Have you ever heard or have you ever had the opportunity to watch a herd of sheep just alive like that? Have you ever? If you have, raise your hand. Like that, really? Okay, not me. I'm a city slicker. I mean, the best I can do is Netflix, some documentary online, okay, some documentary on TV, and just catch it. So, outside of seeing those documentaries, I know nothing about sheep and sheep herding and all that, but I know a guy, and he wrote a book. So that's where I turn to, all right? And this book that I have in my hand is called The Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23. And it's an oldie, but it's really good. It's written by a guy who's actually a shepherd. 1970, my word, 1970. I was a young whippersnapper, four years old. Gary was in his 40s. So... I couldn't pass it up, I couldn't pass it up. I was going to say Sandy, but he was in his fifties. But my bad, my bad on that one. So the reality is this, he takes a look at this and Philip Keller describes sheep from his point of view as a professional shepherd, a keeper of flocks. And He makes mention throughout the book of how difficult it is to care for sheep. It's a full-time job, they demand extra attention, more than just the rest of the livestock that you may have under your care. If they're left to themselves, they keep walking down the same paths and they wear it down and they don't seek anything else or anything other. They just keep going until they're doing it. And they'll graze until there's no more to graze and then left to themselves, they die. And this is why shepherds have to always provide pasture for their sheep. Left alone, they don't last too long. But, having said that, they're not indifferent toward good pasture, just like any other beast. Alright? This one included. You show me a good food and I'm happy. They open up into a new pasture and they kick and they jump and they welcome the opportunity to feed. The problem here with the sheep is that they need a shepherd. That's exactly what he's taking a look at. The fact that sheep need shepherds and that imagery is picked up through the Scriptures. And we are reminded that God's people are sheep and He's the shepherd. One of the most famous Psalms is Psalm 23 verse 1. The Lord is My shepherd, I shall not want. Psalm 95, the psalmist writes, Come, let us bow down and worship. Let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker. For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, the flock under His care. Psalm 100, Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come into His presence with singing. Know that the Lord, He is God. It is He who made us, and we are His. We are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. And like sheep, you and I as God's people need guidance, you and I need protection, you and I need the provision of green pastures. If you and I are not cared for, we don't know how to do a good job. I mean, that's why you and I so naturally drift from the Lord. Have you ever thought about that? If the Lord wasn't in charge of my relationship with Him, I would end up making a lot more mistakes. Only by the sovereign grace and the patient grace of God, I don't end up in a ditch, spiritually speaking. If you leave your garden alone, you don't have to worry about weeds. They just come. You leave the garden of your heart alone and you will automatically drift away from the Lord and weeds will pop. It just happens. You and I must take charge of what's going on and depend on this shepherd of our souls. This morning and as well as this coming Friday night, we're going to look at John 10 and see how the Lord cares for His people. The message of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone is a constant reminder that you and I, humanity, is utterly incapable of solving the biggest problem they have. It's utterly incapable of providing for itself for the greatest need that it has. After all, how does a sinful human being reconcile with the Holy God? How are you going to do it? What are you going to offer Him? This perfect deity, the God of heaven, the maker of heaven and earth, the Lord of heaven and earth. What are you going to offer Him? Money? Some of you may have a great portfolio, financial, you're ready for the future. I've told you about mine. I said it to my wife. I can retire three years after I'm dead. I'm good. I'm good. Alright, until then, I can't retire. So the reality is you may have, but what are you going to offer him? Money? He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. In fact, he owns the thousand hills upon which the cattle are. If he's the creator of it all, and the earth and everything in it is his, what are you going to offer him to reconcile so you can be friends again? You're going to offer him what? Your wisdom? Your intellect? The one from whom all sorts of truth emerges? All truth is God's truth? What are you going to offer Him? See, the message of salvation, of rescue by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone is just a constant reminder that if you reject that message, there's a future judgment coming. There's a future judgment that you and I will have to face. It's a constant reminder that Christ is the only way, the only door to this salvation. as we gear up for a holy week, what's known in the Christian calendars. Holy, today's Palm Sunday. In