JOHN 10
8 Outlines
John 10:1-15
ABUNDANCE!
We like it when there is an abundance of good
things. We are happy when there is an
abundance of things to eat, things to do, clothes to wear, etc. The best abundance, however, comes from the Good
Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ. He
provides:
ABUNDANT LEADERSHIP, Vss. 1-5
He comes. Vss.
1-2
He calls. Vs.
3
He chaperones.
Vss. 4-5
ABUNDANT LIFE, Vss. 7-10
Salvation -
Vss. 7-9
Sanctification
- Vs. 10
ABUNDANT LOVE Vss. 11-15
Sacrifice for
the sheep. Vss. 11, 15
Knowledge of the sheep. Vs. 14
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John 10:7-10
WHAT AN OFFER!
JESUS OFFERS:
AN AUTHENTIC DOOR - Vss.
70-9a
"Then said Jesus
unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am
the door of the sheep. [8] All that ever came before me are thieves and
robbers: but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door:"
AVAILABLE SALVATION -
Vs. 9b
"...by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved..."
ABUNDANT LIFE - Vss.
9c-10
"...and shall go in
and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have
it more abundantly."
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John 10:7-10
WHAT A DOOR!
I have walked through
many doors in my lifetime.
I arrived here coming
through the "door" of birth.
I walked often through
the doors of my growing up home in Wayne New Jersey and have walked through the
doors of different homes ever since.
I walked through the
door of education, going through grade school, high school, college, and
On
On
In December of 1997, I
entered the door of being a grandparent when David and his wife Carletta brought Nicole home from the adoption agency.
Later she was "officially" adopted.
In February of 1998 I
walked through the door of the
In April of 1998 I
walked through the door of the
Those are just a few of
the doors, literal and figurative that I have walked through down through the
years. You too have walked through some of the same doors, and those of you who
are younger will walk through some of those doors as you get older.
A door is an
entranceway.
For all the doors I
mentioned I left out the most important one.
I was a good religious boy
going to church every Sunday. I thought that if I did more good things than bad
I'd make it to Heaven. Then, one day in
spite of all my religiosity, I realized that I was not good enough to go to
Heaven. While listening to Billy Graham
on the radio in bed one evening I knelt by my bedside and trusted Jesus Christ
as my Savior. I came to God through
faith in Him. Jesus Christ is my door to
forgiveness of sin and everlasting life.
John 10:9 - "I am
the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,
and shall go in and out, and find pasture."
In the beginning of John
10 Jesus is speaking of himself the true shepherd. He was the true religious
leader, the Messiah that God had promised and that many were waiting for. The religious leaders of his day were not
true shepherds to the sheep. They were thieves and robbers.
Read Vss. 7-8 - In verse
7 Jesus announces that he is the "door of the sheep." He is the true entranceway compared to the
"thieves and robbers" in verse 8.
By the way in verse 8 Jesus is not saying that the Old Testament
prophets were thieves and robbers. He
was saying that the current leaders of his day, some of whom were probably
standing in front of him, were thieves and robbers. Instead of leading the Jews to true faith
they were leading them astray.
When Jesus says I am the
door, He is saying that He is the entranceway.
As I meditated on this passage of Scripture I realized that Jesus is the
door to many exciting things that should encourage you.
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PROTECTION
John 10:9 - "I am
the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,"
A few months ago Harold
and Emma Schrack had a fire in their home. Someone woke them up before the fire got to
their bedroom and they were able to escape, ultimately through a door that led
to the outside of the house.
I was at one point in my
life in great danger of being consummed by fire. I was in danger of facing what we call
"hell fire", and what Revelation 20 calls "The
Why would a loving God
send any person to such a place as that?
It is because our loving
God is also a holy and righteous God.
It is because of our
iniquities and sins.
A holy and righteous God
demands that someone be punished for our sins. We are the logical choice to be
punished.
We have failed God so
greatly that the book of Ephesians tells us that without Christ we are dead in
trespasses and sins. Isaiah 64:6, Ezekiel 18:4
So we need protection.
We need a door to protect us from the fire of hell and everlasting
damnation.
That's where God's love
enters the picture.
That's how Jesus became
your door of protection.
Jesus came to earth.
Jesus led a sinless
life.
Jesus died on the cross
bearing the punishment for your sins and mine.
Romans 5:6-8, Hebrews
10:12, 14
So Jesus died for our
sins. He arose from the dead. He's living in Heaven. He says, I am the door: by
me if any man enter in, he shall be saved,
How do you enter in
Jesus as the door?
