The Good Shepherd

To God. The program committed to encouraging you to put God first wild life through the window of the Bible.

Now only the God of Abraham doing well at renewal today in the name of our wonderful Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I give thanks and honor to the one and only true God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, God of Jacob, God of the Bible.

It is truly an honor to bring a word from the Lord to you once again on this day. Once we got a message titled the good Shepherd the good Shepherd. I will be coming from the book of John chapter 10 verses seven through 17 again is the book of John chapter 10 verses seven through 17 for all that are able and willing. We do please stand in honor of the reading of God's holy word book of John chapter 10 verses seven through 17 and I will be reading from the new King James version and it reads then said Jesus unto them, verily, verily I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.

I am the door by me. If any man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture. The thief cometh not before to steal and tequila to destroy. I am come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he will visit Harlingen and not the shepherd was all the sheep will not see the roof coming and leaving the sheep and fill you in the loop catches them and scatter at the sheep the Harlan sleeve because he is an Harlingen care not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd and know my sheep and am known of mine as the father knowing me, even so know the father and I lay down my life for the sheep and other sheep I have which are not of this fold them. Also, I was green and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd therefore does my father love me because I lay down my life that I might take it again. Heavenly father is a not a Lord of the privilege to come before your people to bring the word today is not well Lord that as I go through this mess is that all things are spoken, that it becomes nothing but sound doctrine may you, Lord, be honor and glory to God in all things in the name of Jesus. Amen. Thank you. You may take your seats.

I once heard an account of a military veteran who passed away and at his funeral that were military pallbearers and there was a minister that was assigned to lead the pallbearers out of the funeral. At the conclusion of the service so that the appointed time in which they were to take the casket out of the funeral, the minister led the pallbearers of an aisle be open to door to find open the door to find that it was the door to a room closet, trying to keep his composure. He collected himself did an about-face and he had to leave the pallbearers pass this grieving family to find the correct door in which to exit the service. The moral of the story is if you going to lead you need to know where you are going and if you are going to follow someone, you need to follow someone who knows what he is doing. The Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the way to eternal life. Jesus Christ is the one that we should follow the one that we must follow the. The only way to go if we are to inherit eternal life. The Bible warns that there are famous shepherds in the church will fail. Shepherds that accompany and to mislead God's people, and they have been there for many centuries and they still exist even today just come from a text we look at verse seven. It tells us then said Jesus unto them again, verily, verily I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep statement that Allah says I am the door is the first of 7 AM declarations that are recorded only in John's Gospel in these declarations point to his unique his divine character and identity is as unique and divine purpose say this is all that ever came before me are thieves and robbers, but the she did not hear them meeting came before our Lord Jesus Christ, pretending to be good shepherds but we know from the Scriptures that these were the false shepherds of Israel, the ones who came in to try to ostensibly leave the sheepfold astray to see true Christians, true followers of Jesus Christ will not follow the unfamiliar voice of the thief, true followers of Jesus Christ will recognize the file shepherd will recognize that he is not of the Lord will recognize that he is not of God through discernment of the Holy Spirit not following that direction all goes on to say, I am the door by me, if any, mandatory, and he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture. The Middle Eastern shepherds had a very dirty and dangerous job they would put she in a makeshift PN at night that Hartnett had only one lien and one way out. Soon it was time to settle in for the night.

The shepherd would open the door and he would begin to call the sheep by name because if he knew his voice they would follow. They would obey the command to call to the area of this makeshift PN and so they were insert year and is settling in for the night and then the shepherd would live down at the gate in order to protect the flock. Once they were all inside of the mixer PN close the PN entity with live down at the gate in the book of John chapter 14 verse six Allah Laura says I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me. When the servant would put the sheep in the PN that was only one weight year and only one way out was they were in the only way they would get out of could get out would be to go through the shepherd who was lien at the gates to go around and you can't go on. The room you have to go through him like laws Allah Lord Jesus Christ is the only way to get to heaven is the only way to get to the father that was a pew research poll in 2014 that found a 66% of professing Christians believe that there are multiple has, to heaven, but Jesus says I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the father except through me.

There are many out there today that a claimant there are many paths to God. There are people out there to say well your God may be called this in my God may be called that, but will all talking about the same God.