many churches they'll talk about the Palm Sunday. In this church we're going to talk about something different. But it's still about Christ. And then Monday and Tuesday and we get to Friday. This is a constant reminder, and if you're not, I hope you have already a Bible reading plan. There's plenty out there. If you need some help, just let me know. Where you're focusing on the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why? Because if you want to see judgment, You go to the cross. If you want to see love, the judgment of God, you go to the cross. If you want to see the love of God, you go to the same cross. It's central. It's central. You, your response to Jesus Christ in this life determines where you spend the next. You may not necessarily even agree with it. You don't have to. It's still truth. 2 plus 2 is 4. I don't care what today's society is doing. You don't get a blue ribbon for participation because 2 plus 2 is 5. In your mind. Because we believe that God has revealed Himself, not only in general revelation through creation, but specifically through His Word that points us to the Living Word. Because we take this Bible, this revelation as authoritative, as God speaks. And when He speaks, He doesn't stutter. I might stutter, I might muddy the water, He does not. And because through His word He has said that, there's no other way to be reconciled than through Jesus Christ, that's what we have to then deal with and reckon with. Throughout the gospel, according to John, Jesus makes claims, extraordinary, outrageous, you could even say. claims about himself. He's not too worried about what Sandy thinks about who Jesus is. He doesn't really care what JC thinks. He doesn't care what Lewis thinks. He doesn't care what Martha thinks. He doesn't care... He doesn't really... He's not asking that question. He's just making statements about himself. Eight times in the gospel according to John, Jesus says, I am. And he just lets it sit. Seven of those eight times, he adds a predicate. Something after the I am statement that points to his divinity and his claim to be Messiah. We've been looking at those, we've been looking at those. These are metaphors of the Messiah, Jesus in His own words. We've looked already at, I am the bread of life, John chapter 6. We took a look at, I am the light of the world, John chapter 8. Today, we look at the gate of the sheep, John 10. Friday night, we'll take a look at Good Shepherd. Resurrection Sunday, we'll take a look at John 11, resurrection and life. Following Sunday after that, We'll look at the way, the truth and the life. And then on, I believe it's the 23rd of April, we'll look at, I am the true vine. Jesus in His own words. So for this morning, I invite you to open your Bibles or your Bible app to John chapter 10, verses 1 through 10. I'm going to read it. You're going to follow along. I'm reading from the English Standard Version. John chapter 10, verses 1 through 10. John chapter 10 verses 1 through 10, I read, and you follow along. Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in by any other way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all of his own, he goes before them. and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from Him, for they do not know the voice of strangers. This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what He was saying to them. So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who come before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep do not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and he will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. Stop there. He is the gate of the door. That's the next I am statement. I am the gate or I am the door of the sheep. And what he's trying to say is I am the entry point to a relationship with the God of heaven. That's the bottom line. I could finish here and we can go home. But I got 10 more pages of notes. That's not going to happen. I don't have 10 pages. I have 9. But that's the bottom line. I am the entry point. I am the entry point. You want and we're going to see that in other statements, in the I am statements. I am the entry point to a relationship with the God of heaven. So let's take a look. What does this mean? Why does it matter? Okay, let's take a look at it. Let's dig in. First thing is the background. The background to this saying, John 10, if you linger long enough in church and if you read your New Testament enough times, John 10 will be a very nice chapter, it will be a very favorite, endearing, It draws that sketch of a caring shepherd for His people. It is He who provides for them and they who belong to Him are cared for. And it's very nice and you almost have like a serene background music and boy, that's very nice. But the words of this chapter are not spoken in a peaceful setting. We tend to forget this because we lose sight of the context. See chapter 10 obviously follows chapter 9, but that's not only in your Bible, but it also happens in circumstances. There is no change of venue, there is no change of people, there is no change of audience between John 9 and John 10. In fact, from John 7 all the way through 10, he's at a feast. It's only after John 10, 21 or 22, it talks about the Feast of Dedication and it says it was winter. Okay, that's Hanukkah, by the way, Feast of Dedication or