusation,
isn't it? And a robber. Now the Lord says
over here in John 10 verse 9, I am the door, by me if any man
enter in, he shall be saved, he shall go in and out and find
pasture. These thieves come not for one
reason. They come to rob you. If a thief
came to your house, he wouldn't come over there to greet you
and pat you on the back. He'd come for one reason, a malicious
intent. He'd come to rob you. He'd come
to steal from you. And if you don't give him what
he wants, he'll kill you and he'll destroy your family. And
here, he's talking about false prophets. He's talking about
those who preach something other than the Lord Jesus Christ for
all of salvation. Our Lord said, I am come that
you might have life. and that you might have it more
abundantly." Thank God for the Good Shepherd. Thank God He's
delivered us from the thieves and robbers. Now, in this parable,
let's read these verses again. He that entereth not by the door
into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same as
a thief and a robber. But he that enters in by the
door into the sheepfold, the one who enters into the door
Legally, rightfully, he is the shepherd of the sheep. To him,
the porter opens. The porter is the doorkeeper,
the watchman. And the sheep hear the voice
of the shepherd, who has entered in legitimately, and he calls
his own by name. And then he leads them out. He
puts the sheep before himself, his own sheep. He goes before
them. They follow him. They know him. And a stranger they will not
follow. But they'll flee from him, for they know not the voice
of strangers." Now, we don't know too much about this sheepfold
analogy or this sheepfold parable as far as there's not any sheepfolds
around here that I know of. That is a corral where the sheep
are gathered at night. But back in this time and in
this country, there were many sheepherders. And they would
graze openly out in the countryside. And each of these villages, they
would have a pinned enclosure at night. They would gather all
the sheep and these different shepherds would bring their herds
into this catch pen. I call it a corral, a sheepfold. The porter would keep the door.
It was a fenced or walled area. It would protect the sheep. And
the porter wouldn't let anyone in there that he didn't recognize
as the shepherd of one of those sheep. He would keep out all
the thieves and robbers. The next morning, when the shepherds
returned from their lodging, they would come back and the
porter would... I know him. I know him and here's his sheep.
And that shepherd would go in by the authority of the doorkeeper
and he would retrieve his sheep. He would call his sheep, Blackie,
whatever, and the sheep would follow him and he'd lead them
into green pastures. Now, all of this is a picture
of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord, I believe,
is going to illustrate for us just exactly what happened in
John chapter 9. This is an illustration of the
Lord calling out one of His sheep. Now, this sheepfold here is a place
where the Lord keeps His sheep. until he crosses their path with
the gospel and calls them to himself. This sheepfold represents
a place of safety, it represents a place of shelter, and then
the good shepherd comes by. They are hedged about in this
world, God's sheep, and they're by nature lost sheep, but they're
protected by the porter. The porter here represents God
Almighty. They're protected by the porter
until the good shepherd calls them to himself and he leads
them out. The porter watches over the sheep.
Won't let anybody have any access to the sheep. He protects the
sheep until the shepherd comes along and calls out his own. Now look at verse 2. But he that
entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
only authorized, anointed, and appointed Savior. He is the true
shepherd of the sheep. The porter, God Almighty, God
the Father, recognizes, owns the Lord Jesus Christ as the
true shepherd of the sheep, who lays down his life for the sheep,
and he has open, ready access into the sheepfold to retrieve
his elect, to retrieve his sheep. The Lord Jesus Christ enters
in by the door. He has a right to enter in by
the door to retrieve his sheep. This is the door of covenant
mercy. This is the door of the justice of God being honored.
This is the door of the law of God being satisfied. No one else
can come by this door, but the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus
Christ is the lawful owner of his sheep. Where did he get these
sheep? Remember John chapter 6? All
that the Father hath given to me, they will come to me. They were given to him. And the
porter recognizes this true shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord
Jesus as a good shepherd goes through that door and he himself
is the door and he calls out his own sheep to himself. Now look at verse three. To him,
to him, to him, now not to the thieves and robbers, only to
the true shepherd. To him the porter opens the door. the door of mercy, the door of
salvation, the door of eternal love. The porter opens the door
as sheep, the sheep of Christ, the elect of God, they hear his
voice. You remember in John 10, 27,
he said, my sheep, they hear my voice. I know them and they
follow me. And he calleth his own sheep
by their name and then he leads them out. The porter has a watchful
eye. over the sheep. We'll not let
any have access to the sheep, but the proper shepherd, the
porter protects the sheep from all harm. And the porter here
represents Almighty God, whose law the Lord Jesus Christ has
honored whose salvation the Lord Jesus Christ has accomplished.