You enter in by
faith! Romans 5:1, Ephesians 2:8-9
When you enter in the
door of faith, you are saved or protected from the punishment you deserve.
When Jesus said that He
was the door, He was referring to the door of a sheepfold. That's where sheep
were kept at night. It was a protective place made for the sheep. After the sheep were gathered into the
sheepfold, the shepherd would lay down in the doorway
and literally be the door for the sheep. No sheep could get out and no thieves,
robbers, or predators like wolves could get in without dealing with the
shepherd.
Christian, I want you to
realize something.
When Jesus is your
Savior, not only is He your door to protection for eternal life and against
wrath to come, but He is also your door to protection right now as you face the
bumps and bruises of life.
John 10:27-28, Psalm
34:7, Hebrews 13:5-6, Deuteronomy 33:27
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PEACE
We live in a world full
of troubles and cares.
We face challenges to
our physical, emotional and Spiritual wellbeing every day.
Things are so hectic, so
out of control, so worrisome and so burdensome that we need to enter a big door
labeled "PEACE". That big door labeled peace is none other that the
Lord Jesus. John 14:27
How do we keep our
hearts from being troubled or afraid? Philippians 4:6-7
Quote the words to the
hymn His Eye Is On The Sparrow -
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/h/i/hiseyeis.htm
Christian, next time you
feel anxious and worried, and a lack of peace wells up in your soul, take that problem to God in Jesus' name. Let Him be the door
to your peace.
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
POWER
John 10:9 - I am the
door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out...
Going in and out carries
the idea of power.
You can't go in and out
unless you have the power to do so.
If you are a Christian
you have power that comes through the shepherd the Lord Jesus. He is the door
to power.
John
I believe that the works
that we can do as followers of Jesus are greater in quantity, but not greater
in quality. We can accomplish great
things for the Lord if we allow him to work through us.
John 14:13 -14 - And
whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. [14] If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
I told you earlier that
you should be praying when you need peace.
These verses tell me that you should be praying when you need power!
We fail to witness.
We fail to be victorious
over sin.
We fail to help others
effectively.
We fail to persevere.
We fail to have Jesus'
strength, largely because we fail to pray and believe.
And notice why we should
pray these prayers for power. We should pray for power so that Jesus will be
glorified!
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PASTURE
John 10:9 - I am the
door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out,
and find pasture.
What do sheep need to be
healthy sheep?
They need to be fed.
They need pasture.
Jesus provides pasture
to His sheep.
First there is the
pasture of His word.
As we feed on His word
we will grow.
John 15:7, Joshua 1:8,
Jeremiah 15:16
I believe that there is
another kind of pasture as well.
I would call it the
pasture of God's Spirit.
He has to be in control
of our lives.
As we allow that control
we will be victorious. Ephesians 5:18, Galatians 5:16, 22-23
What is the end result
of good pasture? I believe John
The result of good
pasture is more abundant life.
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PROTECTION
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PEACE
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
POWER
JESUS IS THE DOOR TO
PASTURE
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John 10:7-11
THE SHEPHERD AND THE
SHEEP
THE DOOR TO SALVATION -
Vss. 7, 9
THE DECEIVERS OF THE
SHEEP - Vss. 8, 10a
THE DELIGHT OF THE
LIVING - Vs. 10b
THE DEVOTION OF THE SHEPHERD
- Vs. 11
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John 10:11
THE GOOD SHEPHERD
I have been in stores of
various kinds literally thousands of times, and over the course of my 54 years I
have had literally thousands of cashiers wait on me. For the most part the cashiers have been
competent. Many times I have met good
cashiers that were extremely helpful and just this past week one who gave me
the extra dollar back that I'd given her by mistake. I've also run into some bad cashiers in my
time. There was one that I had to tell
how much change I was to get back. She didn't have a clue. There have been
others who have been lazy or shown a very bad attitude towards me the customer.
Let's face it, no matter
what the occupation, you find those who are good at what they do and those who
are bad at what they do.
There are good
secretaries and there are bad secretaries.
There are good
schoolteachers and there are bad schoolteachers.
There are good doctors
and there are bad doctors.
There are good singers
and there are bad singers.
There are good state
workers and there are bad state workers.
There are good pastors
and there are bad pastors.
And on and on we could
go.
When people serve us we
want the best we can get. We want those
who are good or even great at what they do. When a person serves God, He wants
our best too. Colossians 3:17, 23
God actually does what
He asks of us. He wants our best, but He gives us His best.
Whatever God does is
good. Whatever the Lord Jesus does is good.
Jesus views himself as a
shepherd.
