Today, on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe. This is what Jesus is saying: the good shepherd lays down his life. for the shape. He finds the sheep, he leads and feeds the sheep, he carries the sheep. But the main point of the passage of John 10 is that the good shepherd dies.
For the sheep. Welcome to the verdict, featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe. Sheep may look cute from a distance, but when the Bible compares God's people to a herd of sheep, it's not a compliment. On today's program, John is exploring what this insightful analogy tells us about the nature of our relationship with Christ, the Good Shepherd, and how it should impact our daily life. And now, here's Pastor John Monroe introducing today's message titled.
Dying for me. Today, in our series Encountering Jesus, we come to a passage where Jesus speaks of himself. as the good shepherd. I come from Scotland where there are many thousands of sheep. When I practiced law, some of my clients were farmers or crofters who had sheep.
One thing I know is that sheep need a shepherd.
Some animals will find their own way back to their home, but not a sheep. Jesus is the perfect shepherd. Like sheep, we have wandered and got into all kinds of difficulties, but Jesus comes to rescue us and to forgive us. He does this by dying for our sins, then being buried and being raised from the dead. He is eternally alive.
My prayer is that you will have a personal encounter with Jesus, the Good Shepherd. who gives his life for you. John ten then, verse one. Jesus is the speaker. Truly, truly, I say to you, He who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way.
He is a thief. And a robber. But he who enters by the door Is a shepherd of the sheep. To him, the doorkeeper opens and And the sheep hear his voice. And he calls his own sheep by name.
and leads them out. When he puts forth all of his own, he goes before them. And the sheep follow him. because they know his voice And the stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him because they don't know the voice of strangers. This figure of speech, Jesus spoke to them.
But they did not understand what those things were which he had been saying to them. Jesus therefore said to them again, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters through me, He shall be saved.
and shall go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came. that they might have life. and might have it abundantly.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life For the sheep. He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, beholds the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he's a hireling. and isn't concerned about the sheep.
I am the good shepherd. And I know my own. And my own know me, even as the father knows me, and I know the father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep which are not of this fold I must bring them also. and they shall hear my voice.
And they shall become one flock with one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me. Because I lay down my life That I may take it again. No one has taken it away from me, but I lay it down on my own initiative. I have authority to lay it down.
And I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from my father Verse twenty-seven. My sheep hear my voice. And I know them. And they follow me.
And I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish. and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hands. I and the father are one.
Our topic is the Good Shepherd. What does the good shepherd do according to our passage? A number of things. First of all, the good shepherd finds the sheep. He comes to find those of us who are spiritually lost.
First, the good shepherd finds the sheep. Secondly, the good shepherd leads and feeds the sheep. Listen to Isaiah forty verse eleven. Our Lord tends his flock like a shepherd. He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart.
He gently leads those that have young. Here in verses 3 and 4, in John chapter 10, Jesus says that He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. Verse 27: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. The Good Shepherd, verse 3, our Lord Jesus calls us By name, Isn't that an amazing truth?
That is why he is a good shepherd. He knows our name and he cares for us. And for all of eternity, our good shepherd will lead us, feed us, and protect us. Listen to these wonderful words from Revelation seven regarding a picture of the future. They will hunger no longer, nor thirst any more.
Nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat, for the Lamb in the center of the throne will be their shepherd. What an amazing thought. That for all of eternity, this good shepherd is going to continue to be my good shepherd and will guide them to springs of the water of life. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes. Why?
Because he is a good shepherd. He finds the sheep, he leads and feeds the sheep. Thirdly, the good shepherd carries the sheep. What does the shepherd do when he finds the lost sheep which has wandered away?
Something that you and I might be rather reluctant to do. particularly if you've searched for that sheep for a long, long time. And it's been very inconvenient, and you're dirty, and you're cold, and perhaps you're wet. And when you find that lost sheep, you might say, I've found you, but. Get back home.
