Jesus The - Good Shepherd

My name's Gregg. I'm one of the pastors here.

If we've never met, I would love to meet you,

get to know you, maybe buy you a coffee, or even

if I've known you for a long time and if we haven't

hung out in a while, just let me know. We'd love

to hang out. In four weeks, just after Easter,

so four Sundays from now is Easter on April 5th.

On April 8th, I will begin a three -month -long

sabbatical, and since day one, we've been saying

here as a part of this church that rest matters.

We want everyone to rest, live, and work in a

great house, and so the pastors of this church

also need to know how to rest. The truth is that

no matter how good a pastor like myself gets

at managing Hours and projects and sermon writing,

no matter how much we delegate and empower others,

there is a responsibility that we carry all the

time. Most pastors, including me, can struggle

even when we're not quote -unquote working to

clear our minds of all of the things that we

have responsibility for or with. And so pastors

need a time away, a time... long enough to legitimately

rest our minds and our hearts from the work we

have been doing. So first thing, sabbaticals

are for rest, but sabbaticals are also an exercise

in trust. I was talking to a pastor from another

church, and he was asking about how long this

battle was going to be. And I said, oh, it'll

be the same as last one. It'll be three months.

And he said, well, first of all, he'd never had

a sabbatical in general by choice. But he said,

I cannot fathom being away from the congregation

for that long. And I said, that's probably why

you need to be. Pastors have to learn that we

are not our congregations. And congregations

need to learn that they are not their leaders.

We have to learn that our identities are individual

and that we are together by choice. Congregations

need to know who they are even if their lead

pastor isn't around or if someday someone else

is that lead pastor. Congregation needs to have

their identity wrapped up in Christ, not in the

people that talk up front all the time. So. Leading

up to that, I was thinking about what we want

to talk about. I think that we've done a decent

job of some of those things that I've said already,

but I also think that a sabbatical is the experiment

that forces us to find out just how good we've

gotten at that. So sabbaticals are for rest,

sabbaticals are for the health of both the pastor

and the congregation, and sabbaticals are for

the future. So the church can continue to grow

and be healthy as God guides them and leads them

and brings them back together. I don't want to

just be needed. I would like to come back and

know that, oh, I was wanted. Hey, welcome back.

And so I thought, oh, what should we talk about

leading up to that? And a lot of times you'll

hear me say, like, oh, I would love to have coffee

with you. I would like to talk about Jesus. And

so I think we're going to spend the next few

weeks talking about Jesus. Obviously, we're a

church, so we already do that. But sometimes

we just have, like, okay, we're going to have

a theme or, you know, control all delight. But

I want to talk about Jesus. Jesus the. Jesus

the. And today. It's going to be Jesus, the good

shepherd. What comes to your mind when you hear

Jesus the? Jesus the? The goat. Greatest of all

time. Healer. What's that? Redeemer. In his 1961

book, The Knowledge of the Holy, A .W. Tozer

wrote, what comes into your mind when we think

about God is the most important thing about us.