the Feast of Lights. Now it changes here, chapter 7, 8, 9 and 10, it's the Feast of Tabernacles. We talked about it last time, Sukkot, that's a fall festival. Hanukkah, Feast of Dedication is a winter festival. So there between chapters 10 verse 21 and 22, there is a change of venue, there's a change of time, period. But between 9 and 10 specifically, there's nothing, nothing has changed. Jesus is still engaging a hostile religious group called the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the religious, somewhat liberals of the day. You had to counter them were the Sadducees. Sadducees were, well, they were more the conservative. The Sadducees were more the liberal. The Sadducees didn't believe in miracles or in the resurrection. You know what the joke is, right? That's why they were so sad, you see. But they are Sadducees, I got that, I couldn't help myself, I set it up, I couldn't help myself. But the Pharisees were the conservative, the ultra-conservatives that they saw themselves as direct descendants of the priestly line. And they're the ones, today you see them with the... they trace back, the super orthodox. Okay? Then you see them walk on Saturday mornings because they can't walk more than a mile. They're walking down Sheridan Street. I see them to the temple. Okay? And you see the prayer shawls. Those are modern-day. They can trace it back to the Pharisees, the separated ones. The Sadducees were more the the liberals that, hey, it's a little fluid and we don't have to take the law, let's honor the spirit of the law, not just the letter of the law. So he's still engaging one of these hostile religious groups called the Pharisees. Why does he engage? Because he healed somebody. John chapter 9, a man that's born blind. And the disciples go, hey, why was he born blind? Was it his fault or his parents fault? Because after all, if he's blind, it's sin, it's a sinner just suffering His consequences, and you know the story, if you've read it, Jesus says, neither one. But for the glory of God to be manifested, He was born this way. And He heals them, and He heals them. And He brings light to that darkness. And this blind man comes to know Jesus the Christ comes to not only see physically, but also see spiritually. Well, that doesn't fare well with the religious leaders. So they start this interaction between, they bring Him before the religious leaders and they're trying to give Him a hard time, they're trying to get Him to recant and say things that He shouldn't. After a while He says, listen, I don't know much about much here. you know, the product of Miami High, okay? All I know is Miami High, I barely survived 12 years over there. All right? So all I know is this, I was blind but now I see. That's your problem, how you want to define that. So you know what they do? They go, you know what? Get out. They cast them out. They cast them out. Verse 34 of chapter 9, you were born in utter sin. Again, they still are blind to the realities of the light of the world. You were born in sin, And you're going to teach us? They cast him out. Jesus picks him up in verse 35 of chapter 9. He heard that they had cast him out. And having found him, He says, Do you believe in the Son of Man? He answered, And who is He, sir, that I may believe in Him? Verse 37, He said to him, You have seen Him, and it is He who is speaking to you. Verse 38, Lord, I believe. And he worshiped Him. Right after that, He gives verses 40. which is the reaction of 39, for judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind. Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and he said to them, and said to him, are we also blind? And you got to say that like, are we also blind? You know, perish the thought, you low life. And he says in 41, if you were blind, you would have no guilt. But now that you say, we see, in other words, you implying that we're blind? We're not blind. But now that you say you see, your guilt remains. And he goes right into chapter 10. Truly, truly, King James is verily, verily. The language would say, amen, amen, amen, amen. May a bee may be certain above certainties. He says, I say to you, he who does not enter through the sheepfold by the door but climbs in any other way, that man is a thief and a robber. Boy, he's just pointing it right back on them. But who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice and he calls on his own sheep by name and leads them out. And that's the background of what's going on. Jesus takes advantage of a teaching moment to illustrate the blindness of the Pharisees in contrast to what's going on right before their eyes. As the door, Jesus is saying, the only way to entrance salvation is through me. As the good shepherd, I'm the one who cares for the sheep, even at the expense of my own life. That's what He's saying under strong contrast. By saying, I am the door, it means you guys are not it. I am the good shepherd, you are not it. That's what he's contrasting. And you see and you pick it up. Again, if you do some digging into it, there are two ways in the days of Jesus, in Jesus' day, that sheep were kept. Number one, if they were kept in town, they were kept in a large communal pen. Okay? So you show up and you guys are the sheep. I brought you in through those doors. You guys are sheep. Those doors are protected by what's called here the