 Here we are John chapter chapter 10. I'll begin reading at verse 11. I Read to verse 16 and we'll get into our study John chapter 10 Beginning at verse 11 reading to verse 16 Jesus said I am the good shepherd The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep But a harrowing he who is not the shepherd one who does not own the sheep sees the wolf coming in and leaves The sheep and fleas and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters him The harrowing fleas because he's a harrowing and doesn't care about the sheep. I'm the good shepherd I know my sheep and I'm known by my own as the father knows me even so I 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 must bring and They will hear my voice and there will be one flock and one shepherd And so I was mentioning to you and I'll I'll briefly say this in introduction here in the verses that appear before us I mentioned to you that seven times in the gospel of John Jesus makes what has been called an I am statement and we've been seeing them already We saw in John 635 how Jesus said I'm the bread of life He's the one who feeds those who are hungry. He said in John 8 verse 12 I'm the light of the world because Light is needed for those who are in darkness in chapter 10 verse 7 we saw him when he said I am the door of the sheep in other words I am the door for those who want to enter into my abundance and here Jesus is revealing himself as the good shepherd Now as we've been looking at chapter 9 into chapter 10 I mentioned to you that Jesus had been acting as a shepherd and was illustrating his ministry from that perspective from the perspective of A shepherd there was a blind man The blind man had been cast out He had been excommunicated from the the synagogue and all we saw that But as a shepherd Jesus saw him out as a sheep And so that's consistent with the old testament's picture of the messiah because the old testament portrays the messiah as a shepherd And so we looked at that together in verses 1 through 10 And I shared concerning the unique relationship that a shepherd has with his sheep Jesus had said for example, let me refresh your memory in verse 3 Jesus had said in chapter 10 that the sheep hear his voice And I pointed out that the sheep recognize his call to them A second thing I pointed out is in verse 3 he calls his own sheep by name In other words, he knows and he pays attention to them Like it says in Psalm 139 verses 1 through 4 Oh lord, you have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down my rising up You understand my thought a far off You comprehend my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways For there's not a word on my tongue, but behold, oh lord, you know it altogether So he calls his own sheep by name because he knows him and he pays attention to him in verses 3 and 4 I had pointed out that he leads them he goes before them and he brings them to their destination Like it says in Romans 8 14 as many as are led by the spirit of God These are sons of God and then forth The sheep follow him for they know his voice they have relationship with him And they hear his voice most clearly as I was pointing out last time in scripture His voice is given to us In God's word I want to share something with you that'll take a moment just to just to read to you But it's something to help you to understand and I want to say it like this Let me begin by saying all of us right now are gifted to have this book in our hands Or at least before us right the bible But Many of us don't remember or perhaps have never never been told How costly This book really turns out to be There was a man. He was an Englishman. His name is William Tyndale And William Tyndale Made it his life's work to translate the bible Into the common tongue and during the time of Tyndale It was in they would use the latin version and The only people who could actually read the bible were the scholars Because many people were simply illiterate and so Tyndale made it his life's goal To translate the word of god into uh into the common tongue into english And uh, let me share with you what happened to Tyndale when uh when he did so Because the only versions of scripture were in latin Only the educated and clergy could read the bible Tyndale worked to complete the first english translation of the new testament As well as the first five books of the old testament Without support for his work. He left england and went to germany in 1524 And completed the new testament in english in 1525 printing six thousand copies Only two copies survived The original copies have been lost With many of them actually purchased by church officials in england and burned In 1530 Tyndale was arrested in brussels jailed for a year and a half And was then strangled and burned at the stake all for translating the bible into english His prayer before he died reportedly was Lord open the king of england's eyes By 1539 every parish church in england was required to make a copy of the english bible available to all its members And the available translations were substantially based upon tyndales You're holding a book in your hands or is before you That cost the translators their very lives And this is the same book that believers ignore almost every day It's the same book that they'll walk in after church and kind of throw in a coffee table to pick up next week And we failed to understand the value of this book before us that it cost the lives not only of tyndale But so many others who went against What was lawful for them at that time to the degree