SEVEN Series: Week 14 - The Good Shepherd

Amen.

What a declaration.

What a declaration.

You believe that his name is worthy to be praised this morning.

Amen.

Yeah, he deserves all glory, all honor, and all praise.

Hey, y'all go ahead and have a seat.

Go ahead and have a seat this morning.

I want to welcome all of you who are here this morning at our Manseo campus.

I want to welcome our online campus.

I want to welcome all of our other campuses joining us, our classic campus, our Ontario campus, our Waterford campus.

So glad you guys have made what God is doing here at Crossroads a part of your weekend and worship specifically.

If I haven't met you before, my name is Andrew, and I'm the lead pastor here, and I am so grateful that we get to spend these next few minutes together.

Go ahead now and get your Bibles out.

We have just two weeks left in a series that we started at the very beginning of the summer that we've been in called Seven.

If you don't have a Bible, raise your hand.

We've got ushers that are going to come from all sides of our worship center right now, and they would love an opportunity to bring you a Bible.

The Bible that they bring you is a gift.

It's your Bible.

We encourage you to take it with you when you leave today and bring it back with you when you come back next week.

We're going to pick up where we left off last week from John 9 into John chapter 10.

John 10 · chapter mention

And specifically, we're going to read verses 1 through 21 together today.

John chapter 10 and verses 1 through 21.

John 10 · chapter mention

Jesus said, Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.

But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

To him the gatekeeper opens, the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

When he has brought out all of his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of a stranger.

This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they didn't understand what he was saying to them.

So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

All who come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.

I am the door.

If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy.

I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees.

The wolf snatches them and scatters them.

He flees because he's a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd.

I know my own, and my own know me, just as the Father knows me, and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep.

And I have other sheep that are not in this fold.

I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.

So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

For this reason the Father loves me, because I laid down my life that I may take it up again.

No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.

I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.

This charge I received from my father.

There is again a division among the Jews because of these words.

Many of them said he was a demon and insane.

Why listen to him?

Others said, These are not the words of one who's oppressed by a demon.

Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?

Pray with me, church.

Gracious Heavenly Father, worthy is your name.

You deserve all glory, you deserve all honor, and you deserve all praise.

Father, as we step into a continuation of worship now through the public reading of your scripture and through rightly dividing your word, I pray that as your word goes out, it will not return void.

But that we would see you in and through each and every moment right now.

And recognize that you are the good shepherd, and recognize that you are worthy to be praised, and that we would be responsive to your word.

Father, I pray now that the words of my mouth, the meditation of our hearts, we received as a gift, holy and pleasing to you alone, our rock and our redeemer.

And the whole church said, My son was five years old.

We were at the organ zoo with my family, not just my family, but my extended family as well.

While we were at the organ zoo, we noticed pretty quickly that at the center of the zoo, there were a lot of exhibits that were under construction, not the least of which were the primates.

They were building a new enclosure, they were expanding the outside enclosure, they were putting in new parts of the exhibit, and so there was a lot of fencing with orange mesh that was in between the fence and the displays, and there was plywood down on the ground, and there were warning signs everywhere.

There was colored tape that was redirecting the flow of traffic as they kept the zoo open, but wanted to protect individuals from getting hurt due to the construction.

Now, my immediate family, in and of ourselves, was pretty large.

My wife Stacy and I, we have six kids.

My extended family, my parents had six kids, and my mom has 14 grandkids.

And for the record, 12 of the 14 are girls.

My son and my nephew are the only two boys in the family.

We were all out there together.

My mom and my dad and my siblings and their families and my wife and our immediate family.

So that makes for uh a pretty big group to try to manage anyway.

Now, I want to put this into perspective for you, church.

If you've been at Crossroads for more than 10 minutes and you spent more than five minutes with me, you know that I tend to be a little high energy.

Now, this morning's a bit of an exception.

You're gonna have to forgive me.

I'm wrestling through a cold, a terrible cold, came on this week.

But I tend to run at a different octane.

And coupled with my energy level is a thing called attention deficit hyperactive disorder.

Okay.

I have a mild case compared to my siblings, and I'm not embellishing.

At one time, all of us but one were on Adderall Auridalin, some derivative of trying to manage all the chaos.

So now the picture is painted for you.

You've got me, the calmest of the bunch, all my siblings, my mom, my dad, my wife, all my kids, all the nieces and nephews, and we're all there at the Oregon Zoo.

As we're walking along, I've got my daughter Taylin on my shoulders, and I look over and I see my wife, and we're all kind of near the primate exhibit, getting ready to go down this tunnel that's under construction, and I start to notice that my son is missing.

And then that goes from a notice to a concern, and from a concern to a panic, as I ask my wife Stacy where Caden is, and then I ask my mom where my son is.

I ask my dad where his grandson is, and no one seems to know where Caden is.

The organ zoo isn't the largest zoo in the United States.

