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Here this morning I was talking with Dave Sulak who is the director of our adult division

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of ministries and he said, well, what are you preaching on this morning?

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You're closing out this series on the church, aren't you?

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And I said, yes.

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I said, I'm going to be preaching this morning on the flock of God.

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He said, well, is that turkeys or chickens or what kind of a flock is it?

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Well, we're going to find out.

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As most of you know, I'm sure he will know now, it's a flock of sheep.

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A flock of sheep.

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I don't guess they had turkeys back in those days or if they did, the Bible doesn't talk

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about them anyway.

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First Peter chapter 2 verse 25, for you were continually straying like sheep, but now you

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have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

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Chapter 5 verse 1, therefore I exhort the elders among you as your fellow elder and

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witness of the sufferings of Christ and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed,

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shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion but voluntarily

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according to the will of God, and not for sordid gain but with eagerness nor yet as

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lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.

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And when the chief shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

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Both the Old Testament and the New Testament uses sheep as a picture of God's people.

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Have you ever wondered what God is trying to say when he says that we are like sheep?

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Perhaps of all the metaphors of God's people, this is the most humbling, for sheep are rather

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helpless and dependent creatures after all.

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They are easily lost.

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They are said to be unintelligent.

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They are nervous and jumpy.

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Now do you know any Christians like that?

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Well, I guess we could all identify ourselves with certain aspects of those negative traits

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of being a sheep.

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But I believe that God chose a more positive reason for comparing us to sheep.

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I believe this picture is used commonly throughout the Word of God, both of Israel as well as

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the church, because the nature of sheep is to follow their leader.

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And therefore we are called sheep because we follow him.

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Furthermore, sheep need to be cared for by their shepherd, and God desires to care for

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his people.

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Therefore he calls us his sheep.

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And so because we follow him and because he cares for us, God delights to identify us

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as a flock of sheep.

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The Church of Jesus Christ is God's flock in this age.

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There are two aspects of this metaphor that are dealt with in the New Testament, which

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we want to talk about this morning.

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First, the securing of the flock.

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To do that, go back to the Gospel of John in the tenth chapter in your New Testament.

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The securing of the flock of sheep.

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We have a lengthy discourse here dealing with Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd.

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In verses 1 through 6, the Lord Jesus Christ gives us the figure that he has in mind.

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He talks about shepherds and their sheep in that day.

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Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep,

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but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.

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But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep.

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To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep

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by name and leads them out.

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When he puts forth all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, because they

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know his voice.

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And a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not

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know the voice of strangers.

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This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things

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were which he had been saying to them.

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Let's talk about this figure for a moment.

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Sheep in that day were commonly kept in what was termed a fold.

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The fold or pin was usually made of mud bricks or sometimes rough stones that were piled

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in a fence design.

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The fold was only partially covered, if at all.

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Sometimes caves served as folds for the sheep.

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But you see the purpose of the fold was to provide protection for the flock during the

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night.

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The door was the only opening to this enclosure called the fold.

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Often it was without an actual gate, there was just the opening into it.

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As the sheep would come behind the shepherd at the night, he would allow them to enter

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the fold, examining each one for injury as it entered.

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And if he found the sheep had been injured during the day as they were out grazing, he

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would anoint that sheep with oil.

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He would then, if he were alone, lie down in front of that opening to provide the door

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himself, so that no predator could enter, nor could any sheep leave without his, of

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course, being aware of it.

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So he became the door.

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Now if there were a number of shepherds, they would sometimes have a doorkeeper who would

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be responsible to do that, so the shepherd might get some better rest.

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Lots of several shepherds would share the same fold on occasion.

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In the morning, the shepherd would go to the door and would begin to call his sheep by

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name.

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Such a relationship had developed between the sheep and shepherd that he named each

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one, though he didn't have to.

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Inevitably they recognized his voice, and though the other shepherds might call for

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their sheep or even have the same names for their sheep, the sheep each knew its shepherd,

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and they would follow their shepherd as they left the fold that day to pasture.

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Jesus took this picture and applied it to himself and to his sheep.

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He begins to give the significance of it in verse 7.

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He says,

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Truly, truly I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

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All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.

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I am the door.

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If anyone enters through me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture.

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And so the first application that Jesus draws from this picture is to himself.

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He says, I am the door.

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He says, If a sheep wishes to become one of my flock, he must enter in by me, and he shall

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be saved.