The Bible says there is only one true God, the God of the Bible, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob is the only way to get to him. The only way to get to the father is through God the son God came down in the form of man, God came out of heaven to go in the body of the man by way of Jesus Christ and that is what we call him God the son, and there's only one way to get to God the father and that is bisecting the sun as Lord and Savior. That was a small made many years ago by a group called the temptations and the laws of the soul slated. I know you want to leave me but I refused to let you go if I have to beg and plead for your sympathy. I don't mind goes, you mean that much to me. We know this all into plow debate. Interest on the stanza for the bowel estate if I have to sleep on your doorstep all night and day just to keep you from walking away. Metaphor is lab. Even this I can stand because I want to keep you anyway I can now when a man is willing to lie on a woman's doorstep to keep her from walking away truly is not a proud man, truly his latest pride aside.

Truly, he has handled himself for the sake of keeping his woman shepherd would live down at the gate in order to keep the sheep from walking away. Some people out there that plywood would prevent them from taking on such a job taken on such a task. We must humble our sales just like our Lord Jesus Christ humbled himself. He came out of the perfect heaven and he came down to the other any sacrifice his life so that we might have eternal life, he humbled himself, and of Jesus Christ, God the son can humble himself the great all things we can humble himself and become one of us so that we might have eternal life. We should be willing to humble ourselves in the same manner. He is the doorway to heaven there is no other way to get there but through accepting the shared blood of Jesus Christ, the perfect sacrifice the free gift of eternal life is the only way to get to heaven.

As we look around today. Pastors should humble themselves as will take the lead of Jesus Christ in a way that he humbled himself passes should humble themselves or realize that the role of the pastor is to sacrifice the role of a pastor is to put their own desires aside for the better good of the flock University in Allah. Laura says that these teeth come is not but for to steal, and tequila to destroy I come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. These motivated by Satan come to steal souls. But our Lord in John 17 verse 28 says and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. Satan is the thief comes to appeal to steal to destroy what is good to know that once were in the hands of all father Almighty Lord. Satan cannot take us away visiting the hands of all Almighty God, one not the case matches out of his hand, the abundant life that only Jesus Christ can bring you want to escape the snares of the devil as he is come to keel to steal and to destroy the only way for eternal safety is in the hands of Jesus Christ, the Lord goes on to say, I am the good shepherd.

The good Shepherd giving his life for the sheep. There is a great word came loose, which translated means good. That also means noble wholesome good beautiful.

This is the description of Allah Lord is the good Shepherd as a cot contrast the wicked. The mean to follow the unlovely, which is the opposite of Allah Lord, which is the description of Satan is not only the shepherd but the good Shepherd, Jesus is the good Shepherd, not simply a good Shepherd as some others may be. The Bible reiterates it in Psalm 23 when it says the Lord is my shepherd, 13, 20 tells us, Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep.

First Peter 225 says as sheep going astray, but a mall return unto the shepherd first Peter 54 calls Allah Lord, the chief Shepherd as the good Shepherd. He has an inherent goodness have a righteousness that goes beyond anything that the human imagination can conceive the eyes of beauty that goes beyond anything that we can conceive of him as righteousness. He has glory.

He has beauty and he protects he dies and he nurtures the flock passes the day in the church are to mirror that same protecting characteristic that same willingness and desire to God to nourish the flock.

Then Allah says in verse 12 but he that is in Harley and not the shepherd whose only cheaper not see the wolf coming in league with the sheet and see if in the character them and scattering the sheep.

There is a contrast between Jesus and the religious leaders of the day the Pharisees at Harlingen is a hired hand that doesn't truly care about the sheep and also people out there that old job simply for a paycheck. They're really not there for the quality begin gold or what their job is to to be a better leader or for the good of someone else but a standard there simply for a paycheck just doing whatever little they could do the bare minimum to get by the can keep the job just to hold a paycheck as their their wages are the main quality not looking after the sheep.

Their moral concern with self Pharisees of the sky was self-appointed self-righteous religious leaders were promoting a works based religion. They were in it for themselves. They waited to make themselves look good. They waited to puff themselves up little unit two awards over the people in there some in the church today that of the same way. There are some out there who work: themselves passes and claim to be called by God and only motivation is to get a paycheck but only motivation is for power. The only motivation is quote control. The only motivation is to make themselves look exalted one follows the characteristics of Jesus Christ. He puts himself aside. He puts his own desires to decide for the better good of the sheep into the ancient days, the shepherds were often not owners of but yet they were expected to exercise the same chair as the owner would the Holland would abandon the flock.