It's actually only 64 acres, but it is packed in tightly, and thousands upon thousands upon thousands of visitors come through the doors every day.

Millions of people every year go to the organ zoo.

And at five years old, he could have been anywhere with anyone.

So we immediately began to scatter.

We started running to the different entrance and exit points.

We ran to the bathrooms, we started going and tracing back over our previous footsteps because the primate exhibit was right in the middle of this 64-acre zoo.

And as we're running along, my heart is absolutely about to give out.

My head is going 100 miles an hour, my emotions are incredibly heightened.

I start to whistle.

I have a distinct whistle.

It's not the most powerful whistle, and it's not the most beautiful sounding whistle, but it's very distinct.

And as I start to whistle as loud as I can walking along, I hear my son in the distance.

I start running to him, and he hears my whistle, and he starts running to me.

And I embraced him, and I felt like I held him for a year.

I didn't want to let him go.

I began to get emotional.

And where were you?

What happened?

And he said, We were with the monkeys, my people, and we he said, I uh there was a whole bunch of people, and we ended up, you guys ended up going down into the exhibit, and I couldn't find you, and so I did what you always told me to do.

I stayed put.

And he sat on a bench and we looked everywhere except the entrance of the exhibit.

We looked everywhere else.

I tell that story to you because I want us to settle in on the idea of a distinct sound.

Over the years, I've had people actually criticize me, even chastise me for whistling at my family.

I've had people reprimand me and say, they're not dogs.

And they're right.

Thank you, Captain Obvious.

They're not dogs, they're children.

And when children are familiar with the sound of what it's like to be called to dinner, or what it's like to be called to come in from outside playing with your friends, or what it's like to be called from the other side of the house, or what it's like to be called because you did something wrong.

There's a distinct tone of voice or a sound or a call that they recognize and respond to.

Now, everybody had been looking for Caden, but he heard the sound of my voice.

He heard the sound of the whistle, and he knew it so intimately.

He knew it so well, he was so familiar with it that it was unmistakable.

It was an undeniable sound, and he was able to respond to it.

Today, as we study in John chapter 10, today, as we look closely at a continuation of last week where Jesus was embroiled in controversy with a blind man outside of the temple, we now know because of what we're going to study today that he's on the eastern part of the temple, actually, just on the outside, known as the eastern gate or the sheep gate.

John 10 · chapter mention

Now, Jesus is there and he heals this blind man.

It was on the heels of his disciples, misunderstanding the moment.

His disciples had bought into folklore and to superstition, and they asked Jesus, Teacher, who sinned?

That this man was born blind?

Was it him or his family?

I'm not going to go into the weeds with all the details of that moment.

I encourage you to go back and watch last week's message if you weren't able to be here or hear it throughout the week and get caught up.

But on the heels of not one, not two, not three, not four, but five different court hearings or appearances before religious leaders and others who demanded an answer for how this man born blind was able to see, and Jesus is being challenged, and he responds to this man.

He is going to make a statement.

In fact, I want to read at the very, very, very tail end of chapter 9 and verse 39.

You've got your Bibles open, so it should be easy to find.

It's not going to come up on the screens.

In chapter 9, verse 39 says, For judgment I came into this world, but that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.

Verse 40 tells us that some of the Pharisees near him heard these things and had said to him, Are we also blind?

Jesus said to them, If you were blind, you would have no guilt.

But now that you say, We see your guilt remains.

Jesus is having this unbelievable dialogue, this critical conversation with this man born blind, and it's in front of the Sanhedrin, the ruling body at that time, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, these religious elites.

And as he's having this conversation, the people grow tired of his talk.

Jesus picks right up, and I want to set the scene for you when Jesus picks up this conversation.

There's going to be an image, actually.

It's the period of in the first generation, the period of Jesus' generation in the temple.

There's an image that I want you to see where the sheep gate is.

Can you put that up for me?

Right there.

So the second temple in Jerusalem, if you notice, we've been talking about the court of Gentiles, and we've been talking about the court of women, and we've been talking about the treasury, and we've been talking about the different festivals or feasts that take place there, primarily three pilgrimage festivals where people will travel from wherever they are to come and gather together in Jerusalem.

And in this instance, the people are there for the festival of tabernacles, which is eight days.

We know that the city of Jerusalem typically has around 20 to 40,000 residents, but that it will swell to over a million people during this festival.

Now, in this temple, there is a water gate where the water libation as part of the festival takes place every day.

The priest leads a processional and not just a pomp and circumstance, but like a state fair.

It's ruckus, it's loud, it's it's it's a joyous celebration.

He reads this, he leads this processional down to the pool of Siloam, and he draws water from a jar and takes it back into the temple.

And there he will pour out water on the altar as a form of worship, and they will sing the psalms of ascent and they will pray together.

There are multiple things that happen with that.

We also know that at night they'll light these massive menorahs, these huge lampstands that are 75 feet high off the ground, these giant bowls that have four adjacent bowls, and they're filled with oil, and they light up the entire city of Jerusalem.