Spiritual history will demonstrate that no religion

has ever been greater than its idea of God. For

this reason, the gravest question before the

church is always God himself, what their deep

heart conceives God to be like. When we say Jesus

the, what comes to our mind matters. When we

think of God, what comes to our mind matters

because what comes to our mind is what guides

how we act. We believe comes after Jesus the,

or God is, shapes how we care about each other,

shapes everything in our lives. So let's spend

the next three weeks talking about Jesus. Jesus

the, today's Jesus the Good Shepherd. So let's

open up our Bibles to a passage about... the

shepherd. We're going to be in John, John chapter

John 10 · chapter mention

10. It goes Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. John has

found what's called the New Testament. And if

you don't have a Bible, you can have one of the

blue ones on the table or just use it today or

download a Bible from any of the digital app

stores. And we have a tradition of giving the

scriptures our full attention while they're being

read in the context of a sermon. You can do that

any way that means the most to you, but if you'd

like to stand with me as you are able, you are

welcome to do that. In John 10, starting in verse

1, it says this, John 10, 1. Very truly I tell

you, Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the

sheep pen by the gate but climbs in by some other

way is a thief and a robber. The one who enters

by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. opens

the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his

voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads

them out. When he has brought out all of his

own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep

follow him because they know his voice. But they

will never follow a stranger. In fact, they will

run away from him because they do not recognize

a stranger's voice. Jesus used this figure of

speech, but the Pharisees did not understand

what he was telling them. Therefore Jesus said

again, Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for

the sheep. All who have come before me are thieves

and robbers, but the sheep have not listened

to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through

me will be saved. They will come in and go out

and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal

and kill and destroy. I have come that they may

have life and have it to the full. I am the good

shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life

for the sheep. Let us pray. God of every tribe,

every tongue, every color, and every nation,

we thank you for the scriptures that they have

persisted throughout the millennia. We have them

to read, to consider, to learn from. Whatever

you have to teach us today, I pray that it would

stick. Even if it's something that I don't say,

that your spirit brings to... our hearts. Pray

that we would become more like your son, Jesus.

Amen. You can have a seat. Thanks, everyone.

All right, so it is true that sheep will jump

off a cliff if the sheep out in front jump first.

That's true. But believe it or not, it is not

because sheep are dumb. Sheep get a bad rap.

If sheep are jumping off a cliff, they have a

good reason. What do I mean? So Jesus says that

the good shepherd leads out front. The imagery

that he's sharing here is meant to create a contrast

between a good shepherd and a wolf, between a

good shepherd and a slave driver. Because the

good shepherd leads out front, leading the way

to water, leading the way to green pastures,

guiding them away from dangers like cliffs. It's

the thief, it's the wolf that's at the back using

fear to drive sheep to their death. So if sheep

are jumping off cliff, they're probably being

chased by something. My old joke was that when

I'm driving on the road and I see people running,

I'm always like, good for you. Good for you.

Because I'm like, I was like, I think there's

a Bible verse that says, if a man runs with no

one chasing him, he is a fool. Like, I'm just

trying to be scriptural. But if sheep are jumping

off a cliff, there's someone chasing him. They're

not dumb. Sheep can learn the voice of their

shepherd. Jesus didn't say it, that's true. Sheep

learn the voice of the shepherd. They can learn

to ignore every other voice. They can not just

learn the voice, but they learn the face of their

shepherd. Research shows that they can learn

the face of their shepherd and the shepherd's

facial expressions. Not only that, but they can

learn their individual names. And they can learn

the faces and expressions of the other sheep

in their flock. Sheep are not dumb. They just

make bad decisions when they're afraid. I think

my favorite part of this passage is verse 9,

where he says, I am the gate. Whoever enters

through me will be saved. They will come in and

go out and find pasture. It's my favorite because

of the imagery that's hidden in plain sight.

It's something that we wouldn't know because

we live in the West in the 21st century. But

when Jesus says that he is the gate, he doesn't

mean that he's made of wood and he swings on

a hinge, right? He doesn't want us to picture

an actual gate. At the beginning of this passage,

it says that the gate gets opened. And so there's

reason for us to go, oh, yeah, some pens have

actual gates. But it was also common in Eastern

shepherding for a pen to not have a physical

gate. Because when the sheep were home, when

you were close to home, the sheep could come

in and out as they pleased. It's when they were

out in the wilderness, when they were out grazing,

out in other places, that they needed the sheep

to be out in front, leading the way, making sure

that they were safe, but that they were home

at the pen. Come and go. Come in and out. But

at night, the shepherd was the gate. And Eastern

shepherding... The shepherd, there was no gate,

so the shepherd would lay down and sleep in the

gate. So what did Jesus say? The good shepherd

lays down his life. The reason that that's important

is because if the shepherd is asleep over there

somewhere, Let's say this is the pen and the

shepherd's asleep over there somewhere. It's

easy enough for a thief to come and open the

door and pick up a sheep and just walk away with

it. How many times have you walked into your

kitchen and you swear that you closed the refrigerator

door but it's not all the way shut? It's easy

enough for a gate to not get shut perfectly every

single time and for a wolf. To find its way in

and pick off a sheep and drag it off somewhere.