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And that, my friend, is an invitation to salvation.

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So today, if you are not one of his sheep, he invites you to enter in by the door, which

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is he himself.

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He has made it possible for each of us to come into salvation through him by his sacrifice

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at the cross, where he gave his life.

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And by his resurrection from the dead, he lives forevermore.

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And so if by faith we, as it were, enter into relationship with God through him, we shall

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be saved.

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He goes on to say that we go in and out and find pasture, and the idea behind that is

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that he cares for us.

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He takes upon himself the responsibility to be our shepherd, and he leads us in and out

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of the fold we find pasture, we're cared for.

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He says, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.

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

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I am the good shepherd.

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The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

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He contrasts the hireling.

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He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, beholds the

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wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

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He flees because he is a hireling and is not concerned about the sheep.

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I am the good shepherd, and I know my own, and my own know me, even as the Father knows

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me and I know the Father.

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And I lay down my life for the sheep, and I have other sheep which are not of this fold.

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I must bring them also, and they shall hear my voice, and they shall become one flock

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with one shepherd.

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

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No one has taken it away from me, but I lay it down on my own initiative.

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I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.

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This is the commandment I receive from my Father.

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So Jesus first applies the figure of verses 1 through 6 to himself saying, I am the door.

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By me one can be saved.

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The second application is, I am also the good shepherd, he says.

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This is an Old Testament allusion to Jehovah who called himself the shepherd of his people

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in numerous places.

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Jesus Christ comes as Jehovah God of the Old Testament.

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He is God incarnate, and he applies that Old Testament figure to himself.

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He says, I am the good shepherd.

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Now he is the good shepherd in contrast to the false shepherds, the hirelings which Israel

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had known, referring to her false religious leaders.

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Jesus says as the good shepherd that he does not come to use the sheep for his own advantage,

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nor does he come to victimize them as had their false religious leaders who fleeced

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them.

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But rather he came to seek their welfare, to give them abundant, that is, fullness of

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life, and to do that even by giving his own life for them.

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You will notice five times Jesus refers in the verses we've read to his laying down

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his life for the sheep.

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

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In verse 15 he says, I lay down my life for the sheep.

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In verse 17, I lay down my life that I might take it again.

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Verse 18, I lay it down on my own initiative.

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I have authority to lay it down and have authority to take it up again.

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And so five times he makes that statement.

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This statement is unique to John's writings.

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Only he records this statement of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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He uses a similar phrase when he records Peter's statement in John 13, verses 37 and 38, when

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Peter said, Lord, I will lay down my life for you.

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He uses it again in chapter 15, verse 13, when he records Jesus as saying that a friend

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lays down his life for his friend.

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And then in 1 John, chapter 3, verse 16, he again uses this same phrase referring to the

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work of the Lord Jesus Christ laying down his life for us.

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What does it mean to lay down one's life?

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What it means is sacrifice, yes, voluntary sacrifice for another.

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That is Jesus' point.

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And that was Peter's point.

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He sincerely meant it, though he couldn't carry it out.

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That's what a true friend does for his friend.

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Voluntarily he gives himself as a sacrifice for his friend.

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Jesus is saying for his sheep he gives himself as a voluntary sacrifice.

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That is for their sakes, for your sakes.

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He gives his life.

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What that means is not just his physical existence but his total self.

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He gave himself totally and completely and fully for your sake and mine.

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Verse 18, he clarifies the fact that he has authority to do this.

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He was not guilty of committing suicide, nor did he assent to being killed only.

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Rather, he clearly states that it was his purpose to experience death, that he had authority

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within himself to choose the time to be killed for his own purpose, and then he had authority

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to bring himself back from the dead in resurrection power.

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That is his authority as the Good Shepherd.

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Andy says, this is all motivated out of loving obedience to the commandment that I have received

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from my Father.

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And so in a wonderful way we see the work of the Lord Jesus Christ as the door and as

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the Good Shepherd.

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His work is the securing of his flock to be his own.

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And that is the result of the work.

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He says in verse 14, I am the Good Shepherd and I know my own, and my own know me.

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What a wonderful way for Jesus to state this.

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His sheep are not just sheep but they are his own sheep in a very possessive way, in

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a personal statement of ownership.

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He says they are my own sheep.

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And he goes on to say in verse 16, I have other sheep which are not of this fold, I

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must bring them also.