And it's in this context where Jesus uses visual aids.

You see, more than 50% of everything that Jesus said is either a parable or it's an illustration using symbolism.

He teaches for people to understand.

He wants them to capture what he's saying.

It's so crucial and critical.

So he takes things that are common to man that we might otherwise just dismiss, and he he reimagines what that looks like so that people can understand and apply the truth of his talk.

Jesus using the water, he says, I am the living water.

Anyone who drinks from me will never be thirsty.

Jesus using the lighting ceremony says, I am the light of the world.

Jesus using bread as an example, he talks about being the bread of life.

And today, as we look at this text, we're going to hear Jesus declare that he is the good shepherd.

And he's going to refer to the sheepfold.

That's important because as you see the image, the people that are with Jesus are actually near the sheep gate.

Today it's still there.

It's called the Lion's Gate or the Eastern Gate.

But historically it's known as the sheepgate on the northeastern part of the temple.

This is where Jesus is when he encounters this blind man.

This is where the religious leaders have followed Jesus to indict him.

This is where people are gathering around to hear him.

And there, Jesus, on the heels of this miracle.

And our claim in this series seven has been that every miracle is intended to substantiate the message.

Here in the midst of this miracle, Jesus is going to introduce a message.

Alright, so now that you have some of the context, let's unpack what Jesus is saying.

Truly, truly, in the original language, it's Amin, Amin, or Amen, where we get the word amen, which means be it so, or it's it is as it is.

It is a matter of fact.

There's no questioning this.

And he doubles down by saying it twice.

Truly, truly, I say to you.

It's important because there are a lot of things that people are hearing.

There are paid orators that are giving whimsical talks, waxing eloquently to tickle people's ears.

There are religious elites that are the most intellectually minded individuals in the known world who are giving these talks and these teachings.

There are all kinds of people that have things to say, but just because people have something to say doesn't mean it's worth listening to.

So Jesus says, Listen, I say to you, regardless of what you've heard before, here's what I need you to hear.

I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.

So we don't have to we don't have to dig very deep to come to the place where we recognize that Jesus isn't just teaching, but he's actually reprimanding the religious leaders.

He's gonna reprimand them about what they teach.

He's gonna reprimand them about who they're leading, he's gonna reprimand them about how they're leading.

He's gonna question in the midst of these statements who's following their leadership, why they're following their leadership, what's happening?

Jesus says here, truly, truly, listen, listen.

What I'm about to tell you, you've got to understand.

Anybody who goes into the sheepfold, without going through the door, that person is a thief and a robber.

This is crucial because understand, they're near the sheepgate, they're near the northeastern entrance.

These people understand an agrarian culture, they know an agrarian society, they recognize the role and responsibility of a shepherd and the sheep.

They also will notice as Jesus is talking that there are two types of sheepfolds.

I want to show you one of the more common ones.

Here's actually an image of one that was taken recently.

It's a sheepfold that's out in the wilderness.

Can you put that picture up for me?

A sheepfold in the wilderness was for nomadic shepherds that were leading their flocks by day, but needed a temporary resting place at night.

These walls were roughly four feet high, and they were constructed of loose stone and bramble at the top.

It would house up to maybe 25 to 75 sheep, and it was intended for one flock.

A shepherd who was out in the wilderness would take his sheep into this temporary dwelling, and this would be the sheepfold.

Now you can see in this image that a four-foot wall, although the stones were loose, it would have been a little bit easier to get into and out of the sheepfold without going through the door.

Now I want you to lock this image in your mind because I'm gonna talk about the door.

I want you to look and notice what's missing.

There's no wooden gate, there's no bronze door, there's nothing there to close, and yet Jesus is gonna talk about being the door multiple times.

This is the imagery that Jesus is drumming up for the religious elite and everyone else, the Jews and the Gentiles who have gathered together collectively, that are hearing these words from Jesus.

This is what they're seeing at the sheep gate, where these shepherds will lead the sheep into the temple as they're prepared for worship.

And there, as they're coming in, the shepherds will be stopped and they will have a shepherd's staff, and they will stop the sheep from coming in.

They'll look for blemishes or impurities and things to make sure that the sheep are adequate for the sacrifice.

This is where Jesus is at.

And as he's talking, he's making declarations, not just about agrarian culture, but about who he is.

Listen to this, verse two.

But he, speaking of the shepherds or the individuals who are with the flock, but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

When you would come into a major city, in this case Jerusalem, there was a common sheepfold.

These were much larger.

These common sheepfolds would have much taller walls, much more space.

And what would happen is as shepherds were leading their flocks by day and they were coming into the city at night, they would bring there, or they would lead there, or they would guide their sheep into this common sheepfold.

And this could happen by multiple shepherds with many, many sheep.

So that there would be a gatekeeper.

Another word for that would be a porter, an individual who was a paid security guard who would watch over the flock and or the flocks, as it were, and make sure that he knew who the shepherds were for each flock and the comings and goings.