And you might even give it a cake. And you might berate the sheep. Jesus says no in Luke chapter 15 when the good shepherd finds the sheep. What does he do with it? He puts it on his Shoulders.
Says Jesus, and when he found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. What a beautiful picture. Jesus says the lost sheep Is laid on the good shepherd's shoulders, and all of heaven rejoices over one sheep, just one sheep. That was lost. and is now found.
While angels in his presence sang Until the courts of heaven rang O the love that sought me. Or the blood that bought me, or the grace that brought me to the fold, wondrous grace. that brought me. to the fold. That's the awesome work of our good shepherd who searches for us, who finds us, who puts us on his shoulders, who saves us and carries us for all of the all of our life and deed through death itself.
As we were reminded by the children in Psalm 23, right into. The eternal heavenly fold. And it's all. Oh. of God's grace.
He finds the sheep, he leads and feeds the sheep, he carries the sheep. But the main point of the passage of John 10 is that the good shepherd dies. for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the ship.
Verse 15: Even as the Father knows me, and I know the Father, and I lay down my life. Oh, there may be many dedicated shepherds who risk their lives for the sheep, but this good shepherd. Our Lord Jesus Christ. lays down his life. Gives.
His life. For the sheep. That's the main reason why he's called the Good Shepherd. The centrality of the Christian faith is not the Sermon on the on the mount. Perfect, although a Lord's teaching is there.
But the Sermon on the Mount isn't mentioned in John's Gospel. No central to the Christian faith. Is not the teaching of Jesus or even the example of Jesus, important although they are, central to the Christian faith, is the cross. Of Jesus Christ. You will never have a true understanding of Christianity without an understanding of the cross.
And this is what Jesus is saying: the good shepherd. lays down his life For the shape. There is no greater sacrifice. Why does he lay down his life? Why is it necessary for the Good Shepherd to die for us?
because of the nature of sheep. Because of who we are in our fallenness, in our humanity, we are lost, we have wandered, we're helpless, we're straying. We cannot by ourselves remedy the human problem of sin and of failure. And these things that beset all of us, no, we need someone to come and to save us, to find us. Because left to ourselves, we're heading for the greatest of all dangers.
like sheep heading for a precipice. Over which they would go to their certain death. We says Jesus in different ways are like that. There is a wide road that leads to destruction. But our Lord Jesus Christ comes on a rescue mission.
He comes to seek us and to save us, and in what way does he do that? He lays down. His life. For the shape. He dies.
On the cross. Of Calvary. For you, yes. He knows your name. He dies for you.
He dies for me. For none of the ransomed ever knew how deep were the waters crossed, nor how dark was the night the Lord passed through ere he found his sheep that was lost. Think of all that our Lord Jesus, the good shepherd, had to experience through the horror of the death of the cross. The hours of darkness going into death and Darkness. All that he had to experience before one sheep.
was found. And saved. And Jesus is saying here very importantly in verses seventeen and eighteen that he lays down his life voluntarily. No one, he says, takes my life from me. I've power to lay it down and I've power to take it up again.
Don't think of Jesus as a helpless victim. Coming and saying he came to teach love and to show love, and something terribly went wrong and. People misunderstood his mission and crucified him. Poor Jesus, don't think of it like that. He says no.
I lay down. My life. This is why he came. From the very beginning, his name is Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins. He comes as a good shepherd.
This is the commandment, he says, in verses 17 and 18, that I have received from my Father. The Father sends the Son into the world so that the Son will die on the cross, a vicarious atonement, so that you and I could be saved. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. The Father sends his Son, the Son comes voluntarily. And in the wonder of the gospel, Think of this.
In the wonder of the gospel, the good shepherd. is also the lamb. The good shepherd is also the one who is sacrificed. The Lamb of God, we sung about it. who takes away the sin.
Of the world, wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquity. The good shepherd dies in my place.
So Paul says, while we were still helpless, yes, helpless like sheep. While we were still helpless, at the right time Romans 5, verse 6. Christ died. For the ungodly. The good shepherd.
