The Good Shepherd: A Review of Will Kranz’s Sermon at The Cove Church

[00:00:57] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Let us pray.
[00:01:23] Let us pray.

[00:01:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Hmm.
[00:02:01] Aaaaaah!
[00:02:29] Hmm.

[00:03:04] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
[00:03:25] Amen.
[00:03:47] The Gospel of the Lord
[00:04:44] Amen.
[00:06:16] Thank you.

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
Good morning church!
[00:07:11] Let's stand and put our hands together.

[00:07:18] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
The Lord has given us this day, so let's praise Him with everything that we've got.

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]:
The Lord that I hear is the voice of my fear The silence is hoping, I will give

[00:08:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
I will rejoice, I will rejoice
[00:09:00] I'll see you there

[00:10:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_07]:
The joy of the Lord, the joy of the Lord is my strength I'll never stop, no I'll never stop No nothing can stop my praise The joy of the Lord, the joy of the Lord

[00:11:40] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_12]:
Thank you, Jesus, for your goodness, for your mercy, for your grace, and for the joy that only you can give.
[00:11:55] Come on, church, let's put our hands together like this.
[00:11:56] And let's sing this out.
[00:11:57] Sing joy to the world The Lord is come Let earth receive her King Let every heart

[00:12:18] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
We will sing and heaven and heaven and nature sing We will sing, sing, sing Come on, joy to the world Come on, joy to the world We will sing, sing, sing Come on, every voice together
[00:13:02] All fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains Repeat the sounding voice of the Lord
[00:13:58] The glories of His righteousness The wonders of His love The wonders of His love We will sing, sing, sing
[00:14:40] Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee God of glory, Lord of love Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee
[00:15:09] Joyful, joyful, joyful, joyful

[00:15:53] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_09]:
I love you Lord For your mercy never failed me And all my tears I've been held in your hands From the moment I'd wake up
[00:16:17] And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so

[00:16:47] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
I am able, oh I will sing of the greatness of God I love your voice, you have led me through the fire and darkest times
[00:17:25] In the goodness of God And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able
[00:17:54] I will sing of the goodness of God Your goodness is running out, is running out

[00:19:10] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_10]:
And all my life you have been faithful And all my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am able Oh, I will sing of the goodness of God

[00:19:54] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
You have been saved

[00:20:20] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_12]:
Come on, somebody celebrate the goodness of God, the faithfulness of God, the mercy of God.
[00:20:31] I have tasted and I see that the Lord is good.
[00:20:34] Come on church, let's just lift up our hands across this room.
[00:20:37] Lift up our voices in this place and online and just sing that out one more time.
[00:20:41] Full of faith as people who have walked through life, who have walked through trials and storms and tribulations, and we have seen, in spite of it all, the goodness of our God time and time again.
[00:20:53] Amen?
[00:20:54] Come on, let's sing this together.
[00:20:55] Say, All my life,
[00:20:57] All my life you have been faithful All my life you have been so, so good With every breath that I am in
[00:21:19] All my life you have been faithful Through every season, through every sickness

[00:21:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
Tell my life You have in store No matter what I walk through Every breath that I am able I will sing of the goodness You've got I will sing of the goodness You've got

[00:22:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_12]:
All I have, all I have, all I will say, of the good things of God Thank you God, thank you Lord
[00:22:19] Come on, I know I'm not the only one who's seen the faithfulness of God through every season of my life.
[00:22:24] Whatever I've walked through, whatever I've faced, in spite of winds blowing against me, in spite of waves crashing against my firm foundation, I have not moved because Jesus is the same today, yesterday, and forever.
[00:22:38] And if He has been faithful, He will be faithful.
[00:22:41] And if He has been good, He will be good.
[00:22:45] Because it's who He is.
[00:22:46] and we can trust him to be true to his word and so all across this room everybody watching online i want you to just lift your hands one more time we're going to sing this old beautiful hymn that talks about trusting in jesus it is so sweet to trust in jesus just to take him at his word
[00:23:16] And just to rest upon His promise And just to know the Savior, the Lord
[00:23:31] Come on, we'll believe it.
[00:23:32] We'll lift up our voices together.
[00:23:34] Just to clear this out.
[00:23:36] Sing, Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him, and how I prove Him o'er and o'er.
[00:23:52] Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus, all for grace to trust Him.
[00:24:06] One more time we say, Jesus, Jesus, our God.
[00:24:23] Jesus, my precious Jesus All for grace to trust Him All for grace to trust Him All for grace