How much more difficult does that sound if an

actual shepherd is sleeping in the gate? Is laying

down in the way. Imagine, you know, like I imagine

the old like black and white, like silent movies,

like the old, like the thief stepping over things

really, really carefully. You know, hey, maybe

you get in. But then imagine carrying a 160 -pound,

200 -pound sheep over a sleeping shepherd in

the gate. Or maybe the wolf jumps over the shepherd

to try to get in. But now imagine that wolf being

able to drag a sheep back out of the pen over

the thing. You may have noticed that wolves probably

have a hard time dragging a sheep up and over

a fence. And as far as I know, sheep have not

developed enough to climb fences effectively.

So it matters that he's laying in the gate because

it adds a sense of safety. The good shepherd

lays down his life between the darkness and their

rest. Lays down his life between the world and

their safety. If you've ever felt like something

was blocking you from going where you wanted

to, remember that the reason that the shepherd

is also sleeping there is so that some restless

sheep doesn't just wander out into the darkness

by themselves. If you've ever had a moment where

you're like, why can't I just go there? Why can't

I get there? Why am I not there yet? Maybe it's

night and you don't know it. Jesus is sleeping.

And the gate is keeping you in a place that's

safe. Waiting for the sun to come up again. When

he can lead you out to pasture. When it's time

for you to come and go as you please. But I'll

take it a step further. Who remembers the parable

of the lost sheep? In Luke 15, Jesus said, suppose

one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one

of them. Doesn't he leave the 99 in the open

country and go after the lost sheep until he

finds it? When he finds it, he joyfully puts

it on his shoulders and goes home. So let me

ask you a question. Who takes responsibility

for the sheep being lost? Say it again. If the

sheep is lost. At least according to this, it

is the shepherd's responsibility to find it.

If you have ever felt lost, and there's plenty

of times I have felt lost, and I'm right there

with you in the idea that we probably played

a part in that. But whose responsibility is it

to find us? The shepherd. The shepherd comes

out to find us. The shepherd comes out to find.

You. Came across this video. You might want to

get your tissues out, okay? Liam, will you play

that video? Just so emotional and moving. Just

save that sheep. Listen, if you end up in a ditch,

the shepherd will take responsibility to find

you and pull you out of the ditch. And if you

jump back into the same ditch, the shepherd will

take responsibility to find you and pull you

out of the ditch. So what do we do with this?

I think that this is why I love what Jennifer

said earlier. You know, let us not neglect the

gathering together. I think the connection with

other Christians matters. I do think that church

attendance matters. Not because you get a gold

star for being at church frequently, but being

together matters. The reality is the reason that

sheep... stick together and end up going off

cliffs sometimes when they're being driven by

fears because they have learned that they need

to be pack animals, that they are safer when

they're together. Because sheep, when they're

out on their own, end up in a ditch. A lot less

likely, if that sheep was a part of the flock

and following the shepherd, a lot less likely

that it's falling into that ditch. But even if

it does, the shepherd will pull. It out. But

I think that connection with other Christians

matters. I think that church attendance does

matter to the life of our faith. I think that

being together matters. And I do not think that

shepherds lead flocks of one. Shepherds go find

single sheep and bring them home. But shepherds

do not lead flocks of one. If the shepherd is

alone with one sheep, it's because that sheep

wandered off. And because the shepherd wants

to bring it back to the flock. Does that make

sense? You are not meant to be alone. We are

not meant to be alone. Because Jesus is a good

shepherd that brought us together. and will continually

find us and try to bring us back. So I'm going

to be gone for three months, starting after Easter.

