The Good Shepherd

I Am Series Week 4

Good morning, church family, We are in John 10 today and we are in week 4 of our I AM series of Christ.

How ya’ll doing? Ya look great. Look better rested than you did on Wednesday night.

Whoever put Time Change, Florida/Georgia Weekend, and the Election, all together was not doing us any favors.

I don’t know about ya’ll but I need a week from this week.

and we’ve got 3 weeks before Thanksgiving.

and in case ya’ll didn’t know, that's 3 weeks before you are allowed to put up Christmas decorations.

The Bible says, “To him who putteth up Christmas ornaments before Thanksgiving, thy turkey will be as dry as the ground and thy mac and cheese will be as watery as the Jordan.” That’s in the book of I-say-so, Chapter 3

But really- this is always an easy month to remember all that we have to be thankful for. The Lord has blessed each and everyone of us far more than we ever deserved and He has put His hand of blessing upon this Church.

One of the things, I have done throughout my time as a pastor, and I would encourage you to do it as well- keep a gratitude list.

It can be anything you want it to be on your list.

On my list own list- I have My salvation- If God doesn’t do anything else in my entire life, He has done far more abundantly than I ever deserve by sending His son to die on the cross for my sins.

I also- Have Blair and Judah on my list. My parents, my brothers, the memories I have of my Grandfather Chambers and the godly presence he was in my life,

I also have my in-laws- I know not everyone would have that one but I have the greatest in-laws. One of these days, I’m going to kidnap my mother-in-law from her church and bring her here.

I’m also thankful for sweet tea, Lord of the Rings, and Dunkin Iced Coffee.

I have 37 things I am thankful for. I add one for every year of life.

I would encourage ya’ll to keep a list as well, because when life gets hard, and as ya’ll know, life will get hard, we need to remember all that God has blessed us with and all that we have to be thankful for.

In June, when I turned 37, I added to the last. I wrote that I am thankful for being called to Cedar Bay Baptist Church.

It has been such a blessing being able to call this church home and being able to do the work of the ministry along side each and every one of you.

That gratitude list is a great reminder that we serve a God who loves us, who takes care of us, and who provides for us.

This is one of the most beautiful truths in the Bible. We can can have a relationship with a perfect holy God.

The Best of A. W. Tozer, Book Two Chapter 13: Apprehending God

Over against all this cloudy vagueness stands the clear scriptural doctrine that God can be known in personal experience. A loving Personality dominates the Bible, walking among the trees of the garden and breathing fragrance over every scene. Always a living Person is present, speaking, pleading, loving, working, and manifesting Himself whenever and wherever His people have the receptivity necessary to receive the manifestation

The pagan world was always haunted by the unknowability of God.

At best, men could but grope after his mystery. “It is hard,” said Plato, “to investigate and to find the framer and the father of the universe. And, if one did find him, it would be impossible to express him in terms which all could understand.”

Aristotle spoke of God as the supreme cause, by all men dreamed of and by no man known.

The ancient world did not doubt that there was a God or gods, but it believed that such gods as there might be were quite unknowable and only occasionally interested in mankind. In a world without Christ, God was a mystery and power, desirable but never known.

Consider the historical accounts of great leaders like Abraham, Elijah, Isaiah, David and Moses, who encountered God in the burning bush.

These encounters weren’t just mere coincidences but divine orchestrations meant to reveal God’s plan. Each time God interacted with humanity, He shared more of Himself to guide us toward understanding His character and expectations.

Just as those figures had to respond to God’s revelation, we too are called to be attentive and responsive to His call in our lives today.

And the best way for us to know God and to be in a position to respond to what He is calling us to do is to know His word.

The source of all our troubles is in not knowing the Scriptures.

John Chrysostom

And we have several ways, you can diver deeper into the scriptures here at Cedar Bay.

We have Small groups- we are walking through the book of Acts right now.

We have a men’s class, a women’s class, and a couple’s class.

We also have a men’s Bible Study on Tuesday Nights were we are walking through the book of Ephesians. And on Wednesday Nights we are diving deeper in the book of Genesis and seeing how Christ is on every page of the Bible.