[00:24:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]:
We trust in the Lord Come on let's celebrate the faithfulness of Jesus in this house Lord we just want to say thank you thank you because you're with us in every season of our lives because during those times that we're feeling happy and joyful you're there
[00:25:17] and during those times that is honestly in our flesh hard to feel content you are still there and we can feel how you bring us the joy that only comes from you God we want to thank you because you're faithful
[00:25:33] and because we can gather together proclaim your goodness and say how good you are to us we love you Jesus in your name we pray amen go ahead greet your neighbor and you may take your seat
[00:25:56] Good morning!
[00:25:58] Buenos dias!
[00:26:00] My name is Aracelys and I have the pleasure of serving in the Spanish interpreting team and I am so happy to be here today.
[00:26:09] I am happy that you are joining us and if you're new here we would love to meet you.
[00:26:15] So please go ahead, scan the CURE code in front of you or go to the Next Steps area because we would love to connect.
[00:26:23] We want to pray for you, give you a Bible, answer any questions you may have, and just help you feel welcome to this first day.
[00:26:33] And yesterday, I am so excited that we had our toy store.
[00:26:39] Yes, give it away for the toy store.
[00:26:42] We had a wonderful event and it was so, so special.
[00:26:47] I saw a five-year-old who had a very hard time transitioning going back home because he was so excited with the joyful event that we were holding here that he did not even want to go back.
[00:26:59] I saw this family while we were wrapping their presents.
[00:27:03] We were interacting with the lady.
[00:27:05] The gentleman was quiet, just observing.
[00:27:08] And finally, just before stepping away, he said, I just want you to know how grateful I am to see the kindness all around.
[00:27:17] I also remember a family that I also saw last year.
[00:27:20] The mom saw me, she gave me a big hug and she just said, thank you.
[00:27:26] And the reason why I'm sharing this with you church is because just like I had these small interactions, there were many team members that had similar or maybe more interactions than that.
[00:27:37] and all of that is possible because of your generosity.
[00:27:41] So if you would like to be part of what God is doing at The Cove, I would like for you to use our silver boxes or visit covechurch.org.
[00:27:52] And in the same spirit of Christmas, we have this year six services coming up.
[00:27:58] So if you have not thought about serving yet, I would like for you to think about it, pray about it, and go ahead and sign up for this wonderful opportunity.
[00:28:08] But not only that, I also want you to think about someone that you can invite.
[00:28:14] Imagine that you come, invite a neighbor, invite a friend, a coworker, and because of that step, they're able to come and experience the love of Jesus.
[00:28:26] That would be wonderful.
[00:28:28] So go ahead and get ready to be part of all the amazing things that God can do through you.
[00:28:35] Now, let's get ready for the sermon and pay attention to the screens.

[00:28:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]:
Tis the season.
[00:28:47] You know what that means.
[00:28:49] There is shopping to be done, meals to cook, company to entertain, and Santas to go visit.
[00:28:55] Traffic will be slow, checkout lines long, and calendars full.
[00:28:59] Christmas can so quickly feel hectic, stressful, and even overwhelming.
[00:29:06] Yet when you look at the manger, isn't it always still, quiet, peaceful, hopeful?
[00:29:15] Truthfully, we haven't changed that much.
[00:29:18] Mankind used to imagine what the coming of the Messiah would look like.
[00:29:21] They knew He would come as a fierce warrior, a king, a conqueror here to turn the world on its head.
[00:29:28] No one could even imagine His grand entrance.
[00:29:32] And instead, Jesus came in the most normal way you could imagine.
[00:29:36] We will always be drawn to the loud, the craziness, and the unbelievable.
[00:29:44] But maybe this Christmas we would be better served to focus on something simple.