That they were actually put to death in most horrible ways to be strangled and to be burned Was his reward For translating this book that we take so casually And so god help us as a church as believers not to take the word of god and not value it See that god speaks to us and we hear the shepherd's voice and we do so by his word Now as i was sharing with you again as he was teaching Jesus drew a contrast between himself and and those who are false shepherds And as we looked at those verses we closed by by seeing how he had said that these false shepherds Steal they kill and destroy And it contrasted their stealing killing and destroying had contrasted that with his being the source of abundant Life and that's what he had said in verse 10 When he said the thief does not come except to steal and to kill and to destroy And then he went on to say i have come that they may have life and that they may have it More abundantly and so that's what we looked at together. So he's continuing at this point To pursue the contrast between a true and a false shepherd and that's why in verse 11 he begins by saying I am the good shepherd The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep I am the good shepherd that word good in the original language in greek The word good is translated excellent or ferrets also can be translated with the word beautiful and noble I am the excellent fair beautiful noble shepherd is what he's saying And in speaking of a shepherd isaac 40 verse 11 speaks of the shepherd in this way He will feed his flock like a shepherd. That's messiah He will gather the lambs with his arms and carry them in his bosom and shall gently lead those who are with young No other image has been as deeply impressed on the mind of the church as jesus the good shepherd When you look at early artwork You look at painting or even the embroidery of the day even statues They all portray him So many of them portray him as a shepherd There were songs that are inspired by him being a shepherd. There are prayers That often contain the image lord. You are my shepherd You might find it interesting to know that the title pastor Is the name by which the sheep are to be reminded of their great shepherd who's been ordained to be their guide So a pastor speaks of pasture, which is a reference to our shepherd An ordinary shepherd was willing to defend the sheep from predators And jesus was willing to do so also and he laid down his life For us and that's what he's saying. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep Is willing to lay down Voluntarily his life. Jesus was not murdered Jesus voluntarily gave up himself. He wasn't taken He yielded himself It was a choice that he made for us Jesus laid down his life for us voluntarily john 1513 says greater love has no one than this than to lay down one's life For one's friends. He told him and you are my friends If you do whatsoever, I have commanded you your obedience demonstrates your relationship in other words And so jesus speaks of his the death the death on the cross But he's also speaking of his protective concern for them a sacrificial love for the sheep is what sets him apart from a false shepherd You see the false shepherds were only interested in how they could profit off of the sheep And you see this image in the old testament if you take notes, you might want to note jeremiah chapter 2 verse 8 You see many prophets thundered against false shepherds that were leading israel and jeremiah chapter 2 verse 8 does so He says the priest didn't say where's the lord And those who handle the law did not know me the rulers also transgressed against me The prophets prophesied by all by by all and walked after things that do not profit And so jeremiah during his day is preaching against the false The false teachers the false prophets of israel in the book of mica chapter 3 verse 11 Micah says israel's heads judge For a bribe her priests Teach for pay and her prophets divine for money Yet they lean on the lord and say is not the lord among us no harm can come upon us And zeffa and iah chapter 3 verse 4 Her prophets are insolent treacherous people And so in the old testament The the prophets would thunder against the false prophets the true prophets would actually speak about them in our day When a pastor points out error You can't believe the response that people have When oh you're so self-righteous aren't we supposed to not judge one another I don't know how many people in the church today would would survive under a real prophets prophesying Because when they spoke they didn't smile. I remember one time I'm watching a Program on tell on tbn And many years ago now there was a man named walter martin some of you have heard of him perhaps Many of you haven't he's been dead for quite some time, but he was uh, he was the foremost and and most well known Apologist that that I was familiar with it And he was he was just an amazing man. I as a new Relatively new believer. I was probably three or four years old in the lord I used to attend his class. He had a class on apologetics And I attended his class for a year And uh, and I had a heart for if I were not a pastor, I would have been a systematic theologian That's what I would have been and I especially would have been involved in apologetics because that's really where my interest is in many ways And I used to sit under his ministry and and we had actually when our church began We had him out here to come and share and and I appreciated him. We had differences Uh, concerning some things related to the