Okay, we're going to start in a somewhat unusual way.
Would you open up your Bibles to Ezekiel chapter 34?
Now, here's how to find it.
Just open your Bible to the middle.
You're probably in a psalm, and then just start going right.
And you'll see, like, Isaiah, and then you'll bump into Jeremiah,
and then you may see lamentations fly by real fast,
and then there is the prophecy of Ezekiel.
Now, we're going to end up spending most of our time this morning in John chapter 10,
looking at the Good Shepherd.
But in order to understand what's going on here,
I want to read you sections of Ezekiel 34.
This was written 600 plus years before Jesus spoke these words in John 10.
Ezekiel 34.
The word of the Lord came to me.
Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel.
Prophesy and say to them, even to the shepherds,
Thus says the Lord God,
Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves.
Should not shepherds feed the sheep?
You eat the fat.
You clothe yourselves with the wool.
You slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep.
The weak you have not strengthened.
The sick you have not healed.
The injured you have not bound up.
The strayed you have not brought back.
The lost you have not sought.
And with force and harshness you have ruled them.
So they were scattered because there was no shepherd.
And they became food for all the wild beasts.
My sheep were scattered.
They wandered all over the mountains and on every high hill.
My sheep were scattered over the face of the earth with none to search for or seek for them.
Verse 11.
For thus says the Lord God,
Behold, I, I myself, will search for my sheep
and will seek them out as a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered.
So will I seek out my sheep.
And I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.
And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries
and will bring them into their own land.
And I will feed them.
14.
I will feed them with good pasture.
They will, shall lie down in good grazing land and on rich pasture.
They shall feed on the mountains of Israel.
Verse 15.
I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep.
And I myself will make them lie down, declares the Lord God.
I will seek the lost.
And I will bring back the strayed.
And I will bind up the injured.
And I will strengthen the weak and fat.
And the fat and strong I will destroy.
I will feed them in justice.
Verse 23.
And I will set up over them one shepherd.
My servant David.
And he shall feed them.
He shall feed them and be their shepherd.
And I, the Lord, will be their God.
And my servant David shall be prince among them.
I am the Lord.
I have spoken.
Verse 30.
And they shall know that I am the Lord their God with them.
And that they, the house of Israel, are my people, declares the Lord God.
Verse 31.
And you are my sheep.
Human sheep of my pasture.
And I am your God, declares the Lord God.
In John 10.
Jesus declares himself to be that shepherd.
Gathering himself a flock of human sheep.
This morning, we're getting back into our series on the church.
And in verse, chapter 10 of John, verse 16, you could sum up this two-part series, this Sunday and next series, by saying,
One flock, one shepherd.
The one flock of God has one shepherd who is God.
So, last week, we started a study of the church.
And I'm not sure if you remembered this, but here's how I define the church.
The church is the blood-bought people of God, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, on mission for Christ.
And our desire, over the next two months, is to think about the church the way that God thinks about the church.
To feel about the church the way that Jesus feels about his church.
To prioritize the church the way the Holy Spirit prioritizes his church.
And so, generally speaking, the New Testament offers a variety of different images of the blood-bought people of God.
And we're going to hit a bunch of them.
The Bible talks about the church as a body.
It talks about the church as a bride, a holy temple, a royal priesthood, a family, a city set on a hill.
In fact, one scholar, he has identified at least 100 distinct and different images of the church in the New Testament.
And many of those images get pulled in together.
Each image has its own unique contribution to our understanding of the blood-bought people of God.
And this morning, we're going to look at one particular image, the flock of God.
The blood-bought people of God.
But, we're going to do it in two parts.
We're going to look at, this morning, the shepherd of the flock.
And then, next Sunday, we're going to emphasize the flock itself.
Now, it's going to be overlap because this image, they're both together in John chapter 10.
And you'll see how this shakes out.
But when it comes to the flock, the New Testament has a lot to say about it.
Acts 20, 28, Paul gathers the elders of the Ephesian church.