[00:29:53] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]:
Alright, what's up Cove Church?
[00:29:55] How are you guys doing?
[00:29:57] Listen, we've only got two more Sundays left this year before our Christmas Eve services.
[00:30:04] Isn't that crazy?
[00:30:05] Hey, before we jump into the message and the content of the message, I wanted to stop and just celebrate the toy store with you.
[00:30:12] I know Aracelis talked a little bit about it, and I wanted to just share with you a little bit of
[00:30:18] Our heart behind it as a church that this is a really special year and really not just the Toy Store but throughout the year we've been talking about going all out about meeting needs in our community about being more forward with our service out in the community and
[00:30:33] and not trying to keep the the church in a building and I just want to say I love you church I'm so thankful for you we usually have to be begging for presents by the time we get to the end of the the toy store and as the toy store approaches because we hand out these invites to our school partners and our schools then actually will identify people that maybe need a little bit of help and so we're on the hook for whatever tickets we give out and so usually as we get closer
[00:31:02] We're going, we need, you know, a thousand more presents.
[00:31:05] We need 800 more presents.
[00:31:07] You know, please, please, please.
[00:31:08] And this year, I feel like we barely had to announce it.
[00:31:11] And you guys brought in across all of our campuses 4,300 toys for the toy store this year.
[00:31:18] That's an incredible thing.
[00:31:20] I just want to say I'm so thankful for you.
[00:31:23] Over 500 people actually came and served at the toy store.
[00:31:27] We might have been the best run toy store in America this year.
[00:31:30] I mean, I'm not sure.
[00:31:32] I don't think there's many toy stores left anymore.
[00:31:34] My son, who's seven years old, he was helping me serve at it.
[00:31:38] And when we walked into this room where
[00:31:41] This was like the store portion was in this room.
[00:31:45] And he walked into this room and he goes, Dad, is this all the toys for the world?
[00:31:50] I mean, he legitimately was like, there are so many toys in here.
[00:31:55] And what that all led to was ultimately, I want to make sure I get this number right.
[00:32:01] We know of, as of now, 1,326 kids that have presents under their Christmas tree this year because of your generosity.
[00:32:10] And so thank you so much for that.
[00:32:12] all the extra toys we have because we want to make sure there's a selection for our for our families that they really get a kind of shopping experience all the um extra toys we have also go to our community partners as well as cove city church which is a church out in cleveland ohio started by someone who uh used to be on staff here at the cove josh miller and um he started a church uh up in cleveland they do a toy store as well so every toy
[00:32:38] is going to get put to use.
[00:32:40] I know in total, whether you served, whether you bought toys, it got crazy here.
[00:32:45] I mean, we had Buddy the Elf running around at one point.
[00:32:48] I don't know if you saw.
[00:32:49] We had students flipping pancakes.
[00:32:51] I was like, who made that decision?
[00:32:53] But they made amazing pancakes.
[00:32:56] Good job, students.
[00:32:57] And I mean, we had, yeah, we can celebrate that.
[00:33:00] We had Christmas trees.
[00:33:02] Mike always shows up with Christmas trees and just starts.
[00:33:04] No one ordained him to do that.
[00:33:06] He just started doing that.
[00:33:07] He showed up with a 14-foot Christmas tree.
[00:33:09] I said, who's taking a 14-foot Christmas tree two weeks before?
[00:33:12] But people were throwing Christmas trees in their car.
[00:33:16] I mean, they were just shoving Christmas trees in their car.
[00:33:19] What an amazing thing.
[00:33:20] And so one more time, I just want to say thank you, church.
[00:33:23] I love you, church.
[00:33:24] I'm so thankful for your commitment to serving this community.
[00:33:28] And I think it ties in really amazingly well.
[00:33:33] with where we're at as a culture because we're in a culture that is so divisive and angry and wanting to pick fights with each other all the time.
[00:33:40] And so it's this time where so often you hear things like, well, what's the church's stance on this?
[00:33:46] Or what does the church think about this?
[00:33:48] Or what do you guys do about this?
[00:33:50] And Jesus said it really plainly.
[00:33:55] Jesus said, the world will know you're my disciples, not by your stance on things,
[00:34:02] Not by your politics, not by your arguments around certain things.
[00:34:06] He said, the world will know that you are my disciples by the way you love one another.
[00:34:13] Amen, church.
[00:34:14] And I want to say thank you for putting your faith into action.
[00:34:17] Thank you for loving one another and thank you for loving our community.
[00:34:20] It makes a huge impact.
[00:34:22] And I think this ties really well into the message itself.
[00:34:25] We've been in this series for Christmas at the Cove about really the difference, the gap, if you will, between what people expected the Messiah would look like and who the Messiah is.
[00:34:37] Actually is and so you have to understand people were expecting a messiah many thought he'd be a you know a king a conqueror you know that he'd come with all authority riding on a war horse and really Jesus ticked very few of the world's boxes you know that they had an expectation but what they got looked very different than what they expected this uh when we were putting the series together it reminded me of
[00:35:06] About six or seven years ago, I'm gonna say or, last service I said six, seven years ago, and all the students freaked out, so I'm just, I'm gonna say six or seven years ago, my wife informed me that instead of watching Football Sunday, the Bears, as we do every Sunday, that we're gonna go to a one-year-old's birthday party at our neighbor's house.