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And they shall hear my voice and they shall become one flock with one shepherd.

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Jesus here is indicating that there are sheep that belong to him among the Gentiles as well

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as among the Jews.

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And that the Gentiles too would hear his voice in time to come from the day that he stated

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this.

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And that they would become, Jew and Gentile, one flock with one shepherd.

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And that is what we are today as his sheep.

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We are not divided along racial or ethnic lines.

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We are not Jew and Gentile.

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We are not divided according to social mores.

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We are divided.

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We are not divided by anything.

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We are one flock.

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And we follow one shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Now he tells us because we are his own that he gives us some things.

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Skip down a few verses to verse 25.

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Jesus is here speaking to the Jewish leaders who did not believe on him.

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The occasion is sometime later at a feast in Jerusalem.

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Jesus responds to their question in verse 24 by saying, I told you and you do not believe.

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That is I told you who I am.

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I am the Christ.

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The works that I do in my Father's name, these bear witness of me.

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But you do not believe because you are not of my sheep.

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My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me.

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And I give eternal life to them and they shall never perish.

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And no one shall snatch them out of my hand.

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My Father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them

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out of my Father's hand.

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I and the Father are one.

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The result of Jesus Christ's work as the Good Shepherd is that he has secured us as his

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own sheep.

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And as Jesus elaborates on what it means to be his sheep, he says number one, it means

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that he gives to his own sheep eternal life.

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Now we use that phrase a lot.

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Have you ever thought about what it means?

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What it means is that we share his very life force as the eternal God.

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We have become partakers of his eternal and dynamic existence.

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We have become participators in eternal life.

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We are so much sharers in it that we can never lose it.

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Jesus said, I give to my sheep eternal life.

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Most of it he says, I give it to them.

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It's not something they've earned.

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How sadly wrong.

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So many people are who think that we must do something to gain eternal life.

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Jesus said, I give them eternal life.

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And we who come to him simply receive that by faith, don't we?

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But it goes on to say that as his sheep furthermore, we can never perish.

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They shall not never perish, says Jesus.

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You say, wait a minute, that's two negatives.

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Well, it is in fact, in the Greek language, it doesn't come across that way in the English

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because it would be very poor English.

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But it was not a problem for the Greek to put two negatives together because when he

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did that, it simply underscored and strengthened what he was trying to say.

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The point of the double negative is it is absolutely impossible for them to perish.

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There is no way for them ever to be eternally ruined.

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The very thought is unthinkable that they should perish.

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That is Jesus' point here.

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They shall never perish.

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There are some people who are genuinely saved who say that it is possible for a believer

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to lose his salvation and to perish.

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That is in contradiction to what the Word of God teaches.

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The Word of God teaches us that when we become the sheep of the Lord Jesus Christ, He gives

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us eternal life.

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And part of that means that we can never perish.

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But he goes on to say, to even strengthen this thought, no one shall snatch them out

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of my hand.

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In other words, we can never be removed from His possession.

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We are in His keeping.

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We are guarded by Him.

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No one is able to snatch them away from me.

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And all of the resources of God Himself are committed to the safekeeping, to the preservation

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of His sheep.

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As Peter put it in his first epistle, we are kept by the power of God through faith, ready

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to be revealed at the last time.

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We are not kept saved because we keep obedient or because we are good little Christians.

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Now we obey because we are His sheep, but we are not kept saved because we obey.

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There is an important distinction there.

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We do not gain our salvation by our good works.

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We cannot lose our salvation by our bad works.

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Works have nothing to do with it whatsoever.

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It is all by the grace of God.

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Just as you and I are cleansed from our sins and made a part of the family of God, or in

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terms of the analogy here, we are made part of His fold, we are His sheep, so we are kept

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a part of that fold.

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And we cannot perish.

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We have been given eternal life, and no one can snatch us out of His hand or out of the

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Father's hand.

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We are as much one with Him as Jesus Christ Himself is with the Father.

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And that is why verse 30 is put where it is.

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We can no more be separated from Jesus Christ than the Son can be separated from the Father.

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As much as He is one with the Father, so are we in union with Him, secure.

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So we talk about the securing of God's flock.

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I hope you are one of His.

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Jesus told a wonderful parable about the shepherd who had a hundred sheep.

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When he returned one evening, one of them was missing, and he, as the one responsible

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for the one hundred, went out looking for that one lost sheep until he found him and

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brought him home safely.