When a wolf appeared leaving the sheep to Feehan for themselves. Likewise, the day shootist bring a police officer who is obviously going to to serve and to protect but only during the shooting spree, he or she decides to flee, and how to protect themselves leaving the people to Feehan for their own good passes of the church are not owners of souls, the souls that we have belong to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The passes are expected to show the same care for the souls, just like the older, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Holman flee, you, because he is a Harlingen care is not for the sheep.

Sheep are very defenseless animals. They are totally dependent upon the shepherd.

The sheep will follow the one in front of it, even if it walks off a cliff as crazy as that sounds.

That is the instinct of the sheep and Allah Lord throughout Scripture calls us as human beings, sheep, we may think that we are smart we may think that we are wise we have wisdom and we have smartness we have intelligence by man standard bully compared to Almighty God in his wisdom when compared to Almighty God in his majesty compared Almighty God who created all things, this vast universe that is so great that we still do not have telescopes in it in any type of device that we can even see it all when compared to that we are as sheep will as defenseless animals that have very little intelligence have very little knowledge of how to look out for oneself is certainly we do not have the ability to save ourselves from eternal damnation, which can only come through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

And that is why encouraging today. If you never accepted him remember giving your heart to Jesus Christ you never repented of your senior professor. See if you never accepted the shed blood of Jesus Christ. I plead with you today to accept him as Lord and Savior because that is the only way is the only way the truth and the life. He is the best way to know who the father going to heaven but through Jesus Christ, I encourage you today to give your heart to him. You two might have eternal life in the presence of our listing to Brian C Thomas.1st line kitchens. Please visit God first.org to browse our extensive library of materials. Find devotional articles and audio messages available as MP3 download on various topics such as salvation, Bible prophecy, marriage, and the significant lesson is just to name a few. You can also sign up for our monthly newsletter and visit our web store. Please visit us@god1.org. Now let's return to the conclusion of today's message will follow the one behind it, even if it walks up cliff 2006 in the country of Turkey 400 feet died when they close to that. There simply recalls one of the city tried the calls a 15 m deep ravine and the rest of the sheep follow.

They all failed to that death 400 feet. That is the mind that is the instinct of the sheet. Shepherd asked to watch a seat because water currents can sweep them away and rules may attack them. The Bible tells us in first Samuel chapter 17 verse 36 the David Kiel, a lion and a bear in order to protect the sheep passes like lava not to flee when someone in the flock is in danger when someone in the church is in the what someone is going through a tough time when they are needed someone to look after them, the pastor must be there to protect the sheep. The pessimist be there to nurture the flock. The pastor must be there to provide comfort to look to provide whatever it is that you are in need of and not flee as the Highlanders. He says I am the good shepherd and know my sheep and am known of mine shepherd patiently adores the shepherd is out watching the sea. There are times when the weather is cold in winter driving snow and then in the summer can be blind investment burning saying the shepherd is out there feel sacrificing his comfort sacrificing his will be in order to look at the sheep. Oftentimes there long lonely hours, which is just him and she like loss of a pastors oftentimes have long lonely hours.

Many times the flock don't realize the pastor is up at night and he's praying for the people.

Many times people realized the pastors out late in the night he may be at the bedside of someone who is terminally sick. Many people don't realize that the pastor is his out time to to visit a game of one of the children in the flock, in order to support them don't realize that the pastor himself get sick. We don't realize that the passes children. His wife, they go through trouble. They go through hard times but yet he doesn't complain.

He doesn't give Peter he sacrifice his own for the better good of the people just like the shepherd that endures the long winters. The cold snow, the blind investment burning saying in the summer the long lonely hours, pastors, shepherds of the flock or to endure like live throughout all of that, there's feel those who criticize the pastor throughout all that there are still those will say you not doing. Though there are those who criticize you preaching to know you preaching to short, do not preaching in the way I want you not preaching in the book that I want to hear yet he was faithfully endured.

Like the good Shepherd as the father low with me in verse 15. Even so, no lava father and I lay down my life with a sheet as a shepherd is watching the sheep he himself is subjected to grave danger that he does it willingly to protect the sheep. Jesus Christ gave his life on the calls as the good Shepherd.