[00:35:31] And I said, that's one of your worst ideas yet, you know what I mean?
[00:35:34] Just not a good idea.
[00:35:35] And she's like, nope, that's our neighbor.
[00:35:37] We're going to go support them.
[00:35:38] I'm like, he's one, doesn't even remember this.
[00:35:39] You know, what's the point?
[00:35:41] I fought her.
[00:35:42] And she's like, we're all going as one family.
[00:35:45] And so we show up at my neighbor's house.
[00:35:47] The neighbor's like, hey, you know, grandpa's out back with the one year old.
[00:35:50] And we go in the backyard.
[00:35:53] It's just me, my wife, a one-year-old child, and grandpa.
[00:35:59] But grandpa, as I turn the corner, is Roy Williams, the coach of the Chapel Hill basketball team.
[00:36:06] And I went to Chapel Hill, those of you that don't know, he was the coach when I was there as well.
[00:36:11] He's like a hero of mine, right?
[00:36:14] And so I walk into the backyard, and it's just Roy Williams hanging out with a one-year-old.
[00:36:18] And I'm like, I literally stopped and I went,
[00:36:21] I wish I could say I played it cool.
[00:36:22] I did not play it cool at all.
[00:36:24] I'm just telling you right now.
[00:36:25] I literally just stopped and pointed at him.
[00:36:27] I just started pointing at him.
[00:36:28] I was in shock.
[00:36:29] My jaw dropped.
[00:36:30] I said, Aaron, do you see this?
[00:36:31] And she said, yeah, you should stop pointing at him.
[00:36:33] Maybe talk to him.
[00:36:34] You know, I mean, this is not a great look.
[00:36:36] And so I'm ready to meet Coach Roy.
[00:36:39] You know, I'm like, Coach, who we got recruited?
[00:36:42] You know, what's going on?
[00:36:43] What do you think of the schedule?
[00:36:44] How much do you hate Duke?
[00:36:46] Because I hate him a whole lot, you know.
[00:36:47] I mean, I'm trying to talk to him about all the basketball things, but here's the thing, he didn't want to be Coach Roy at that moment, you know?
[00:36:55] He was not interested in talking about Tar Heel, which I was shocked, I was like, I would think he'd be jumping at the bit to talk Tar Heel basketball with me, but you know, no, he was there for his one-year-old, I guess, his grandson, you know, I guess that's what he was really there for.
[00:37:08] He was Grandpa Roy in this moment, you know?
[00:37:11] And so my wife even had to kind of nudge me a few times and be like, stop talking about basketball.
[00:37:16] Like, he doesn't want to do that.
[00:37:18] Talk to him about, try something else, dude, you know?
[00:37:20] And so what he would talk about is his family, the family dynamics that they have.
[00:37:25] He asked questions about our family.
[00:37:28] We shared a little bit about each other's family.
[00:37:31] I stayed as long as they would let me stay by the time it was all said and done.
[00:37:35] And when we went to leave, Grandpa Roy shook my hand and he said, listen, son, I just want you to know I'm really proud of you.
[00:37:47] You're doing a good job with this family.
[00:37:50] And so I've changed my name.
[00:37:51] I'm now William Williams.
[00:37:53] I don't know if you guys knew that.
[00:37:54] I'm officially a Williams.
[00:37:58] You know, I came, and when I first saw him, I wanted to meet Coach Roy.
[00:38:02] And what I got was Grandpa Roy, which was all actually really cool.
[00:38:06] But, you know, it's not that Coach Roy didn't exist in that moment.
[00:38:11] You know, I'm sure that's still in him.
[00:38:12] I'm sure he probably talks basketball with a lot of people, you know, like his coaching staff and stuff.
[00:38:18] It's not like that's just gone, but in that moment, he wasn't trying to display Coach Roy.
[00:38:23] He was trying to display Grandpa Roy, you know?
[00:38:26] And it's the same thing here with Jesus.
[00:38:29] I'm not trying to compare Roy Williams to Jesus.
[00:38:31] I'm sorry about that.
[00:38:32] I'm not intending to do that.
[00:38:34] That's actually an honest accident.
[00:38:36] But it's the same thing, you know?
[00:38:40] Many people expected the Messiah to come as a conqueror.
[00:38:44] That was a huge expectation, that he will be the King of Kings, Lord of Lords.
[00:38:50] He's gonna come and overthrow the unjust systems.
[00:38:54] He's gonna re-put into power Israel.
[00:38:57] He's gonna fix all the problems of this world, make them right,
[00:39:02] Every other kingdom will be shattered by the Messiah because this is the conquering Messiah.
[00:39:08] But what the people got instead was not a Jesus who was a conqueror, even though that's still in him.
[00:39:16] It's not saying it's not there.
[00:39:19] But who Jesus displayed himself as very clearly during his time here on earth was a shepherd before he was a conqueror.
[00:39:27] And today we're going to talk about this concept.
[00:39:29] If you've got your Bibles, go ahead and open them up to John chapter 10.
[00:39:32] We're going to talk about how Jesus referred to himself as a shepherd and what that really means when compared to a conqueror.
[00:39:41] Now, to understand this passage, I think you really need to understand a little bit about why the world was so expectant of a conquering Messiah.
[00:39:50] You know, because really the history of the Old Testament,
[00:39:55] An overall grasp of the Old Testament is the story of Israel, a nation that is God's chosen people coming from one family, the family of Abraham, and grew into a nation over generations, and that God had chosen to be the nation that will reflect the power of God.
[00:40:13] And so this kingdom, it was really a kingdom of Israel, one day inherited land,
[00:40:20] Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy
[00:40:40] We actually did this in our series a few weeks back, Eden to Eternity.
[00:40:44] It was one of my favorite series of the year.
[00:40:46] It was actually a few months back.
[00:40:48] And over time, the kingdom of Israel demanded a king.