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I may be talking to someone here today who is still out there lost in the wilderness.

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You are out there as that one sheep out of the fold here.

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And today Jesus Christ is looking for you.

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He desires to bring you into His fold.

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You must respond to Him in faith.

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Or as He put it earlier in this chapter, you must enter in by Him the door.

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Be a part of His fold.

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If you have never done that, it is my sincere prayer and desire for you that today you would

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make that decision.

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You may have been thinking about it for some time and putting it off, but put it off no

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longer.

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The Good Shepherd seeks for you today.

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He gave Himself for you.

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We want to move ahead to the shepherding of the flock because that is an important part

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of this whole analogy of the flock of God.

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Jesus is the Good Shepherd who gave Himself to secure the flock as His own.

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He is also the shepherd who guards and oversees His own.

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In 1 Peter 2, 25 you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

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Today He is the Great Shepherd of the sheep who is looking after their care and their

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concerns.

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I would like for you to turn to 1 Peter chapter 5 and we will look again at the text we read

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earlier.

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The Lord Jesus Christ is the Great Shepherd of the sheep, but He has designed it so that

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in His flock in this age there are those that we term under-shepherds who are responsible

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to Him for the shepherding of His flock.

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What is the responsibility of those who are the under-shepherds or the elders in the Lord's

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flock?

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Well, in 1 Peter 5, 2 He uses a verb that kind of wraps it all up.

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He says, shepherd or tend the flock of God among you.

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He goes on to exhort us who are elders to exercise oversight.

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So what does it mean to tend the flock of God?

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It means to exercise an oversight of the allotment that God has given to you.

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Look after them, in other words.

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Care for them.

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It seems to me that there are at least four areas to this matter of shepherding the people

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of God.

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One is guarding the flock.

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Shepherds are responsible to guard the flock against wolves and predators who would kill

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them.

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Jesus in John 10 mentioned those who are hirelings and who would run away when the predators

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would come and leave the flock defenseless, but not so with a true shepherd.

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As Jesus, or rather as the Apostle Paul, spoke to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20, among other

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things he said to them this, Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which

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the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.

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To shepherd the church of God which he purchased with his own blood.

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I know, says Paul, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not

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sparing the flock.

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The Apostle was concerned that there would be predators who would begin to prey upon

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those believers at Ephesus.

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And so he says to those who are responsible to Jesus Christ as undershepherds, Guard the

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flock of the Lord which he has purchased with his own blood.

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Charles Jefferson, a man who ministered to a different generation, wrote a book which

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is now back in print which every pastor, in fact every pastor teacher in our church ought

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to read.

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It would be profitable for any of us.

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It is entitled The Minister as Shepherd.

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Let me read to you a couple of statements from him.

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He is referring here to Psalm 23 when he says, quote, everything that the psalmist calls

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God, a sheep might call its shepherd, the walls of the sheepfold are built by the shepherd,

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when there are no stones he builds thorn bushes into barriers, the door of the sheepfold is

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made by him, open and closed by him, by his foresight the sheep are protected, by his

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courage they are saved, he defends them in the hour of attack, he safeguards them when

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they are not aware of danger, they owe their safety to him when they are least conscious

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of their obligation.

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The shepherd in the east was a guard, a protector, a defender.

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Though I walk through the valley of deep darkness, I will fear no evil for thou art with me.

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The ravine or deep gorge in the east was the hiding place of wild animals and the resort

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of dangerous men.

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Even here, however, the sheep were secure when the shepherd was with them.

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His rod and his staff protected them.

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The safeguarding of the sheep is a prime function in pastoral work.

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So that is the job of the shepherds of this congregation to guard the flock, to look out

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for the welfare of the Lord's sheep here.

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That includes rescuing those who go astray.

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The story is told of D.L.

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Moody, who was out talking to people on the street in Chicago.

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And one person was particularly unhappy with the questions that Moody was asking him about

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his soul and remarked to him, well, what business is that of yours?

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And Moody said, sir, that is exactly what my business is.

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You see, it is the business of the shepherds of our flock to look after the welfare of

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our souls.

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Now we are to be on guard for ourselves and alert to dangers, but there are times when

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we don't recognize danger.

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It is the particular responsibility of the elders, the undershepherds of our flock, to

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look out for the well-being, the safety, the protection of us, the sheep in this flock.

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A second responsibility of those who are under shepherds is that of guiding the sheep.