And he tells them, pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock who Jesus bought with his blood.
1 Peter 5, shepherd the flock that is among you.
Hebrews 13, 20 and 21, Brian Winnington is going to close our service with a benediction that talks about the chief shepherd, Jesus.
Matthew 26, 31 through 40, Jesus teaches on the final judgment.
And he likens it to a shepherd who separates his sheep from the goats.
John chapter 21, Jesus is reinstating Peter.
Do you remember this?
Do you love me?
Yes, I love you.
Feed my lambs.
Do you love me?
Yes, I love you.
Feed my sheep.
Do you love me?
You know I do.
Feed my sheep.
This morning, we're going to look at John chapter 10, where we will see Jesus describing himself as the good shepherd.
And he's going to talk about the people he laid his life down for, his sheep.
He's talking about the church.
So the point of this passage is to show a particular relationship between Jesus and his church.
The shepherd and his flock.
So in chapter 10, verse 16, we read, so there will be one flock, one shepherd.
And so we can summarize this all by saying one flock, one shepherd.
That's what John 10 is about.
But if you want to get into a little more, we're saying this.
We are one flock following our one shepherd.
And if you want to press it a little bit more, we are one united flock following our one exclusive shepherd.
There is none like him.
And to that end this morning, I want to look at six truths about Jesus, the good shepherd, that makes him one of a kind.
And we can't help as we look at the good shepherd, learn some things about us, his flock as well.
The first truth about Jesus, the good shepherd, is his authority.
Lou didn't read this this morning, but I want to bring it to your attention.
Chapter 10, verses 1 through 5, Jesus says,
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another 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.
But 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.
What is this all about?
Well, first thing you need to know is the you in verse 1.
Truly, truly, I say to you, it has to do with what happened in chapter 9.
Jesus is talking to a crowd of Jews, specifically to Pharisees.
And these Pharisees were claiming to see Jesus for who he was, but in fact, they were blind to who Jesus really was.
And what 1 through 5 of chapter 10 is, is about Jesus' legitimate authority and access to the sheep.
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold.
Now, when you hear the word sheepfold, I don't know what's going through your mind.
So let's just help paint a picture of what a sheepfold in the first century, ancient Near East, typically look like.
Well, it is this protected pen, oftentimes in a courtyard, in a village.
And oftentimes it's using the wall of a house, kind of, or just kind of an exterior wall of a village.
And from that, there's this thatchwork of sticks that were built together and woven together in order to form a sheep pen, a sheepfold.
And what that was for, was for shepherds, remember this is an agrarian economy back in the day, there were sheep herders.
And they would put their sheep in the sheep pen by night in order to protect them and keep them.
Now, that sheep pen typically had an entryway.
Sometimes it had a door, sometimes it didn't.
So it wasn't unusual for shepherds to hire a gatekeeper by night to make sure no ill will was done to the sheep.
One of the things about John chapter 10 is that there is this, Jesus weaves a contrast through this section.
And it has to do with who he's speaking to.
He's speaking to the false shepherds of Israel, the Pharisees.
And so there's this contrast that he starts building in verse 1.
I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in another way, that man is a thief and robber.
And otherwise, another way of saying, hey, if you see somebody climbing into a sheepfold, not through the entryway but going over the side, they're not legit.
They don't have any business dealing with the sheep.
And then in verse 2, he says, but the one who enters by the gate, he's the true shepherd of the sheep.
He's legit.
He's drawing a contrast to the people he's talking to.
And then in verse 3, we see the kind of validation of it.
Verse 3, the first beginning up to him, the gatekeeper opens.
The gatekeeper recognizes that this shepherd is the legit shepherd.
He lets him have access and authority to the sheep.
And then the kind of piece de la resistance, the thing that validates that this is the shepherd of the sheep above all.
The sheep.
The sheep hear his voice.
So imagine a shepherd walking up to a sheep pen, greeted by the gatekeeper.
As soon as those sheep in the pen hear his voice, they're turning heads.
