It's John 10, 22-27, for a sermon I've entitled, Confronting the Christ. This is what it says. At that time, the Feast of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. The Jews then gathered around him and were saying to him, How long will you keep us in suspense? If you're the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name, these testify of me. But you do not believe, because you are not of my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. You ever play the game 20 questions? There's no board, there's no game pieces. It can be played anywhere at any time. Here's how it works. One person is picked to be it. The individual thinks about a person, a place, or an object, but doesn't tell anyone else what they're thinking about. The other players try to guess what the person has in mind by asking them up to 20 questions to gain clues as to the correct answer. As an example, a person might be thinking about the Eiffel Tower. Some of the questions might be, is it alive? No. Is it an object? Yes. Is it bigger than a toaster? Yeah. Would most people recognize it if they saw it? Probably. You keep asking questions, and if you can guess the answer before your opponents or before the 20 questions are used up, then you win. By the way, the 20 questions, there was a radio show in the 1940s with this format and a 20 questions television show in the 1950s. In the Gospel, you find Jesus asking a lot of thought-provoking questions. Like, what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and yet loses his soul? And what would a man give in exchange for his soul? Or, why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do what I say? Jesus is suggesting that whatever our profession of faith, if we're not willing to obey Him, He's not, in fact, our Lord. Are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss? Some say the phrase kiss of death goes back to Judas, but others argue it traces back to the Italian Mafia. When somebody betrayed the family, they were given a kiss right before they killed them. Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your heart? That's the question Jesus asked his startled disciples when he appeared to them after the resurrection. But Jesus not only asked questions of others, people asked questions of Jesus. When he was 12 years old, Joseph and Mary accidentally left him behind in Jerusalem. You've never done that with your kids, right? They were each thinking they were with the other. They went back to the city and they searched frantically for him. When they finally found him, he was in the temple sitting, talking to the rabbis. Mary rebuked Jesus, saying, Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you. Why were you searching for me? He asked, Didn't you know I had to be in my father's house? But they didn't understand what he was saying to them. Luke 2, 48-50. Now, a lot of times people didn't understand what Jesus was saying to them. When he spoke of the need to be born again to Nicodemus, he asked, How can a man be born when he's old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he? When a storm suddenly arose and threatened to capsize their boat, the disciples, terrified, woke Jesus, saying to him, Teacher, don't you care that we're perishing? Jesus sat up. and said, Hush, be still. The winds died down and the waves went calm. Jesus asked them, Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith? They turned to each other in amazement and asked, Who is this then, that even the winds and the sea obey him? Jesus stood before the council. After he was arrested, the high priest asked him, Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One? And Jesus said, I am. And you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming with the clouds of heaven. Three months before the high priest asked Jesus about identity, the religious leaders here were grilling him on the same. They asked him, how long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you're the Christ, tell us plainly. Here in this section, we find the religious leaders confronting Jesus, demanding that he tell him whether he was indeed Israel's Messiah. As we look at the text, we want to understand why they asked him this question, why they didn't believe him when he answered. And we want to think about our understanding of Jesus as well. So let's pray and get into the text. Father in God, I pray for grace and mercy that you'd help us open up our hearts and mind as we look and understand your word. So bless us now. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, what do we see in the text? Well, first thing we see is the setting, and that's verses 22 to 23. Next, the question. That's verse 24. And finally, the answer, and that's 25 to 27. The setting, it says in verse 22. At that time, the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. Now most countries have festivals and national holidays which they celebrate each year. In the United States, there's 11 federally recognized holidays by our government. There are New Year's Day, the birth of Martin Luther King Jr., Washington's birthday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. I bet you don't get paid for all those at your job, do you? In the French Polynesian Islands, they have a national holiday called Missionary Day. It commemorates the day that the missionaries from the London Missionary Society arrived in Tahiti in 1797. Part of the celebration is the laying of wreaths on the graves of the first Christian king, Pomer, the second, and on Henry Knott's grave, a missionary who translated the Bible into the Tahitian language. In the Law of Moses, there were prescribed national holidays, seven in all. There was Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Booths. But this one here, the Feast of Dedication, is not actually one of them that's prescribed in the Mosaic Law. Rather, it traces back to the time of the Maccabees, some 200 years before Jesus. At that time, Antiochus IV, also known as Antiochus Epiphany, a descendant of one of Alexander the Great's generals, ruled over a portion of that empire known as the Seleucid Empire. He decided the Jews needed to come into the modern world and embrace Greek culture and religion. Nobody likes having other people's religion shoved down their throat, as they like to say. That was certainly true for a band of faithful Jews led by Judah Maccabees and his sons. While others compromised and sold out to Antiochus, Judah and his followers led a guerrilla war against the Seleucids. Amazingly, and by God's providence, they defeated their overlords and drove them out of their country. Before they defeated the Seleucids, Antiochus had sacrificed a pig on the altar in Jerusalem. That act was called the Abomination of Desolation that Daniel predicted 200 years before it occurred. After they cleansed the temple, They rededicated it to the Lord, but they only had enough holy oil to burn in the menorah for one day, but it lasted for eight days, and that was considered a miracle. Jews still celebrate the Feast of Dedication today, but it's usually called Hanukkah. We're told in verse 23, it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. You know, we're in winter season here in Wisconsin. I checked the records. The coldest temperature ever recorded for our state was minus 55 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. That was back in 1996. Some of you may remember that cold time. I remember it getting 38 below at my house. Well, I checked when I was doing my sermon to see what the temperature was in Jerusalem. It's 50 degrees there. The coldest record ever recorded in that city was 19 degrees. And back in 2013, Jerusalem got over a foot of snow, which is a very rare occurrence for them. Now, when you were a kid and you went skating, did they have a warming house that you could go into if you got too cold? Well, the portico of Solon was a porched area that you could use to get out of the rain and the wind. Some of the commentators point out that there may be some significance to the fact that this encounter between Jesus and the religious leaders took place in winter. Because the coldness of the air was matched by the coldness of their hearts of the Jewish leaders towards Jesus. Three months later, he would be crucified for sins. Well, that brings us to our second thing we see in the text of the question. This is verse 24. Look at what it says. The Jews then gathered around him and were saying to him, How long will you keep us in suspense? If you're the Christ, tell us plainly. In one of the Beatles songs, John Lennon sings, Gather round all you clowns. Let me hear you say, Hey, you've got to hide your love away. Hey, you've got to hide your love away. There was a movie made in 1988 called Killer Clowns from Outer Space. These Jewish leaders were not from outer space, and I don't know if you'd call them clowns, but they were certainly gathering around Jesus for sinister purposes. like a pack of hyenas surrounding a lion. These religious hyenas were surrounding Jesus, wanting to know if he was indeed the lion of the tribe of Judah, that is, the promised Messiah. So they asked him, how long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you're the Christ, tell us plainly. Now, some people don't like to speak plainly and in a straightforward manner. Politicians, when they're asked a question like, what do you plan to do about the homeless problem, which seems to be getting worse? We'll often respond, that's a very important question, one that needs to be answered. But I'm going to answer a different question, one that you didn't actually ask. I'll give you the one that always drives me up the wall. It's when politicians, especially when they're from a Catholic background, are asked about the issue of abortion. They will say, well, personally, I'm opposed to abortion, but I think we have to respect a woman's right to choose. Now, if I were the reporter at the time, I would do a follow-up question. I would just simply ask this. Can you tell me why you're personally opposed to abortion? What do you think they'd answer? They wouldn't. They'd be flummoxed by the question because they're not personally opposed to it. They're just giving a political answer. Sometimes a governor, like Governor Newsom, will be asked if he intends to run for president. And they're very coy in their response. Well, right now, I'm focused on the state of California, making sure to turn it into a utopian nightmare. I have yet to decide whether to run for president or not. He's made up his mind. Well, the religious leaders