[00:40:53] They said, we want our own king.
[00:40:55] The Lord said, I'm your king.
[00:40:56] You don't need an earthly king.
[00:40:58] You'll become like all the other kingdoms.
[00:41:00] And they said, all the other kingdoms have a king.
[00:41:02] We want a king.
[00:41:03] And the Lord said, you don't want to be like all the other kingdoms.
[00:41:06] You are my kingdom.
[00:41:08] Don't do this.
[00:41:10] But they continued to demand it until the Lord gave them a king.
[00:41:14] And with time and with generations, the people began to worship their kings as their God.
[00:41:20] I mean, they always had the idea of God in the background, but really they're kings.
[00:41:25] became their gods and eventually the lord just said you trust your kings to be your god let them lead let's see how they do let's see if they can be your god
[00:41:39] And it wasn't long before really the kingdom of Israel began to crumble apart.
[00:41:45] It divided.
[00:41:47] It would eventually be overtaken by other kingdoms.
[00:41:50] And they were not nearly as successful.
[00:41:53] In fact, by 586 BC, the entire kingdom of Israel was dismantled.
[00:42:00] They were taken into slavery.
[00:42:02] Their temple was destroyed.
[00:42:05] And it took years before they, generations before they started
[00:42:08] Being able to come back and begin to rebuild.
[00:42:10] And they did go back to their land and rebuild their temple but they were never again a kingdom.
[00:42:14] They were always more now just like a group of people.
[00:42:17] It was no longer the kingdom of Israel anymore.
[00:42:22] And so the expectation for many people was one day the Messiah will come back and his order of business will be to reinstate Israel.
[00:42:32] will be to overthrow the Roman Empire, will be to rise back up Israel as a solemn nation, a self-governing kingdom, and to make right the injustices of this world.
[00:42:48] But when Jesus came, we know that wasn't his first order of business.
[00:42:52] In fact, it didn't seem like that was even on the agenda to overthrow the Roman Empire.
[00:42:58] In fact, many people were very disappointed by this.
[00:43:00] It's pretty widely believed that this is what actually got Jesus betrayed, was that Judas, one of the twelve disciples, was a zealot, which meant he was not opposed to a violent overthrow of the Roman Empire in order for Israel to become its own
[00:43:17] Kingdom again and so Judas was traveling for three years with Jesus hoping that he had front-row tickets he was part of the movement that would overthrow the Roman Empire and bring back Israel and after three years it became pretty clear that
[00:43:33] This is just not what Jesus is going to be doing.
[00:43:37] And so we're not sure whether Judas no longer believed he was the Messiah or what ultimately prompted him, but Judas ultimately would betray Jesus, turn him in to religious leaders as basically a blasphemer, which would ultimately lead him to the cross and he would be crucified.
[00:43:56] And so this expectation that was there, that Jesus would come as a conqueror, the Messiah would come as a conqueror, and yet Jesus came as a shepherd.
[00:44:07] Let's look at what Jesus said about his role as a shepherd.
[00:44:10] Check this out.
[00:44:11] Starting in John 10, verse one, truly, truly,
[00:44:14] I say to you, said Jesus, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.
[00:44:25] We'll come back to who these people are later.
[00:44:28] He says there are some that they don't come in by the main entrance.
[00:44:32] They have to sneak in to the kingdom and they're thieves and robbers.
[00:44:36] But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
[00:44:40] He's talking about himself here.
[00:44:41] To him, the gatekeeper opens.
[00:44:43] The sheep, you and I, hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
[00:44:51] Hold on to this phrase, leads them out.
[00:44:53] We'll talk about that a little bit later as well.
[00:44:55] But in this parable, kind of pseudo parable, Jesus is referring to himself as a shepherd and us as sheep that recognize his voice.
[00:45:06] Most people hearing this didn't understand fully what he was saying.
[00:45:09] Who's the thieves?
[00:45:10] Who's the robbers?
[00:45:11] Who's the shepherd?
[00:45:13] So Jesus said it a different way.
[00:45:14] In verse 7, look at this.
[00:45:16] So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
[00:45:22] All who come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn't listen to them.
[00:45:28] I am the door.
[00:45:29] If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
[00:45:36] The thieves come only to steal and kill and destroy.
[00:45:41] I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
[00:45:47] I am the good shepherd.
[00:45:49] The good shepherd lays down his life.
[00:45:52] for His Sheep.
[00:45:53] Can we celebrate our God, man?
[00:45:55] He's a good shepherd.
[00:45:56] I love that.
[00:45:58] You know?
[00:45:58] There's lots of people that claim to be good.
[00:46:01] There is one who is good.
[00:46:03] You know, there's
[00:46:05] Three observations I want us to pull from this.
[00:46:08] The first thing is, Jesus initially refers to himself as kind of a shepherd, and then he changes it to a door.
[00:46:14] What's up with that?
[00:46:16] And this is clearly a little nod to when Jesus said things like, I am the way, the truth, and the life.
[00:46:22] No one comes to the Father except through me.
[00:46:24] Jesus often referred to himself as the way to be able to stand before the Father one day and be in genuine communion with the Father.
[00:46:33] and uh and so why is he now switching to to a door versus a shepherd well that's actually still tied into the shepherd thing um a typical shepherd would have his flock of sheep and at night would actually sleep at the entrance way there would be one way in one way out of the of the uh fenced in area and the the shepherd would typically sleep right there at the entrance