rapture and timing of it and all but overwhelmingly He was somebody that I greatly respected and and walter martin Was somebody who was on tbn on one occasion and and he was sharing some things and And uh, jan crouch at this time again. This was many years ago. Who was a host hostess to him um She said, you know, you can be so mean walter. I'm just kind of Putting words in your mouth, but that's the sentiment You can be so direct and so mean walter and he says, oh, he says do you want me to to Not be so direct like yeah, he said, okay How about this and then he started quoting matthew 23 You white wash tombs and he's and he started going into that You know, you're like dead men's graves and people don't see in the walk and they fall in you and he's in She looks at him and he says, how do you like that? And he says he says and you know that came from the mouth of the most loving man who ever walked the face of the earth And yet he was speaking to the Pharisees words of rebuke for what they were doing to his sheep And i'll never forget her response when she said but can't you smile when you say that i'll never forget that Can't you smile when you say that? Because that spirit of the age was already infiltrating the mindset Of people we're afraid to be discerning because we don't want to be people's judges You don't have to not love someone to disagree with them guys always remember that It's not un-christian to want to live in the truth And and what we learn to do is we learn to communicate the truth in love It's not that you hate somebody You love them enough to tell them the truth and you tell them with a broken heart And sometimes you tell them with a tear in your voice But you tell them nonetheless Because truth sets them free And jesus is right now speaking about the false teachers The false shepherds The old testament prophets thundered against them Thundered against them And jesus did too in matthew 23 verse 14 Woe to you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites for you devour widows houses and for a pretense make long prayers Therefore you will receive greater condemnation those are words that came out of the mouth of love in the flesh You see false shepherds neglect the sheep false shepherds take advantage of the sheep Ezekiel 34 verses 2 through 4 son of man Prophecy against the shepherds of israel prophesy say to them thus says the lord god to the shepherds Woe to the shepherds of israel who feed themselves Should not the shepherds feed the flocks Yet you eat the fat clothe yourselves with the wool you slaughter the fatlings But you do not feed the flock the weak you have not strengthened nor have you healed those who were sick nor bound up the broken Nor brought back what was driven away nor sought what was lost But with force and cruelty you have ruled you have dominated you have sub subjugated them In the new testament titus 1 10 and 11 speaking of false teachers There are many who rebel against right teaching They engage in useless talk and deceive people. This is especially true of those who insist on circumcision for salvation They must be silenced by the wrong teaching. They've already turned whole families away from the truth Such teachers only want your money and so instead of them Being used by the shepherd and this is what we're seeing. It's a good shepherd who actually sacrifices for them He gives his life for them He voluntarily loves them and he protects them with his life So he says it i'm the good shepherd the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep but verse 12 a harling He who is not the shepherd one who does not own the sheep sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees and The wolf catches the sheep and scatters him in contrast to the good shepherd the true shepherd You have what he refers to in verse 12 as the harling A harling is a hired helper He's interested in doing the job But not the job itself The sheep belong to someone else So when danger is present He deserts them He doesn't love them So he'll not sacrifice For them. He doesn't protect them. He doesn't stand up for them Shepherds stand up for the sheep years ago now When the christmas lights were first coming up in the neighborhood was filled with christmas lights. They're in chino We saw it as an opportunity to preach the gospel to go in with Bible tracks and There were so many hundreds thousands of people. There were cars everywhere. Some of you may remember that And so we we went in To do that and a team from our church went in And actually there was a fellow on the city council during that day who said he didn't Want people coming into that neighborhood. So they passed a resolution in the city council here in chino And said you cannot go in and hand out These flyers they had said that we challenged that And we told them you don't have the right to keep us from Performing our first amendment right of Freedom you you don't have that right you cannot tell us we can't do that And so we actually dealt with the city at that time And they had to back off because it was illegal what they were doing And so our team went in and I went in marie and I my wife and I went in you might remember this we went in And my people were walking through the neighborhood and I was walking kind of just there Just following them and I happened upon two of my people As they were being confronted by a guy Who was really angry and a little bit drunk and belligerent and so He started confronting one of my members of my church And I I happened upon them When when it was taking