The Lord Jesus has a lawful ownership to his sheep. He died to secure
their eternal salvation. He bought them with his own covenant
blood. He said, you no more your own,
you're bought with a price. He loved the church and gave
himself for it. To him the porter opens and the
sheep hear his voice. He calls his own by name and
he leads them out. Now the true shepherd of the
sheep, identified by several things. First of all, he enters
in legally, rightfully, by the door of the sheepfold. Secondly,
he's accepted of the porter. You remember as God says of the
Lord Jesus Christ, on two occasions, this is my beloved son and whom
I am well pleased, hear him The Lord Jesus Christ is accepted
and recognized of God the Father as the only true shepherd of
the sheep. Thirdly, His sheep recognize
Him. They're made to hear His voice.
And this is just not the hearing of the ear. This is hearing in
the power of God the Holy Spirit. His sheep really hear Him speak. Not in word only, but also in
power. In power. And they follow Him. Now watch this. He calleth His
own sheep by name. You reckon the Lord knows His
covenant people? He knows them so intimately as
it says over here, look at verse 14, I am the good shepherd, and
know my sheep, and am known of mine. You remember that scripture
over 2 Timothy 2? The foundation of God standeth
sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his. He
knows his sheep by name. By name. Matthew, follow me. Zacchaeus, Both of them publicans. Both of them, not Pharisees,
publicans, vile, notorious sinners. And the Lord knew them by name.
Matthew, follow me, Zacchaeus, Up that tree. Make haste and
come down, I must abide at your house. Today is the day of salvation,
that He has came down. Let me show you another example
of that calling, the Lord calling His sheep. Turn to one page over
to John chapter 11. This is that effectual, irresistible,
personal call of God with the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. with the message of salvation
by His grace. You remember in John chapter
11, when Lazarus had been sick? and Lazarus had died and Lazarus
had been buried for four days and the Lord walked in front
of that tomb in verse 43 of John chapter 11 and this is the irresistible
effectual call of God and he cried with a loud voice he didn't
say just come forth a general call that would have been a general
call to walk out to a cemetery and say come forth But this was
a particular effectual personal call. He said, Lazarus, come
forth. Look what it says. And he that
was dead came forth, bound with hand and foot with great clothes,
and his face was bound with a napkin. And the Lord said unto them,
Loose him, and let him go. He calls His own sheep by name,
and He does this calling with the gospel of God's grace, with
His truth. Now, what is the response of
the sheep? They don't pick up rocks. They
don't go about to stone Him. The preaching of the gospel to
them who are perishing is what? Foolishness, but to them which
are saved by the gospel. It's what the power and wisdom
and glory of God When he put it forth his own sheep, he calls
his own sheep by name verse 3 and he leads them out He leads them
out the sheep follow the good and great and chief shepherd
of the sheep when he put it forth his own and The last part of
verse three, he called his own sheep by name and he leads them
out. He leads them out of bondage. He leads them out of bondage
into liberty. He leads them out of condemnation
and Adam to life in Christ Jesus. He leads them out of death into
life, out of darkness into light, out of self-righteousness into
the true righteousness revealed in the gospel. Now he says this
again in verse 9 at John 10, I am the door, you see it, verse
9, by me if any man enter in, we enter in by him, he shall
be saved and shall go in and out, into life, out of death. Into liberty out of bondage and
in Christ Jesus we have plenty Plenty of pasture. He is a good
shepherd now verse 4 He put us forth his own sheep He goes before
his own sheep and the sheep follow him His sheep don't throw stones
his sheep follow the Lord wherever he goes and They follow. They bow to His will. The sheep
of Christ, the elect of God, when they are called out of darkness,
are not left alone to provide for themselves. But rather, they
have a close, intimate relationship with the Good Shepherd. Look
what it says, He put forth His own sheep, He goes before them. You see that? He doesn't just
call us out and shove us aside and say, well, okay, see you
later. No, He goes before them and the sheep follow Him. He
goes before them. Christ goes before us to protect
us, to provide for us. My God shall supply all your
need according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus.
In Genesis 22, the Lord there is called Jehovah-Jireh, the
Lord will provide. The Lord goes before us. Think
about this. He's called our forerunner, is
He not? who has entered in and is seated at the right hand of
God. The Lord goes before us in that eternal election of grace,
for He is the elect of God. The Lord goes before us to do
what? He came to accomplish all of
our salvation. You see, He goes before us. He
is our forerunner. The Lord Jesus Christ goes before
us in that election of grace. He is the elect, we're chosen
in Him. The Lord goes before us in accomplishing
all of our salvation, and He did. The Lord goes before us
as the first fruit of the resurrection. He's the first man to be raised
from the dead with a glorified body. He is the first fruit of
that resurrection. He goes before us. His resurrection
guarantees our resurrection. The Lord Jesus Christ goes before
us. When He had by Himself purged
our sin, what did He do? He sat down on the right hand
of God. He ascended to glory. He goes
before us and we're seated in Him. The Lord goes before us. Think about this. In that day
of judgment, And that day of judgment, the Father judgeth
no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son. The Lord
goes before us. and answers for us as our Mediator,
as our Great High Priest, who presents us before the presence
of God's glory with exceeding joy. The Lord goes before us. The sheep gladly follow Him. They're resigned to His will.
