[0:00] Let's now turn to God's Word, to the Gospel of John, chapter 10. John, chapter 10. John, 10. Let's hear the Word of God.
[0:22] Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same as a thief and a robber.
[0:34] But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
[0:47] When he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep will follow him, for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, who will flee from him, for they know not the voice of strangers.
[1:02] This parable spake Jesus unto them. For they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
[1:17] All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture.
[1:31] The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I am come that they might have life, that may have it more abundantly.
[1:42] I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that's a hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth, and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
[1:59] The hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. As the father knoweth me, even so I know the father, and I lay down my life for the sheep.
[2:17] And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold, them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice, and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
[2:28] Therefore doth my father love me, because I lay down my life, but I might take it again. No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.
[2:42] This commandment have I received of my father. There was a division, therefore, again among the Jews, for these sayings. And many of them said, He hath a devil, and is mad.
[2:54] Why hear ye him? Others said, These are not the words of him, but hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of the blind? And it was at Jerusalem, the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.
[3:08] And Jesus walked in the temple of Solomon's porch. Then came the Jews, run about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly.
[3:20] Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believe not. For works that I do in my father's name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.
[3:33] My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, never shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
[3:46] My father which gave them me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them out of my father's hand. I and my father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.
[3:59] Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my father. For which of these works do you stone me? The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy.
[4:11] Because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I say ye are gods, if ye called them gods unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken?
[4:26] Say ye of him whom the father has sanctified, and sent into the world, thou blasphemest, because I said, I am the son of God. If I do not the works of my father, believe me not.
[4:37] But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works. For ye may know and believe, that the father is in me, and I in him. Therefore they sought again to take him, but he escaped out of their hand, went away again beyond Jordan, into the place where John at first baptized, and there he abode.
[5:00] And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle, but all things that John spake of this man were true, and many believed on him there. And many would give praise to God, for his holy and his perfect word.
[5:13] Let's again join in singing his praise, this time from Psalm 91. Psalm 91 and verses 1, down to verse 4, of course, this great psalm, about the protection, that we have in the Lord.
[5:30] Psalm 91 verses 1 to 4, He that doth in the secret place, of the most high reside, under the shade of him that is, the almighty shall abide. I offer the Lord, my God will say, he is my refuge still, he is my fortress, and my God, and in him trust.
[5:47] I will, Psalm 91 verses 1 to 4, to God's praise. He that doth in the secret place, of the most high reside, and the mercy of him that is, your mighty shall abide.
[6:28] I of the Lord, my God will say, He is my refuge still, He is my fortress, and my God, and in him trust I will.
[7:01] O will say, God bless you. She is my protection, and he is my beloved infer part.
[7:14] Thank you.
[7:44] Thank you.
[8:15] Let's turn back to the chapter we had in John chapter 10. John chapter 10. John chapter 10.
[8:51] John chapter 10.
[9:21] John chapter 10.
[9:51] John chapter 10.
[10:21] What does the robber do? What does Satan do in our lives? He comes seeking to steal away from us. To destroy us. To lead us to death. So in contrast to that we see Jesus the good shepherd.
[10:34] Where Satan comes to do nothing but steal. Jesus of course gives. We'll see that later on. Where the thief comes to kill. Where the thief comes to kill. Our saviour comes to give us life.
[10:49] With Satan. Where the thief comes to destroy. Jesus comes to build up his people. So who is the good shepherd in verse 11? What does it mean that we worship? That we know the good shepherd?
[11:01] We can look at it vaguely and roughly under three headings. Just following the text. First of all we see the good shepherd is the one who sacrifices himself for the sheep.
[11:12] He sacrifices himself for the sheep. Then we see the good shepherd gathers his sheep. And thirdly the good shepherd knows his sheep. Sacrifices, knows and gather.
[11:25] Of course we come to a wonderful simple verse we all know so well. Of Jesus being the good shepherd. And I'm sure you've covered several times. In previous ministry and indeed ministries.
[11:38] The wonderful words. The wonderful I am sayings. But this is a refresher for us briefly before we start. Because as we go through this verse and these verses. It's essential for us to understand. But when Jesus calls himself the good shepherd.