Dies for the sheep. He finds the sheep. He leads and feeds the sheep. He carries the sheep. He dies for the sheep.
Finally, in verses 28 and 29, the good shepherd secures the sheep. The shape. When the good shepherd finds the sheep, The sheep will never be lost again. When the good shepherd Gives his life for the sheep, and that sheep is found, and that sheep is saved. As we see in verses twenty-eight and twenty nine They are eternally secured.
Let's look very quickly as we close at these verses. Verse 28, Jesus says. I give. To my sheep, eternal life. Life.
He gives his life so that we may receive Not just a good life. Here and now, so that we would receive eternal Life. The good shepherd secures his sheep. Because He gives us eternal life, and eternal life would not be eternal life if we could lose it. This eternal life Which we receive from the Good Shepherd, we receive it here and now, in time and in space, here and now.
But the eternal life which we receive as a gift as we receive Christ as our Saviour. That eternal life begins now. It's not just future. It begins now and will last. For all Of eternity.
Look at verse ten. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came, says Jesus, that there might have life. And might have it abundantly. Oh, there are spiritual thieves out there.
We have an enemy who's going to try to destroy you. He will tell you: this is the good life, this is the way to live. Don't listen to the Bible, it's old-fashioned. Don't listen to your Sunday school teacher. Don't listen to your parents.
This is the way to live. It may be against the Ten Commandments, but this is the way to go. Jesus says, now if you do that and you can choose that way, remember. You're going to destroy yourself and there is a terrible, terrible price. to be paid, but I have come.
That you might have life, eternal life, and that you might have it abundantly. That's why David says. When we know the good shepherd, we shall not want. He gives us eternal life. Secondly, says Jesus, they shall never perish.
I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish. Here is a promise. If you, as a lost sheep, Acknowledge that you are a sinner. And that you come to the foot of the cross and receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord. And receive him into your heart, and you're truly saved.
Here is a marvelous promise, you will never, never perish. That is When you die, you'll go to heaven. Between the moment of receiving Christ and your death, you won't be lost. You will never Perish. In English, if we have two negatives It be it is a positive.
In Greek grammar, that's not the case. And here, our Lord Jesus uses two negatives. To emphasise the point, we shall never ever perish. There is not the slightest possibility That when you trust Jesus Christ, that you will ever perish. He secures his sheep, and we will never perish.
Not one of us will be lost. He gives us eternal life. We shall never perish. John 10:28, I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hands. Jesus is emphasizing the eternal security that we have.
Because our salvation is in the hands of Jesus Christ. If my salvation, speaking very personally, depended On my Spirituality. On my ability to hold on to the Saviour. I wouldn't make it. I'm like most of you, I'm inconsistent.
I have my good days and I have my bad days. But how wonderful to know that when I received Christ as my Saviour, I am now in the hands of my Saviour And that good shepherd has an all powerful grip. He says here And no one No one shall snatch them out of my hand. Oh, the hireling runs when the enemy attacks. But when the enemy attacks the Christian, as he does, we are secure because we're in the hands.
Of Christ, this one who will never leave us, this one who will never forsake us when troubles come and dangers come. He will love us with an everlasting love, he cares for us, we are in his hand, and no one can snatch us out of his hand. But there's more. Verse 29, my Father who has given them to me. The father has given Those sheep to the Good Shepherd.
Here is divine election. We are chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world. The good shepherd secures the sheep. We belong to Jesus, the good shepherd, because the Father has given them to us. And finally, Jesus says, And no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand.
I and my Father are one. How wonderful. We're in the hands of the Good Shepherd, but we're also in the hands of the Father. And the Father and the Son are one, one in purpose, one in essence. One, in protecting us eternally, we are eternally secure.
And do you think anyone can snatch you out of the Father's hand? This all-powerful God, who in the beginning created the heavens and the earth? Do you think that there is any force, any power, any possibility that could snatch us out of the Father's hand? We're in the hands of Christ. We're in the hands of God.