He saved others during his time on earth, and he had the power to save himself from the calls, but he chose not to for the sheet.

I'm thinking today that our Lord Jesus Christ as they were mocking him when he was on the calls as they would cry out to him. You saved others, but you cannot save yourself if you are who you say you want to come down from the calls. If you are truly the son of God, little to come down and prove to us that you are who you say you are, but had our Lord come down from the calls all of us would be eternally damn because all of us would have to pay flawlessly as all of us would have to be killed and go to eternal damnation. Because the Bible tells us the wages of sin is death, but unthinkable to our Lord today that he made the sacrifice for us.

He gave an exchange in which he took on our C and the transfer of his righteousness to our account so that bisected him. We can be found worthy to stand in the presence of Almighty God buys up the hill. We can inherit eternal life by accepting him. We can be found loaded because it probably looks at us when we reset the Jesus Christ.

He doesn't see a flawless center. He sees his son Jesus Christ the sacrifice that he made. I'm glad today that our Lord chose not to come down from the calls you chose not to prove himself, but he sacrifice his life for me sacrifice his life for you so that we might have eternal life. But the great thing about it is that's not the end of the story because the Bible tells us in Matthew 20 verse 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve it to give his life a ransom of many, and made a sacrifice so that all can have salvation.

If we would just confess our sins, profess our faith in Jesus Christ and we can have eternal life because it is the battle the calls, but he got up on the third day resurrected from the dead, with all power in his alien a few years ago a Minnesota dad was out with his three-year-old son and they were walking along the bridge and made stop to look over at the water below the three-year-old boy slip lost his footing and fell into the water without hesitation. The dad jumped in to save his son.

He dove vanity $out of the water and swam to the shore to hand the ball to others.

Bystanders were gathered around to help in the rescue.

We had to do so and all. He went on the Lord are exalted to we do bring himself out, they never resurface and they eventually found his ground body. When the news reporters interviewed a friend of the man. He stated quote he sacrifice his life to make sure his kid could see another day." Jesus Christ sacrificed his life so that we could live to see another day.

But I don't mean just another day in this life. I maybe sacrifice his life so that we could see not just another day that we can see all the days for eternity sacrifice his life so that we could have eternal life. There is a day coming in which we will leave this earth as we know it, either by way of natural death or by way of the rapture of the church, but either way, we must leave these mortal bodies, and then we would take on a glorified body.

The only way that can happen is if we set Jesus Christ as Savior Jesus Christ died when he rose again the calls is nothing without the resurrection if he simply died.

It would be death really died when he got up with all power in his hand. If all of us who accept him for all of us to put our faith and trust in him, we too will rise from the day of Sunday made a promise he conquered seeing the conquered sickness, he conquered pain because all things, and even conquered death and now he sits at the right hand of the father that he will raise all of us from the D when that day comes that we leave the desert give us eternal life, you will put your faith and trust in him and he says in verse 16 and other sheep I have which are not of this fold them. Also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold and one shepherd. Our Lord makes a reference to other sheep. These are the Gentiles the house of Israel were the original sheet that our Lord came but all who believe in him should not perish but have eternal life. As John 316 tells us she will only follow the familiar voice that they know you can take several flocks of sheep and mix them all together and then up a shepherd would call out the seat that know the voice of that Shepherd was separate and go towards him. True believers recognize his voice and only follow him the same as our Lord is saying here that there are other sheep that must come into the fold and they would be one fold. He will be one shepherd.

This is the joining of June and Gentile bringing in one flaw, which is what we call the universal church. The apostle Paul speaks in Ephesians 36 of a mystery when he states that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ through the gospel and then the apostle Paul used the imagery of a branch that is Gentiles being grafted into the tree.

The nation of Israel in Romans chapter 11 C, Israel, the nation of Israel was temporarily set aside until the full number of the Gentiles has come in as Romans 1125 tells us there is a number that our Lord knows of a number of Gentiles that will come into his kingdom and when that number is reach the Bible tells us the church age will come to an end when that number is threes that will be the sound of a trumpet out of heaven, and I will be the voice of an archangel in the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ will descend from heaven with a shout of the archangel with the sound of the trumpet and the Bible tells SVN the dead in Christ, those meds have accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Those who are in the grave bodies will get up out of the grave and they will be reunited with soul and spirit that is coming down out of heaven and the Bible tells SVN with you about those of us, we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.