A shepherd takes care of
sheep.
Jesus' sheep are those
who trust Him as savior. Those who trust him as Savior follow Him. John
10:27
Now notice that Jesus
does not just say that he's a shepherd. He tells us that He's the good
shepherd. Jesus takes His occupation seriously and does the best job.
He's not a good
shepherd, He's the good shepherd!
What helps to make any
person in any occupation good?
It is when the person gives
of himself or herself.
What makes Jesus the
good shepherd? Yes, He is God and that certainly helps.
But beyond that, Jesus
as the good shepherd gives of himself for His sheep.
I want you to appreciate
Jesus as your good shepherd. I want you
to see that,
JESUS IS INVOLVED WITH
HIS SHEEP
In order to be a good
shepherd for literal sheep, one must be involved in the life of the sheep.
There needs to be contact. Jesus involved himself in the lives of His sheep
long before the sheep ever existed. The plan of God from the beginning was that
Jesus, God's Son would be involved in the lives of those who would be God's
sheep.
And remember, Jesus did
not just start existing when He was born in
Now please turn to Philippians
2:5-8
In this passage we see
just how involved Jesus became as our shepherd.
Vs. 6 - Before Jesus
came to earth he was in the "form of God".
This word "form
refers to the inner, essential, and abiding nature of a person or thing."
Jesus' inner, essential,
and abiding nature is that of God.
Paul here is attesting
to the deity of Christ.
When it says that He
thought in not robber to be equal with God, it means that Jesus did not
consider His equality with God something to be selfishly hung on to. He could have stayed in Heaven and enjoyed all the splendor which comes with being God the Son.
Instead, He chose to leave behind the glory that was His to come to earth.
Vs. 7 - "But made
himself of no reputation..." This literally means that He "emptied
himself."
He surrendered. What
exactly did Jesus empty Himself of? What did He
surrender?
Did he give up his
deity?
No, when He came to
earth, He was still God. His nature had not changed. Perfect man and perfect
God joined together.
He did give up His
Heavenly glory.
He did give up His
Heavenly riches.
He did give up the
independent use of His Godly authority and became subservient to and dependent
on the Father.
Vs. 7 - not only did
Jesus surrender his rights in humility, "and took upon him the form of a
servant, and was made in the likeness of man."
Jesus became a servant
in humility. He got involved with the sheep!
Here's that word
"form" again. Jesus took on the "inner, essential, and abiding
nature..." of a servant!" Jesus was a servant through and through. He
served by coming to earth.
He served by teaching
and training men. He served by performing miracles.
He served by praying. He
served by washing the feet of his disciples.
Here was the very Son of
God, stooping to the job of a slave or servant, washing the very feet of sinful
men. And of course, Jesus served when He went to the cross. Jesus served by
going to the cross!
As a servant Jesus took
on the likeness of man.
He took on the human
nature, although he never let go of the divine nature.
Vs. 8 - And being found
in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even
the death of the cross. Here is where
the good shepherd literally gave His life for the sheep. There are stories of shepherds who sacrifice
themselves for the good of the flock. Here is Jesus doing that for you and I.
The good news is this
good shepherd rose from the dead!
The good news is that
this good shepherd is still involved!
This good news is that
this good shepherd will still save and forgive anyone who will trust in Him.
Matthew 11:28 - Come
unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
And this good shepherd
is still involved in our lives. 1 John 2:1-2
When we sin Jesus is
there to plead our case. He is our lawyer.
He is the one called
aside to help.
JESUS INTERCEDES FOR HIS
SHEEP
Hebrews 4:14-16
Not only do we have a
divine lawyer, but we have a divine priest.
Among other things a
priest prays.
Vs. 14 - We can hold on to
our faith, no matter how bad the circumstances, knowing that in Heaven, we have
a great high priest. We can be strong in faith knowing that there is someone
there who will speak up for us.
Vs. 15 - This high
priest, the Lord Jesus, understands our infirmities, our troubles, our woes,
our temptations. Why? Because as the Good Shepherd he got involved by coming to
earth and was tempted in every way that you and I were tempted.
The only difference is
that Jesus never sinned.
Vs. 16 - So what are we
to do? When troubles come, and they do, come to God's throne of grace. Bring
the problem there, knowing that in Christ we have
mercy and grace to help in our time of need!
JESUS INTERVENES FOR HIS
SHEEP
In Jesus day, there was
a blind man named Bartimaeus. Old Blind Bart was a
beggar. Then one day, Bart called on Jesus and Jesus intervened. Jesus gave Him
sight. In Jesus day, there was a terrible storm on the
In Jesus' day, Jesus the
Good Shepherd intervened in the lives of the sheep.