[00:46:59] to protect from oncoming predators and to make sure that the sheep don't wander out.
[00:47:06] And so they served as very much a gatekeeper, the entrance point to keep out evil and to keep his sheep safe and protected.
[00:47:17] Second observation we see in the scripture is Jesus draws a distinction between the thieves and the shepherd.
[00:47:28] He says the thief they come to steal kill and destroy and look that seems obvious stay away from those people but but what he's he's not just saying murder purely he's he's talking about this idea that the thief comes with really no
[00:47:45] And so whatever he needs to do, he's willing to steal, kill, destroy.
[00:47:54] He's willing to hurt his victims so that he might have personal gain.
[00:47:58] And who Jesus is actually talking about here is the Pharisees.
[00:48:02] and now listen here's the thing about pharisees they were the religious leaders of the day they were the will kranzes let's let's be clear about this because i think it's easy for us to say you know oh pharisees they were really bad you know we're playing monday morning quarterback with that it's easy to look at the pharisees and go oh they were really bad guys you know everyone knew no understand this the pharisees were the religious leaders of the common people of the day
[00:48:27] They had a very high bar, they were very focused on the law, and they'd pile on the law on the people to the point that the people felt completely helpless, scripture said, because they were overwhelmed with the number of laws.
[00:48:40] But the Pharisees themselves were held in very high respect and very high regard.
[00:48:46] And so Jesus compares the Pharisees, it's so interesting,
[00:48:51] To robbers who come to steal, kill, and destroy.
[00:48:56] He's saying what he's really seeing is their heart.
[00:49:00] That their focus is really on holding their position of power and they'll do that at any cost.
[00:49:05] That really the very people that they're supposed to be caring for and leading and taking care of, they use them as nothing more than speed bumps to what they really want.
[00:49:16] And so they serve the people, but really only so that they can hold their position of power and authority.
[00:49:23] And so we're not that different than we were 2,000 years ago.
[00:49:29] We also put our hope and our faith in people that we don't really know their intentions all the time.
[00:49:37] We act like individuals that we really don't even know are somehow gonna be the key to saving us.
[00:49:46] And Jesus points out, he says these Pharisees, what he's calling them is robbers.
[00:49:51] They come to steal, kill, destroy.
[00:49:54] They don't actually have your best in mind, but I am a good shepherd.
[00:49:58] The interesting thing is, you know, from the outside, people that were looking for a conquering Messiah would have actually probably been more drawn to the Pharisees than they would have to Jesus.
[00:50:12] They would have been drawn to the Pharisees' sense of power and their sense of justice and their sense of, you know, they had a desire to see Israel built back up, you know?
[00:50:25] And so on paper, if you were looking for a conquering Messiah, you probably would have been more drawn to
[00:50:33] The Pharisees than to Jesus himself.
[00:50:35] And before you think, well, that doesn't seem right, let's not forget that ultimately it was the people led by the Pharisees who voted to have Jesus put on the cross in the first place.
[00:50:47] It was the people who demanded that.
[00:50:50] And so this idea is Jesus didn't come to conquer.
[00:50:57] His focus wasn't to overthrow.
[00:50:59] His focus wasn't to flip everything upside down.
[00:51:02] His focus wasn't to fix every problem on this earth.
[00:51:05] What Jesus said plainly in this passage you saw is he said, I came so that they might have life and have it abundantly.
[00:51:13] This idea of an abundant life.
[00:51:16] Now, I know we're thinking, well, if God would fix some of the problems that I'm dealing with in my life, my life would be more abundant.
[00:51:21] He's not saying more abundant.
[00:51:23] He's talking about an abundant life.
[00:51:27] It is a completed life in every way.
[00:51:30] And it's not actually something we can find in this world.
[00:51:35] You know, Jesus came not to
[00:51:39] He didn't come to fix every problem, but to save us from this world.
[00:51:43] He didn't come to fix the world.
[00:51:45] He came to save us from the world.
[00:51:49] A few years back, we did a 4th of July firework lighting.
[00:51:53] We don't do the ones that like shoot up in the air.
[00:51:54] I don't have the confidence to do that.
[00:51:56] We do just those little ones that kind of like shoot off and they're like three feet above the ground.
[00:52:00] Anyone else do those fireworks?
[00:52:02] You know what I'm talking about with the family?
[00:52:04] Yeah, thank you.
[00:52:05] and and you know they always got these great names we we're mostly safe about it have the kids light the fireworks and they're always stuff like the Megalodon you know they're awesome things so we take one of these we got one of our like massive ones this this fireworks supposed to shoot off for like a minute straight right and we set it on a cardboard box in the backyard you can already see where this is going
[00:52:29] And I don't know if this thing was a dud or what was going on, but when we lit it, it was shooting out, but it wasn't shooting out high enough at all.
[00:52:38] It was shooting out and pretty much landing right there on the ground and then exploding.
[00:52:42] And so we had just like these little explosions happening all through our grass and our grass was real nice and dry this particular day.
[00:52:51] and and my wife and i are laughing and suddenly we start to realize like oh no there there's a fire growing in our backyard and we can't do anything about it because i can't get into the firework to stop it once it started right and so i immediately run over to the side yard and get the get the hose and pull it over and by the time i get back there is like now eight to ten spots of fire and it is just growing all over our yard and it got to the point where i was legitimately a little nervous and scared