You'll see what it says in verse 4, the sheep follow Him. They
follow Him. They know His voice. They're
glad to resign to His will, knowing that our wise and good Shepherd
does all things well. They know His voice. Now, it's
just not the sound of His voice. It's the message. The message. His sheep hear that message of
salvation by grace. They love His instruction. His
word is a saver of life unto life. They hear that message
of salvation by grace. They hear that message and through
the word of the Lord, they get understanding, therefore they
hate every false way. That's what it says. Now, look
at verse 5. A stranger Those who are strangers
to the grace of God. Those who know nothing of salvation
by grace. Those who are thieves and robbers.
Those who are false prophets with a false message, who preach
another gospel, another Jesus, and another spirit. A stranger,
the sheep, they don't follow. They don't follow. But will flee
from Him quickly. Quickly. like he would a plague,
a disease. A stranger, the sheep will not
follow that strange voice. A sheep will not follow that
strange message of works, ceremony, tradition, feeling, emotion. The sheep's ears tuned in to
that message. salvation by Christ alone, faith
alone, grace alone, to the glory of God the Father, they will
not follow a stranger, but they will quickly be done with that
man. Matter of fact, they will not
even bid him if they come to your house inquiring and trying to gain a hearing. When the sheep of Christ find
out who they are and what they want, they won't even bid them
good day, but rather tell them, pal, hit the road. I don't want anything to do with
you or your message. That's right. The sheep will
not will not entertain, will not hear, will not follow that
message that strains to the gospel of God's grace. They won't do
it. They can't! They can't! To go and hear some
man lie about God? To hear some man tell lies about
the Lord Jesus Christ? Would you have anything to do
with that? God's sheep won't. They will not hear. They will
not follow. They will not attend. They will
not pray for, support, or give any credit to any stranger, false
preacher, a thief, and a robber. Not at all. Verse 6 in our text. And this parable spake the Lord
Jesus unto them, And they didn't have a clue.
Now, you know what he's talking about, don't you? You know what
he's talking about. You know about that call. You
know about being chosen of God. You know that you didn't choose
him. He chose you. You know this,
Floyd. You understand this method. You
understand this gospel. How come he's giving you an understanding? Remember what our Lord said to
Nicodemus? Except a man be born again, he
cannot understand, he cannot see, cannot perceive, cannot
know. This parable spoke to Lord Jesus
Christ unto them, unto them who said, oh, we see. Do you teach
us? Who was really blind? They were
blind, weren't they? blind to their own sin, blind
to the holiness of God, blind to the righteousness of God revealed
in the gospel. They were blind, blind, blind. They understood not what things
that the Lord spoke unto them. And He said unto them, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, I am the door. As he said in John
14, I am the way. I am the way. The Pharisees,
when they heard this message, rejected it. They took up stones to stone
him. They had no clue. They had no
knowledge of what the Lord was talking about. They had no spiritual
understanding. They were both blind, dead, and
deaf, and dead in their sin. You see, the natural man will
not receive the things of God. It's foolishness unto him, foolishness
unto him. Neither can he understand them
because they are spiritually discerned. The carnal mind is
enmity against God. You remember this verse, turn
back to John chapter 8. You see his sheep, they hear
his voice, and they do follow him. Those who reject the message
of God's grace in Christ Jesus, they will not hear God's word.
Look at John 8, 47. He that is of God, heareth God's
word. Ye therefore hear them not, because
you're not of God. You see, this message of the
Gospel of God's grace divides sheep from the goats. The goats
will reject it, throw it away, throw stones, say, I won't have
that, that's not fair, that's not right. I'm a little bit better
than that. You talking about me? I'm a sinner? The sheep will hear this message
because this is what God's Word teaches, right here. I'm not
making this up. I'm just repeating what God has
already said. The Lord said to them clearly
and plainly, I say unto you, I am the door. The sheep have been given an
understanding. The sheep have been given faith
to believe the gospel. The sheep of Christ, like the
blind man that was healed, believe Him and worship Him. Remember what He said? Lord,
I believe and He worshiped. And he worshiped him. Oh, for
faith to believe him. Oh, for a heart of grace to worship
the Lord Jesus Christ. And for ears, you remember our
Lord said in Matthew 13, blessed are your eyes for they see. They
see his beauty. They see his, blessed are your
ears for they hear this message. They love it. They can't get
enough of it. Thank God. Salvation by the grace
of God alone in Christ Jesus.