In the bulletins, we also have a Bible reading plan, which helps us dive into the Word in preparation for the messages on Sunday.

Its so important to know God’s Word because if we don’t the enemy has an easy way in.

And you might be going, well God just speaks to me and tells me, I just know when God is telling me.

Here’s the thing- The Bible is God’s Word. And if you know Scripture and treasure it in your heart- God will bring them forth to our mind.

John Owens said it really well-

"If private revelations agree with Scripture, they are needless; and if they disagree, they are false."

As Christians, there should not be anything more important than knowing God’s Holy Word.

John Wesley asked questions to his congregation and I want to ask them to you as we are about to read John 10.

The Father sent His son to be our Good Shepherd.

Is your heart whole with God? Full of love and zeal to set up his kingdom on earth? Do you continually remind those under your care, that the one rational end of all our studies is to know, love, and serve “the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom he has sent.

We can know God’s Word but it is so much more than knowing God’s Word, we delight in it, meditate on it, store it in our hearts so we do not sin against God.

Is your heart whole with God? Are we here, to do the work of the ministry?

With these questions in mind, let us now turn our attention to John 10:11-21

John 10:11–21 (ESV)

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

12 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, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,

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

16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

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

18 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 have received from my Father.”

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

20 Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?”

21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Let us pray.

And as we saw last week, when we looked at Jesus saying I am the Door, Jesus said

John 10:3 ESV

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

He is our Good Shepherd.

and in these verses, Jesus tells the Pharisees and the crowd that He is the good shepherd.

When Jesus says, “I am the Good Shepherd,” he is telling us he has to be everything to us.

Timothy Keller

For Jesus to be our Good Shepherd means that He has a deep, personal relationship with us. We are His Sheep if that is the case and as we heard last week the sheep know His voice.

And what does our Good Shepherd do for us? He lay’s down his life for His Sheep.

So lets look at our first truth as revealed in the scriptures.

1. The Good Shepherd’s Sacrificial Love

John 10:11–13 (ESV)

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

12 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, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

In ancient Rome, gladiators were often treated as nothing more than hired hands, fighting for the amusement of crowds. Some would fight valiantly, but many would abandon their fellow combatants in hopes of saving themselves.

This historic view of betrayal starkly parallels Christ’s parable of the Good Shepherd versus the hired hands. When the wolves of temptation come, who will stand with us, and who will flee?

Its one of the reasons that the ancient Romans would keep family members together when they went to war with other nations. They would form that shield wall and next to you would be your family. You’d have your dad, sons, brothers, all around you to keep you from being scared and running off.

They weren’t going to run off if there son was next to them. Because if they were to run off, your son is going to die. So you better stay and fight with all you got.

If a random dude was next to you, you might be in big trouble when it came time to fight.

In the Bible, we see Jesus not only as the Good Shepherd but as the ultimate sacrifice for us. This moment as He lay down His life reveals the stark contrast between true shepherds and hired hands.

When the sheep are in imminent danger, the shepherd gives his life to save them.

Jesus calls Himself “the Good Shepherd” because He is the genuine shepherd in contrast to the false shepherds and hired hands who over the centuries had exploited God’s people.

Remember that civil rulers such as kings, princes, and governors were called shepherds, even though many of them were more like wolves and robbers (Isa. 56:9–12; Ezek. 34).

The promised Messiah was to be a loving shepherd (Isa. 40:9–11; Ezek. 34:20–24), and Jesus is that Messiah. The word translated “good” in “good shepherd” carries the meanings of “noble, praiseworthy, desirable, and pleasing to God.” Jesus qualifies.

Sheep are mentioned in the Bible over three hundred times, more than any other animal. It may be embarrassing to some believers to learn that sheep are defenseless animals and prone to go astray. (They have poor eyesight and tend to follow other sheep without thinking.)

Sheep can also be very stubborn. I don’t know anything about that one.

They are ceremonially clean animals and were frequently offered for sacrifices. The Jewish people raised sheep primarily for the wool, milk, and lambs, and they slaughtered sheep for food only on special festive occasions.