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I did not say drive them.

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I said guide them.

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There's a difference.

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Shepherds are to lead the flock, not be behind them with the rod and the staff screaming

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at them.

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He is to be out in front, the shepherd, guiding his sheep by his example.

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And that is why the apostle Peter in verse 3 says, nor yet as lording it over those allotted

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to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.

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There is, I think, unfortunately, a philosophy of ministry abroad these days which says that

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somehow those who are in the leadership of the Lord's people are to be their drivers.

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But God's people, rather, are not cattle.

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They are sheep who must be led and led by humble example of the under shepherds.

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I again wish to quote briefly from Charles Jefferson's work, some ministers try to

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drive, he says.

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Their fatal weakness is an inability to see that shepherds cannot drive.

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Such men are always cutting, lashing, forcing, and therefore always getting into trouble.

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They are continually quarreling with their people and for no other reason than that they

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do not know how to lead.

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They push and do not draw.

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They shove and do not woo.

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They believe in propulsion and not in attraction.

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They lack the magic of the shepherd's touch.

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They do not know human nature.

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They do not realize that men like sheep must be led.

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Some ministers can see a huge work which ought to be attempted, but they cannot lead their

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people into it.

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They can describe critically the strategic nature of the battle that ought to be fought,

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but they never get their people onto the battlefield.

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They are visionaries, dreamers, but not shepherds.

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They do not lead.

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No one is really a leader whom men do not follow.

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It is the responsibility of those who are the shepherds of our flock to guide and to

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lead this flock.

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A third responsibility of shepherding is feeding the flock.

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Perhaps the most serious charge that can be leveled against anyone who is a shepherd is

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that his sheep are not being fed.

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Feeding sheep is hard work.

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Determining the diet for the flock is not easy.

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I think that there are some who are in it for the fun of it, but how quickly they disappear

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from the ranks of the shepherds, because shepherding is tough, and no work is tougher than that

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of feeding the flock of God.

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It is not enough just to teach the flock doctrine, but it must be lovingly and prayerfully applied

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to the life.

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As one person said, we must do more than give the believers a menu.

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We must give them the meal.

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It is not enough that you get outlines or that you learn doctrine.

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It starts there, but it must go beyond that to a practical application of your life and

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of mine.

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That's hard work.

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And then a fourth work of the shepherd is that of restoring.

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Restoring the flock from disease, from injury.

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Because that would apply to the people of God, it would mean restoring God's people,

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his sheep from the disease of spirit, from the wound of conscience, from the sores of

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relationships, from the illness of bad attitudes, from the weakness of improper diet for the

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mind.

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Restoring God's sheep from moral paralysis, from depression of spirit.

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For a few years when I was young on the farm, we raised sheep, and I was able to learn firsthand

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the importance of being around when sheep needed to be restored.

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I can well remember sheep who got out into the alfalfa field when it was wet and ate,

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bloated and died.

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I remember sheep who would get somehow wedged upside down between a fence perhaps and a

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feeding trough and died.

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They could not get up on their feet.

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I remember sheep who would stick their heads where they didn't belong through the fence

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trying to get something on the other side of the fence where I guess the grass was greener.

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The result was they choked to death and couldn't get loose.

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You see, sheep need to be restored.

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And constantly within God's flock there are sheep who need to be restored and helped from

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one problem or another.

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That is the responsibility of those who are under shepherds.

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You say, what is a shepherd's heart?

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I hear that term some.

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Well, he has a shepherd's heart, or he doesn't have a shepherd's heart.

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What does that mean?

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A shepherd's heart is one which understands what it means to guard, to guide, to feed,

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and to restore the flock of God.

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And what is the motive of the shepherd of the Lord's people?

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There is to be one primary motive, and that is love.

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Do you remember the time that Jesus met with Peter after his resurrection?

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There beside the sea.

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Jesus said to Peter, do you love me?

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Peter responded, yes, Lord.

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You know I love you.

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Feed my sheep.

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Take care of them.

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Do you love me, Peter?

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Yes, Lord.

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Tend my sheep.

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Do you love me, Peter?

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Yes, Lord.

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Feed my sheep.

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What was to be the motive for Peter's work in feeding and tending for the sheep of Jesus

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Christ?

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Love.

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Love first for him.

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Devotion to him.

468
00:37:37,000 --> 00:37:43,160
And flowing out from that, a love for the Lord's sheep.