And so, what Jesus is saying to these individuals, what he's referring to here, is that kind of a gatekeeper or a porter that would recognize the shepherd that as they bring the flock in, as the sun is beginning to set, and they're going to go and find uh some temporary residence that night and come out the next morning to gather again their flock and head back out into the pastures.

He who enters the door is a shepherd of the sheep.

Verse 3 says, To him, the gatekeeper opens.

The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

And when he brought out all of his own, he goes before them and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

Listen, this is really, really unique.

In our culture, when it comes to flocks and herds and cattle and all the things that we think of when it comes to Agrarian society.

We think about branding.

Or we think about uh earmarks where we'll we'll puncture an ear with a a label, a plastic number, maybe.

And the animal will have a brand of the of the rancher, and and we'll be able to identify whose sheep they belong to or whose cattle they belong to or whatever it is that they're taking care of.

In this instance, there was no such thing.

There was no branding the sheep, there was no tie-dyeing the sheep's wool, a specific color for your brand.

There were no ear tags, there was no way of numbering the sheep.

Instead, a young shepherd would stay with his sheep for days, weeks, months, and even years, and would recite the sheep by name and would use their voice to familiarize the sheep with the sound of his voice, and they had their own unique call that it didn't matter where you were at out in the pasture or in the city, when the the sheep heard the call from the shepherd, they would know that call and they would respond to that call.

They had heard that call so many times, they had heard the sound of the shepherd's voice so many times that when the sheep calls, or the shepherd calls, the sheep respond.

This is what Jesus is saying.

The sheep, I know them by name.

And they know me, they know the sound of my voice.

Juxtappos to what Jesus is saying here in verse 5 a stranger, they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they doubt they do not know the voice of strangers.

This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they didn't understand what he was saying to them.

So he's gonna double down here in just a moment.

I'm not sure if it's a story that has been created over years or if there's truth to it, but I heard another pastor tell this story about two farmers who were in court fighting over a flock of sheep.

Each individual came in to present their case.

They made a strong case for why those sheep belonged to that shepherd.

And the judge, hearing the arguments and knowing that sheep recognize and respond to the sound of the shepherd's voice, called both of the shepherds, the local farmers, to exit opposite ends of the courtroom and had the sheep brought in and had the one call out for the sheep.

The sheep, in fear, trembled and they put their heads facing the center and they buried their heads into one another.

The next farmer called out, and the sheep fell in line and went right along with him.

Now, whether there's truth to this tale or not, as I mentioned, it's not my story.

I heard it from another pastor.

It's a beautiful depiction of a shepherd, a sheep, and the response or the responsiveness of a sheep who doesn't know a stranger's voice and who does know a familiar voice.

Sheep are the dumbest animals on the planet earth.

They're known for their stupidity and for their sweaters.

And a good lamb chop once in a while.

There's nothing smart about sheep.

But did you know that sheep are actually one of the most affectionate animals?

And they become familiar with their shepherd.

There's a relationship, and so as a shepherd is spending time with the sheep, and he's identifying them, and he's calling them by name.

I'm currently helping my son coach soccer, and we've got a boy on our team.

He's a really fun kid, he's our goalie, he's just a terrific young man.

But as a hobby, he keeps cows and he shows cows, and then he slaughters them and eats them.

It's kind of weird.

So I was talking to him about his prize cow right now.

Do you know what he named his show cow that he's eventually going to kill and eat?

Brisket.

I am not lying to you.

Every time I see this kid, he knows before it even comes out of my mouth.

I'm asking, hey man, how's brisket?

This last week I asked him, hey, so when are you gonna take me to your hobby farm and let me see brisket?

He said, Coach, anytime you want to come.

I'm like, yeah, man, I'm gonna see it now, and I want to see it when you're done with it.

I want brisket.

He's named his cow.

And he spends morning and early evening and late evening with this cow taking care of it.

And this cow responds to him, I'm not sure how or why it works that way.

I'm used to stupid animals like cats that do what they want.

Jesus has spent time explaining to these men that he is the good shepherd, and he's creating a narrative in their minds that they're having to wrestle with.

Look at verse 7.

They didn't understand this figure of speech.

So Jesus again said to them, guys, truly, truly, I say to you, listen, what I'm saying is true, it can be trusted, it's a guarantee, and it's unlike anything else you're hearing from anybody else.

I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.

I am the door.

If anyone enters by me, he will find pasture.

Oh, church.

What a radical statement.

When I asked you to capture the image that I had posted about the wilderness sheepfold, and I had mentioned that there was an entrance, a door without a door.

I said, hold on to that, we're gonna come and visit this.

Culturally, a young shepherd boy or even a grown man, depending on how long they've been doing it, would lead the sheep out by day into green pastures and into streams of fresh water, and would guard the flock from predatory animals and from others coming to steal their flock.

