April 26, 2026 | The Voice of the Shepherd

This is the holy gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to John.

Glory to you, Lord Christ.

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 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 strangers.

This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not 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 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 be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

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

This is the gospel of the Lord.

Praise to you, Lord Christ.

Father God, we ask you for your grace to recognize the voice of Jesus among us this morning.

That your spirit would move in our hearts, in our minds, making the voice of our shepherd known personally to us this morning.

And we ask this in the great and mighty name of your Son Jesus.

Amen.

You can be seated.

Well, I'm sure some of y'all are familiar with the actor James Earl Jones.

He actually passed away a couple years ago.

For those of you that aren't familiar with James Earl Jones, you know that you might know him from the famous movie series Star Wars, where he was the voice of the villain Darth Vader.

Luke, I am your father.

I can't do it justice this morning.

Forgive me, James Earl Jones.

But there's something incredible about his voice, probably one of the more recognizable voices in the world, and probably will remain familiar to a lot of people for many years to come.

When I hear the voice of James Earl Jones, though, I don't have to see him speaking to know it's him.

He's got this unique voice that's clear, unmistakable.

And that's the thing I want to talk about this morning.

God wants his voice in our lives to be in a similar position.

That his voice would be unique, unmistakable, a familiar voice that we can't miss, that we truly know.

That's what we're going to talk about this morning as we look at this passage from the Gospel of John, where Jesus describes our relationship with God in terms of a shepherd, a good shepherd taking care of his sheep.

A shepherd who is determined to lead and protect and care for every need that they have.

You know, sheep need a lot of protection.

Sheep are pretty vulnerable creatures.

There are all kinds of threats to a sheep, not just obvious ones that you might think of, like wolves or mountain lions, but also things like thieves and robbers, the ones that Jesus describes in this picture of shepherd and the sheep.

Sheep need protection.

They're very vulnerable.

And Jesus describes how in many cases the sheep are kept in a fold, right?

For further protection that's walled, and there's only a gate, one access point in and out.

It's a place where the sheep find a sense of security and peace and rest.

Because not only do they have the walls surrounding them, but they have that shepherd standing at the doorway.

And the interesting thing is that Jesus describes himself as the door.

There's no way to get in without somebody going through me.

It's this beautiful picture of the shepherd protecting his sheep.

Not only is the shepherd protecting the sheep, but he leads and guides the sheep.

Maybe some of us need some guidance and direction in our lives.

Maybe we have, we're realizing we don't have it all figured out, that maybe we're not as good at managing our own lives as we might have thought.

We need some leadership and guidance and direction in our lives.

And this kind of shepherd is there to provide that.

He says, when it says in verse 4, he says, When the shepherd leads out, calls out all of his known, he goes before them.

It's this beautiful picture.

He goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.

There's a sense that Jesus wants to be that shepherd in our life.

He wants to lead us and guide us and direct us.

He's actually going before us.

Have you ever thought about your relationship with Jesus in those terms that he's going ahead of you, maybe even to tomorrow, that you're so worried and concerned and anxious about?

He's already there.

He's going ahead of you, he's going before you to lead you and guide you and direct you into good things.

Not only that, he's there to protect us, right?

Now, there's some obvious threats that we talked about, but uh it's a metaphor for our lives.

And so how does it relate to our lives personally?

Well, number one, Jesus says he's gonna protect us from the greatest threat of sin and death.

We have this problem as human beings.

We we don't do what we ought to do, we don't give God what he deserves.

It's sin in our lives and it's destructive, it's damaging, not just to us, but to people around us.

It results ultimately in death.

And Jesus says, I can protect you from that if you come into me because I'm the door.

And as he says at the very end of that passage that we read this morning, anyone who enters by me, he will be saved.

He will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

But not only that, it's not just in a spiritual and a fundamental sense, but he wants to be that protector in every area of our lives.

Not just physically, but spiritually, guarding our hearts and our minds against enemies and threats that come against us every day in our lives.

I want to talk about the shepherd a little bit more in terms of his leadership and protection through knowing his voice.

Because that's how the sheep follow.

They know the voice of the shepherd.

They're following a voice.

They're not just looking at the shepherd physically, they're listening for his voice in their lives.

There's three things that are important to know about the voice of the shepherd.

Three things.

The first one is Jesus' voice is personal.

Jesus' voice is personal.

The shepherd calls his sheep by name.

Calls his own sheep that belong to him by name.

There's a personal connection that Jesus has with each and every one of us.

He knows your name.

He knows you.

You have a unique place in his life, a unique opportunity to relate to the shepherd like nobody else does.

And so God doesn't just speak to his sheep with a word for everyone.

He will speak to you personally.

Because he knows your personality, he knows the unique way that you see the world, that you see yourselves.

