God Knows You

Today and next Sunday we will be driving into a mini Series titled Blessed Assurance

It is no exaggeration to say the current era has created a challenging and often uncertain time, for people all over the world. This two-week series focuses on the goodness and faithfulness of God and reminds us that we can be assured that God is taking care of us during times such as these.

what does Blessed assurance mean- love and knowing that Jesus is your saviour

This morning we will be in John 10:1-6 . If you have your bible this morning go head and turn there. if not you can follow along on the screens in a few moments.

Before we take a look at today passage. I have a question for you. So think for a moment.

Does God know you?

Does he really know you?

My hope is that you can answer that question with a yes he does know me.

But some you might be thinking who do i know if he truly knows me. Why would he love and know someone like me? Why would he care?

We sang a song just know tiltle Blessed assurance.

In the late nineteenth century, Fanny Crosby wrote the popular hymn “Blessed Assurance.” The hymn speaks of the comfort that we have in knowing Jesus and being known by him, a “foretaste of glory divine.” And this knowledge, that we belong to Jesus, is our story.

As British soldiers in the Boer War passed one another headed to the front or returning from the front of battle, they would call out the hymn numbers to two songs, one of them being “Blessed Assurance.”

This is the type of encouragement we need in the church today. To remind one another that we are God’s own cherished possession. To remember that no matter how uncertain things may seem in the world today or how frightening the near future may appear to be, we can trust in the faithfulness and goodness of God.

John 10:1–6 CSB

1 “Truly I tell you, anyone who doesn’t enter the sheep pen by the gate but climbs in some other way is a thief and a robber. 2 The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought all his own outside, he goes ahead of them. The sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 They will never follow a stranger; instead they will run away from him, because they don’t know the voice of strangers.” 6 Jesus gave them this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them.

Another parable about sheep

why does Jesus do this all the time? First it a parable that can be very confusing. Its also about sheep again. We have seen this for time to time. Most of the time Jesus uses some type of agriculture terms to talk to people because thats what they know and understood.

It would be like today Jesus telling a parable about him being the head hockey or football couch. Everyone leson to the couch right.

This was some they knew and understand most of the time. Jesus still had to explain a lot after he was done.

Sheep are not dum animals. They are very smart in how they move and stick together.

In this parable.

We are the sheep

In the Gospel of John, Jesus talks about our relationship to God as sheep to their shepherd, and he speaks of the love of God as hands that will not let us go. In these descriptions, we gain a behind-the-scenes look into what it means to have blessed assurance that God is for us, loves us, and will take care of us.

God is the shepherd

Jesus says that the Shepherd (God) enters the sheep pen and calls “his own” sheep to him. We belong to God. This isn’t in some sort of property sense or abusive meaning; we belong to God in a loving way. It’s as if a parent has a lot of children, and one day someone sees the parent with the kids and says, “Are all of those yours?” And the parent responds lovingly, “Yes, these are all mine.” We belong to God, and he claims us as his own.

You know the voice of God

The intimate nature of this relationship, which is so essential when it comes to knowing that blessed assurance, can be seen in the repetition of the word “voice.”

Jesus says the sheep hear the voice of the shepherd and immediately follow him out (John 10:3).

There is a level of familiarity between the sheep and the Shepherd. The sheep know the voice of their shepherd, so when they hear him, they immediately know it’s okay to leave the safety and security of the sheep pen. They aren’t afraid to go out into the world, a world filled with danger, because they are with their shepherd.

God know you too

This relationship is not a one way street. The shepherd know the each and every sheep by name. 10:3 The first step needed to move someone from being a stranger to a friend is the introduction: “Hi, my name is… What is your name?” He knows each and every one of his sheep, and he doesn’t just recognize them: he knows them by name

We do not just set there and here the voice of God. He know us by name. Each and everyone of you. He calls you by name. He knows all the inter works of you.

the other side to this is the stranger in verse 5

The strangers is not know to the sheep

They will follow the shepherd because they know his voice. A stranger, however, “they will not follow” (10:5). This contrast causes those hearing Jesus’s teaching to ask a question and by you tood

Is God someone I know, or is God a stranger to me? If he is a stranger to me, what can I do to grow my knowledge of God?

The blessed assurance which lets us trust God into following him even at times when safety and security seem far away is the knowledge that we are known by him.

How many of you use speech recognition technologys like Alexa or Siri. There are more always coming out. This things are not the only products out there which knows you are talking to it and responds.

God speaks our name, we know his voice, and we know that we are known by him and respond by trusting him and following him.

God knows you by name; are you living like that is true?

We are not strangers to God.