At night in the wilderness, and even in the city with this paid porter, the sheep would be placed into the sheepfold or the sheep pen, and rather than close a door, the shepherd would lay down at night, blocking the entrance, foot to head, closing the door.

You see, sheep are so dumb that they won't attempt to walk out over the top of a shepherd.

And the way that the shepherd positioned his body, it was such that a predator couldn't come in without having to get through that shepherd.

So it's a very strategic positioning of one's body.

He's laying down between the two posts of the frame that is encased in all these sheep in the sheepfold, and he's using his own body, his own life, his own welfare to guard the sheep from keeping them in the pen and from keeping uh predators out.

He is the door.

When Jesus says, I am the door, I promise you, there's there's no guesswork involved in this.

It's not speculation.

They know exactly what Jesus is saying.

Jesus is saying, I laid down my life for the sheep.

I make sure that none of my sheep can get out, and I make sure that no predators can get in.

You see, that's one of the primary roles and responsibility of a shepherd, and not just a shepherd, but a good shepherd.

A good shepherd knows his sheep.

A good shepherd knows his sheep by name.

Let me explain just how intimate a relationship is between a shepherd, a good shepherd, and the sheep.

You see, if a sheep is injured, maybe a leg is broken, or even crazier, a sheep will run off and it's not falling in line.

A good shepherd will actually break the leg of a young ew or a baby, a nursing sheep, and will then carry the sheep on his shoulders day and night until that leg is completely healed.

Why?

So that that sheep can hear the sound of the shepherd's voice over and over and over again in close proximity.

So that when that sheep is fully healed and placed with the flock, he knows and recognizes and responds to the shepherd's voice.

Jesus is saying not only that he's the shepherd, but he's the good shepherd.

Not only that he is a shepherd, but he is the door to the sheepfold.

And with this are a whole bunch of attributes, characteristics, quality traits that come with this kind of a shepherd.

We're gonna talk about that at the end.

Jesus said, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

All who came before me are thieves and robbers.

He is actually talking about them.

The religious leaders who came pretending to care about the people, the religious leaders who came pretending to care about God, who came pretending to have the best interest of the people in mind, but who were there with faulty motives and were leading sheep astray.

He's actually speaking to them.

The sheep didn't listen to him.

Verse 9.

I'm the door.

If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy.

And you know what's wild?

Church, we need to capture this.

I don't want us to lose sight of this important moment here.

Here's what we need to know: is that when we think about a thief who comes at night to steal, kill, and destroy, we think about masked bandits who are hiding out in bushes waiting for darkness to befall upon a residence, who have cased the house, who know all the access points and entry points and have predetermined how they're gonna get into the house.

And because of all the work that they've done to break in, their motives are wrecked.

They're there to steal belongings, they're there to torture people, they're there to do evil and ill things to the residents inside of that house.

That's what we think of.

But Jesus is actually not talking about that kind of thievery or robbery, he's talking to the religious elite.

He's looking at these Pharisees and he's saying, You, the most intellectual minds in the known world, you who know the things of God better than most ever will, you who've been tasked and charged and given the responsibility to care for these people, you come not as a masked bandit, but you come shrouded in religion with all of your vespers, all of your robes, all of your tassels, all of your high language, all of your religiosity, all of your rules, all of your rituals, all of your regulations.

You come and you say, Yes, God, and inside of your own religious book, there's what's known as the Melikot.

I addressed it last week.

39, 39 specific rules about what you can't do on the Sabbath.

39.

God had nothing to do and nothing to say about those things.

These are man-made traditions.

People who prefer that inside of their religion things function or look or sound a certain way.

Jesus is not talking about bandits, he's talking about the religious leaders.

Do you know why that's scary to me, church?

How many of us have been abused, misguided, misled by religious leaders in our lives?

How many people have we listened to and taken them at their word that didn't have your best motives in mind and weren't wholly surrendered to the word of God?

Church, I want to remind you that one of the greatest core values and convictions we have here at Crossroads Church is biblical literacy.

That's why every week I beg you, I implore you, and I take away all excuses for you to have a Bible in your hand.

I recognize the weight that I carry, that I shoulder as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ and as one anointed by God and appointed by the church to teach the flock.

I will be judged more harshly and more severely for what I have taught.

Therefore, it's incumbent upon me to make sure that you know how to investigate and be great learners, not just hearers of God's word.

It's incumbent upon you to make sure you are following along and studying to show yourself approved before God, and that everything that I'm saying is consistent and orthodox, that it is true entirely.

We have far too many people, and especially in the social society that we live in, with the advent of all of our online medias, YouTube and Twitter and or X and Facebook and Instagram and all the other platforms, where people who don't have credentials, people who aren't qualified, people who don't have education, people who don't have a body that oversees them.

Church, you need to know this about me.

I have multiple bodies that oversee and govern my credentials.

Not only am I your pastor, uh anointed by God and appointed by your elders unanimously, and every year I come before the elders with a covenant of 13 characteristics from Timothy and Titus to determine if I fit the criteria of what a pastor, shepherd, leader, teacher looks like, as do your elders, and we sign an annual covenant.

