MinistryHealth
Sermon Starters
Support and Resources For Pastors and
Christian Ministry Professionals
Thomas F. Fischer, M.Div., M.S.A., Editor
Fourth
Sunday Of Easter
Series C
Option #1:
"The Good Shepherd and His Sheep"
John 10:27-30
Rev. Wayne Dobratz, B.A., M.Div.
I. They listen to His voice and follow Him--John 6:40 & 48, 11:25-26; Rom 6:23; Jude 21
II. He knows them intimately--John 10:3b; 1 Cor 8:3; 2 Tim 2:19
III. He gives them eternal life--Rom 5:21; 1 Tim 1:16; 1 Pet 1:3-4
Key words:
akolutheoo--to join one as a disciple, become or be his disciple
arpazoo--to seize, carry off by force, to snatch away
zooay--life real and genuine, a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, in the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last for ever. Jesus offers life that is truly life. Eternal life begins here in a relationship with the Good Shepherd. The Shepherds Psalm says: "He leads me beside quiet waters."
Philip Keller explains in his book A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23: "People today remind me of a bunch of sheep I watched one day who were being led down to a magnificent mountain stream. The snow-fed waters were flowing pure and clear and crystal clean between lovely banks of trees. But on the way several stubborn ewes and lambs stopped instead to drink from small dirty, muddy pools beside the trail. The water was filthy and polluted not only with the churned up mud from passing sheep, but also with the manure and urine of previous flocks that had passed that way. Still these stubborn sheep were quite certain that this was the best drink around. The water was filthy and unfit for them. Much worse, it was contaminated with nematodes and liver fluke eggs that would eventually riddle them with internal parasites and destructive diseases."+ + +Children's MessageWhen youre driving in the countryside its not unusual to see some little farm where people keep sheep. When the sheep grow enough wool, the wool is cut off and sold. The sheep have enough time to grow another coat before winter comes.In Bible times there were no fences when sheep were going from one pasture to another. There was one very important thing that kept the sheep safe and that was the Shepherds voice. Jesus said: My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me and I give them eternal life. No one can snatch them out of my hand.The older you get, the more voices you will hear who will call to you to follow them. Many of them are not from God and want to snatch you away from God. They cant force you to follow them, but you can choose to do so, if thats what you want. Im talking about things like drugs or violence or bad friends that can get you into trouble. Im talking about things that could harm your health or even ruin your life.When you hear these voices calling to you, listen to the voice of Jesus, the Good Shepherd calling to you. When you follow Him, you will be safe and you will stay out of trouble. And thats not just for the life you have here. Following the voice of Jesus gives you eternal life.When you cant see the fences that make up right or wrong, listen to the voice of Jesus guiding you--guiding you in this life, and guiding you to eternal life. The Holy Spirit will show you where the lines are; He will show you where you can be safe. He will always remind you to listen to the voice of Jesus the Good Shepherd.Listen to Him now, listen to Him while youre growing older, listen to His voice and He will lead you home.
Option
#2: "Our Sheep-Steeler God"
John 10:22-30
Rev. Kelly Bedard, B.A., M.Div.
Main Site: http://ministryhealth.net/ |
|
Microsoft
FrontPage and Microsoft Internet Explorer are registered trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation |
This page was revised on: Friday, January 20, 2006 12:10:34 PM |