[11:50] This is not just him being descriptive. Although that is true. Of course he is the good shepherd. There's more going on of course in his description. I am the good shepherd. The exact words that Christ chooses to use here.
[12:04] The I am statement. There's something much more glorious going on. When Jesus says I am the good shepherd. He is taking our minds. Indeed those around him.
[12:15] Those who surrounded him at this time. Taking their minds back all the way to the start. All the way to Moses. And the burning bush. Of course God has commanded Moses.
[12:27] Through the servant in the bush. Through the angel speaking to Moses. God has commanded Moses to go and to rescue his people. To go and to save his precious people. And of course Moses says.
[12:37] Well who do I say sent me? How do I begin to explain who you are to the people? What does God say in return to Moses? How does God name himself?
[12:50] I am that I am. He is fully self-sufficient. He needs nothing and no one. He relies on nothing and no one.
[13:00] He is God. And all that he is and all that he does. He is perfect. In him full perfection is found. In him full power is found. He is that he is. He is God.
[13:13] And here Jesus uses the exact same words. The Septuagint which was the Greek translation of the Old Testament that we used at the time of Jesus' day.
[13:27] The wording in that Greek translation of Exodus is the same wording here of I am. And Jesus here is clearly telling them that he is God. Yes he is a good shepherd.
[13:40] Yes he is the one who cares and loves the sheep. He does so as God. He is the same one who spoke to Moses. He is the same holy, eternal, ever living God.
[13:51] All powerful. He is the God who took his people throughout all generations. He is the one who has now come to save his people. Our good shepherd is also the eternal God.
[14:08] That's our basis this morning as we come together. To spend time even in this verse. As we ask who is the good shepherd. We are reminded by the start. He is God. God. That's our foundation.
[14:19] That's our wonderful foundation as we begin to delve more into these verses. First of all the good shepherd sacrifices for his sheep. We see that roughly verses 11 down to verse 13.
[14:33] The good shepherd sacrifices for his sheep. We begin with this wonderful proclamation as we said just now. I am the good shepherd.
[14:44] This is the basis of all we have today. This is the basis of all we're about to say and look at together. In contrast to the thief, he is the good shepherd. Where the world fails us.
[14:56] Where we fail ourselves. Where we do nothing. Where Satan comes and destroys. He comes in all that situation. He comes as the good shepherd. I've already risked myself being cast out of the building and cast out during the children's talk.
[15:13] The truth is my knowledge of sheep is limited to next to nothing. But it's always fascinating. Always fascinating to speak to those who love sheep and who know sheep.
[15:25] If I was to ask you just now to name the top three qualities. A good shepherd. We can say a good crofter. Because the reality is the shepherds of the day are the crofters of the day. We can say them anyways.
[15:36] What's three good qualities? What's one? What's a top quality a shepherd must have? I'm sure we have a range of answers. What's the one quality we find in our verse here in verse 11?
[15:48] Perhaps a quality which might surprise us as we turn to it. Verse 11. What is the top foremost quality of the perfect shepherd in verse 11? The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
[16:04] He gives his life for his sheep. Of course any good crofter, any good shepherd cares for a sheep.
[16:14] Indeed loves his sheep and will go to great lengths to look after his sheep. In preparing the sermon I was going for a walk through the village and there was a loch just beyond my house.
[16:27] Walking up to the little bit. There was a wee island in the loch and there were sheep stuck on the island. I saw the night before. That next morning I was out for my walk and there was the older, I'll say crofter and his waders, wading up to his chest out to the island to get the sheep off the island.
[16:42] A man upwards in his 80s who was risking, risking at least getting his feet wet, but risking a lot more in that loch to rescue his sheep off the island.
[16:55] If that's the lengths that we're willing to go for our sheep as humans, as mere men, then how much greater is the love and the care and the sacrificial love of our good shepherd for us?
[17:08] As we'll read verse 11, we can note one thing. The good shepherd gives or giveth his life for his sheep. It doesn't say the good shepherd is willing. It doesn't say the good shepherd is perhaps just able.
[17:20] No, it says he giveth his life for the sheep. He lays it down. It's something that he has done willingly and something that he has in fact done.
[17:31] It's not just an idea, not just a nice thought. No, he has done it. The good shepherd's come and he has given his life for his sheep. It's promised throughout all generations.