Their ears are kind of moving towards the shepherd because they recognize his voice.
The sheep hear his voice.
They turn to him.
He calls his own sheep by name.
Did you catch that?
His own sheep by name.
The likely picture is of a shepherd calling his own sheep by name from a sheepfold that has other sheep in it.
He's calling select sheep out.
The one that belongs to him.
The ones that he calls out by name.
Mike, come to me.
And he leads them out.
And when he brought them all out of his own out, he goes before them.
And the sheep follow him for they know his voice.
Now if you're familiar with western sheep herding practices, maybe you watch the movie Pig.
Maybe you like Australian sheep dogs.
And so you watch YouTube videos of Australian sheep herders herding their sheep.
They, western sheep herders, they herd from behind.
They drive their sheep.
But in the ancient Near East and in the Middle East today, shepherds herd their sheep by going out in front of them.
Because they recognize the shepherd's voice.
And so the picture here is of a shepherd leading his sheep.
Notice in verse 5, they don't follow a stranger because that stranger is not legit.
So he is too illegitimate.
So they quit him.
Too illegit and they quit.
Got it.
But when it comes to the shepherd, the good shepherd, his sheep recognize his voice.
Now this raises a little bit of a theological piece in the Gospel of John.
Jesus is talking about these sheep as being his own.
And he calls them out by name.
If you flip in the Gospel of John back to chapter 6, verse 37 through 40.
Finally, Jesus says some very interesting things about the people that God the Father has entrusted to him.
Jesus says, all the Father gives me, speaking of people, will come to me.
And whoever comes to me, I will never cast out.
God has given Jesus a people.
And they're going to come to him.
And he will never cast them out.
They'll never perish.
For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me, the Father.
And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing, none of all that he has given me.
He's talking about people.
But raise it up on the last day.
God the Father has given God the Son a people that God the Son is going to lay his life down for, call out,
and he's going to shepherd them all the way to the end.
For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life.
And I will raise him up on the last day.
Those who belong to Jesus believe in Jesus.
So the sheep who hear his voice are the very human sheep the Father has given the shepherd's son,
of whom he will lose none.
Gather all to himself.
Here's the point of what we're seeing.
This is the point Jesus is making.
He's talking to these Jews who don't like him.
And he's saying, whether you recognize me or not, as the Christ, it's besides the point.
Because the people who need to understand and hear me are my sheep.
And they will hear my voice and respond to my call.
Well, I'm the legitimate shepherd of Ezekiel 34.
Move over.
So there's a people, God the Father has given God the Son,
whom Jesus will call out from the world to follow him.
And I'm going to unpack that next week a little bit more.
But what you need to see here is what Jesus is developing in John 10
is a very interesting way to talk about the relationship between the master and his disciples.
The shepherd-sheep relationship is a very helpful way to illustrate
the authoritative and affectionate relationship between master and disciple.
Jesus and all of the blood-bought.
So what we see here is that Jesus is the legitimate shepherd.
He has authority over his flock.
One flock, one shepherd obeying the voice of their one exclusive shepherd, Jesus.
Now, I'm going to put in a little fast forward.
We're going to start moving a little faster.
The second truth that I want you to see that makes Jesus one of a kind
is his personal knowledge of his flock.
We see that in verse 3.
He says,
To him the gatekeeper opens, the sheep hear his voice,
and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
God the Father has given God the Son of people, right?
Now, the mistake we can make is thinking that God has just given this mob of people
with kind of blurry faces,
and God's kind of like,
Well, I got this mob of people that nobody really knows.
In Revelation chapter 7,
this mob of people who Jesus laid his life down for
is a multitude without number from every tribe, tongue, and nation.
But here Jesus is saying,
They're not blurry faces to me.
I know them each by name.
Which means he knows you by name.
If you are a follower of Jesus,
if you've been called out,
if you know him as your good shepherd,
he knows you by name.
He knows everything about you.
Have you ever experienced someone,
you meet someone for the first time,
you say your name once,
and then that person,
the next time you see him or her,
they got your name.