469
00:37:43,160 --> 00:37:48,800
And it was from that same heart that these words in 1 Peter 5 were penned.

470
00:37:48,800 --> 00:37:53,040
I again quote from Mr. Jefferson.

471
00:37:53,040 --> 00:37:58,880
When the shepherd was not watching or guarding or guiding or healing or saving or feeding,

472
00:37:58,880 --> 00:38:01,640
he was doing something finer than any of these.

473
00:38:01,640 --> 00:38:05,960
He was communing with his sheep, playing with them, talking to them, and entering so far

474
00:38:05,960 --> 00:38:09,360
as a man could into their poor, brute life.

475
00:38:09,360 --> 00:38:12,000
The result was that the sheep were devoted to the shepherd.

476
00:38:12,000 --> 00:38:13,360
They knew his voice.

477
00:38:13,360 --> 00:38:15,140
Every cadence of it was music.

478
00:38:15,140 --> 00:38:17,880
Every inflection was an inspiration.

479
00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:22,440
The shepherd was a lover of the sheep, and it was because of his attachment to them that

480
00:38:22,440 --> 00:38:26,240
in time of danger he thought not of himself but of them.

481
00:38:26,240 --> 00:38:31,280
In defending them, he was willing to lay down his life.

482
00:38:31,280 --> 00:38:39,320
This was the crowning virtue of the shepherd, his self-sacrificing love.

483
00:38:39,320 --> 00:38:44,640
And that has to be the motive for all of us who minister to God's people.

484
00:38:44,640 --> 00:38:46,440
We must love them.

485
00:38:46,440 --> 00:38:55,320
I had one professor in Bible college who taught what was called pastoral theology.

486
00:38:55,320 --> 00:39:00,440
The idea behind that was, here is how to be a pastor, the practical aspects of it.

487
00:39:00,440 --> 00:39:04,560
And if there was one phrase that we heard again and again and which was on our final

488
00:39:04,560 --> 00:39:11,040
exam, it was this phrase, love your people.

489
00:39:11,040 --> 00:39:18,080
There is no one who can be a successful pastor or under-shepherd who does not love his people

490
00:39:18,080 --> 00:39:22,080
and express it to them.

491
00:39:22,080 --> 00:39:28,580
Now what is the flock's responsibility to the shepherd in all of this?

492
00:39:28,580 --> 00:39:31,760
After all, that is part of the shepherding of the flock.

493
00:39:31,760 --> 00:39:35,200
There is the responsibility of the shepherd, but what about the flock?

494
00:39:35,200 --> 00:39:41,200
Well, let me just respond very quickly by turning you to two passages of Scripture.

495
00:39:41,200 --> 00:39:47,560
Let's turn back just a few pages to Hebrews chapter 13 first.

496
00:39:47,560 --> 00:39:53,160
The shepherd is to guard and protect the flock.

497
00:39:53,160 --> 00:40:01,440
Now notice what the Lord tells us the flock is to do in Hebrews 13 verse 17.

498
00:40:01,440 --> 00:40:11,960
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they keep watch over your souls as those who

499
00:40:11,960 --> 00:40:13,720
will give an account.

500
00:40:13,720 --> 00:40:19,120
Let them do this with joy and not with grief, for this would be unprofitable for you.

501
00:40:19,120 --> 00:40:25,760
And so in this cycle of shepherding, part of it involves the sheep being obedient and

502
00:40:25,760 --> 00:40:31,240
submissive to the shepherds that the Lord has placed over them.

503
00:40:31,240 --> 00:40:37,600
I thank God for that sweet spirit that exists within our church toward the leadership of

504
00:40:37,600 --> 00:40:39,880
our church.

505
00:40:39,880 --> 00:40:47,360
That is an obedience to the word of God and it makes the work that leaders are given joyful

506
00:40:47,360 --> 00:40:53,160
when the people have this kind of a submissive spirit in obedience to the Lord.

507
00:40:53,160 --> 00:40:57,760
The second work of the shepherd is to guide his sheep.

508
00:40:57,760 --> 00:41:05,920
Look at verse 7 of Hebrews 13, remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to

509
00:41:05,920 --> 00:41:06,920
you.

510
00:41:06,920 --> 00:41:09,520
You see that's how the shepherd leads.

511
00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:16,440
And considering the result of their faith or their conduct rather, imitate their faith.

512
00:41:16,440 --> 00:41:20,920
And so the idea is here, follow them, imitate them.