Christ’s sheep are called “his own sheep” (John 10:3–4) and “my sheep” (vv. 14, 26–27) because He claims them as His flock.

They are His because the Father gave them to Him (v. 29; see also John 17:2, 6, 9, 24) and because He purchased them when He died on the cross (10:11, 15, 17–18; see also 13:37–38; 1 John 3:16). “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13).

But Jesus laid down His life for rebellious sinners who were His enemies (Rom. 5:6–10)! “You are not your own; you were bought at a price” (1 Cor. 6:19–20).

Remember- Jesus is still talking to the Pharisees and Jewish leaders when, He is telling them I am the good shepherd.

Jesus is different from the religious leaders in many ways. Jesus points to their relationship with the sheep and says in effect, “You’re simply hired hands” (v. 12).

To them tending the sheep was a job, a way to make extra cash.

If tending the sheep is your job, what happens when the predator attacks the flock in the middle of the night?

You run, and you don’t look back! As long as you’re faster than the slowest sheep, you’re fine. Those sheep are not yours, and no job (and definitely no sheep) is worth losing your life.

A hired hand loves his life more than he loves the sheep.

But Jesus is not a hired hand. These sheep are his, and he loves them more than he loves his life. That’s why he lays down his life to protect his sheep. Five times in four verses Jesus promises to lay down his life for the sheep (vv. 11, 15, 17, 18).

Jesus is the hero of the story. When he sees the wolf coming, he doesn’t run away. He steps in front of the sheep.

He will not allow anything to hurt or harm his sheep. No price is too great to pay for his sheep. What are the dangers to the sheep that Jesus must fight?

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, gave his life to protect his sheep from predators—from sin, from judgment, and from death. He didn’t die simply to be an example or to demonstrate the depth of his love. He died because his sheep were in real danger. He died in our place, and by his death we are saved (Isa 53:6).

In ancient times, a king would demonstrate his love for his people by going to battle against their enemies. He would risk everything, even his own life, to protect his subjects.

Jesus did just that for us. His death on the cross was not just a moment in history; it was the ultimate act of selfless love.

Where does that leave us? Are we shepherdless? Are the wolves just able to get into the sheepfold?

I like the way John Piper says it: “The story doesn’t end with a mangled shepherd lying dead among three dead wolves, and sheep scattered thirsting and starving in the desert” (“I Have Authority”).

Jesus’s death defeated sin and death and judgment because he did not stay dead (John 10:17–18). He arose and continues to shepherd his sheep. Jesus is a victorious, risen, and living shepherd.

This is a world of uncertainty, we can be certain about Jesus. His body and blood bought our lives, and his body and blood made it possible to we can have life eternal in Him.

This is our Shepherd. This is our Lord and Savior.

This is the one who knows us, the one who lays down his life for us. All that is required of anyone who would be loved by him is that they turn to Jesus from sin.

In a 2012 interview with Rolling Stone, Bob Dylan explained that he couldn’t identify with the 1960s, and he communicated his frustration with those who wanted to use him as the spokesman for their radical politics. Then there is a telling exchange where the reporter asserts that Dylan’s audience loves him. Dylan, however, knows that what the audience loves is not him but what they think he is, what he means to them:

The flip side is, there’s also the audience that really loves you.

Of course. They think they do. They love the music and songs I play, not me.

Why do you say that?

Because that’s the way people are. People say they love a lot of things, but they really don’t. It’s just a word that’s been overused. When you put your life on the line for somebody, that’s love. But you’ll never know it until you’re in the moment. When someone will die for you, that’s love, too.

John 3:16 (ESV)

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

If Jesus is the Good Shepherd, the one who willingly layed down his life for us, then what you need to do is simple: we follow Jesus.

Don’t look elsewhere. Don’t wander away.

Recognize that in him we have everything we would ever need.

When we’re tired, he brings us to rest in green pastures.

When we’re thirsty, he guides us to the refreshing spring.

When we’re uncertain, he leads us on the paths of righteousness.

Why? Not because we are awesome but Because He is awesome. It’s for His name sake.