They know you.
It's so dignifying.
It's so welcoming.
It has this sense of that person took the time
to really concentrate on learning my name,
and that person wants to know me.
That name,
Jesus knowing your name,
means he knows you through and through.
If you look down to verses 14 and 15,
we read this.
I'm the good shepherd, Jesus says.
I know my own,
and my own know me.
We'll come back to that my own know me next week.
I know my own.
So is Jesus here just kind of saying,
I know the facts about you.
I know their name,
their height, weight, IQ.
I know their income.
Blah-ba-dee, blah-ba-dee, blah-ba-dee.
He knows that.
Is that,
is that all?
Look at verse 15,
because in verse 15,
Jesus tells us
the kind of knowing with which he knows us.
In verse 15 he says,
just as the Father knows me,
and I know the Father.
I know my own,
and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me,
and I know the Father.
He's comparing
his knowledge of us
with his knowledge
in relationship to the Father,
and the Father's relationship to him.
A relationship between
God the Father,
and God the Son,
that's marked by a loving relationship
of mutuality.
They belong to each other.
There's clear distinctions
in their personhood,
clear distinctions in authority.
We have the Father and the Son,
but there is a fullness of affection.
A loving relationship.
His knowing us
is him loving us.
Loving all that we are.
He knows us personally.
So much though,
not only knows us each by name,
he loves us each thoroughly.
If you look down to verse 27
of chapter 10,
Jesus says,
my sheep hear my voice,
and I know them,
and they follow me.
Jesus isn't describing
a strictly professional relationship
between shepherd and sheep.
Jesus is describing
a personal,
intimate,
loving affection
between master and disciple.
Here's what this means.
He knows you.
He knows exactly where you're at.
And he loves you where you are.
He loves you.
And not just does he love you,
he loves us as a church.
The good shepherd loves us,
his people.
And not just this local church,
the universal church,
all of his flock,
he loves his people.
So when we are kind of getting
on the outset of a search
for a worship leader,
we have confidence
that our good shepherd
loves us,
and he knows what we need.
He goes before us.
He personally knows
each and every one
of his own blood-bought sheep
by name,
including you.
One flock,
one shepherd.
We are one united flock
following our one
exclusive shepherd
who lovingly knows us
each by name.
The third truth
is that flows out
of what we just read
about Jesus,
his loving knowledge of us.
He cares for his flock.
We see this in verses
seven through ten.
And I think that this is
going to minister
to some of you in the room.
Verses one through five,
he's talking about
his legitimate authority
and access
through the gate
to the sheep.
And in verses seven
through ten,
he switches it up a little bit.
Now he's talking
about himself
as the gate,
as the door
to the sheepfold.
So Jesus said to them,
again,
the Jews,
particularly Pharisees,
truly, truly,
I say to you,
I am the door
of the sheep.
I mean,
what's he doing here?
This seems weird.
He was just talking
about a shepherd,
now he's talking
about a door,
and he comes back
to shepherd talk
in verse 11 and 14.
So,
is he shifting this up?
Let me assure you,
Jesus isn't kind of
putting the whole
shepherd talk on hold.
Let me explain.
Don't imagine
in your minds
when Jesus says,
I am the door
of the sheepfold,
don't imagine
the sheepfold
with a wood door
and the name Jesus
burned into the door.
Don't think that.
Here's what you need
to think.
Jesus is talking
about a role
of the shepherd.
Not all sheepfolds
in the first century
had doors.
And so,
if a sheepfold
didn't have a door,
a sheepherder
would either
employ a hired hand
to stand guard,
or the shepherd himself
would lie down
in the entryway
of a shepherd,
of a sheepfold,
as the shepherd door.
And that performed
two functions.
We see one in verse 8.
All who came before me
are thieves and robbers,
but the sheep
did not listen to them.
The shepherd in the door
keeps out the bad guys,
thieves and robbers.
Do you know who Jesus
is talking about there?
