I Am Secure
Notes
Transcript
INTRO
INTRO
Before we read anything I want you to do something with me
Close your eyes
Picture this:
It’s 2,000 years ago
A small village
and the sun is going down
Shepherds are bringing their sheep in
Different flocks
all coming together into one place
A sheepfold
Stone walls High enough to keep danger out
Briars on top
And one entrance
Just one
Not a door like we think…
An opening.
And at night, the shepherd doesn’t just guard it…
He lays his body across it
He becomes the gate
Nothing gets in
Nothing gets out
Without going through him
Now open your eyes.
is this what you saw??
TESNION
TESNION
That’s exactly what Jesus’ audience saw in their minds when He spoke in John 10
And He’s not just talking about sheep
He’s talking about you
That is important because tonight we’re talking about this identity:
“I am secure.”
But let’s be honest
Most of you don’t feel secure.
You feel like:
one bad sin and you’re out
one bad week and God’s done with you
one season of drifting and you’ve lost it
So instead of guessing
let’s actually look at what Jesus says about our security
TRUTH
TRUTH
The Picture (Simple + Clear)
Jesus gives us three main things:
Sheep → that’s us
A gate → that’s salvation
A shepherd → that’s security
And with that picture Jesus makes some really important points about Himself and us
Jesus said again, “Truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the gate. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.
“I am the gate.”
Meaning:
You don’t climb into salvation
You don’t earn your way in
You don’t sneak in by being “good enough.”
You come through Jesus
His life
His death
His resurrection
Jesus is clear and direct in his point:
Jesus is the only way in
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand, since he is not the shepherd and doesn’t own the sheep, leaves them and runs away when he sees a wolf coming. The wolf then snatches and scatters them. This happens because he is a hired hand and doesn’t care about 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. I lay down my life for the sheep.
2. “I am the good Shepherd”
Paid help don’t die for sheep
They protect themselves
They run when danger comes.
Jesus says…not me
I lay my life down.
Why?
Because the sheep are in danger
What was our danger?
Sin
Death
Judgment
And Jesus says:
“I’ll take it.”
That’s the gospel.
Jesus becomes the gate by dying and the Shepherd by protecting
Don’t miss this:
He doesn’t just get you into the fold…He keeps you in the fold
My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
In just a few verses… Jesus shows us 5 things He gives His sheep
A Relationship
“My sheep… I know them… they hear my voice…”
This is not distant
This is not surface-level
This is personal
He knows you
You learn His voice
Your security doesn’t start with you knowing Him…
It starts with Him knowing you
2. A Direction
“They follow me…”
Not perfectly
But directionally
Sheep follow
They stumble
They drift
But they don’t settle in the wrong direction
Real sheep move toward the Shepherd
3. A Gift
“I give them eternal life…”
He gives it
You don’t earn it
You don’t maintain it
If it could be lost…it wouldn’t be eternal.
4. A Promise
“They will never perish…”
Not “hopefully
Not “if you hold it together”
Never
5. Protection
“No one will snatch them out of my hand…”
Not Satan
Not sin
Not your worst season
Not your doubts
You are in His hand
If anything wants you it has to go through Him
And if that wasn’t enough…Jesus keeps going:
“My Father… is greater than all… no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand.”
So now it’s not just Jesus holding you…It’s the Father too
To lose your salvation…
someone would have to overpower Jesus and then overpower the Father
That’s your security
So the question is not:
“Can I lose my salvation?”
The question is:
“Can the Good Shepherd lose His sheep?”
NO
APPLICATION
APPLICATION
But let’s get real…
Because sheep wander
Sheep are not smart animals
They don’t think ahead
They don’t have a plan
They see something…
a patch of grass
a sound
a distraction
and they just start walking
One step
Then another
And before they realize it…
they’re gone
Lost
And here’s the problem:
Sheep don’t know how to get back.
That’s us
You don’t wake up one day and say: “I’m done with God.”
You just drift
You get distracted
You chase something
You slowly stop listening
And one day you look up and think: “How did I get here?”
And Jesus says:
“The sheep doesn’t find the shepherd…the shepherd finds the sheep”
He goes after it
He picks it up
He carries it home
Thats the picture we are given in Luke 15
Sheep wander…but real sheep don’t stay lost
Your security is not in your grip on God
it’s in His grip on you
But don’t get this twisted…
There is still a real enemy.
A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
He can’t take your salvation…
But he will try to make you live like you’re not saved.
Satan can’t take you out of the fold, but he’ll try to make you live as if you’re not in it
He distracts you…
so you stop listening.
He lies to you…
so you start doubting.
He numbs you…
so sin feels normal.
He tempts you…
so you start drifting.
So what do sheep do?
“My sheep hear my voice… know me… follow me.”
You stay close
You listen
You follow.
Not perfectly…but consistently
And when you wander?
You don’t hide
You don’t clean yourself up first
You return.
Because the Shepherd is not waiting to crush you
He’s coming to carry you.
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION
Picture it one more time….
The sheepfold
Walls up
Danger outside
Sheep inside
And the Shepherd at the entrance
If you are in Christ
You didn’t climb in
You came through the gate
Jesus.
You are led by the Shepherd
Jesus
And right now
You are being held by Jesus
You may wander
But you will not be lost
Because the Good Shepherd…does not lose His sheep
But some of you if you’re honest…
You’re not in the fold
You’re still outside
And everything we just talked about
the security
the protection
the promises
Those aren’t automatically yours
Not because God doesn’t want you
But because there is only one way in.
Jesus said: “I am the gate.”
Not a gate
The gate.
You don’t get in by trying harder
You don’t get in by cleaning your life up
You don’t get in by knowing the right things
You come through Jesus
His life for yours
His death for your sin
His resurrection in your place
So here’s the invitation:
Come through the gate
Stop trying to earn it
Stop trying to fix yourself first
Come to Jesus
And when you do
You don’t just get into the fold
You get everything we just talked about
A Shepherd who knows you
A Savior who died for you
A God who holds you
And a security that can never be taken away
So whether tonight is a moment of reminder, returning , or of coming in for the first time…
The call is the same
Look to the Shepherd