When we’re afraid, he comforts us with his presence.

Follow the good shepherd. As you follow him, goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life, and on his timetable he will lead you to his house where you will dwell with him forever.

PAUSE

But as the old beautiful hymn “come thou font” says “prone to wander Lord I feel it, Prone to leave the God I love.”

Perhaps all hymns are to some extent autobiographical in that they reveal something of the author’s spiritual experience. I

n some hymns, the autobiographical thread is stronger and more obvious. Such is the case with Robert Robinson, He wrote the hymn. He was a British Baptist hymn writer. Before that, he was a barber’s apprentice, who fell under the powerful influence of George Whitefield’s preaching.

He would go on to become a baptist pastor. At some point in his life, he gotten away from the Lord, and spent the last several years disillusioned, wandering farther and farther away from the God that He had once loved so much.  His love for God—that was once so hot and passionate—had slowly burned out leaving him dark and cold inside.

On one occasion, years later,he found himself the fellow passenger of a young lady on a stagecoach. It is reported that she began to sing to break the monotony of the trip. And what did she sing?

"Come, thou fount of every blessing,

As she finished singing the young woman asked Roberts what he thought about the song.

His startling reply was: "Madam, I am the unhappy man who wrote that hymn many years ago; and, I would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, if I could feel now as I felt then."

She responded with Psalm 37:4

Psalm 37:4 ESV

4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

But we are prone to wander, and that’s why it is so important to be around fellow Christians, who will pray for you, be there for you in times of crisis.

Think of the times in your own life when you’ve encountered those who were quick to leave in your crisis—friends or family who stepped away when you needed them most.

Those are the hired hands. Jesus calls us to be like Him, standing firm even when the wolves come.

Christ’s sheep are called “his own sheep” (John 10:3–4) and “my sheep” (vv. 14, 26–27) because He claims them as His flock.

They are His because the Father gave them to Him (v. 29; see also John 17:2, 6, 9, 24) and because He purchased them when He died on the cross (10:11, 15, 17–18; see also 13:37–38; 1 John 3:16).

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13). But Jesus laid down His life for rebellious sinners who were His enemies (Rom. 5:6–10)! “You are not your own; you were bought at a price” (1 Cor. 6:19–20).

Our Lord’s death is mentioned several times in John’s gospel, and each text reveals something special about that death.

He died sacrificially: “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (1:29). Under the old covenant, the sheep died for the shepherds; but under the new covenant, the shepherd died for the sheep. Who but God knows how many lambs were sacrificed during Israel’s national history? But Jesus in one act of sacrifice died for the sins of the whole world, once and for all!

He died brutally, like a building torn down and left in ruins (John 2:18–22). Crucifixion was the most barbaric form of execution, and Psalm 22:1–21 and Isaiah 52:14 give us some indication of the price Jesus paid to save His sheep. Like the serpent lifted up on the pole (Num. 21:4–9; John 3:14–15), Jesus was lifted up on the cross and died shamefully. Imagine the holy Son of God identifying with a cursed serpent!

But He died willingly (John 10:11–18). He laid down His life. Would you be willing to give your life to rescue a sheep? What driver would risk his life to keep from hitting a sheep on the highway? A human is worth more than a sheep, yet Jesus loved us enough to die for us.

He died triumphantly (John 12:20–29). The seed was planted in the ground, and it produced a beautiful, bountiful harvest to the glory of the Father. He laid down His life that He might take it up again in glorious resurrection (10:17–18)! He did this for us so that we might be His sheep and be able to say from our hearts, “My beloved is mine and I am his” (Song 2:16; see also 6:3).

Hired hands take care of the sheep primarily because they get paid for it, but they have no personal love for the flock.

When wolves and thieves show up, hired hands run away and hide, and the enemies are free to ravage the flock. But Jesus owns us, and He proved His love by dying for us! We belong to Him and therefore ought to follow Him and do His will.

At a time in life when pioneer missionary C. T. Studd should have been planning for retirement, he was heading for Africa.

When a newspaper reporter asked him why, he replied, “If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.”