And one of my jobs of being a pastor is to be

a shepherd of this flock. I am not the good shepherd.

I am one of the shepherds. While I'm gone, Pastor

Jen and Pastor Marissa and all the other team

leaders, they're going to do what they always

do, and they're going to care about you, and

they're going to care about the church. They

will lead with kindness. They will shepherd well.

But let me also commission you, those of you

who are in this room. Because look around. Look

around. Y 'all see some sheep missing, don't

you? There are people that you know and you love.

But you know, okay, this is their home. This

is their church. And you know they're not here

right now. Let me commission you. That there

is a part in the kingdom for you to also shepherd.

To acknowledge, to contact, to say, hey, I'm

missing you. It's not because they're in a ditch.

It may not even be because someone thinks, oh,

I'm good by myself, I don't need community. It

might just be because we're all busy, right?

We all have so many things that come up, so many

things that come along. But let me commission

you to be someone that notices. What did we say?

That sheep don't just learn the voice of their

shepherd and the face of their shepherd. They

learn the faces and expressions of the other

sheep in their flock. Learn the faces and expressions

of the people in your church. Learn the faces

and expressions and the names of the people that

are in your congregation. And be a part. of making

sure they know this is always their home, that

they belong here. Because I'll say this as well.

I was talking to someone the other day. I lead

a pastor cohort. There's nine of us. And I was

just telling one of the guys that's in it, I

was like, I just want you to know, hey, you matter

in this group. Because they were dipping out

sometimes and leaving early. I said, you matter

in this group. They're like, oh, this is... I

don't really feel like this is for me. Like I'm,

you know, I'm happy to be a part of it. But I

go, yeah, but even if you think that, you being

here might be for them. And sometimes we think

like, well, I don't need to go to church. I'm

good. Well, I don't need to go to church very

often. I'm good. Maybe you are. Maybe you're

great. Maybe you're the best that you've ever

been. And you know who needs to know it and see

it? And be encouraged by it, the other people

that are part of your congregation. We don't

all need to come to church because we need something

out of a sermon that day. We need to come to

church and be a part of community because you

might be the sermon someone needs to get something

out of that day. You might be the sheep with

the facial expression that they've just been

waiting to see. You might be the person that

they trust can help pull them out of the ditch

that they feel that they're in. You might be

the reason that they were going to come that

day. Statistics show that there is no age group.

And I'm not talking about age groups in general.

I'm talking about age groups that call themselves

Christians. There is no age group of Christians.

that attends church on average more than 1 .9

times a month. Ten years ago, Barna, based on

research, found that an average churchgoer went

to church three out of every eight Sundays. That's

one and a half times a month. The highest average

is 1 .9. I hope that when I return from sabbatical

towards the end of the summer, that I don't just

see your faces, but I see the faces of the other

people that you drew in, that you reminded that

there's a family for you. There's a church for

you where you matter, where you belong, where

no one is left out. If you're a prodigal, you

can come home. If you're spiritually homeless,

you can be adopted. If you don't know where to

go, you can go here. I hope that I come back

surprised, not even knowing people. I hope that

I come back and that I have 25 new coffee appointments

I have to make so that I can meet all the new

people that you all went out and found. Even

if they're people that you know were already

a part of the church and you just haven't seen

them very often. Because there's something about

us being together. Amen? There's something about

not neglecting the gathering of the believers.

Amen? And there's something about us all together

knowing the voice of the good shepherd and following

the good shepherd together. Amen? Let's pray.

Jesus, we thank you that you are the good shepherd.

That in all the ways that we are not, that you

are. That you always lead with kindness. You

always speak with fairness. You always grab us

by our back ankle and pull us up out of ditches.

I pray that we would learn your voice. And that

we would learn each other's faces. And that we

would flock together as we follow you as closely

as we can. Coming and going, in and out of the

pen as needed. But especially in the night, trusting

that you are in the gate. Laying your life down.

Amen.