I hold an ordination.

For seven years, I had to work to obtain my master's degree, and I had an individual who coached me and walked to me, and I had to create a space where I learned the word of God, and I practiced the ministry that is res that each pastor is responsible for within the word of God.

And I had to go before an ombudsman and a board of directors or a board of ministry leaders, and there were 10 of them, multiple with PhDs, and all I had with me when I went was an unmarked Bible.

I didn't have notes, I didn't have stickies, I didn't have anything.

I had to sit there.

They had 11 questions they asked me to begin with, and anything that they wanted to ask me thereafter.

For three hours, I sat there and was interviewed, and they determined that I have an orthodox theology, I have an ability to rightly divide God's word, that I am sound in doctrine and theology, and that I am equipped for the ministry that God has called me to.

Annually, my credential is up for consideration.

The group that I'm ordained through, if you're curious, most of you are sitting here saying, Why are you still talking about this?

I'll tell you in a minute.

I hold my credentials through the Evangelical Church, which is a global denomination.

It's a formally called the Evangelical Church of North America, but they're on seven different continents, or not continents, countries, excuse me.

So this is why it's important.

Because when you hear me teach, I want you to trust what I say, but I want you to verify it.

And I want you to know that I'm here on good authority.

Not only am I anointed by God, but I am appointed by other men who have vetted me and who see that I have a standard that I am hold to that I am beheld to or beholden to.

Does that make sense?

Be leery of internet preachers, be leery of televangelists, be leery of people who give messages without culture and context that just create sermon topics or sermon points, and then they pull out scriptures and they tell you what it says.

We put it up on the screen, we put it in front of your face, and we we we follow up at least three times a week with other content so that you can learn and study and see.

This is why it matters, because even what we think is good can be so ungodly, so extra-biblical, so bad.

There are people, and even inside of ministry circles, there are people with good intentions who are doing ungodly damage.

They're not rightly dividing God's word.

They're outside of their scope, they don't know what they're saying or doing.

And so, church, this is why it's so critical that we understand biblical literacy is is so crucial in the church.

Jesus is talking to these religious leaders and he's saying, The people who came before me were thieves.

They weren't dressed as masked bandits.

No, it was the religious elite.

Verse 11, I am the good shepherd.

The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

He who's a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees.

And the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

He flees because he's a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

Who do you think he's referring to?

Them.

Them.

More than anything that you ever hear me teach, I want you to know that I care about you.

I love you, I value you, I'm committed to you.

Our staff, the same.

We see you.

If you only knew the lengths, the depths of the work that we put into the ministry, the bride of Christ here.

Because we love you.

And if we didn't, when it gets hard, we would leave.

He flees because he's a hired hand, he cares nothing for the sheep.

Verse 14, I'm the good shepherd.

He keeps repeating this.

I'm the good shepherd, I am the good shepherd, I am the good shepherd, I know my own, and my own know me, just as the father knows me, and I know the father, and I laid down my life for the sheep.

I have other sheep that are not in this fold.

Oh, this is crazy.

He's talking to these religious leaders that recognize that in Judaism, and as it was at the beginning, the Jews were God's elect people, and they're holding on tightly to this.

That there's the Jews and there's everyone else.

There's this caste system of haves and have nots.

Jesus is now reflecting on and responding to this understanding.

He said, I have other sheep who they're not a part of this fold.

They're not the Jews, they're the Gentiles, the non-Jewish people.

I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.

These are the people who are distant or far from Jesus.

So there will be, get this, highlight this, circle this, underline this, italicize this, rewrite it if you have to.

One flock.

There is one God, one Father, one Lord, one spirit, one baptism, one church.

And Jesus is saying, Jesus is saying, inside of the bride of Christ, we are one.

There is no caste system in the church.

There are no haves and have-nots.

There are different anointings, there are different appointments, there are different gifts, there are different calls, there are different responsibilities inside the church, but we are one body with many parts.

How can the hand look at the foot and say, I wish I was a foot?

How can the foot look at the ear and say, I wish I was an ear?

How can the ear look at the eye and say, I wish I was an eye?

We are one body with many parts, and it takes all of us, and Jesus is saying, Jesus is saying that this, this whole body, is what matters.

So, verse 17, for this reason the father's love loves me.

Now, I want you to be careful because if we read this out of context, it looks like this is the only reason that God loves Jesus, that he's going to lay down his life.

No, that's not what he's saying.

He's actually setting the record straight.

For this reason, the Father loves me, because I laid down my life that I may take it up again.

This is an act of obedience, willful obedience.

He's saying, look, God loves me so much that He's placed me here on this earth to do this, to be the propitiation of your sins.

Vicarious atonement.

So that you don't have to pay the penalty that is rightly yours to pay.

God loves me that much that he put that on me and and I love him.

He's gonna double down on that.

