Listen to the Shepherd

When sheep listen to the shepherd the chances that they will be safe and well fed and high.  The Good Shepherd looks after his sheep.  I consider myself as one of his sheep and you can too!  Good Shepherd Sunday is historically the 4th Sunday of the Easter Season of the church year.  This year it fell on Mother’s Day.  We touch on moms at the end of the sermon.

The context of John is an interesting look at the history of the Festival of Dedication, also known as Hanukkah.  Judas Maccabeus rebelled against the Greeks after a pig was sacrificed to Zeus in the temple.  Some of the Jews surrounded Jesus and wanted to know if he was their shepherd.  “Tell us plainly if you are the Messiah.”  Jesus wasn’t interested in falling into their trap, so he reminds them why they are the way they are.  The enemies of Jesus were not his sheep.

That seems obvious enough, but his description of the relationship that one of Jesus’ sheep has with him is instructive for us.  Verse 27 says, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”  These are three very important qualities in the life of a Christian.

Let’s break down just the first of the three.  Listening to a voice is an amazing thing.  We can hear a voice after years and our mind will jump into action!  Just the sound waves beating our ear drums can jog a memory.  A babies can hear the voice of his mother and be a peace knowing there is safety and warm nearby.  We don’t know what the timbre in Jesus’ voice was like (I can’t wait to hear it on day in heaven), but we know his voice.  You know the gospel – the sweet message from the Bible said by countless tongues communicating the voice of the Good shepherd.

Want to hear more?  Listen to the Shepherd and check out this week’s message taken from John 10.

 

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