place And I remember seeing that and I stopped for a moment and I was looking at him And the guy was getting belligerent my and my my friend was kind of Intimidated by this guy So the guy says to my to his name was frankie says to frankie Who told you to come in here and he's like that? I stepped in between them and I stepped stepped up to the guy. I said I did You know I did I said we have the right and I began to talk to him I stepped between because that's what shepherds do That's my sheep. You want to take it out on somebody? I'm right here I'm right here shepherds do that not because we're violent I didn't want to beat him up. I'd have called one of the bigger guys and said hammerham You know, I I'm not trying to sound like some bad dude I'm trying to say that my heart's inclination is for protection of the sheep And take it upon yourself If you want to be mad be mad at me you want to know actually I got orders from somebody else who's greater than and Jesus said go out preach the gospel. That's what we're doing And that's what we do not biligerently not aggressively I just use that as illustration Just to show you that there's an instinct within the shepherd to step between the sheep and danger That's what Jesus is teaching and a hireling doesn't a hireling will just leave them Why because the sheep don't belong to him. It's not his it's no sweat It's just a job. I get an hourly wage. It doesn't matter. You want to take that take it I don't care it doesn't belong to me, but the shepherd's different We've already seen that the shepherd knows him by name. He calls him. He loves him. He's bonded with him He lays his life down for him and that's what Jesus is saying Whereas the false the false shepherd. No, he wants your money He wants your wool. He wants what he can profit from from you But not the true shepherd the true shepherd lays his life down And that's who Jesus is and that's what Jesus is saying. He said again a hireling He who is not the shepherd one who does not own the sheep sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and fleas The wolf catches the sheep and scatters them verse 13 the hireling fleas because he's a hireling and he doesn't care about The sheep he doesn't care. He doesn't love him. He won't sacrifice for them Again that attitude applies to ministers even to this day for for a hireling The important thing is fame or position finances power may be some influence For a hireling ministry is not a calling. It's a job But that's not true with genuine shepherds every true shepherd has scars that they've received through battling wolves and it's been said Look at your look at your pastor's forearms and you'll see scars and that's just obviously just a picture The point he's making is every shepherd has wounds that they've taken As they've protected their sheep and sometimes the sheep actually will give them wounds to Sheep aren't scary And let's face it if you're walking in an alley and you heard some noise And you said, oh my what's that? And the sheep comes from around You're not going to go. Oh my god. It's a sheep. You know, you're just oh how cute, you know Come here lamb chops. I'm hungry You know If it's a wolf that's something different If it's a wolf That'll make the blood in your body freeze Because you're in danger And every shepherd Has scars you can't see From battling battling wolves Every shepherd does every shepherd does they have wounds that they've received for a sheep who very often Just wander off without even caring But that's not the job of the shepherd to make the sheep love them It's a shepherd's calling to love those sheep even if they don't understand it Jesus laid his life down You see the harling has no attachment to those in his care because he doesn't love them And the sad thing is they can look and sound like a genuine minister of the gospel You'll see some and I used to give names all the time. I I don't do it anymore. It's I just I just don't But I used to stand up and and I would say watch out for this and watch out for that by name Um, it's been my hope and prayer that over the years by just going through the word together that my people have growing in discernment and all But it's true You can turn on a radio and you can turn on a television program and the person looks like the real deal and That's that's what's so difficult and Because they look like and they sound like they even quote the bible But we need to remember satan quotes the bible. He quoted the bible to jesus I mean satan quotes the bible you need to have it in context And and what i've been trying to do for all of these years is to give you give you as a sheep give you the the equipment to be able to hear and to discern error and truth And the only way you're going to know that is not by my my stories and my jokes and my entertainment and and trying to have a great Personality none of that's going to save you when someone knocks on your door and wants to argue with you What's going to save you is god's word and that's why i've tried to give that to you for all of these years In second Corinthians 11 13 the bible says false apostles. They're deceitful workers. They transform themselves into apostles of christ And that's what they do They transform themselves to have the appearance of someone who has that kind of authority in verse 14 I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep and am known by my own as the father knows me even so I know the father and I laid down my life for the sheep Now the first good shepherd statement he made in verse 11 is