wanted a straightforward answer to their question. If you're the Christ, tell us plainly. This is the next thing we see in the text, so they answer. Look at what it says in verse 25. Jesus answered them, I told you, and you did not believe me. Really? Can you think of any place in the New Testament up to this point where Jesus told them plainly that he was the Messiah? Actually, there's only two people that he clearly stated that he was the Christ, and both are found in this Gospel. Do you remember when the Samaritan woman at the well met him? So the woman said to him, I know that the Messiah, he was called to Christ, is coming. And when he comes, he will declare all things to us. Jesus said to her, I who speak to you, am he. And then a few weeks back, we looked at the story of the man who was born blind, but Jesus healed. He got kicked out of the synagogue by the religious leaders. Then we read, Jesus heard that they'd put him out and find him. He said, do you believe in the Son of Man? That's a messianic title. He answered, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe in him? Jesus answered him, You've both seen him, and he's the one talking to you. And he said, Lord, I do believe. And he worshipped him. And when Jesus asked Peter what the scuttlebutt was, as far as who he might be, he said, Well, some say that you're Elijah. Some say that you are Jeremiah, or one of the prophets of old, John the Baptist. He said, But who do you say that I am? He said, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Now Jesus accepted that affirmation, but it was Peter who was stating it, not Jesus. So no, Jesus hadn't said the exact words of, I am the Messiah you've been waiting for. But everything he did say and teach, and the works that he performed, he said, these works that I do in my Father's name, these testify to me. I mentioned before that many apologists point to Jesus' miracles as proof that he was the Son of God. But think about it, there's others who did miracles in the Bible as well. Moses, Elijah, Elisha. And Jesus himself said in the last day, false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders so as, if possible, to mislead even the elect. But it's not just that Jesus did miracles, but it was also the kind of miracles that he did, that he performed, that displayed, His deity. I mean, calming the sea to save the disciples. Feeding 5,000 men plus their families so they could continue to hear him teach. Casting out demons. Obviously that was from the power of God, not from the power of Satan, as his critics charged, because otherwise Satan's kingdom would be divided against itself. Remember when John the Baptist was in prison, he was suffering from depression and doubt. He sent some of his own disciples to ask Jesus, are you the expected one, or should we look for somebody else? Jesus answered and said to them, Go and report to John what you hear and what you see, that the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised, and the poor are having the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who does not take offense." In other words, blessed is the one who doesn't take offense to the way I'm doing my work. Now some of those signs that Jesus pointed to were quotes from the Old Testament, prophesying what the Messiah would do when he came. So everything Jesus taught, everything Jesus did, revealed the fact that he was indeed the promised Christ. Hey man, are you blind as a bat? Are you daft? Have you a wee brain too small to grasp the obvious truth? You're a numpty pumpkin. Oh, I haven't figured out yet that he is indeed the Christ of God. But here's the question, was it an intellectual problem? By the way, I worked on that accent. And if there's anyone from Scotland listening, they're going to be like, oh, come on! But here's the question, was it an intellectual problem that they had? I mean, if they had higher IQs, would they have been able to understand who it was they were gathered around? No, the problem isn't an intellectual one, it's a spiritual one. Jesus explains what ails them. Look at verse 26. You do not believe because you're not of my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. Earlier this week, Pastor Chris and I officiated at Pastor Jeff's funeral. You know, I brought my digital recorder with me, and right before I went up to speak, I thought, nah, should I record it? Nah, I don't think I will. And I thought, nah, I probably should. I mean, can't hurt anything. And I'm very glad I did. There were people there to hear the message, and there were people who watched the live stream, but they did not record the live stream. And I gave a straightforward, simple gospel message. And since I recorded it, I decided to send it to a bunch of family members and friends. And then I had family members and friends ask me to send a copy so they could send it to their family members and friends. Now, I had one person who got kind of upset with me when I sent it to him. but others who I'd never gotten the opportunity to witness to before who closed it down, who I think felt obligated to listen to it because it was my brother who died. But here's the question. For those who don't get it, don't like it, and reject it, why? Jesus would say to them, you did not believe because you're not of my