[17:43] It's promised throughout all of scripture. From the very start, the good shepherd's been promised. The Messiah was promised. The one who would come, who would live a perfect life.
[17:54] Who would die that necessary death. Who would come on behalf of his precious beloved sheep. Who would give his life for them. Our good shepherd who came into this world.
[18:06] Spending every day. And every hour of every day. Knowing in detail. What he was heading towards. Sometimes we might forget sometimes.
[18:17] That he spent his whole life. Our saviour. His whole earthly life. Knowing exactly what he was coming to do. Knowing exactly what he was heading towards.
[18:28] Knowing exactly the pain and the suffering and separation that awaited him. Every day moving closer and closer to that end.
[18:39] Every day closer and closer to the horrific reality. The horrific pain. The horrific suffering he would endure for the sake of his people. For the sake of fulfilling verse 11. To give his life for his precious, precious sheep.
[18:52] Our good shepherd came into this world. To have laid on his shoulders. The full wrath. Of every sin. Of every one of his people.
[19:04] We praise God that we don't have to enter into that. As his people today. If we know him. If we love him. We don't have to imagine any more than that. We can't. And we praise God. We never have to. But that's the reality we have here in verse 11.
[19:16] The good shepherd is the one who has come to suffer. To endure constant suffering. To come down from glory into his own creation. To humble himself. To become man.
[19:27] Take on himself human flesh. To become like us in all ways apart from sin. That is the good shepherd we have in verse 11. Who came with express reason of dying for his beloved people.
[19:42] Our minds might go to the wonderful, beautiful words of Romans chapter 5. Romans 5 and verses 6 to 8. For whilst we are still weak at the right time. Christ died for the ungodly.
[19:55] For one may scarcely die for a righteous person. But perhaps for a good person. One would even dare to die. But God shows his love for us.
[20:07] And that whilst we are still sinners. Christ died for us. How quickly even the most caring shepherd. The most caring crofter can grow tired of his sheep.
[20:19] Can lose interest in his sheep. The unruly ones. The ones that keep jumping the fence. How quickly the patience can run thin. That's not the same for our good shepherd.
[20:32] He came to us as his flock. Knowing from the start to the end. What he has come and coming to do. And in the court's eternity. He saw and he knew.
[20:43] He would come to save a people who would hate him. Brothers and sisters. That's us. Spent our lives rejecting him. Rebelling against him. Out in the moors somewhere. Wandering around.
[20:54] Looking for something. And finding nothing. Rebelling against him. Again and again and again. Yet he came to save his people. He saw the rebellion. He saw that waywardness.
[21:04] He saw that darkness. In you and in me. And yet he still came. To save us. And have us as. His precious sheep. That's a shepherd.
[21:14] That's the state the shepherd saw us in. He didn't come and see us. Of course. As the finished article. And dear Christians. Actually encouraged us this morning. But in verse 11.
[21:26] He came to give his life. For his sheep. He came to save us at our worst. And sometimes as Christians. We forget that. He didn't come to.
[21:38] Somehow make us better people. Do they know? He came to do what? To give us life. For any. Again I. Know just a few faces here. Which is good in some aspects. It means I don't know where you stand.
[21:50] For the Lord. I don't know who. Your story is. Or who you are. Or where you stand. Hopefully over time. I get to know. Some faces better. But at the end of the day. Only you know. Where you stand.
[22:03] And have even this reminder for you. If you. As of yet. Don't know Jesus as your saviour. Jesus came to save. Not those who are trying really hard. Didn't came to save those.
[22:13] Who know the Bible is really well. Those who know the catechism. Off by heart. Those who have godly parents. Godly heritage. No. He came to save those. Who in Romans 5. Those who are sinners.
[22:24] Who are ungodly. He came to save those. Who hated him. Who rebelled against him. That's the hope we have as Christians. That's our assurance. He came. Not because of our merit.
[22:35] Not because of our effort. He came. Out of his love for us. To come and to save his people. And dear friends. That is the story for you today too. That's the same hope. The same gospel we have. Same good news.
[22:45] The good shepherd came to save. Those who need saving. And no matter how you may feel. Or how you may view yourself. Dear friends. You need saving today. And you know that. And you think.