He's talking about
the religious leaders
of that day
that he's speaking to.
And in the first part
of verse 10,
Jesus helps us
understand the intent
of these thieves and robbers.
The thief comes only
to steal and kill
and destroy.
Jesus,
the shepherd door,
protects his human flock
from the bad guys
with bad intent,
so he protects his flock
by keeping out
death and destruction.
Get it?
But in verse 9,
it's the other side of that.
He is the entryway
to life.
Jesus says
in verse 9,
I am the door
if anyone,
if any human,
if any sheep,
if anyone enters
through me,
by me,
he will be saved
in all of that,
what that means
and go in and out
and find pasture.
I'm going to provide you
life,
good pasture.
Now,
there should be
a couple things
popping in your head
right now.
He makes me
lie down
in green pastures.
He leads me
beside still waters.
He restores my soul,
Psalm 23.
Remember when we were
reading through Ezekiel 34
how God himself
will feed his sheep
on the highlands of Israel,
just the choice food?
It's a picture of life.
And that's why
in John 10, 10,
the second half,
Jesus talks about
I came that they might
have life
and have it abundantly.
I came
to provide
abundant
life
pasture
to all
of my sheep.
The bad guys
come to steal,
kill,
and destroy.
But the good shepherd
came
and he is the door
to his legitimate sheep
that they may have life
and have it
to the full.
If you look down
at 10, 28,
he says,
I give them
eternal life
and they will
never
perish.
Later on
in John 17,
Jesus says,
and this is eternal life,
that you know
God
and me,
the Son.
Eternal life
is defined
by Jesus
in terms of being
in right relationship
to him.
So if you know
God through Christ,
you will never
perish.
You have abundant
life
starting now.
The good shepherd
wants to give you
good pasture.
In 738,
Jesus talks about it
this way,
about giving a heart
from which flows
rivers of living water.
It's a reference
to the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit
in us
perpetually,
non-stop,
giving us life
that quenches
our deepest
soul thirst.
the good shepherd
gives abundant
life
to his sheep.
He protects
and he provides.
Now,
I just need to make
one qualification
here
because you're like,
man,
my life
doesn't look like that.
The situation
that sparked
all this
good shepherd talk
was the healing
of a blind man
in chapter 9.
And that blind man,
Jesus,
came up to
spit into some mud,
put it onto his eyes
and tell,
go wash that off
in the pool of Siloam.
The blind man
never saw Jesus.
He just
heard his voice.
And then after
he's healed,
there's this
big hubbub.
And he begins
to identify himself,
the former blind man,
he begins to identify
himself
as one of
Jesus' disciples.
Even though
he's never seen Jesus,
he's just heard
about Jesus.
His parents
kind of
ostracize him
and then this
climax
is in
this man
born blind
but now
given sight
by Jesus
whom he just
heard in obedience.
The Pharisees
kick him out
of the synagogue
which is basically
being kicked out
of a church.
The men
who could see
Jesus
but were blind
to who he really
was
kicked the blind
man
who didn't
see Jesus
but believed
in him
when was given
sight out.
You see it?
So why am I
telling you
all this stuff?