He knows your unique personality, the way you process things.

And he wants to speak to you in a way that is familiar to you and personal to you.

Because he values relationship, the shepherd with his sheep.

Now, even though he speaks personally to all of us, that doesn't mean we necessarily understand everything he's saying.

The disciples didn't understand everything that Jesus was describing in this parable, in this passage about the shepherd and the sheep.

He had to go on to explain, to help them to understand.

And I'm not sure they even fully understood in this moment.

Maybe not until later, that this picture of the shepherd and the sheep really came to life for them.

When we don't understand, though, we need to pursue the shepherd.

We need to go after the shepherd.

We need to personally engage with him and ask him questions.

I'm not sure what that meant, Lord.

I'm not sure what you're saying at this particular point in my life.

I'm getting a sense you're leading me in this direction, but I need confirmation.

I need some help.

Jesus will speak to us personally, but it also requires our own personal engagement with him to fully understand what he's saying and get the most out of it.

That's number one.

Number two, Jesus' voice reflects his nature.

Jesus' voice will always reflect Jesus' nature.

Back to verse 4 where it says, He has brought out all his own.

Jesus is not just talking about hearing his voice, he's talking about them knowing his voice.

That word knowing carries with it a sense of personal connection and relationship, knowing somebody on a deeper level.

For us to really recognize the voice of Jesus in our life, we need to know the nature of Jesus.

We need to come to know the person of Jesus more completely, more deeply in our lives.

For us to be able to recognize, oh, that's you, Jesus.

One of the ways that we do that is by studying the life of Jesus in this book called the Bible.

We've got a wealth of stories about Jesus that reflect his nature and help us to get to know who he is.

What's important to Jesus?

How do people handle different kinds of people in the Bible?

What gets Jesus excited?

What makes Jesus angry or frustrated?

The Bible helps us get to know the person of Jesus.

And the better we get to know the person of Jesus, the easier it will be for us to recognize his voice when it's speaking, when he's speaking to us.

Because his voice always reflects his nature.

So, for example, if we have a thought coming into our minds, one way to test whether that thought is coming from Jesus or someplace else is to ask ourselves the question: Does that sound like Jesus?

Does that sound like something Jesus would say?

Does that sound like something he would encourage me to do or not to do?

That's a question I often ask.

Does that sound like Jesus?

If I get a thought going through my mind or a picture or an idea, is that his voice speaking to me?

And a lot of times when I know it's him, it's it's this sense of that sounds like you.

Based on what I know about you, Jesus, from my experience with you and my study of you and what you've done in my life, that sounds like you.

It's consistent with my experience of his nature.

Okay, so that's number two.

Jesus' voice is consistent with his nature.

And we need that because there are many competing voices in our lives, aren't there?

There's all kinds of voices trying to influence us or define us or direct us, lead us in our lives.

Voices like the ones that Jesus described, the thief and the robber.

Who's he talking about?

Well, one of the things that he's talking about is the reality of spiritual warfare in our lives, the presence of a spiritual battle and enemy in our lives that wants to seek to do what?

To kill, steal, and destroy.

Voices that want to derail us, want us to get off of the path and into the woods and into the thicket, into the thorns, into the weeds.

Jesus doesn't want that to happen.

Most important thing is not really learning the voice of those thieves and robbers, it's knowing his voice.

It's knowing the genuine, authentic voice of Jesus that will help us in those moments.

Is that me?

Is that the enemy?

Is that just the world speaking?

Or is that Jesus?

Because I want to hear that voice.

I want to follow that voice.

I know that voice and where it wants to lead me, which is the third and final thing.

Okay, we talked about Jesus, first of all.

We'll speak in a personal way.

We talked about how Jesus' voice reflects his nature.

And the last thing is that Jesus' voice always leads in the direction of life.

Jesus' voice will always lead us in the direction of life.

I came that you might have life and have it abundantly, he said.

I came that you might have life and have it abundantly.

Now, one of the challenges for us as human beings is that we define life very differently than he does.

What we think is life really isn't life.

It isn't the kind of life that Jesus is talking about when he said, I came that you might have life and have it abundantly.

That's the kind of life I want for you.

We don't, we we need to learn what that life looks like.

And we need to learn that that life is a whole lot better than the one we're settling for in our lives right now.

When Jesus speaks to you, that voice is leading you in the direction of life.

And in a life of abundance.

That's the word he uses here.

It's the Greek word is parisos, and it can mean over and above, greater, excessive.

Makes me think about when I used to visit my grandparents in the summer and going to the grocery store with my granny.

It was an excessive experience.

It was an abundant.

She didn't want to just get stuff for me.

She wanted to get the all of it, you know?