513
00:41:20,920 --> 00:41:27,720
They are responsible to God for guiding you, therefore follow and imitate their faith.

514
00:41:27,720 --> 00:41:36,640
Considering the end of it, who is Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever.

515
00:41:36,640 --> 00:41:44,840
And then the responsibility of the shepherd is to feed the flock and to restore the flock.

516
00:41:44,840 --> 00:41:55,480
To find out the sheep's responsibility, go back to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5.

517
00:41:55,480 --> 00:42:05,000
As the shepherds feed, as they restore the flock.

518
00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:11,680
First Thessalonians 5.12 says that the flock should appreciate those who diligently labor

519
00:42:11,680 --> 00:42:19,280
among them and have charge over them in the Lord and give them instruction.

520
00:42:19,280 --> 00:42:28,480
He goes on to say, and esteem your shepherds very highly in love because of their work.

521
00:42:28,480 --> 00:42:31,400
Live in peace with one another.

522
00:42:31,400 --> 00:42:39,080
And so as the shepherds feed and as they restore, the sheep are to appreciate and esteem those

523
00:42:39,080 --> 00:42:41,360
who are their shepherds.

524
00:42:41,360 --> 00:42:47,000
To listen to them, to respect them.

525
00:42:47,000 --> 00:42:54,240
Sheep are to eat what they are given by the shepherds.

526
00:42:54,240 --> 00:42:58,080
God has a plan for the care of his flock.

527
00:42:58,080 --> 00:43:01,240
Shepherds are to carry out their duties.

528
00:43:01,240 --> 00:43:07,920
The sheep are to respond in a manner pleasing to the great shepherd.

529
00:43:07,920 --> 00:43:13,080
And as the shepherds do their thing and the sheep then obey the word of God doing as they're

530
00:43:13,080 --> 00:43:15,600
to do, what happens?

531
00:43:15,600 --> 00:43:19,920
The flock is cared for and the flock is built up.

532
00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:25,920
That is the shepherding of the flock as Jesus the great shepherd has intended for it to

533
00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:32,080
take place.

534
00:43:32,080 --> 00:43:42,620
If you are a sheep in the Lord's flock, how closely are you following him as your shepherd?

535
00:43:42,620 --> 00:43:50,720
To put it another way, as a Bible study leader one time said it, let me challenge you to

536
00:43:50,720 --> 00:44:01,700
consider yourself as a sheep and just where you would be walking in relation to the shepherd

537
00:44:01,700 --> 00:44:07,400
if you were following him across this platform this morning.

538
00:44:07,400 --> 00:44:13,560
Would you be somewhere out in front of him there doing your own thing?

539
00:44:13,560 --> 00:44:21,880
Would you be following behind, reluctant, perhaps only partially obedient to the direction

540
00:44:21,880 --> 00:44:24,360
he's leading you in?

541
00:44:24,360 --> 00:44:31,480
Or would you be walking close to him, indeed right beside his legs as he leads you along

542
00:44:31,480 --> 00:44:35,080
your way?

543
00:44:35,080 --> 00:44:40,600
Is your heart attitude one of submission and cooperation, obedience?

544
00:44:40,600 --> 00:44:48,440
Are you doing your part in supporting the flock that is here?

545
00:44:48,440 --> 00:44:49,440
Who is your shepherd?

546
00:44:49,440 --> 00:44:53,320
You say, I'm not sure I have one.

547
00:44:53,320 --> 00:44:55,400
Let me tell you something.

548
00:44:55,400 --> 00:45:00,040
There is a good shepherd who wants to be your shepherd.

549
00:45:00,040 --> 00:45:08,040
Are you able to say, as David did in Psalm 23, the Lord is my shepherd?

550
00:45:08,040 --> 00:45:15,440
You may be able to say the Lord is the shepherd, but can you really say the Lord is my shepherd?

551
00:45:15,440 --> 00:45:16,840
I have given my life to him.

552
00:45:16,840 --> 00:45:30,640
I have received him to be the Lord and shepherd of my soul, and therefore I shall not want.

553
00:45:30,640 --> 00:45:38,640
As our flock here grows, I believe that God is calling additional undershepherds to help

554
00:45:38,640 --> 00:45:42,440
oversee this flock.

555
00:45:42,440 --> 00:45:47,000
I believe that there are some of you who are being led by the Holy Spirit to make that

556
00:45:47,000 --> 00:45:54,000
commitment, and I trust that you will.