[00:53:18] and the cardboard of course at this point is also on fire and it's starting to spread towards our lovely wooden playset in the back of our yard which I was like maybe this is how we get rid of this thing.
[00:53:30] I'd be okay with that part actually.
[00:53:33] But, you know, I was thinking, I was like, I think I got this under control.
[00:53:36] But my wife and I looked at each other at the same time, and we didn't even have to say anything.
[00:53:40] We both knew the exact same thing.
[00:53:43] Before, it was about getting this fire put out, which obviously was a priority.
[00:53:47] Before that, what was it really about?
[00:53:51] Come on, somebody.
[00:53:52] Get the kids out of here.
[00:53:54] You're exactly right.
[00:53:56] Get the kids in the house.
[00:53:57] Get the three kids to safety, whatever that means.
[00:54:00] Have you ever had that moment before where you have a problem, and yes, the problem has to be dealt with, but before it becomes about fixing the problem, the priority is get the kids to safety.
[00:54:11] You know?
[00:54:12] We've had it before also where we're like, we've smelt gas in the house, right?
[00:54:15] It's like, dad'll figure it out, dad'll find the gas, but before we figure it out, get the kids out of the house, you know?
[00:54:22] There are times that the priority doesn't become about fixing the problem, but about first bringing the kids to safety.
[00:54:29] And I want you to see this really clearly.
[00:54:31] Jesus came and his number one goal was not fix every problem.
[00:54:36] It was to bring us to a place of safety.
[00:54:39] It was to be able to be a shepherd to us and lead us to safety.
[00:54:45] His goal wasn't to fix the world, but to bring us out of this world.
[00:54:52] I know this is one of the biggest struggles for those wrestling with faith.
[00:54:57] If God is real and you're saying there's this good God, this good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep, why are there still so many fires in this world?
[00:55:09] Why are there still so many problems in this world?
[00:55:12] Why doesn't God just go all around and just fix all the problems?
[00:55:16] Why doesn't he just put out all the fires?
[00:55:19] Then he wouldn't even have to save us from anything.
[00:55:21] He could just fix the world.
[00:55:24] And you know what?
[00:55:25] Truthfully, God could do that.
[00:55:28] God could be a conquering God who fixes every problem that this world has ever faced.
[00:55:34] But if he did it, how long would it really stay that way?
[00:55:38] If that was the goal all the time was just fix the problems of the world, how long would the world actually stay perfect?
[00:55:45] You know, I compare it to when you host Christmas.
[00:55:48] Many are hosting Christmas.
[00:55:49] Anyone hosting Christmas this year?
[00:55:51] You have family coming in town?
[00:55:52] Yeah.
[00:55:53] It's such a joy, isn't it, to get to host Christmas with your family?
[00:55:57] That was a little sarcasm there.
[00:56:00] When you host Christmas, you spend so much time cleaning.
[00:56:04] You get that house completely in order.
[00:56:06] The linens are done.
[00:56:08] The counters are wiped, everything's vacuumed, the floors are done, and by the time your family gets there on December 24th, the house is the cleanest it has been all year.
[00:56:20] And how long does it last?
[00:56:22] Like, how long does it last before the mashed potatoes start splattering on the counter?
[00:56:27] Every time something happens to you, it like crushes your soul a little bit.
[00:56:29] You're like, it's fine, don't worry about it.
[00:56:34] You know, I mean, the spills are happening.
[00:56:37] Uncle Ned's a mess.
[00:56:38] I mean, you know, the kids are doing unspeakable atrocities in the playroom already.
[00:56:43] But, you know, by the time they leave, it's like it is the messiest it's ever been.
[00:56:48] Why?
[00:56:49] Because humans are messy.
[00:56:51] Here's my point.
[00:56:52] God created us, gave us free will, created a perfect world for us, and the reality is, if God wants you to maintain a perfect world, there's only one way to do that.
[00:57:04] Get rid of us.
[00:57:08] I'm actually being serious.
[00:57:12] He loves us and he chooses to give us free will.
[00:57:16] I mean, I guess he could turn us into puppets.
[00:57:18] I don't think we'd love that either.
[00:57:20] But at the end of the day, what we're really asking is, God, why aren't you acting as this maid that just follows us around and fixes the problems that we create all the time?
[00:57:32] And what God's plan was was bigger than just fixing problems, fixing the government, or fixing even individual problems.
[00:57:41] God didn't extinguish every fire in his disciples' lives.
[00:57:46] What he did was something much greater than that.
[00:57:50] He gave us access to God himself.
[00:57:53] He gave us a way to the abundant life as our shepherd.
[00:57:59] Now, I want to say this to the person who's
[00:58:02] I want you to hear this really clearly God hasn't forgotten your name God knows your name
[00:58:30] He knows your situation.
[00:58:32] He knows exactly what you're facing right now.
[00:58:35] And he's saying, hey, just follow me.
[00:58:37] Stay with me.
[00:58:37] I got you.
[00:58:39] I know it feels impossible right now.
[00:58:41] I haven't left you.
[00:58:43] He says, my sheep, they know my voice, and I know their name.
[00:58:51] Now, we're still drawn to, well, why doesn't he just fix everything?
[00:58:55] Check this out.
[00:58:57] This was actually how the Pharisees tried to trap Jesus.
[00:59:00] As Jesus was building popularity, the Pharisees actually at one point came and tried to trap Jesus around this idea of, well, how do you fix this world, Jesus?