Well when
this man
born blind
healed by Jesus
finally meets
up with Jesus
again
and sees him
for the first
time
one would
think
that this
blind man
now who can
see
would be like
oh man
this stinks
parents
have kind of
virtually
disowned me
I got kicked
out of the
synagogue
bug
bummer
one would
think
that that
kind of
alienating
would crush
one
but do you
know what
this
blind man
who can
now see
do you
know what
he does
when
Jesus
says
hey
you're
looking at
the guy
that healed
you
do you
know what
he does
938
he says
Lord
I believe
and he
worshipped
Jesus
that's
what
abundant
life
looks like
it
is
thriving
joyful
living
for
Jesus
despite
your
circumstances
being in
right
relationship
to God
through
Jesus
does
that
he
cared
for
that
blind
man
now
who
is
given
sight
and
Jesus
the
good
shepherd
cares
for
you
to
protect
and
to
provide
the
fourth
truth
his
sacrificial
good
on behalf
of
his
flock
this
is
verses
11
18
and
this
is
where
the
thickness
of
the
passage
shows
up
in
these
verses
Jesus
refers
to
himself
as
the
good
shepherd
he
does
that
three
times
twice
in
verse
11
you can
see
it
I
am
the
good
shepherd
the
and
once
in
verse
14
I
am
the
good
shepherd
so
the
question
becomes
what
does
he
mean
by
good
well
in
classic
Jesus
style
he
starts
off
with
a
picture
of
bad
shepherding
in
verses
12
and
13
he
says
hey
we've
all
seen
the
hired
man
before
he
who
is
a
hired
man
hand
and
not
a
shepherd
look
at
who
does
not
own
the
sheep
the
sheep
do
not
belong
like
that
who
does
not
own
the
sheep
they
don't
belong
to
him
when
he
sees
a
wolf
coming
he
turns
tail
to
save
his
own
life
and
when
he
does
that
the
sheep
are
snatched
by
the
wolf
and
scattered
he's
again
giving
a
dig
against
the
Pharisees
verse
13
he
says
a
hired
man
because
the
sheep
don't
belong
to
him
he
doesn't
care
for
their
safety
when
a
beast
point
not
the
good
shepherd
the
good
of
the
good
shepherd
is
what
he
will
do
for
his
sheep
in
danger
and
this
good
is
the
same
good
that
makes
good
Friday
good
each
time
Jesus
brings
up
that
he
is
the
good
shepherd
there
is
this
explicit
link
to
him
laying
down
his
life
look
at
verse
11
I'm
the
good
shepherd
the
good
shepherd
lays
down
his
life
for
the
sheep
14
I'm
the
good
shepherd
I
know
my own
know
me
just
as
the
father
knows
me
and
I
know
the
father
and
I
lay
down
my
life
for
the
sheep
and
then
in
verses
17
and
18
three
more
times
he
talks
about
laying
down
his
life
for
the
sheep
and
twice
he
talks
about
taking
it
up
again
his
resurrection
the
greatest
danger
facing
his
sheep
was
his
sheep's
sinfulness
and
remember
verse 14
I know
my own
I know
my own
and
so
the
good
shepherd
on
good
Friday
gave
his
own
life
to
cover
over
to
atone
for
the
sin
of
his
own
sheep
so
that
they
can
come
into
a
relationship
with
him
and
become
part
of
his
flock
the
greatest
good
the
defining
good
was
Jesus
giving
his
life
for
his
own
and
taking
it
up
again
it's
absolutely
vital
to
making
us
his
own
his
sacrificial
good
of
laying
down
his
life
makes
us
his
own
his
death
is
what
makes
us
the
blood
bought
people
of
God
he
perished
so
that
we
would
not
perish
we
are
one
united
flock
following
our
one
exclusive
shepherd
who
laid
down
his
life
willingly
of
his
own
accord
with
his
authority
under
the
charge
of
his
father
for
the
glory
of
the
father's
name
five
the
fifth
truth
he's
gathering
all
of
his
flock
I'm
going to
develop
this
more
next
week
let
me
just
touch
on
it
now
in
verse
three
we
get
a
hint
of
something
to
him
the
gatekeeper
opens
the
sheep
hear
his
voice
and
he
calls
his
own
sheep
by
name
and