And Jesus says, you are then eternally secure. The good shepherd not only dies for the sheep. The Good Shepherd guarantees That each one of us will get safely into that heavenly fold. When I met with Max Moore, whose husband just died. I said to Max.
Do you have any doubts? Where you're Husband is. She says no. He was trusting. In Jesus.
Trusting In the good. Shepherd. That's the only way to get there. Not by trusting in ourselves, not by being a member of a church, not by saying we've been baptized, not by saying we're good people, although all of these things are very, very important. But when it comes to the final reality, the question is: is our trust in this good shepherd who saves us, who dies for us, who rises for us, and who keeps us eternally secure until that great day when we shall see him even as he is?
Paul says, I'm convinced. that neither death nor life Nor angels, nor demons, neither the present, nor the future, nor any power. Neither height nor depth nor any other thing in all creation shall be able to separate us. From the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Human love can come to an end.
Some of you have been loved by individuals and these individuals no longer love you. But this love, this divine love, never ends, and no one, not even death itself, can separate us from this love which is in Christ. were in his hand. and we are in the father's hands. A dinner was held To honour an old esteemed pastor who had served faithfully for many, many years.
and they had a marvelous dinner in his honor. They had invited an actor And at the end of the dinner the actor stood and Recited Psalm 23. And he did so well, and the people were so moved that when he finished these few short verses, the audience stood to their feet with a standing ovation and thought how marvelous that the actor had repeated Psalm Twenty-three. The old pastor remain seated. And the actor looked at him.
And something dawned on him, and he said to the to the old pastor, Would you like to recite Psalm twenty three? Pastor says it. All right. And so he stood up and said, The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want.
And when he finished No one stood up and cheered. Everyone was moved to tears. And the actor stood up and said I know The Sam. But the old pastor knows the shepherd. Do you know the shepherd?
Do you know this one of whom I have been speaking That you've come. You've given trusted him. Received him as your Saviour. If not, I invite you to do that. To open your heart to Christ, to confess your sins, and to cry out to this one who loves you.
He will save you, he will give you eternal life, and he will guarantee that when you die, you go into the heavenly fold. It's all of His grace. This is the verdict with Pastor John Monroe, and the end of a message titled Dying for Me. If you missed any part of this lesson or you'd like to share it with a friend, just go to our website at theverdict.org. Today's message is a great reminder of how fully we can rely upon our Good Shepherd.
But in our day to day lives it can be so tempting to try to rely upon our own strength and solutions offered by our culture. That's why we're offering a resource to help you keep a biblical perspective and remember where your true hope and guidance are ultimately found. It's a wonderful guidebook written by John called Trusting God in Tough Times. We'd love to send you a copy completely free as our gift to you. To receive a copy of Trusting God in Tough Times, just go to our website at the verdict.org.
And if these lessons and resources have helped you, Would you consider helping other listeners by supporting the Verdict's gospel outreach with a donation of any amount? By helping us cover the cost to produce and distribute these biblical messages, you'll be playing an important part in sharing the gospel with new listeners and communities across the globe. You can easily send your one-time donation of any amount when you go to theverdict.org. And before we close, make sure you've subscribed to the Verdict Podcast, featuring John's weekly podcast exclusive called Avizandam. You can listen on your favorite podcast app and through our website at theverdict.org.
Here's Pastor John Monroe with closing remarks for his message titled Dying for Me.
Well, what's your verdict? Do you know the Good Shepherd? It is possible to go through life and know about Jesus Christ but not know Him personally as your Savior and Lord. One of the joys of following Jesus is knowing that we are eternally secure. Whatever happens in life, we know that we're loved with this everlasting love.
Today encounter the Good Shepherd. He loves you, died for you. Trust him with all of your heart.
Next time, we think of another miracle by Jesus. A man is raised from the dead. Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies. Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