[22:57] Who are you to come. Who are you to come. And stand up there. And tell me that. Well you're right. I am nothing and nobody. My words take or leave. But the word of God. You cannot afford. Take or leave today. The good shepherd came to save those.
[23:08] Who need saving. And we all need saving desperately. But for Christians. This verse should rejuvenate us. Should revive us in our souls.
[23:20] So reminded yet again. Of the love. Of our good shepherd. For us as his people. He came out of love. Out of obedience to the father. Out of love for us as his people. He came. To live.
[23:31] To suffer. To die. For us. Because he is the good shepherd. Who loves his flock. We see in verse 12.
[23:42] We see in verse 12. And verse 13. And verse 13. We see the love of the good shepherd. The care of Jesus. Being contrasted. To the hirelings. To the hired help.
[23:52] To those who are hired. To look after the sheep. But who have no care for the sheep really. Who have no love for the sheep. Who are doing a job. Those who. When the danger comes.
[24:03] We see. In verse 12. And verse 13. When a danger comes. The hireling leaves. He's no use. The warning we have in these verses.
[24:14] Is to not put our trust in anyone. Or anything else in the world. There are many. And who do so. Genuinely. And who do so. Out of love and care.
[24:24] Who claim. To be a saviour of sorts. There are many who claim. If we trust them. Follow them. They will keep us safe. Sometimes we do it.
[24:35] Emotiously. Sometimes we do it. Lovingly. But the truth is. If we put our trust in anyone else. But Jesus. We will be let down. Even by those who love us the most. The truth is. We will be let down. If we let others down around us.
[24:47] It's only in Christ. Do we find true salvation. And the sad thing is. There are so many. So many today. In this village. So many in our neighbours. And so many. Perhaps even.
[24:58] In our own households. Who are still trusting in hirelings. Who still have no care. For the true shepherd. Who are still trusting in things. And in people.
[25:08] That will not save them. Who are finding their security. In things. Outside of Christ. In verse 11. And verse 12. And verse 13. Remind us. And show us the stark reality. But as long as we trust in anyone.
[25:20] Or anything outside of a good shepherd. To save us. When danger comes. When a wolf. As it were. Comes. We have no hope. And no chance. And solemn words. In these verses. But reminders.
[25:32] Here are for us. Our salvation is found. In Jesus. In him alone. The good shepherd alone. Can look after us. The good shepherd alone. Can take care of us. He alone has the power to do so.
[25:44] That's comforting for us. As Christians. But also. It's a warning for us. Even as his people. If we're honest. Even as Christians. We find ourselves at times. Putting our trust. And our hope. In various things.
[25:55] Perhaps even. If we're very honest. In ourselves. Relying on ourselves. For our own strength. And God. In his mercy. And God. In his wisdom. Often shows us. How small. And how weak. Our strength is.
[26:05] And brings us back. To trusting again. In our shepherd. The true one. Who cares for us. As long as we put our hopes. And our trust. In the hired hand. In the world.
[26:17] In other shepherds. In other saviours. We will be let down. We are in severe. Danger. Again. My plea is. Make sure this morning. And this day. This afternoon. Now your trust. Is in the shepherd.
[26:29] And the risen saviour. And him alone. Dear friends. Don't trust anyone. Who tells you. They have your soul. And your interest. We all do. We all pray for you. And we love you.
[26:40] And we're glad. The Lord takes you out. To his building. To hear his word. But we cannot save you. I can't save you. No one who stands here. Can save you. Only the good shepherd. Can save you. We can point you to him. You must go to him.
[26:51] And to him. Alone. The good shepherd. Is the one. Who sacrifices. For. His sheep. Good shepherd.
[27:04] Also we see. Verses 14. Down to the first half. Roughly. Of verse 15. The good shepherd. Knows. His sheep. Verses 14 to 15. The good shepherd.
[27:14] Knows. His sheep. Verse 14. I am the good shepherd. And know my sheep. And am known. Of. Mine. Again.
[27:25] Unlike the hired hand. Who doesn't care for sheep. Also the hired hand. Doesn't know the sheep. He comes and goes. He's just doing some supply work. As it were. The good shepherd. Actually. Knows.
[27:36] His. Sheep. It's always fascinating. Isn't it? Do you see. How well a crofter. Actually knows her sheep. At a push. I'm sure. Most of us.