557
00:45:54,000 --> 00:46:02,560
I want to urge all of the sheep in this flock to pray that the Lord will make that call

558
00:46:02,560 --> 00:46:11,080
clear in the lives of some of the qualified, matured men in our flock that he is calling

559
00:46:11,080 --> 00:46:15,520
to be the undershepherd elders here.

560
00:46:15,520 --> 00:46:19,600
For frankly, our leadership is very thin.

561
00:46:19,600 --> 00:46:24,920
There are not many who are in leadership for the size of our congregation, the size of

562
00:46:24,920 --> 00:46:29,640
this flock, and we need more shepherds.

563
00:46:29,640 --> 00:46:35,080
Our staff has been praying now for several months regarding this need, as have our present

564
00:46:35,080 --> 00:46:36,680
elders.

565
00:46:36,680 --> 00:46:39,000
Some of you have learned that we've been praying that way.

566
00:46:39,000 --> 00:46:44,800
I want to urge all of you to pray with us that God will raise up for the shepherding

567
00:46:44,800 --> 00:46:54,320
of this flock those of his sheep.

568
00:46:54,320 --> 00:46:58,400
Christ is the good shepherd who gave his life for his sheep.

569
00:46:58,400 --> 00:47:00,880
That's in the past.

570
00:47:00,880 --> 00:47:05,840
He is the great shepherd who now lives for his sheep, caring for us.

571
00:47:05,840 --> 00:47:07,840
That's the present.

572
00:47:07,840 --> 00:47:13,880
He is the chief shepherd who someday is coming for his sheep.

573
00:47:13,880 --> 00:47:17,000
Now we look for him to return at any moment.

574
00:47:17,000 --> 00:47:19,000
He may come today.

575
00:47:19,000 --> 00:47:25,080
But let us so live as his sheep that when he appears and we hear his voice, that we

576
00:47:25,080 --> 00:47:33,920
will know him and we will rise to follow him and that forever.

577
00:47:33,920 --> 00:47:38,160
Let us bow together.

578
00:47:38,160 --> 00:47:40,400
Are you one of the Lord's sheep?

579
00:47:40,400 --> 00:47:42,080
Do you belong to Jesus Christ?

580
00:47:42,080 --> 00:47:45,000
Is he your shepherd?

581
00:47:45,000 --> 00:47:50,640
Or are you trying to be your own shepherd, doing your own thing, failing miserably, of

582
00:47:50,640 --> 00:48:00,120
course, empty inside, guilty, undone?

583
00:48:00,120 --> 00:48:05,760
If that's your case, will you today ask Jesus Christ to be your Savior, your Lord,

584
00:48:05,760 --> 00:48:09,400
your shepherd, if you please?

585
00:48:09,400 --> 00:48:11,080
Will you do that before you leave here?

586
00:48:11,080 --> 00:48:13,720
Why put it off any longer?

587
00:48:13,720 --> 00:48:17,400
Will you do it today?

588
00:48:17,400 --> 00:48:20,880
Let me speak to those of you who are the sheep of the Lord, and that would be most of us,

589
00:48:20,880 --> 00:48:25,000
I suppose, in this gathering today.

590
00:48:25,000 --> 00:48:28,640
Where are you walking in relation to your shepherd?

591
00:48:28,640 --> 00:48:33,080
Are you following close?

592
00:48:33,080 --> 00:48:38,880
Or are you out in front or behind or to the side somewhere, doing your own thing?

593
00:48:38,880 --> 00:48:44,240
Will you today follow Jesus Christ where he leads you?

594
00:48:44,240 --> 00:48:48,280
Will you come back to that place of following him closely and obediently?

595
00:48:48,280 --> 00:48:55,860
Father, I pray that as we close this service, we will each one be able to hear the voice

596
00:48:55,860 --> 00:49:04,000
of our shepherd and get to that place of walking with him that we ought to be.

597
00:49:04,000 --> 00:49:06,800
And we pray this in his name.

598
00:49:06,800 --> 00:49:08,280
Amen.

599
00:49:08,280 --> 00:49:09,720
Would you stand with me, please?

600
00:49:09,720 --> 00:49:13,200
Let's sing in closing number 452.

601
00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:14,200
Our staff is going to come here.

602
00:49:14,200 --> 00:49:16,240
Let me just