gatekeeper, the porter, the watchman. The shepherd would leave. In the morning, the shepherd would come. The gatekeeper would say, yes, you're a shepherd, because I saw you. I recognize you're authentic. Then he would open the door, and the shepherd would come in, and he would say, Bill, Paul, Dee, Jessica, Gertrude. And because you know the name and you know the voice, you would respond and you would follow. Do you understand that in those days if a different shepherd would come and try to call the name of the sheep, they wouldn't respond? But that's why he says, they know my name. I go to the gatekeeper, the gatekeeper recognizes me as authentic. I then have access to the fold. I say, and I call my own to me and they follow me because they know my voice. The second way. sheep were kept in Jesus' day was out in the field or the countryside. It was time to sleep. He would collect them all. He would make a makeshift pen with an opening and He would lay in the opening. Therefore He was, what? The door. The gate. See, that's the background to what he is saying. People in his day would have picked up on this quickly. You and I, we need to dig in a little bit. Because again, I'm a city slicker. The only thing I know about sheep is whatever I see or read. I mean, I may have gone to a petting farm. But that's about it. And I stayed away from the llama. I tell you that much. That was one time. We were there not too long ago at a petting farm like, uh-uh, I'm not getting close to no llama. They spit. And they're pretty accurate too. I send my family out there. Yeah, you go get them. Go take a llama shower. That's your problem. All right? So I don't know, so we have to dig in. So now it starts making sense. I'm the door. I go to the gatekeeper. He recognizes I'm authentic. He gives me access to the flock. I call them out by name. They hear me. They know my voice. They follow. One setting, the other setting, I'm in the countryside. It's time to collect, it's time to protect, it's time to rest. I'm the gate. That's the background. Now, what does it mean, the meaning? Verse 7, Jesus said again, because He says verses 1 through 5, verse 6, this figure of speech, they didn't understand because they didn't want to. So what's the meaning? So He said to them again, Amen, Amen, truly, truly, verily, verily, certainty of certainty, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who come before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and he will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. So the sheep fold imagery returns. The sheep are with the shepherd, and like I said, the shepherd makes this makeshift pen, he leaves an opening, and he becomes, he lays down. So therefore, no sheep or enemy of sheep can go and have access to the flock unless they have dealt with the shepherd. Now, child of God, if you're a sheep today, you belong to the flock of God, that's comforting. Because that means that nothing can enter your life unless the Lord knows about it. Nothing surprises Him. Your diagnoses don't surprise Him. Your unemployment doesn't surprise Him. Your lack of whatever doesn't surprise Him. We're not dealing with someone who goes, Oh my word, I did not foresee this. What am I going to do now? See, that's the comfort that the shepherd provides. That's the comfort when you know that He's the gate. Nothing has access and nothing leaves without Him knowing. No sheep could ever get out and no enemy could come in. That's what He's saying, I am the door, I'm the entry point. You don't enjoy the flock unless you come through Me. And the flock doesn't stay safe and provided for and protected for unless it knows Me. What are the benefits? Well, what he's actually saying, I'm the gate of the sheep. It'll be on the screen there. He says, I'm the living door. To get into the sheep pen, you got to go through me. To go out to pasture, you got to go through me. I am the Lord. I am Jehovah. I am the door. There is no other way. That was exclusive. They understood this when he said, I am. They ran back to the Exodus and the wilderness experience. This guy is claiming to be God. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Don't miss it. That's what he was saying. So when he's the gate, what does that mean for you and me? Well, number one, it means salvation. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved. Stop there. There's only one gate, and the gate is known as Jesus Christ. See, that's what makes Christianity different from every other religion. Every other religious leader is going to point you to a teaching. Only Jesus says, you follow me. Follow me. I'm not pointing you towards a set of doctrines. You're not saved in the doctrines of grace. You're saved through Jesus Christ, by grace alone, through faith alone. The doctrines of grace may be great and I subscribe to them, but the doctrines of grace did not save me. What saved me, what reconciled me was my faith placed in the person and the finished work of Jesus Christ. That's what saves me, entering through the door of salvation. That's the beauty, it's salvation. It's not a collection of truths. Is it good to know doctrine? Of course it is. But it's better to know the Jesus of the doctrine. That's the bottom line. See, the gate is narrow, but the offer of the gospel is broad. Anyone can come. Anyone can come. You see, by