[27:47] Know. The markings. Perhaps. Of the croft. The markings. Of some crofters use. Um. When it comes down. To the individual. Personalities. Of individual sheep. Only really.
[27:57] The crofter knows. His sheep. That well. It's funny. As things come together. A few days ago. I was. Again. Just walking. The village. With a. An older man. And. He was.
[28:08] Taking a sheep. Out to stormy. Of course. Every day. And he was saying. Watch her. She'll jump in a second. Okay. And sure enough. This sheep at the back. Jumps the fence. Jumps over it. Jumps over it again.
[28:19] I said. She always does that. When I come to feed her. He knows it. He knows her personality. She always jumps the fence. Three times. When he feeds her. She's always done it. Even from a lamb. The crofter knows a sheep. He knows a sheep.
[28:29] Individually. And that's true. Again. For us. How much more true is it. In these verses. For the good shepherd. The true shepherd. The good shepherd. Knows. His.
[28:41] Sheep. Dear brothers. Dear sisters. The shepherd. Of your souls. He knows. His flock. He knows. You today. He knows. Who you are. He knows.
[28:51] He knows. Where you stand. Before him. And those of us. Who do know him. And who do love him. Take comfort in that. The good shepherd. He's not far away. He's not distant. He's not aloof. He's not uncaring.
[29:02] He is close to you. As his people. As he leads you. Through life. Just like we saw. In verse 11. Of his sacrifice. To the sheep. That wasn't vague.
[29:14] It wasn't something unknowing. It was something certain. He does it. He sacrifices. For his sheep. Again. The same for us. In verse 14. The knowledge he has for us. It's not something vague.
[29:24] Not something distant. He knows. His people. I am the good shepherd. And I know my sheep. The wording there. The grammar there. It's clear in English. It's even more clear.
[29:35] We could say it in the Greek. It's certain words. Definite words. Quite literally. I am the good shepherd. I know my sheep. He knows his people.
[29:48] He knows us in a way. That we begin to understand ourselves. We said before. He came to sacrifice himself for us. We know that. But he came to sacrifice himself for us.
[30:00] Knowing us. Not just some nameless. Faceless lump of people. No. He came to die. For his individual. Precious people. That's the good news we have this morning.
[30:11] As his people. As those who love them. And who serve them. He knows us as individuals. Dear brothers.
[30:21] And dear sisters. You come. Stay before the one who knows you. And if we're again. We're being very honest. We're all very good aren't we. At putting on a brave face. We're all very good. At looking the part.
[30:32] Talking the part. But in reality. Some of us. Perhaps even now. And if we're very honest. Perhaps most of us. Are going through some trial. Some struggle. Some situation. Perhaps even this week.
[30:43] We will go through some trial. Some struggle. Some anxious situation. Only you and the Lord know. But be assured. Of these verses. The good shepherd. He is with you. And he knows you.
[30:55] As you come before him. You come before the one. Who has been with you. All your life. Even more glorious than that. We come before the good shepherd. Who has known his people.
[31:06] From before time itself. Again. There's no time today. But if you. Have a chance this afternoon. Read through the chapter again. But also. Ephesians chapter 1. Ephesians chapter 2.
[31:18] Read these chapters together. To remind yourself. Perhaps. Of the reality. Of what it is. To have a good shepherd. Who knows you. Ephesians 1. Ephesians 2. We're reminded so clearly. But before time itself.
[31:28] Before creation itself. Our God has set. His love. On his people. Dear brothers. Your sisters. You were known before time itself. The good shepherd.
[31:39] Had set his heart on you. Before. You were even created. In his perfect plan. He had planned to come. And to save you. And to save me. Whilst we were still rebelling.
[31:50] Whilst we still hated him. He knew exactly where you were. He knew exactly where you would be. He knew exactly. How and when. He would enter into your life. Into my life. The good shepherd knows.
[32:02] His sheep. He is not distant. He cares for you. And this verse. Should encourage us. In our. Perhaps assurance. Or perhaps even. In our lack of assurance.
[32:13] As we're reminded. Of the good shepherd. That he is with us. This is not just something. We say to get ourselves. Through the week. This. We say this. Because it's true. We hold to this. And perhaps those here.