A good shepherd dealing
with literal sheep intervenes to protect, to comfort, to feed and to water his
sheep. Jesus as the Good Shepherd still intervenes today. He will intervene as
we ask Him to.
John 14:13-14, Matthew
7:7-11
JESUS INSTRUCTS HIS
SHEEP
While He was on earth,
Jesus was constantly teaching His disciples. And Jesus still teaches today. He
does His teaching through His Holy Spirit. John 16:12-14
One of the
characteristics of sheep is that they need to wander. That's why Isaiah said,
"All we like sheep have gone astray..." A good shepherd guides his
sheep. Jesus, the Good Shepherd, will guide you and
Psalm 32:8 - I will
instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt
go: I will guide thee with mine eye.
Jesus does not hide His
will from us, He reveals it to us.
For Guidance:
1. Ask for guidance
2. Read the Scriptures
3. Look at the circumstances
4. Listen for inner
direction
And remember, nothing
that Jesus leads us to will be contrary to His Word.
My friend, Jesus is the
Good Shepherd, who gives His life for the Sheep. Is He your good shepherd?
JESUS IS INVOLVED WITH
HIS SHEEP
JESUS INTERCEDES FOR HIS
SHEEP
JESUS INTERVENES FOR HIS
SHEEP
JESUS INSTRUCTS HIS
SHEEP
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John 10:7-11
THE GOOD SHEPHERD
PERSONALITY OF THE
SHEPHERD - Vss. 7-9 - He is the "door". When people place their trust
in Him, He is their way to eternal life.
PURPOSE OF THE SHEPHERD
- Vs. 10 - He has come to give abundant life.
PRACTICE OF THE SHEPHERD
- Vs. 11 - He gives his life for the sheep. Not only did He give His life on
the cross, but Jesus gives His life now as our "great high priest",
(Hebrews
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John 10:27-31
THE SHEEP
THE FAITH OF THE SHEEP - "My sheep hear my voice,
and I know them, and they follow me:"
THE FUTURE OF THE SHEEP - "And I give unto them
eternal life; and they shall never perish..."
THE FAITHFULNESS OF THE SHEPHERD - "...neither
shall any man pluck them out of my hand." (See verses 29-30 too.)
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John 10:27-28
ABOUT THOSE SHEEP
If you know this Psalm,
please recite it with me. Psalm 23
The best known Psalm is
Psalm 23.
Many can recite it when
they can recite no other Scripture.
Many a pastor has shared
this Psalm in the sick room or next to a deathbed.
Psalm 23 is the favorite
Psalm of many people including me.
Who is the
"Lord" in Psalm 23? It is the Lord Jesus Christ!
How do I know?
John
As the good shepherd,
Jesus came to earth to give His life for the sheep.
He gave His life by
teaching the sheep how to live.
He gave His life by
being the sinless example of how to live.
He gave His life by
working great miracles.
He gave His life by
leaving Heaven and taking on a human body, with all its inconveniences and
pains.
He gave His life by
suffering indignity and persecution. As creator He suffered at the hands of His
creatures.
He gave His life to
train and pray for His disciples.
Most of all, He gave His
life by dying on the cross for our sins. He took the punishment that we
deserved! Isaiah 53:5-6
Jesus as the good
shepherd died for the sheep but rose again on the third day from the dead!
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
Jesus is still the good shepherd, and He is very active as Psalm 23 just showed
us. For a shepherd to be an active
shepherd, He must have one thing. He
must have sheep!
In John 10:24-26 we see
that not everyone is one of Jesus sheep. Also see Matthew
Matt 25:31-33
So if not all people are
sheep, it is important that we know who the sheep are, and it is most important
that we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are Jesus' sheep.
Jesus teaches us some
very important things about His sheep this morning in John 10:27-28.
JESUS' SHEEP ARE
SENSITIVE - "My sheep hear my voice,"
A sheep knows the call
of his shepherd. As Jesus' sheep, we know the call of the master.
First of all, Jesus'
sheep have been sensitive to heed His call to salvation. They listened to His
voice when He said, "Come unto me, all ye that labour
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28
As we already shared,
Jesus died for your sins, was buried and rose again. The price has been paid
for you to have sins forgiven and He paid it! He gave His life for the sheep.
Salvation is a gift.
Jesus wants you to accept the gift by faith. John 3:16
When you, at a specific
moment in time, accept the gift of salvation, believing that Jesus died for
your sins and that He is your way of forgiveness and only hope of eternal life,
you are sensitive to His call, and become one of His sheep!