Him saying, I am the door, He's saying, I am unique. I am unique. We live in a day where pluralism, you know, where there's many ways. We say, oh, all roads lead to Rome. Oh, maybe you're in Italy, but not to heaven. You're in Italy, maybe all roads lead to Rome, but not here, making it to heaven. There's only one road, and it's through Jesus Christ. That's what He's saying, it's unique, He is the door. He says in Matthew 7, 13 and 14, enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Jesus is unique. He's a special door. See, today people will tell us that we find salvation through working hard. Hard work. I mean, that's where you are. That's why you enjoy what you enjoy in life, right? You live in the right place. You drive the right car. You have this and you have that because you've earned it. You've worked hard and in the same way, I've prepared myself for outside, for unlike you pastor, I can actually enjoy retirement, I don't have to die and then three years later retire. No, no, unlike you, I'm prepared, I am prepared. But here's the catch, working hard doesn't get you any closer to being reconciled with God. Through generosity, giving money. That's all, let me just throw some money at this. Nope, nope, social activism. Nope. Sincerity. I'm sincere. I believe in the God that I made for myself. I have a sincere belief in that. You know, sincerity doesn't get you far. Go ahead and sincerely cross Pines Boulevard with your eyes closed. I don't care how sincere you are. You're going to be road killed in about a second. So go ahead, tell the iguana how sincerely she thinks, or he thinks it was, when it was crossing Palm Avenue before it got... Guts everywhere, and you're like, sincerely wrong, right? Same thing. You can be sincere, wrong. But many will say, just sincerely. It doesn't matter what you believe as long as you're there, because it's the big guy upstairs. You can embrace various systems and ideas. And those are the false teachers that He calls thieves that come only to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus rightly reminds you there's options out there. And you and I are exposed to them. They were exposed to them in the first century, you're now exposed to them in the 21st century. But He reminds that He alone is the true gate and He can back it up. How? Look at the screen there, how? He alone was sinless. He's the one who has the audacity. Which of you can prove me guilty of sin? I'll tell you what, I know what I did yesterday. And I know what some of you guys did yesterday. Because social media tells it all. Okay, I would never have the audacity to look at Matt and say, Matt, go ahead, try to find sin in this right here. Matt and I, along with Sam, we helped someone move yesterday. I am sure that not all my words were hallelujah. I'm sure, because there was some piece of furniture there, it was a piece of work. I'm like, I think I said a hallelujah. It didn't sound like hallelujah, but I think it said hallelujah. These guys were kind. I'm the oldest guy there, so these guys are like, we're walking up and down stairs, I just let them go in front of me. I'm like. These guys are skipping every other step. I'm like, are you kidding me? If I do that, I'm gonna land, I'm gonna lose a tooth. So Jesus alone could say, who? Who? Tell me, tell me, tell me. Thoughts? Forget about thoughts. I don't know your thoughts. But just speech and action. We're all guilty. But He said, who? Which of you can? Jesus taught as one who had authority, unlike other teachers. We've said this before. He didn't have to quote anybody. He didn't have to look for books. He is the book. He didn't have to quote, oh, you've heard it said, Rabbi so and so said this. No, He said, no, no, no, no, you've heard it said, but I say to you. I'm authoritative. I'm the last word. He had power over disease, demons, and nature. You see that in the miracles. The miracles point to that. He has authority over that. And he rose from the dead. I mean, you can't get any better than that. All the other religious leaders, still dead. Jesus rose from the dead. Verse 9. Again, He says, who enters from Me will be saved. And the question is saved from what? I mean, the person, when that word saved was used, it was recovered from a severe illness, made it through a bad storm, survived a war, acquitted in court. What are you and I saved from? Well, you know it well, we're saved from God's wrath. Because God, listen, the perfect God is yes, loving and merciful, but He's holy. And you and I have deliberately broken His law. We have seen the speed limit sign flipped at a bird and went twice as fast. Pardon my French, but you know that that's the honest truth. The minute I see the speed limit, just rebellion rises. Rises, it's just automatic. I go like, oh, but I've learned through written reminders from the local PD. that I can't go no matter how fast I want. So they gave me a couple of riveting reminders throughout my lifetime in the same piece of street, you know, same stretch. I'm like, Lewis, Lewis. But you and I have rebelled and God has every right to say, I will, I will crush the rebellion. And he prepares a place for Satan and his demons and for sinners. And if you don't trust in Christ, you will also suffer. What comes your way? See, God doesn't, unlike you and me, God doesn't compromise. We live lives of