[32:24] Who have lived lives. Which are complicated. And who have faced. Hard providences. You know this to be true. The good shepherd. Knows you. And he has. Been with you. Perhaps through many hard years. Only you know.
[32:35] The truth. Of that statement. And the truth. Of that reality. He is not unapproachable. He is not distant. He is the one. Who has known you. From the start. Who has walked with you.
[32:46] From the start. Who promises. As we said to the children. Who promises. Never to leave. Never to forsake you. Who promises. To be with you. Until your end. But also to be with you. For all eternity.
[32:57] Afterwards. And just to leave us. No doubt. As to the extent. Of the knowledge. The good shepherd has for us. We can look down. To verse 15. Now this is one of the problems.
[33:09] We have. Very rarely. But sometimes we see it. Where. Our verse numbers. Sometimes blur. What's being said. Of course. The verse numbers. As we know. The chapters and verses. They're man made. They're not inspired. They're added.
[33:20] At a later date. But verse 15. In the Greek. Verse 15. Flows from verse 14. It's one big sentence. I am the good shepherd. Verse 14. I am the good shepherd. And know my sheep.
[33:31] And I'm known of mine. As the father knoweth me. Even so I know the father. And I do end my life. For the sheep. Verse 14. Verse 15. It's one big statement. And in summary.
[33:42] Jesus is saying. How well does a good shepherd. Know his sheep. How well does he know you. Brother and sister. How well does he know us. He knows us. In the depth. To which the father. Knows the son.
[33:52] And the son. Knows the father. Now we're delving into things here. Which are beyond us. Into concepts. And into the reality. Of the trinity. It's beyond us. We give praise to God. For these glimpses.
[34:03] He gives us. In these verses. As the father knoweth me. Even so I know the father. As much as the father. Knows the son. And the son knows the father. And how much is that. Well that's eternity. We can't quantify that.
[34:14] We wouldn't dare. But a number on that. As it were. It's eternal knowledge. So the son. Knows. You. So verse 14. Rings true.
[34:25] For us. He knows his sheep. And because he knows you. Dear Christian. You can come before him. Don't hide away from him. Don't be timid.
[34:37] Behind a bush somewhere. Come. And approach the shepherd. He's done all. For you. The level to which he knows us. It's beyond our grasp. But what's clear.
[34:49] Even from his verses. We can grasp the fact. The good shepherd. Who sacrifices for us. It's a good shepherd. Who also. Knows us. Finally.
[35:00] See. The good shepherd. Is the one. Who gathers. His sheep. Roughly. Verses 16. Down to verse. Verse 17. The good shepherd. Gathers. His.
[35:11] Sheep. Of course. To hear Jesus. Speaking to a Jewish audience. He's surrounded. By of course. Those who. Are Jews. And when he. Here. Talks to them.
[35:22] About. Those. In verse 16. Who are not. Off of this fold. The other sheep he has. He's talking. To your friends. About us. He's talking about you.
[35:34] And about I. He's talking about us here. In this. Taniwee Island. Two thousand. Odd miles away. Two thousand. Odd years later. We are fulfilling.
[35:45] What he promised. And what he stated here. In verse. Sixteen. Those outside. The fold of Israel. Them also. He must bring in. I must. Bring.
[35:56] In. Of course. The. The time. The thinking at the time. Amongst the Jews. And it wasn't. Biblical. But it was a cultural thinking. The Jews at the time. Believed. That when Messiah came.
[36:07] He would come to make. The Jewish state. Rule over the rest of the countries. He would come and make. Israel. Great again. He would come and make Israel. Rule again. He'd come and make Israel. As a word.
[36:18] Lord. Over the nations of the world. But that's not what we see in scripture. Is it? Again. Again. God tells his people. In the prophets. In the Psalms.
[36:29] We sing the beautiful words. The reminders we have. That God will have his people. From all corners of the world. From Gentile nations. The islands will come. And Isaiah. The islands will come.
[36:39] And we'll praise him. The Gentile nations will come. We'll praise him. And here we are. In this building. In this beautiful small village. In our beautiful small island. We are those.
[36:50] In verse 16. Long before the gospel. Even touched our shores. We have the good promise. He had sheep. Not off the fold. Of Israel. Of ethnic Israel.