Jesus owns His sheep.

If they follow Him, they experience the abundant life He alone can give. “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). If they don’t follow Him, they forfeit life to the full and have only emptiness; and the Shepherd must discipline them, which is not a pleasant experience.

2. The Good Shepherd's Intimate Connection

John 10:14–15 (ESV)

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,

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

In Scripture, “to know” means much more than to be able to identify a person or a thing by name.

On our way home for Judah’s baseball game Friday night, we were playing 20 questions with him.

We are asking all the things.

It was a person.

He knew them, we might know them.

We narrowed it down as much as we could. We named everyone we could think of.

20 questions, was 50 questions before we gave up.

The person he knew- Michael Jordan.

He said he was a bald black man with a beard. I said- almost. He only has a mustache.

So, the way Judah uses know and when the Bible says to know is very different.

In Bible language, “to know” involves intimacy, a deep understanding of the person or object involved. It means to be chosen, to be loved. In the original Hebrew text, the word know describes the intimate love between husband and wife.

In Warren Wiersbe’s Meet Yourself in the Psalms, he talks about a frontier town where a horse bolted and ran away with a wagon carrying a little boy. Seeing the child in danger, a young man risked his life to catch the horse and stop the wagon.

The child who was saved grew up to become a lawless man, and one day he stood before a judge to be sentenced for a serious crime. The prisoner recognized the judge as the man who, years before, had saved his life; so he pled for mercy on the basis of that experience.

But the words from the bench silenced his plea, “Young man, then I was your savior; today I am your judge, and I must sentence you to be hanged.”

One day Jesus will say to rebellious sinners, “During that long day of grace, I was the Savior, and I would have forgiven you. But today I am your Judge. Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire!”

At the time of judgment, Jesus will say to those who masqueraded as believers, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Matt. 7:23; see also 25:12).

It is not enough to know about Christ, it is knowing Christ Himself that alone saves the soul!

Knowing And Believing, Volume 58, Sermon #3331 - 2 Timothy 1:12

Charles Spurgeon

One of my favorite quotes is from Pastor Jerry Vines from FBC downtown.

“A lot of people are going to miss Heaven by 18 inches.”

They have the head knowledge but not the heart knowledge.

Do not let that be any of us. The sheep know His voice and respond to it.

Eastern shepherds knew the name of each sheep and could call it out of the fold each morning.

But the shepherds also knew the nature of each sheep: those that were prone to wander, those that wanted their own way, those that delayed obeying their shepherd’s commands. Because the shepherds possessed this kind of knowledge, they were better able to care for the flock.

But the sheep also knew their shepherd!

Just as children come to understand their parents better and their friends, their teachers, so sheep learn to “read” their shepherd’s voice and gestures. They know when he is warning them, when he is calling them together, and when he is simply reminding them that he is watching.

For Jesus to compare His relationship with His sheep to His relationship with His Father is quite remarkable.

It reminds me of what Jesus said to His Father when He concluded His prayer recorded in John 17:26

John 17:26 (ESV)

26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

The Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus!

The better we get to know Jesus and the Father, the more we will love God and experience His love in our hearts, and the better we will obey Him.

The shepherds had a loving relationship with their sheep, the kind of relationship we should have with our Good Shepherd. As we study the Word, worship, fellowship, and obey the Shepherd, we come to know Him and also ourselves better.

It encourages me to know that my Shepherd knows and understands me thoroughly and still loves me and cares for me.

Psalm 139:1–3 (ESV)

1 O Lord, you have searched me and known me!

2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar.

3 You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways.

Albert Einstein’s wife was asked if she understood Dr. Einstein’s mathematical theories, and she replied, “No, but I understand Dr. Einstein.”

The apostle Paul had been saved for thirty years, and had seen Christ in His glory, and yet he wrote, Philippians 3:10 “I want to know Christ” (Phil. 3:10). He prayed that the Christians in Ephesus might “know him better” (Eph. 1:17), a prayer we should be praying daily.

3. The Good Shepherd's Sovereign Authority

John 10:17–18 (ESV)

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

18 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 have received from my Father.”

