There is power to change a life for eternity in the message of the Gospel or Good News. The Kingdom is represented by Jesus Christ, the King, and the finished work at the Cross of Calvary. Any message that does not focus on Jesus is not a Gospel message. To be sure, we need to be taught how to live the Christian life, but unless one is born again, that life will not bear fruit. Show More
The Good News
The Gospel is the “Good News” provided by God; He has provided free spiritual gifts to restore or reconcile us into a personal relationship with Him. God’s plan is “good news” because God has done all the work. God provided the perfect sacrifice for our sin and sinful life in the person of Jesus Christ! God demonstrated His love for us by sending the “Lamb of God,” Jesus, in our place, to the Cross of Calvary. That one act by Jesus accomplished the following:
- Forgiveness of our sins, thus eliminating the guilt and shame.
- Restoration of our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
- Granting Believers eternal life. When we die, that is not the end; we will experience a resurrection and the beginning of a glorious life in Heaven with the Lord.
- God has given us His Holy Spirit to be a comforter, helper, and teacher to be successful Christians in this life.
The New Birth
When a person comes to a place where they believe the above statements, then they are experiencing faith in Jesus. This faith in Jesus is what makes a person born again! Ephesians 2:8, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Now, as a born-again Believer, a miraculous thing happens the Holy Spirit comes to live in them, and they become a child of God, a member of God’s family.
The Church
All people past, present, and future who have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior belong to something Jesus called the Church, the Greek word for Church is “ekklesia” which means “called out ones.” Believers have been called out of the world and are now a part of the Kingdom of God. Being called out means that you now have a purpose in God, and He sees you as righteous and holy.
The Spiritual Church
There is a spiritual church and a physical church. The difference between the two is that the spiritual Church is made up of individuals around the world, who are born-again, they have had an encounter with Jesus. The physical Church is made up of people who go to Church and identify as Christians but have not made Jesus Lord and Savior of their lives.
Generational Christian vs. Encounter Christian
I want to take a moment to distinguish between what I call a generational Christian and an encounter Christian. A generational Christian is one who was raised in a Christian family and came from a long line of Christians. They may have been raised in the Church and identify as Christians because they have not known anything else. However, they have never had a moment in time where they decided to say yes to Jesus and all that He offers and requires. In other words, they have never had an encounter with Jesus.
When I was pastoring, I had a woman about 65 years old join our Church from another church. She came from a long line of Christian families; she had been a churchgoer all her life and even served as a Sunday school teacher. When she came to our Church, she heard the Gospel for the first time and gave her life to Jesus. I remember her saying, through tears, “how could I not have heard what Jesus did for me until now?” You see, she heard the Gospel and decided to follow Jesus; she had an encounter with the Lord! Her life was changed. I say all of this to emphasize the power of the Gospel to change lives forever.
“I AM” statements
Today we will look at two of the seven “I AM” statements found in the Gospel of John. “I am the door of the sheep.” (John 10:7) and “I am the good shepherd.” (John 10:11, 14). As we know from previous messages, the “I AM” is directly associated with the name of God.
Some believe that entry into eternal life is open to everyone. They take the position that “there are many roads to God,” and they can’t believe that God would ever condemn anyone. Obviously, they have not read God’s Word because it is apparent in the Bible that there is a “Heaven to be gained and a Hell to be shunned.” Everyone has a choice.
Then there are those who believe that entry into Heaven and eternal life is obtained by being “good.” First of all, there is only one who is good. A rich young ruler approached Jesus and asked a question in Luke 18:18, “Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God.” You see, only God is good! This also begs the question, “how good is good enough to get into heaven?”
Recall the scriptures about the woman caught in adultery in the Gospel of John 8; the pious religious leaders wanted to see what Jesus would say about the adulterous woman, “7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” The point here is that the religious leaders recognized that they were not perfect or good enough” to judge the woman.
In the same way, no one is good enough to deserve or earn salvation and Heaven! You may be able to think of someone so loving, kind, and pious that surely, they must be good enough, but sadly the answer is no. Remember what the Apostle Paul said in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Not some have sinned, but all have sinned! However, Jesus, the perfect One, purchased our salvation and offers that salvation as a gift if we will believe in Him, and that He is the only way to the Father.
There is only one way into the Kingdom of God.
In John 10:1-6, Jesus is speaking to the people about the Kingdom of God and the fact that there is only one way into the Kingdom, which is through Him. Only Jesus can enter through the gate of Heaven and those who follow Him. Others may claim to know the way and try to lead the way differently, but the doorkeeper of Heaven will only open the gate to Jesus and His followers. Jesus clarifies this statement by saying In John 10:7, “I am the door of the sheep.” Jesus uses this as a metaphor to show that it is only through Him that the sheep (Believers) can follow and gain entrance into the Kingdom of God. His sheep hear His voice (the encounter) and follow, they will also be able to discern the voice of the thief (Satan) and run away. Jesus warns us that “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). Jesus is making the promise that if you follow Him, you will experience the abundant life.
I will take care of you!
Then in John 10:11 & 14, “Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” Then Jesus says again, “I am the good shepherd, and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.”
Jesus, the good shepherd, gave His life on the cross of Calvary for our sins and offers us His salvation for those who will trust Him. And if He gave his life, how much more shall He provide for us as it says in Romans 8:31, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?”
We rejoice when we say that we know Jesus, but how much more we should rejoice that we are known by Him (Galatians 4:9). As the shepherd of our lives, Jesus is committed to caring and watching over those who are His. He has taken on the responsibility to provide for the health, welfare, maintenance, and protection of his flock. Think of what an actual shepherd does…
- He values his flock. Everyone in his flock is important.
- He is willing to lay down his life to protect the flock. Just a reminder, you do have an enemy that would try to “steal, kill and destroy.” However, you have the victory because Jesus defeated the enemy of our soul.
- He is involved with the spiritual, emotional, and physical health of his flock- Jesus is the healer and has a solution for all your needs.
Close
John 10:27, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 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. 30 I and My Father are one.”
You are His, and He is yours; no one can take your salvation away from Jesus. Walk as one who is secure in what Jesus has done and know that nothing can separate you from His love.
Romans 8: 37, “Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That’s a promise!