[37:01] Of physical Israel. But he had his people. And he would come. And save his people. He must bring them in. The language is definite.
[37:14] Again. The language. The same language we have. It's definite. Again. I have my people. Other sheep I have. Which are not his fold. Them also I must bring in.
[37:25] The word used for must here. It's the strongest word possible. It's not must. It's almost like. I will bring in. We could say. I must bring in. He will do this.
[37:36] But he's saying. He will do. It's not as if Jesus' voice. Somehow. It gets lost in the wind. As he calls out to his sheep. The image here.
[37:47] As Jesus calls. And his sheep will listen. His sheep will come. They will respond. The shepherd calls. With full confidence.
[37:57] And full knowledge. That his sheep will hear him. His sheep will hear his voice. His sheep will come. You've perhaps come to this building.
[38:08] For years. I don't know your story. You've come to this building. For years. You've worshipped. For years. You've heard the gospel. A thousand times. Again and again. If nothing else.
[38:22] Hear again today. The voice of a good shepherd. Calling out to you. This is him. Calling out to you. This very moment. From his living words. Read it together. This is a good shepherd. Calling out to you.
[38:32] To come. And to follow. Him. As we sit here. Around us. As sounding. The very living words. Of our living saviour.
[38:43] And he calls. You. His people. To come. And follow him. If you've not yet. Responded to that call. Then today. Maybe. The day you actually. Listen. To the word of a shepherd. To quote.
[38:58] Reverend. Mordor Campbell. And Barless. As he was. Doing with. A separate text. But he touched on this text. Quite simply. And Spurgeon. Says something similar. Although not in Gaelic.
[39:09] Spurgeon was clear. As Mordor Campbell was clear. This is the voice of the shepherd. This is the voice of the crofter. Out in the. Out in the mirror. Of the feedback. This is the. This is the. This is the trood. Yachi. This is the trood. This is. This is your call.
[39:20] To come. And to be. With the shepherd. To follow. The good shepherd. As he calls to you. Just now. Dear friends. Don't ignore this chance. You have to hear the gospel.
[39:32] You've heard the gospel. Countless times. From countless people. I'm sure you have. But today. Don't ignore the call. Of the good shepherd. As he calls out. To you. To come.
[39:42] To follow. Him. Just as sure. As he is of his call. He's also sure. Of the response. Of the call. We see that. Again. In verse 15.
[39:53] And in verse 16. Especially. Verse 16. Our sheep I have. I must bring. And they shall. Hear my voice. Second half of verse 16. Speaking of the sheep. They shall. Hear my voice. And there shall be.
[40:04] One fold. And one shepherd. Dear friends. That's a glorious conclusion. Of our saviour's work. He has come. To have a people.
[40:15] For his own possession. He's come. To have a people. For his own. He has come. So that what? So that he may be shepherd. Of his one fold. His one. Gathering of his people.
[40:26] So we strive to. That's what we look forward to. That's what we are. Slowly. Slowly moving ourselves. Forward towards. Of course. In our own lives. We see such division.
[40:37] And such issues. And we all confess. And acknowledge. That much of our division. Comes from us. Comes from pride. It comes from. Our own sin. The glorious hope we have.
[40:47] As the day is coming. And soon with us. When the division will be gone. We will be gathered together. For all time. One people. Serving our one Lord. In glory. He's gone to prepare.
[40:58] That place for us. A good shepherd's gone to prepare. As it were. That fold for us. He's gone to prepare. That place for us. So we can come and rest. As we sang at the start. Of our time together.
[41:08] In Psalm 23. He's gone to. To lead us. Eternally. By that cool. Clear. Calm. Still water. He's gone.
[41:18] To a place. We can one day join him. And one day join him soon. To reign with him. For all time. To serve him. For all time. To worship him. For all time. But until that time comes.
[41:29] Until he takes us home. To be with himself. We are here. To serve him. As his people. We are here to follow. The path of our good shepherd. Let's be encouraged today.
[41:40] As we're reminded. Of the love. He has for his sheep. The knowledge. He has for his sheep. The fact that he will gather his sheep. Dear friends. As you think just now. Dear brothers and sisters.