Notice two things in this statement. First, Jesus was under no obligation to sacrifice himself for sinners.

That’s why it’s called grace.

God’s Riches at Christ’s expense.

He willingly lays down his life.

Second, though the Jews would hand him over and the Romans would crucify him, this was only possible because he let them (see 19:10–11). No one takes the life of the Son of God. He lays it down voluntarily.

And this is why the Father loves [him]—because he is willing to give his life in obedience to the Father’s command and in love for sinners (10:17–18). Believers benefit from this divine love between Father and Son, as we live in obedience

The Man who died on the cross died in weakness. The Bible is plain in telling us this. But He arose in power. If we forget or deny the truth and glory of His resurrection and the fact that He is seated at the right hand of God, we lose all the significance of the meaning of Christianity!2

A. W. Tozer

Jesus explains why the Father loves him: because he dies on behalf of the sheep and will rise from the dead.

When we see someone make sacrifices for another, our respect and appreciation and esteem grows for the one making the sacrifices.

When Jesus says that he lays down his life “that [he] may take it up again,” he speaks of his death and resurrection.

Jesus will die, giving everything he has to give in his earthly life so that he can rise from the dead to a glorified and indestructible life.

The Father’s love for Jesus multiplies from the Son’s delight in and agreement with this plan of salvation that he is willing to give everything to accomplish.

Father Maximillian Colby was part of the German resistance to the Nazi movement.

He’d been public with his objection to the Nazi regime, and in 1941 he was sitting at his desk praying when Nazis burst into his home and arrested him for publishing unauthorized material.

He was sentenced to the notorious Auschwitz camp. Conditions there were harsh, and life expectancy was about 5 months. And yet, despite the cold, the heat, the hunger and the grueling labor, Father Colby used every opportunity there to serve his fellow prisoners.

One day, in the middle of that summer heat, a prisoner from Father Colby’s barracks escaped. So, in retaliation, the prison guard lined up every prisoner in that barrack and said that ten of them were going to be put into the starvation bunker to die as punishment.

The guard was going to choose 10 people at random. He chose the guy next to Father Colby, and the guy started to weep for his wife and children. But Father Colby reached out his hand and stopped the man from stepping forward with the guard and stepped forward in his place.

The prison guard looked up, laughed, and shook his head, but allowed it.

Father Colby went to the starvation bunker in this guy’s place. Several days passed, and prisoners said that instead of the cries of anguish and madness that they usually heard coming from that bunker, they heard the faint sounds of hymns being sung in that dreadful place.

Father Colby brought peace and joy to the other 9 in their final moments. They said that when the doors to the bunker were finally opened, they found Father Colby’s body sitting against a wall with what looked like a peaceful smile on his face.

The man whose place he took went on to live until he was 95—he died just a few years ago—and for the rest of his life he took any chance he got to honor Father Colby, the man who laid down his life for him.

There’s so much about that story that pictures the gospel, but there’s one big difference.

The man Father Colby replaced had not betrayed or turned on Father Colby personally.

And yet Jesus, our Shepherd, laid down his life to pay for the sins of the sheep that had rebelled against him. Isaiah said, “All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned everyone of us to his own way, and the Lord has laid upon him the iniquity of us all.”

“How do you know the true Shepherd?” Jesus said to a confused group of Israelites. “The true Shepherd,” he says, “lays down his life for the sheep.” The leader they’d always always longed for, and you’ve always longed for--what you’ve looked for from every leader, every parent, every boss, every President, is fulfilled in Jesus.

You don’t have to be like these Israelites. You don’t have to miss Him. You can know him. You don’t have to fully understand to fully believe.

We are about to enter into a time of invitation and consecration where we say whatever the Lord is calling you to do that you do.

If you have questions, come.

If you want to pray at the altar or with someone, come.

If you want to surrender your life to the lordship of Jesus Christ, come.

The Lord just pressed upon my heart to end our time together with the reading of Psalm 23. You may have heard these verse a thousand times but just listen to How the Lord works.

Psalm 23 (ESV)

A Psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.

3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Let’s us pray.