sheep. Now remember, the sheep, Christ's sheep, are the elect of God who is chosen for salvation, some of whom have already believed, and others who will yet come to faith. Now notice what Jesus didn't say. He didn't say, you are not my sheep because you do not believe. Rather he said, you do not believe because you are not of my sheep. Do you remember what Jesus said earlier in this gospel? No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up on the last day." John 6.24. Then just a few verses later in John 6.37 it says this, All the Father gives to me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will not, certainly not, cast out. These Jews confronting Jesus would not and could not come to Him because they were not being drawn by the Father. Because they had not been given by the Father to the Son, so they were therefore not among Christ's sheep. It's for that reason that they did not believe, despite all the evidence. And I know that all the unbelievers who heard the Gospel message given at Jeff's funeral, if they're not among Christ's sheep, they will continue in their unbelief. Some will shrug, others may rage, but if they aren't among the elect, they will not believe so as to receive eternal life. On the other hand, if they are among Christ's sheep, that is the elect, that sermon will either bring them closer to faith, or all the way to faith, so that later, if not now, they are saved. I know that because Jesus goes on to say this in verse 27. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. Now, how do they hear his voice? Well, sometimes, on rare occasions, I suppose they hear it audibly, like the Apostle Paul did. Remember, he was heading to the city of Damascus to arrest and haul Christians away. It was there that Jesus confronted him. Jesus was asked by Paul, who is it? Who are you, Lord? Can you imagine what Paul thought when he heard, I'm Jesus, the one that you're persecuting. He commanded him to go to a certain place and he told him he was going to use him to spread the gospel. Now would anyone have thought that the Apostle Paul was among Christ's sheep before that day? No. But he was. And that's why he followed him. You know, most of the sheep hear his voice initially through the witness of Christians when they share the gospel with them. But after they come to faith, they hear Christ's voice through the preaching and teaching and reading of His Word. And that's why it's so important for you to take in the Word of God through daily Bible reading, being involved in home Bible studies, coming to church, staying for Sunday school. The Bible says faith comes by hearing, hearing by the Word of Christ. Peter tells us that, like newborn babes, we're to long for the pure milk of the Word so that we might grow with respect to your salvation, if you've tasted the kindness of the Lord. Your growth as a Christian is directly related to how much of God's Word you take in. But you know, it's not just taking it in, but acting upon it. Because Jesus said, my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. Peggy Marsh sang that song. I love him, I love him, I love him, and where he goes, I'll follow, I'll follow, I'll follow. I will follow him wherever he may go. There isn't an ocean too deep, a mountain so high it can keep me away. I must follow him. Ever since he touched my hand, I knew that near him I always must be, and nothing can keep him from me. He's my destiny. Now, I'm sure she was singing about her boyfriend, but we could sing that to Christ. Jesus said, if you love me, you will keep my commandments. We show that we're Christ's sheep by following him. Those who don't believe and don't follow, it's because they're not, in fact, his sheep. You see, you don't have to ask 20 questions to figure out whether Jesus was the Christ or not. You only have to ask two. Did he make that claim? And secondly, did he give sufficient evidence to prove that claim was true? Both answers are yes. So if so, then believe in Him and follow Him daily as a good shepherd. And I want to end by just giving you some encouragement to keep witnessing and praying for family members. We don't know who the sheep are, but we know this, if they belong to Christ, when He calls them, they will most certainly come to faith. That's our confidence when we send out missionaries. That's our confidence when we witness the people. That's our confidence when we pray. That when it's all said and done, Jesus said, this is the will of my Father, that I lose none of them, but raise them all up on the last day. They'll be called in. The question that has to be asked now is, are you one of his sheep? Has he called you in? Let's pray. Our Father God, we thank you for the shepherd analogy. You know, you use sheep. Jesus did as an example. I suppose sheep are helpless. They're not always that bright. But they need to be protected. But we have a good shepherd who not only laid down his life for his sheep, but also now leads us along the path and will ultimately lead us to heaven. We thank you for that care. We thank you for that love. And we pray that we would be good sheep as we follow our shepherd. And help us, Lord, to take the opportunities we have to witness to people so that more can be called in. For we ask now in Christ's name and for his sake. Amen.