[41:50] Of loved ones. Perhaps family members. Friends. Those who you love and care for. In the village. In your area. Those who as of yet. Have not come to the Lord.
[42:02] Keep praying for them. The good shepherd. Is still calling a sheep. And we know that's true. All the sheep. Have not yet been gathered. And you say. Well how can we say that for certain. Well all the sheep. Have not been gathered.
[42:12] Because we're still here. Just now. All the sheep. Have not yet been gathered. Because we are still. Gathering together. To worship him. He still has his people. He is still gathering. His sheep.
[42:24] And that won't stop. Until the final one. Is gathered in. On that day. It all ends. But until that time. Dear friends. Dear brothers. Dear sisters. We keep sharing the gospel. And doing so with full confidence.
[42:35] The good shepherd. Is the one who saves. His sheep. And dear friends. Those who as of yet. Do not believe. And do not know Jesus for yourself. The good shepherd. Is still gathering his sheep.
[42:47] But there's still time. Please. We get so perhaps. Comfortable. In our routine. So comfortable. Perhaps even in our set up. We forget how real this is. This is life. And this is death. This is not just something we do.
[42:58] This is real. This is the living word. For our living God. Speaking to us today. Do not ignore. The call of a shepherd. Respond. As he calls out. To you.
[43:09] Let's bow our heads now. Word of prayer. Our Lord God. We come before you again. We thank you. For our time together. We thank you. For your living word. Give you praise for it.
[43:22] Give you praise. The reminder we had. That you. Have sent. Your son. Who is our good shepherd. The one who has come. To live. To die. When he came. To raise again from the dead.
[43:33] Lord. To live forever. At your right hand. When we serve. Now forever. As our good shepherd. But also. As our king. And as our saviour. The one who has gone. To prepare a place for us.
[43:43] The one who will come. One day. To take us home. But until that day comes. Help us to serve you well. Lord. To forgive anything that was said. Not in accordance to your word. To give you praise. The power is not. In the jar of clay.
[43:53] Lord. To stand here. The power is in you. And in the work you do. Through your living word. Help us even. As we come to sing. Our final item of praise. We do so. Of hearts and minds.
[44:03] Set on you. Praising your name. As we sing about the work. That you do. In the lives of your people. Let's call these things. In and through. And for Christ's precious name's sake. Amen.
[44:16] We can conclude. By singing. Some verses from. Psalm 40. Psalm 40. Verses 1. Down to verse 4. Of course. That's Psalm. Those of us here who know the Lord.
[44:28] We can sing this Psalm. Knowing fine well. These words. Especially the encouragement we have. In verses 3. And verses 4. The reality that. He gives that new song to us. He gives that new life to us.
[44:39] And this is our prayer. For all those. As of yet do not know Jesus. Psalm 40. I waited for the Lord my God. And patiently did bear. At length to me. Did incline my voice. And cry to hear.
[44:50] He took me from a fearful pit. And from a miry clay. On a rock he set to my feet. Establishing my way. Psalm 40. Verses 1-4. To God's praise. I waited for the Lord my God.
[45:13] And there is to have a anderen he gave. And there is not enough miss. A promotion to me. And there is not enough, that you will drink, why the Lord who can't.
[45:28] I, my voice, come time to hear.
[45:40] He took me from my careful place, and from the light he came, and all that all he said I could, establishing my name.
[46:14] I, my voice, come time to hear. I, my voice, come time to hear.
[46:32] Then he shall see it and shall fear, and of the glory I hear.
[46:50] O blessed is the man whose past that on the Lord relives, we've spent in awe that proud Lord's heart has turned aside to lies.
[47:28] Amen. Let's close in prayer. Let's pray. Lord God, God, before us the rest of this day, we ask, help us in our hearts and minds to be focused on you, Lord, for this special day, this day you've set aside for us, this day you've graciously given us to think of you and to worship you and to spend time together in discussion and fellowship around you and around your word.
[47:49] Help us this day, Lord, to focus. And every true will, we ask you to take us together again tonight in safety. I pray for your people across this island today, all those who worship you in spirit and in truth.
[48:00] Give us wisdom in these strange and in these dark days to serve you well and to love you well. I ask all these things fully relying on our good shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, who has done all for us. Amen.
[48:11] Amen.