linked with his sacrifice But this statement is linked with his knowledge of those who belong to him Unlike false teachers, jesus had a personal interest and knowledge of those who were his own it's like When he told that Samaritan woman go and call your husband. He already had a knowledge of that woman Or when he was looking at the apostle peter and he says your name is peter, but you shall be called sephus You're going to become a stone Jesus has that knowledge of those whom he is calling to himself and transforming and so his love is real and his love is Is demonstrated and it's demonstrated by willingness a willingness to die and this Willingness to die will provoke response Because his love isn't superficial Jesus's love is intimate There's a depth Of relationship between the shepherd and the sheep He says I know verse 14. I know my sheep And am known by my own Those of you who are parents those of you who are married Children you know I'll say as a husband. I'll use this as an illustration as a husband I I know my wife And I know when my wife says something Even if the words are certain things I know there's an underlying thing there. There's a message, you know Every husband knows those kinds of things about the wife Are you going to leave those there? That means pick them up What do you want to eat? That means say a couple things and then ask her what do you want? We get to know each other But how how did you get to know each other in relationship? How do you get to know each other? I have four children when they were growing up Everyone of them may have been my child. Everyone had a different personality I had to learn how to deal with this one and I dealt with this one differently than I dealt with that one That's the way it works same as true right now with my grandchildren They all have different personalities and you have to study them to get to know them to know how to speak to them And sometimes I don't know how so the mom will tell me or the dad will say oh, no you need to this or you need to do that Well, how do you know you need to do this or you need because I'm the father or I'm the mother? I know I'm with them constantly. I've learned their ways And that's what the sheep and the shepherd relationship is guys. Jesus knows your ways Or other people don't understand you he does now. I like that I like that because some of you may be saying nobody understands me Maybe no human being does maybe you're that complicated and deep. I don't think so, but maybe you are But there's one who does know you He knows you when you lie down And he knows you when you stand up He knows the words before they're formed on your tongue and even spoken from your mouth He knows everything about you He's your shepherd And you know the amazing thing I'll just say this quickly the amazing thing is he knows everything about us and he loves us Anyway, that to me is amazing. Yes. Amen to that So unlike false teachers, he has a knowledge And his love is demonstrated by willingness to lay down his life. He said I know my sheep. I know their hearts I know their wishes. I know their plans. I know their dreams. I know their circumstances I know those who are mine and I I own them as mine And second timothy 2 19 the lord knows those who are his And some 34 15 the eyes of the lord are on the righteous His ears are open to their crying. So he says in verse 14. I'm the good shepherd. I know my sheep and am known by my own He knows the sheep. He's known by them even as the father knows him and he knows the father As jesus and his father have a deep and personal intimacy He has that kind of intimacy with those who belong to him They have a love and an attachment to their shepherd and it's based on a relationship not just a sentiment His sheep know him. He had said in chapter 10 verse 4 the sheep follow him for they know his voice So in verse 15 as a father knows me even so I know the father and I laid down my life The shepherd's love It's deep. It's complete and he willingly lays his life down for us He laid down his life And I say of 50 verse 6 I gave my back to those who struck me My cheeks to those who plucked out the beard I did not hide my face from shame and spitting In Titus 2 14 Jesus gave himself for us that he might redeem us from every lawless deed And purify for himself his own special people who are zealous for good works One of my favorite christmas songs that is not that old Is the song by a group called down here And it's called how many kings And one of the lines that always just touches my heart is when he sings how many gods have poured out their Hearts their romance a world that's torn apart and how many fathers gave up gave up their sons for me Only one did that for me And that touches me How many Only one Now he says in verse 16 other sheep I have which are not of this fold them also I must bring and they will hear my voice and there will be one flock and one shepherd no I could go into a whole controversy about this verse here I won't because we don't have time and I don't feel like it and I don't think you'd be that interested But there's a huge controversy because I'll say one thing real quick It's not possible to say things real quick. You know that already but The Mormon church teaches this verse is in reference to the Gentiles That lived in South America The Mormon church teaches that the other sheep that he's referring to they say relates to uh, Native Americans in In uh, South America Is that what he's referring to? No, let me tell you what he's referring to these other sheep