leads
them
out
he
calls
out
his
sheep
from
the
other
sheep
in
the
sheep
fold
he
says
come
to
me
come
out
of
them
come
to
me
and
become
part
of
my
flock
Jesus
in
John
10
is
addressing
Jews
so
he's
saying
in
verse
three
I
am
calling
by
name
human
sheep
from
the
Jewish
sheep
fold
now
if you
look down
at verses
15
and 16
remember
in
14
says
I
am
the
good
shepherd
I
know
my
own
and
my
own
know
me
just
as
the
father
knows
me
and
I
know
the
father
and
I
lay
down
my
life
for
the
sheep
and
he
says
in
verse
16
and
I
have
other
sheep
that
are
not
of
this
fold
I
must
I
must
I
must
bring
them
also
and
they
will
listen
to
my
voice
so
there
will
be
one
flock
one
shepherd
Jesus
is
calling
a
worldwide
flock
unto
himself
not
only
from
the
Jewish
sheep
fold
but
sheep
outside
of that
sheep
fold
for
the
Jewish
mind
there
was
two
groups
of
people
in
the
world
Jews
and
non
Jews
also
known
as
Gentiles
and
so
when
Jesus
says
I've
got
sheep
none
of
this
fold
he's
saying
I've
got
sheep
that
I
laid
my
life
down
for
who
I
know
and
will
know
me
and
they
are
from
the
Gentile
sheep
fold
and
I'm
going
to
gather
them
from
the
Jews
I'm
going
to
gather
them
from
the
Gentiles
and
I'm
going
to
make
one
whole
new
blood
bought
flock
my
church
and
that
word
must
carries
the
sense
of
urgency
it
carries
the
sense
of
verse
18
discharge
Jesus
says
I
have
received
from
my
father
I
will
do
this
he's
talking
about
the
global
church
all
the
blood
bought
people
of
God
from
multiple
sheep
folds
indwelt
by the
Holy
Spirit
on
mission
for
the
good
shepherd
and
I
want
to
press
on
you
today
that
this
must
is
still
in
effect
the
good
shepherd
is
still
gathering
himself
sheep
from
multiple
sheep
folds
from
white
sheep
folds
from
black
sheep
folds
from
Jewish
and
Gentile
from
Republican
and
Democrat
he's
calling
them
all
unto
himself
they
hear
his
name
he's
laid
his
life
down
they
come
after
him
they
must
come
after
him
they
can't
resist
his
call
because
they
were
given
to
him
by
the
father
I'm
going to
develop
this
a little
bit
more
next
week
but
when
we
talk
about
being
one
united
flock
following
one
exclusive
shepherd
being
one
flock
turns out
to be
harder
than
it
sounds
the
fifth
truth
is
he's
gathering
a
flock
now
there's
no one
like
him
and
the
sixth
truth
is
a
promise
he
makes
to
his
flock
that's
in
verses
28
and
30
it
sets
him
apart
only
he
can
make
this
promise
he
makes
this
promise
to
those
who
he's
called
by
name
those
whom
he
knows
those
who
heard
his
voice
and
follow
him
to
those
whom
he
has
laid
his
life
for
to
those
whom
he
has
gathered
into
one
flock
with
one
shepherd
to
them
and
to
them
alone
he
makes
a
stunning
promise
in
verses
28
through
30
look at
verse
28
he
says
I
give
them
eternal
life
and
they
will
never
perish
promise
and
no
one
will
snatch
them
out
of
my
hand
the
last
time
we
encountered
the
word
snatch
was
in
verse
12
when
the
hired
hand
bolts
and
the
wolf
comes
and
snatch
the
sheep
not
so
with
Jesus
you
can't
snatch
one of
Jesus
feet
sheep
out of
his
hands
because
they
belong
to
Jesus
no
one
no
thing
will
snatch
any
of
Jesus
sheep
from
his
hand
because
that
hand
is
a
pierced
hand
a
hand
that
was
buried
a
hand
that
was
raised
that
hand
is
the
hand
of
the
risen
shepherd
Christ
no
one
will
snatch
any
of
Jesus
own
from
his
hand
because
they
belong
to
him
by
virtue
of
his
death
and
his
resurrection
they
are
his
you
can't
you
can't
pull
them
away
from
him
they're
his
you're
his
no
one
can
snatch
you
out
of
his
hand
they
will
not
perish
because
he
has
perished
for
his
own
but
it
gets
better
verse
29
my