He said, I laid down my life that I may take it up again.

What's he talking about here, church?

This is a prophetic word.

He's gonna be crucified very publicly in Rome.

He's gonna be pulled down.

Uh excuse me, not in Rome in Jerusalem.

He's gonna be pulled down, he's gonna be buried in a borrowed tomb.

Uh, and then from there, three days later, he's going to rise.

Death can't hold him.

He's saying, Look, uh I'm not being forced to do this.

I lay down my life that I may take it up.

No one takes it from me.

I lay it down on my own accord.

I willingly lay down my life for you.

I know you, I love you, I value you, I care for you, I came for you, I am the good shepherd, I am the door, I lay my life down for you, not because it was superimposed on me, but because you matter to me that much.

I have authority to take it up again.

This charge I received from my father.

There was again division among the Jews because of these words.

Many of them said, He has a demon and is insane.

Why listen to him?

And others said, These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon.

Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?

I'm gonna read something to you.

You can turn there if you'd like to in Psalm 23 in your Bible.

It's gonna be just a little less than halfway through your Bible.

Psalm 23.

I thought of this just moments before coming out here, so it's not gonna come up on your screen.

If you're not able to find Psalm 23 right now, then write it down in the margin of your Bible or in your notes and go back and study this week.

I want to read this to you.

And maybe even I just invite you.

About the fine guard and war.

He said, Look at that, even as a young boy.

I thought of mind when they came to the time of the sheep.

So we know that he has done incredible things for the things in the world for the sheep.

He recognizes David knows all the intricacies of what it means to be a shepherd.

Conceptually, I've never been a fireman, but I have an understanding of what they do.

But if I were to talk with a fireman and they were to tell me their job, it's different.

David is not just conceptualizing what a shepherd is or does.

He has been and is a shepherd.

And here's what he says Psalm 23.

A Psalm of David.

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me besides still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

For you, the good shepherd, are with me.

Your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil.

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

And I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

David's commitment to God is so powerful.

He knows God so intimately.

And he understands the characteristics of what God is in David's life, that he actually draws this parallel when describing God, the Lord is my shepherd.

And then he goes on to speak specifically to the characteristics of what a shepherd does.

Not just what a shepherd does, but who a shepherd is.

You see, that's why we've done this series seven.

In this series, we've been building a framework that says that we want to know who Jesus is, what Jesus said, what Jesus did.

Why?

Because when you know who Jesus is, you know whose you are, and the more you know whose you are, you you you understand how you're called to live your life.

What is Jesus saying when he declares, I am the good shepherd?

My sheep know me and I know them.

They know my voice, they follow me.

I lay my life down.

I am the gate.

What is Jesus saying?

Friends, there's four things that a good shepherd does.

The good shepherd guides his sheep.

The good shepherd guides his sheep.

He goes out before the sun is up, while the sheep are still in the pen, while the gatekeeper or the porter is still with the sheep, protecting them, and the good shepherd goes and he scans the lay of the land and he finds the greenest pastures and he finds streams of fresh water, and he looks to make sure that there's no predators that are there that can do harm to the animals.

And then after he has come up with the lay of the land and has a good plan of where he's gonna lead the sheep, he goes back to the sheepfold and he identifies himself with the porter, and the porter lets him in, and the shepherd calls the sheep, he calls them by name and with a specific sound.

They follow his voice, and the shepherd doesn't drive them, he guides them.

A good shepherd guides them.

A good shepherd leads the way in all things.

A good shepherd goes before the flock.

And if a shepherd is gonna ask the church to pray, that shepherd had better be praying.

And if the shepherd is gonna ask the church to tithe, that pastor or that shepherd had better be tithing.

And if the shepherd is gonna ask the church to serve, that shepherd should be serving.

And if the shepherd is gonna ask the church to commit to worship, that shepherd should be worshiping.

We've got a lot of makeshift shepherds.

But listen to me, you find yourself a church with the good shepherd, somebody who is responsive to the good shepherd that is willing to lead the way in all things.

Jesus says, I am the good shepherd.

I'm gonna go prepare a place, I'm gonna come back, I'm gonna call the sheep, they know me by name, I'm gonna guide them, and they follow him.

The second thing that Jesus says that he declares is that a good shepherd guards his flock.

The good shepherd guards his sheep.

He lays his life down as the door.

He doesn't let any sheep out, and he doesn't let any predatory animals in, or he doesn't let any thieves or robbers in.

He is prepared for battle.

He has to stay alert and aware.

Jesus is our good shepherd and he fights our battles for us.

He goes before us, he prepares a table for us in the presence of our enemies.

Jesus, Jesus declares that there will be many battles, but that the war is won, and that he will never leave you and he'll never forsake you.

Jesus declares that he is with you, he is for you.

A good shepherd guards the sheep.

The third thing that a good shepherd does, and Jesus declares, I am the good shepherd, is he gives his life up for his sheep.