And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words. I find comfort in knowing that a day is coming, in which the dead in Christ will come from the day. They will rise from the grave. I find comfort in knowing that if I'm still alive and I will be called up to be with him find comfort in knowing that as my Lord says in verse 17. My father just therefore does my father love me because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. Jesus Christ willingly lay down his life for the sheet's death was divinely appointed as the only way to receive salvation. The Pharisees accused him of being a saying they accuse him of having a demon for the words that he spoke to God, but that was not the end of the story he laid down his life but he took it up again early one Sunday morning, the anthem of every pastor should be the words of first Corinthians 11 one media followers of me even as I also am of Christ.

I think of many of us preachers will be honest with our sales when we get called into the ministry to preach the gospel. We have also wondering are we going to be this famous well-known preacher we going to be someone like Billy Graham is known all around the world are we going to be a great evangelism or have these great crusades that people want to know was everywhere. One thing we must keep in mind is that we do not call to gain fame and fortune by leaving our footprints in concrete vault with Meyer. Our task is simply to humble our sales to follow in the footsteps that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is already left for us will you follow the good Shepherd will you give your life to him so that you can have life and have it more abundantly.

Would you give your life to him so that you might have eternal life.

Want to close with these words, there was a shepherd that was once out with his flock and he noticed that his flock was moving along brazenly losing there was one that was having trouble keeping up. So we went back to find out what was going on with the sheet she was caused down on the ground so he lifted the sheep will NSC try to take a step. It would crumble back to the ground again eventually realize that the sheep had actually slipped and broken his leg to the shepherd through the sheep onto his shoulders and well all the way back to where they were settling for the Knights three-mile level was higher. He was hungry but he had Lord for the sake of that she is not believe that one sheet behind so that he could be rejoined with the flock that the story of a young boy who suffered a disability due to the fact that when he was in his mother's womb. The umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck and he restricted the blood flow and oxygen supply to his brain and it calls him to be born with a disability. He was unable to walk is actually unable to walk or talk and so as a little boy grew and if these parents receive a notice that he was not developing in and in the doctors confirm yes he would not be able to walk or talk to the morning that would take him to the playground and the boy was sitting there in his wheelchair and he would see all the kids out running and playing in the boy would just have this being this global his face looking at the other kids playing in is that often times not the sort of slip away behind a tree to hide his tears because he was so heartbroken seeing that his son cannot get out and run and play like the other kids said his son was sit there in a wheelchair and he reluctantly cues on the trampoline and as they were Joe would see his son, himself a bit out of the seed out of his wheelchair as if he were jumping with them, but is there knew he would never be able to jump soon the ball was about eight years old.

His school had a fundraiser to raise money for the needy and photos fundraiser they were doing a 5K run so the sawing was able to communicate to his father by writing out that he wanted to participate in this one does that mean so heartbroken knowing that his son was unable to learn but he said he wants to be and I'm going to figure out a way so that they began to train himself and he came up with the idea that he would push his son throughout the entire three-mile run as that was running a push in the salon he was tired. His lungs were burning. His legs were aching. He was sore but he would not stop because every time he will look down at his ability to see this great big smile on his face as he was pushing him along the wheelchair and in the other keys are one of the long side of efficacy. The joy in his son's face, so they finally made it to the finish line in the day. I was exhausted and finished catching his breath in a saline grabbed the pad of paper and opinion in the way to be always communicated with his father and was they got to where they will assume that with all the other kids. He wrote that he for the first time in my life. I feel like I belong in the group.

You may today feel like you don't belong. If you've never accepted Jesus Christ as long as Lord and Savior. You do not belong to his flock.

But if you want to feel like you can belong. If you want to have that feeling that you belong to the flock you feel like you have a purpose in life you want to have that feeling of eternal life knowing that you will part of God's children today is a day to accept him as Lord and Savior just professional scenes don't listen to the devil in which he tells you. You've been to mud long you been too bad you will never accept you. You just confess your sins and give it to Jesus Christ.

The shed blood of Christ will wash away all sin is anything you've ever done. He should live washing away and making new you to may have eternal life and live all of eternity in the presence of the Almighty Lord you been listening to the teacher by God first client.1st was all copyright protected under our county liability is available until next time.great nation of Israel and seek first the kingdom of God is