She wanted to spoil me.

And I'm not saying that's what Jesus is saying here, that he wants to spoil us, but I'm saying that what he wants in terms of life is so much bigger and greater than we often would imagine or are you even used to or expect.

That's the kind of life that Jesus wants to bring us.

And it's not just life in terms of our physical needs and physical protection, but it's more importantly our spirit and our souls that he wants to take care of and to lead into a life-giving experience in relationship with him, where we're enjoying the kind of life we were designed for in relationship with God, where we do hear his voice, maybe even on a daily basis, speaking to us through all kinds of different ways and different people, and through his book, through the word of God.

He wants to bring life.

Think about creation and how that speaks to the kind of abundant life he wants.

Think about the multitude of different kinds of trees and plants and animals and species that he's filled this earth with.

Think about the most beautiful place on earth that you've ever been or seen or visited.

That's the kind of abundant life.

It's a little glimpse, a little reflection of the kind of life that he wants us to experience spiritually in relationship with him.

Jesus' voice is personal.

He knows you by name.

He will speak to you personally if you're looking for him and listening for him in your life.

Number two, Jesus' voice always reflects his nature.

Get to know Jesus.

Get to know him, pursue him, read about him, spend time with other people that seem to really know this guy, Jesus.

And then lastly, recognize that Jesus' voice, when you're trying to discern is that him or not, is always going to lead you in the direction of life.

Let me just give you a quick example.

Jesus' voice is never going to lead me into a sense of condemnation.

His voice is never going to lead me into a sense of condemnation that I'm condemned because I'm not as one of his sheep.

He might challenge me at times.

He might want to warn me about certain things going on in my life that are destructive and could potentially steal away the joy and the peace and the love and the goodness of God that he wants me to experience.

But his voice is never going to bring condemnation in my life.

You know, David, David knew this voice.

King David knew the voice of Jesus before he even stepped foot on this planet.

And he describes how he's known God through that beautiful Psalm, Psalm 23.

David wasn't just talking about God based on things he'd heard about him.

He was talking about God in this psalm based on his experience with God.

Brings me a sense of peace and rest when I really need it.

This is the kind of shepherd that leads me beside still waters to bring me refreshment and true satisfaction from his waters.

The kind of shepherd that restores my soul.

This is the kind of shepherd that wants to lead me down a path of righteousness for his name's sake.

The kind of shepherd that will correct me at times and say, what you did isn't right, David.

But that's not the path of righteousness in life.

The kind of shepherd that leads us through the valley of the shadow of death.

With his rod and staff that bring us a sense of comfort.

Even when we're surrounded by enemies, this is just a beautiful picture, isn't it?

That David gives.

He prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

He anoints my head with oil, and my cup overflows.

What are you going through in your life?

What kind of enemies are you facing right now?

Is it possible that Jesus could be calling you to sit down at a table, even in the presence of your enemies, to anoint you with his presence, to fill your cup to overflowing so that you can face the battle?

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

That's where the shepherd wants to lead us and guide us and direct us.

We need to get to know Jesus better if we want to know his voice, though.

If we want to be able to follow his lead in our lives, we need to take steps.

It's probably different for each person here this morning.

What that looks like.

Is it spending more time reading about Jesus and about the testimony of the Son of God in the scripture?

Is it spending more time with other people that really know him?

Being in community?

Is it just sitting down with Jesus and talking to him as if he's real?

Imagine that.

As if he's a real person that might even talk back.

That might even have something to say to you.

What are the different, what's the step for you this morning?

I don't know what it is, but the Holy Spirit does, and I bet he's going to speak to you.

He's going to give you a clue.

You might not fully understand it.

Maybe you'll talk to somebody else about it that knows him and ask them, what do you think he's saying to me?

Where do you think he's guiding and directing my life right now?

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

But Jesus came that we might have life.

And not just life.

Hey, I've got a pulse.

Hooray! I'm alive.

But life.

Abundant life.

Let's pray.

Jesus, this is such a beautiful picture of what you desire to enjoy with us.

To be your sheep.

Maybe I don't want to be a sheep sometime.

Maybe I want to be strong and independent and take care of myself.

But we know, so many of us know that that doesn't end well.

It doesn't go in the direction of life.

Help us to be good sheep.

Help us to be vulnerable with you.

Help us to be dependent on you.

Help us to recognize our neediness for your leadership and your protection in our lives.

And help us to see, Holy Spirit, that your ways and your leadership always go in the direction of life.

Help us to hear that voice more clearly, Jesus.

Help us to know the person behind the voice more completely.

And lead us, Jesus.

Lead us as a church, lead us individually into that abundant life that you long for us to enjoy.

Give us the grace to do all these things in Jesus' mighty name.

Amen.