compromise. I mean, if you think you're not living a life of compromise, you need Jesus. And that was supposed to be funny, by the way, okay? Really, we all have levels of compromise in our lives. I tell you this all the time. We have what we tolerate. I have it in my life, I have it in my church, I have it in my office, I have it everywhere, in every aspect of my life. Whether it's personal, marital, familial, everywhere. I have what I tolerate. Because if I didn't want it, I wouldn't tolerate it. I do something about it. So we live lives of compromise. Some areas are bigger, some areas are not. And the problem is that you and I, we think that we can bargain with God, He doesn't bargain. He doesn't bargain, He doesn't compromise with evil. Evil cost Him the life of His son. Sin is that serious to God. Each of us need salvation. In those days, they would have said, Oh yeah, these sheep need salvation from wolves. You and I need salvation from God's righteous anger towards sin and rebellion. See, if I have a bad heart, if I needed a heart transplant, I can do certain things. I can adjust my diet. I can limit my activity. I can take some meds. And for a while, I'll look pretty good. But sooner or later, what needs to happen? What needs to happen? Talk to me. A heart transplant. But you know, in order to get me a new heart, what has to happen? Somebody has to die. You see? We all suffer from spiritual heart failure, disease. And unless you get a new heart, you die in your sin. See, I can do a lot of things, but sooner or later, someone has to die so a healthy heart can be placed in my life. And I then live because someone else died. Follow the thought? That's what He's saying here. You see, the salvation that He provides is a perfect one. Salvation past tense, present tense and future tense. On the screen there, we're saved from sin's penalty. The anger of God that separates us from Him and makes us His enemies instead of His sheep. Because of Christ, that's past tense, that's justification, that's what God... Through faith in Christ, I'm justified, I'm declared not guilty. In the present tense, throughout our lives as Christians, we increasingly deliver from sin's power. So not only the penalty, the power of sin is I'm dealing with and that's sanctification. That's God at work in my life and I'm cooperating with God at work in my life. So I'm looking more and more like Jesus in every area of life. And that's how I deal with the power of sin that was broken. But it's still there, you know it, I know it. And then the future says there, and someday when we pass into God's holy presence through death, we will be saved from the actual presence of sin. So, salvation in past tense, present tense and future tense. Past tense is Romans 5, present tense is Titus chapter 2, future tense is 1 Corinthians 15, 1 John chapter 3. God takes it all, and He provides it all. He's a unique door, and He invites you to intimacy. He says, they know me, they know me. It says there, I am the door of the sheep, verse nine. They will be saved, they will go in and out, in and out, unencumbered intimacy. Not only that, but there's not only salvation, but there's safety. It says there, they go in and out, and they find pasture. See, the Good Shepherd has placed His body at the entrance to make sure that you and I are protected and provided for. Psalm 121, the Lord will keep you from all harm. He will watch over your life. The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore. We have safety. Not only that, we have satisfaction. That's why we find pasture. Pasture. that which was difficult in the days of the Middle East, that which was difficult in the days of Jesus. That's why you and I, in Psalm 23, it says, He leads me, He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters. See, that's the abundant life. Don't let some faith charlatan, name it and claim it fool, tell you that the abundant life is this or that. The abundant life is knowing. Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd and enjoying what He provides is not a life without problems. On the screen, just take this with you. A full and abundant life is one being led by the One who knows us by name. It means life that is full, overflowing with grace, that is more than sufficient for every need. It is a life of contentment and rest, even during challenging circumstances, because we have a Shepherd. You know where I go wrong? When I forget that there's a Shepherd of my soul. And I let circumstances dictate my joy. I let circumstances dictate outcomes. I'm not happy because of my happenstance. Well, of course I'm not going to be happy. I'm not happy that I have to work like a dog. But I can be joyous that the Lord provides the strength for this dog to work. See, that's the catch. That's the catch. God provides for us. That's the abundant life. that God promises through Jesus Christ. So after it's all been said and done, and most of the time more is said than done, after it's all said and done, the question is, so what? What does this have to do with me today? Well, child of God, if you're saying, hey, listen, I belong, I belong, I'm part of the sheep, I'm part of the flock. Well, the question is then, are you feeding well? Are you taking advantage of the pasture that God has provided? Oh yeah, I know his voice. Well, you know where his