Jesus lays down his life, he gives himself for his sheep.

He said, This isn't being forced upon me.

Nobody's making me do this.

I know, I know why God has me here.

In fact, go all the way from me in John 10 to the very end, the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus says, Lord, if there's any other way, God, if you could possibly take this cup from me.

Broken vessels, sweating blood.

Yet not my will but yours be done.

He willingly laid his life down.

And church, catch this to tell us that.

Jesus' final words on the cross.

Father, forgive them.

They don't know what they're doing.

Into your hands, I commit my soul.

It is finished.

The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.

And then finally, the good shepherd gathers others.

He goes and he finds other sheep and he calls them by name.

And he intimately gets to know them.

He spends time in close proximity with them.

And he invites them into the sheepfold.

He goes and he gathers others.

What a revelation.

What a revelation.

What a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful revelation.

There are two types of you sitting in this congregation this morning or watching online.

There's only two types.

The first type is the kind of individual who knows Jesus.

And a sermon like this acts like the Saturday morning newspaper from when I was a kid where the comics would come out.

And when the comics came out, there was always one comic.

I don't remember what it is, forgive me, I'm making this up on the spot.

But characters that would highlight specific characteristics of an individual.

Like if you were to do a character of me, I would have massive arms.

Beautiful complexion.

The best haircut in the room.

It's a character.

You see people depicting others in characters along major city streets, artists that are drawing maybe a young kid or a couple together and they're highlighting attributes, characteristics.

They're called characters.

If you're here this morning and you know Jesus, then I hope today's message has been a caricature for you.

I hope we've painted a beautiful picture of what the Good Shepherd not only does, but who he is to you.

And when you think about Jesus as your good shepherd, you know that he knows you by name.

And you know that those four key primary principles that he guides you, he guards your life, he gives himself for you, and he gathers you and others.

What a gift for us who follow Jesus.

The only other kind of person in this room today is an individual who doesn't know the shepherd.

And who doesn't know the shepherd's qualities or characteristics.

And if you heard Jesus calling you out of the sheepfold, you wouldn't recognize his voice.

Maybe there's too many voices that are diminishing the sound of Jesus calling you.

Maybe there's too many other voices that are disrupting the work that Jesus wants to do in your life.

And you're here because you're interested, you're here because you want to learn more.

Maybe you're here because you're on a genuine journey, or maybe you're here because somebody forced your hand, or you heard about this crazy, good-looking pastor.

I don't know why you're here.

I'm glad you're here, but listen to me.

If you don't know Jesus as your savior, as the good shepherd, I beg you.

The decision to ignore this moment is too costly.

It's eternal.

It ends in hell, eternal torment, eternal separation from our eternal God.

But Jesus loved the world so much that he did not consider equality with God something to behold.

But he came in the form of a servant and he laid his life down because he is the good shepherd.

Would you close your eyes and bow your heads right where you're at?

I want to pray with you.

For those of you who would say, Pastor, I know Jesus is my Lord and Savior.

Just take this moment to thank him.

Just take this moment to declare his righteousness, his goodness, that worthy is the name, Jesus.

He deserves all praise, Jesus.

And thank him for being your good shepherd.

Thank him that he guides you.

Thank him that he guards you.

Thank him that he gives his life for you.

Thank him that he gathers you.

Just take this moment to thank him.

If you're here this morning, you say, Pastor, I don't know.

I don't know that Jesus is my savior.

I've never given my life to him.

I don't know that I can identify with the things you're saying, but I want to.

I want to give my life to Jesus.

I want to have a good shepherd.

I want to have the good shepherd who goes before me, who guides my life, who guards my life, who gives himself up for my life, and who gathers me in my life unto himself.

I don't want you to leave without letting me pray with you either.

So if you're here this morning or you're watching online or you're at one of our campuses, you'd say, Pastor, I want to know Jesus as my Savior.

I want to know Jesus as the good shepherd.

I want to invite you right now where you're at.

With your eyes closed, just with your head bowed.

Where were you saying, would you raise your hand so I can pray for you?

Unapologetically.

Just raise your hand so I can pray with you.

Praise God.

Let's see that hand.

Anybody else?

Father, we thank you so much for your love in our life.

We thank you that you are the good shepherd.

We thank you that you go before us, you guide us.

Thank you that you guard us.

We thank you that you gave your life for us.

We thank you that you gather us unto yourself.

Lord, we may we walk out of here celebrating that we are yours and you are ours.

May we be responsive to your voice, where you're calling us, where you're leading us.

Create a conviction so deep in us that we have to respond and follow your leadership in our lives.

For those of us who are in this room watching online or at another campus that have never made a decision to believe in their heart that you are Lord and confess with your mouth that you have risen from the dead.

God, we we give you our life.

We choose to believe today.

We ask that you come in and fill the hearts, the heads, the minds, the Holy Spirit, the souls of each individual who makes a decision for you today.

In the mighty name of Jesus, we pray.

Amen.