are The non-jews these other sheep he's referring to are the Gentiles in Ephesians chapter 2 11 through 14 Paul said it like this remember that you once Gentiles in the flesh who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision made in the flesh by hands That at that time you were without christ being aliens from the commonwealth of israel And strangers from the covenants of promise having no hope and without god in the world But now when christ jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of christ For he himself is our peace who has made both one and has broken down the middle wall of separation God worked with the jewish nation But god through the gospel and through the death of christ God reached the Gentiles also that's the point and so when jesus is saying other sheep i have He's not speaking of people in some other far off land. He's speaking of all people He's speaking of the Gentiles the Gentiles who come to faith in christ and have a relationship with god Because of the death of jesus on the cross When jesus came remember with me the order jesus came and first ministered to the jews And when he sent his disciples out to minister initially he sent his apostles to reach the jews When he sent them out on their first mission. He gave them instructions Matthew 10 verse 6 He said go rather to the lost sheep of the house of israel So they were to go out and reach the jews He was approached on one occasion by a Gentile woman and the woman asked for his help She had a demon possessed daughter and she asked jesus if he would set her free But when she came and spoke he was direct to her in Matthew 15 24 He answered and he said i wasn't sent except to the lost sheep of the house of israel And so that's how the initial ministry of christ was is to reach the jew Now after his resurrection he sent his people into the whole world And even so non jews didn't receive the word of god until ax chapter 8 That's when the samaritans received it and then again in ax chapter 10 When the church went out to preach it was always first to the jew romans 116 says it like this I'm not ashamed of the gospel of christ It's a power of god to salvation for everyone who believes for the jew first and also for the greek When you read your book of ax ax records how the apostles would first go to the synagogues When the jewish people continued rejecting the gospel then paul went to gentiles in ax 13 46 and 47 It says paul and barnabas grew bold and said it was necessary that the word of god should be spoken to you first But since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life Behold we turn to the gentiles for so the lord has commanded us I have set you as a light to the gentiles that you should be salvation to the ends of the earth So the gentiles have been outside the promises of god But they were brought near to god through christ and brought to salvation So from the jew and the gentile god now makes that one new man which is referred to as as a christian And so these are the other sheep that jesus is referring to And then he goes on and says and we'll move to a to a conclusion He says verse 17 therefore my father loves me because I lay down my life that I may take it again No one takes it from me. I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down I have power to take it again this command I have received from my father Therefore there was a division again among the jews because of these saints many of them said he he's got a demon. He's mad Why do you listen to him? And others said these are not the words of one who has a demon Can a demon open the eyes of the blind and so My father loves me he says I lay down my life The father loves the son because i'm dedicated to performing his will jesus would say And that included his voluntary death That he might be resurrected And his resurrection Makes it possible for others to have resurrection life also notice verse 18 how he says no one takes it from me I lay it down I have absolute authority I lay it down and I also can Be resurrected I have absolute authority. No one can take my life from me When he's there and they came to take him in that garden And they came walking in And he says to them who are you looking for? And they said jesus of nazareth And he said i am he do you remember what happened to them when they came in they fell to the ground They fell to the ground And I always kind of envisioned jesus looking down at them as they're looking back up at him Okay, now I asked you who are you looking for? Because his power and his authority were overwhelming had he not voluntarily given himself Up there's no way they could have taken him But he did that he laid his life down But he also took his life up Remembered in chapter 2 verses 19 through 21 how jesus said destroy this temple in three days I will raise it up that jesus said it's taken 46 years to build this temple. Will you raise it up in three days? He was speaking of the temple of his body I have that authority while there's a division again amongst them He divides those who are listening Some say he has a demon. He's crazy But others point to his works But we'll close with one last thought neither of those those groups Embraced him they argued but they didn't embrace him The one who voluntarily lays down his life They argued amongst themselves But as we'll close here and pick up next time they did not Embrace him You can have all kinds of opinions about jesus But your opinion is worthless unless you embrace him And that's how you're going to be saved to embrace him