voice is found? Right here. You want to hear God's voice? Read the Bible. You want to hear his voice out loud? Read it out loud. I mean, if we're saying that this is God's revelation. I want to hear from God. Open up. But I want to hear from God audibly. I am the door. If anyone enters me, that's God audibly. That's God's Word. Don't wait for the silliness of a neon sign or some pizza at 12 midnight and you get some crazy stuff. God has gone out of His way to know and to be made known. So child of God, are you enjoying that? Are you enjoying the fact that your shepherd has gone out of His way to feed you, to provide feeding each and every time, no matter when, no matter what time? Always provision is available. When you hear his voice, you see, it's when you stop hearing his voice that you start drifting. To the degree that I stop listening is to the degree I'm going to drift. If you don't think so, I tell you, don't try it. Don't try it. But that's the truth. Because this is how you know God's will. and you have to be committed to doing it. He has gone out of His way. The shepherd of your soul, the shepherd of my soul has gone out of His way to tell you this is what I expect. This is who I am, this is how I operate, and this is how I want you to live. And I own you at the expense of my son. Your body, your life, your thoughts, your desires are not ultimately yours. You live and you serve at my pleasure. And you and I don't like that because we're rugged individualists. How dare you tell me how to live? Well, if you want, I won't belong to you. You can live however the heck you want and you can perish for eternity. Or you can belong to me and live and enjoy life and serve me at my pleasure. And that's the optimal, because it's not that he's calling me to not enjoy this world. He's just calling me for perspective in this world. And you, my friend, you're here. Listen, there's good news for you. Verse 7, Jesus again said to them, and Jesus again says to you, come to me. Just because you're here doesn't get you any closer to heaven. See the invitation is whoever, whoever enters, whoever. Let me just leave you a couple of thoughts and then we'll get out of here. Number one, the Lord Jesus Christ knows His sheep and they follow Him. Don't forget that. We'll be reminded of that come Good Friday. We'll be reminded that the Good Shepherd knows us. And because He knows us, we know Him and that's why we follow Him. One Bible commentator writes the following, nothing in his flock is hidden from him, their weaknesses, their failures, their temptations, their sins, the good which they have neglected when it was within reach. I mean, these words are penetrating. The good which they neglected when it was within reach, the evil which they pursued when it was lay afar. Did you hear me? Did he preach? The good that was within my reach I neglected and the sin that was afar that I needed to hustle to sin. Oh, I ran to that. He knows it. He knows it. All is open before His eyes. He knows them and He loves them still. If I... It's because He's faithful when I'm faithless that the relationship still exists. Number two, the Good Shepherd died for his sheep. You see it running through there. Verse 11, verse 15, verses 17 through 18. He says, no one takes my life. I give it willingly for my own. Next, there's only one door. There's only one door. Have you believed and trusted in this door to everlasting life? The last thing is, you may enter the door right now. He speaks to you, stands before you and says, enter, enter. If you choose not to, that's on you, not on Him. The opportunity is to enter now. See, the man born blind, He eventually saw, He eventually enjoyed. The one that was outcasted and no one cared for, He wouldn't even consider it a man. He wouldn't even consider it a person. Well, that's the person that Jesus then saves. Why? Because the cross of Christ is the turning point of life. What you do with the cross of Christ determines how you live here and how you will live there. So, what will you do this morning in light of God's Word? Just a few moments we'll sing, and just a few moments after that we'll leave, and just a few moments it'll be 8 p.m. Just like that. What will you do now? I ask that you would consider the condition of your soul and go from there. Would you close your eyes and bow your heads for just a moment? Before we sing, would you just go before the Lord and ask Him, What would you have me do? What would you have me do? Child of God, would you go before Him and say, Lord, turn on the light in those areas of life where I am willingly living in darkness, ignoring, rebelling, pursuing the sin that's afar and making adjustments and excuses for that. instead of pursuing holiness, which is within my reach. Lord God, do your work as only you can. So at the end of days, when we see our lives, what's gone wrong, we're grateful for your grace. And what's gone right, we'll say, yet not I, but Christ. Lord God, for those who stiff-arm you yet again, Be merciful. Continue to be merciful. Do not shorten your hand of salvation upon their lives. Whether they're here in person or watching online, that you will continue through your word to confront them with sin. Father, we love you. We trust you. Help us now as we worship you through a song. We ask this humbly in Jesus' name and God's people said,