father
who
has
given
them
to
me
is
greater
than
all
and
no
one
is
able
to
snatch
them
out
of
my
father's
hand
do
you
notice
Jesus
said
about
his
father
he's
greater
than
all
there's
no
greater
authority
no
greater
power
which
means
this
no
one
can
snatch
them
out
of
the
father's
hand
no
one
is
able
no
one
has
the
power
no
one
can
press
so
hard
for
so
long
that
they
can
remove
them
from
the
father's
hand
christian
if you
belong to
the good
shepherd
if he's
called you
and you
believed
him
you
are
in
the
eternal
double
grip
of
the
son
and
the
father
it's
a
picture
of
not
only
protection
but
preservation
until
that
last
day
john
six
your
assurance
of
being
part
of
jesus
flock
is
securely
grounded
in
this
god
the
father
set
his
love
on
you
and
called
you
to
be
his
own
from
eternity
past
and
god
the
son
laid
his
life
down
for
you
and
was
raised
and
made
you
his
own
for
all
eternity
future
so
that
what
this
means
is
both
the
father
and
the
son
are
united
in
purpose
and
in
essence
to
make
you
and
keep
you
as
their
own
the
triune
God
claims
you
as
his
own
and
no
one
can
take
you
out
of
his
grasp
how
about
that
for
a
promise
one
flock
one
shepherd
we
are
one
united
flock
following
one
exclusive
shepherd
who's
promised
to
never
let
us
out
of
his
grip
that
should
give
you
a
sigh
of
relief
it's
based
on
Christ's
finished
work
so
he
alone
is
our
one
exclusive
shepherd
and I
hope
you're
hearing
that
as
good
news
okay
let me
just
hit
four
quick
things
how
this
particular
image
of the
church
shepherd
and
flock
uniquely
contributes
to our
understanding
of the
church
it
portrays
the
master
discipleship
relationship
in
pastoral
terms
shepherd
and
sheep
it's
clear line
of
authority
Jesus
is the
leader
we are
his
followers
second
it
depicts
a
necessary
dependence
between
the
sheep
and
the
good
shepherd
we
need
him
he
doesn't
need
us
but
he's
committed
to
us
out
of
his
love
for
us
he's
going
to
provide
and
protect
us
we
need
him
we're
dependent
on
him
third
we
follow
him
in
a
community
a
community
of
sheep
following
a
shepherd
is
a
flock
a
community
of
Christians
following
after
Jesus
is
a
church
we
follow
Jesus
together
more
next
week
but let
me
just
say
this
there
is
no
such
thing
as
a
flock
of
one
sheep
and
there's
no
such
thing
as
a
church
of
one
Christian
four
there's
no one
like
a
good
shepherd
if
there's
one
thing
you're
pulling
out
of
John
10
it's
this
there's
no
one
like
him
there's
no
one
like
him
who
lays
down
his
life
for
the
sheep
he
is
the
focal
point
of
the
church
he
is
the
one
we
follow
together
it's
all
about
Jesus
of
what
he's
done
for
us
of
what
he's
doing
for
us
of
what
he
will
do
for
us
he's
one
of a
kind
in
authority
over
his
flock
knowledge
of
his
flock
care
for
his
flock
the
sacrificial
good
on behalf
of his
flock
his
gathering
of his
flock
his
promise
to his
flock
he
alone
is
our
one
exclusive
shepherd
and can I have an amen
that's good news
we the church
are the blood
bought people
of God
indwelt
by the
spirit
on mission
for Christ
and if
you are
wondering
if Jesus
is calling
you to
follow
him
you'll
know it
because
he's
calling
you
to
follow
him
come
after
me
let's
pray
God
in
heaven
we
thank you
so
much
for
John
10
we feel
the limits
of time
so we're
grateful
for next
week
God
would you
instruct
us
would you
help us
to think
your thoughts
about your
church
father
Jesus
would you
help us
to feel
your
feelings
for your
people
who you
shed
your
blood
for
in
spirit
of the
living
God
would you
help us
to
prioritize
rightly
the
church
as
you
do
in
Jesus
name
we
pray
amen