The invitation is open
for anyone to come to Jesus and become one of His sheep! Revelation 22:17
What about you? Are you
one of Jesus' sheep?
If not, you can become
one of His sheep today by accepting His offer of the free gift of eternal life.
Now there is another
challenging thought here for those who know Christ as Savior.
If we are His sheep, we above
all others are to be listening to His voice!
How do we listen to His
voice as His sheep?
First we must be
sensitive to His Word!
If you are one of Jesus'
sheep you must be interested in what Jesus has to say in this Book!
We should be able to say
with the Psalmist, "O how love I thy law! it is my meditation all the day." Psalm 119:97
If you don't care about
reading the Bible, and hearing God's Word preached and taught, what kind of a
sheep are you? You are not sensitive to your Master's voice!
Another way we can be
sensitive to the voice of Jesus is to heed the nudging of His Holy Spirit.
There was a day when the
Elijah the Prophet was depressed, and he ended up by himself on a mountain. 1
Kings
Jesus still speaks today
in the still, small voice, if we just take time to listen. We are so busy running here and there and
everywhere that we fail to take the time to just listen! Often we sheep know how to talk to God, but
we haven't learned to quietly listen to God, meditating on His Word and letting
Him speak quietly to us.
JESUS' SHEEP ARE SPECIAL
- "and I know them,"
As God Jesus knows
everyone. But there is an intimate way that Jesus knows those who have trusted
Him. He calls us His friends! John 15:15, Proverbs 18:24
As a good friend, Jesus
will never leave or forsake us. Hebrews 13:5
JESUS SHEEP ARE SMART -
"and they follow me:"
As sheep following the
good shepherd, we are smart when we follow Him.
In fact, following Jesus is proof that we are one of His sheep!
As a child I was smartest
when I did what I was told by my parents. When I accepted their leadership I
was at my best!
Now, I show just how
smart I am when I follow and obey my wonderful Lord and Savior.
And Jesus does call us
to follow Him! Luke 9:23
Why should we follow
Jesus?
1 John
John
Every time we follow and
obey Jesus, we are saying to Him, "I love you."
Every time we follow and
obey Jesus, we are also saying, "I trust you. I believe that you know what
is best for me."
JESUS' SHEEP ARE SAFE -
And I give unto them
eternal life; and they shall never perish,
Jesus told a story about
a rich man and a poor beggar named Lazarus.
The rich man had a terrific life, but he was unsaved.
Lazarus suffered a poor
and miserable life, but he was saved.
Both died. Luke
16:22-26:
This poor old beggar was
safe from the fire of hell, because he was saved. He was one of Jesus' sheep.
The rich man was not
safe from the fires of hell, because he was not one of Jesus' sheep.
It is a great comfort to
know that we are safe from sin's punishment. But is disconcerting to think that
there are so many without Christ who are not safe.
John 3:17-18
This is why I urge you
to witness to your friends and family.
This is why I urge you
to bring unsaved friends and loved ones to church. Those who are not yet Jesus'
sheep need opportunities to trust Christ before it is too late.
Recently I preached at
an ordination service for my friend Wade Prime.
When I gave the invitation I led in the sinner's prayer. I then asked Wade to come up and watch as I
asked those who just prayed the prayer to raise their hands. Jesus' uncle and second cousin both raised
their hands. Wade had been praying for and had talked some with his uncle, and God answered.
If you are safe in the
arms of Jesus because you are His shape, be concerned about those who are not,
and take action. Begin with prayer!
JESUS' SHEEP ARE SECURE
- "neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand."
Please understand
something. If you are truly saved, there is no way the Son of God is going to
let you go.
The very hand of God the
Son holds you.
And if that isn't
enough, the very hand of God the Father holds on to us as well. John 10:29
God the Father and God
the Son love Jesus' sheep too much to ever let them go or to let them wiggle
out of their hands!
TAKEN FROM OUR DAILY
BREAD, PUBLISHED BY RADIO BIBLE CLASS - "When Pastor Thomas Collins called
on a family from his church, he found the mother to be very despondent and
feeling that god had forsaken her. Looking at the baby in the woman's arms,
Pastor Collins said to her, 'Drop that baby on the floor."
"Startled by the
suggestion, she looked at him in disbelief.
'Well,' he said, 'for what
price would you do it?' Indignantly she replied, 'Not for as many dollars as
there are stars!'
"He then said
kindly, 'Tell me, do you really think that you love your child more than the
Lord does His?'
"That truth broke
through the woman's despair."
Romans