[00:59:10] Look at this.
[00:59:10] They sent him Pharisees and Herodians to trap him in his talk.
[00:59:15] and they came and said to him teacher they try to build them up first i always love this this is this is like if you have a five-year-old you know this when they did something real bad they they try to tell you what a great parent you are before they admit what they did we know that you're true and don't care about anyone's opinion you're not swayed by appearances but truly teach the way of god you're so wise you got it all together is it lawful to pay taxes to caesar
[00:59:41] Now, here's why this is such a significant one.
[00:59:44] I think we kind of already touched on it a little bit.
[00:59:47] Israel is in this dilemma of what do we do with the Roman Empire?
[00:59:50] What do we do with Caesar?
[00:59:52] You know, he's not our God.
[00:59:54] And taxes was a part of this dilemma because how are we ever gonna get out from under their oppression?
[00:59:58] We're literally funding it.
[01:00:00] We're literally paying for it.
[01:00:03] In fact, the Roman Empire would hire Jewish people, Israelites, to serve as the tax collectors, and they would go and take a little bit of extra and put it in their own pocket.
[01:00:15] This is why tax collectors were so hated, because they were literally betraying their own people.
[01:00:20] They were assassin targets, in fact, tax collectors were.
[01:00:23] So the whole system is corrupt, broken, messy.
[01:00:27] This isn't like taxes the way we see it now where everything's perfect with the tax system.
[01:00:34] This was really broken, really messy, really complex.
[01:00:39] And so it's a trap because they're asking Jesus, well, Jesus, what would you do?
[01:00:43] And if Jesus' answer is, well, don't pay your taxes, you know, they'd say, look at him, he's trying to start a revolt.
[01:00:48] You can get him in trouble that way.
[01:00:50] And if he says, well, then just pay your taxes, they say, you know what, you have no allegiance even to Israel.
[01:00:54] Who are you to teach?
[01:00:56] And so it's a trap.
[01:00:58] So check out what Jesus says.
[01:01:00] But Jesus, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, why do you put me to the test?
[01:01:06] Bring me a Daenerys, and let me look at it.
[01:01:10] This is a coin.
[01:01:11] And they brought one, and he said to them, whose likeness and inscription is on this?
[01:01:17] And they said to him, Caesar's.
[01:01:19] Jesus said to them, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.
[01:01:26] And they marveled at him.
[01:01:28] It sounds like on the surface all he's saying is, yeah, you should pay your taxes, but his answer is much deeper than that.
[01:01:34] Don't miss this.
[01:01:36] He takes a coin and he says, whose image is on this?
[01:01:40] Drawing a distinction between image and ownership.
[01:01:44] And when they say, well, it's Caesar's picture on that, he says, great, well, then pay to Caesar what is Caesar's.
[01:01:49] And what he is saying is you should pay your taxes.
[01:01:51] That's a good thing to do.
[01:01:52] Jesus, in fact, paid taxes.
[01:01:54] We know that.
[01:01:55] Then he says, but render to God what is God's.
[01:02:00] And what he's really getting at there is he's going back to that image thing.
[01:02:04] When you look in the mirror, whose image are you made in?
[01:02:08] You're made in the image of God.
[01:02:10] And so what he's saying is you're so focused on this worldly matter that this has consumed you and become your focus, and you've ceased to give to God what is God's, and that is yourself, your heart, and all of yourself.
[01:02:26] And he's saying you're so consumed with this worldly thing that doesn't even really matter at the end of the day.
[01:02:31] It'll be here today and gone tomorrow, but you've ceased to give to God what is God's, which is yourself.
[01:02:39] And so church, I want to encourage you today
[01:02:43] What is our role in all this?
[01:02:45] What are we getting on about?
[01:02:48] Here's the reality.
[01:02:48] We get so focused on all the things that we think should be different.
[01:02:54] We get so focused on worldly matters.
[01:02:56] And I'm actually not even saying we shouldn't worry about worldly matters or we shouldn't try to make the world a better place.
[01:03:01] We absolutely should.
[01:03:03] That's our responsibility is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and love your neighbor as yourself.
[01:03:09] Some of that's gonna be doing good things in this earth, you know?
[01:03:12] I mean, we're fully aware we just gave away thousands of toys and those will be gone tomorrow, right?
[01:03:19] So, no, I'm not saying we don't invest in the world, but what I'm saying is when that becomes our God, when that becomes our focus is, well, we just have to make the world, you know, a perfect place, this world will never give us the abundant life that Jesus offers to us.
[01:03:35] Amen?
[01:03:36] No matter how great we make it.
[01:03:38] It's not like one day Jesus is going to come here, he's going to come back, and it's going to be the end of the world, and he's going to go, who is running things the best around here?
[01:03:46] Because we got a job for them in the kingdom of heaven to run things, you know?
[01:03:49] No.
[01:03:50] Everything that we pour into, we can work hard at it, we should do our best at it, but at the end of the day, give to God what is God's, your heart.
[01:04:02] Seek him first.
[01:04:04] Know that he's still a good shepherd and he's got it.
[01:04:08] Can I just encourage you today?
[01:04:11] I love the fact that he compares us to sheep.
[01:04:14] Because sheep are just completely helpless creatures, you know?
[01:04:18] They can't defend themselves.
[01:04:21] Them traveling in packs doesn't make them any scarier.
[01:04:25] They are like the easiest animal to pick off.
[01:04:27] I mean, and if you had a lamb chop, it's delicious, you know?
[01:04:31] I mean, who wouldn't?
[01:04:34] And so how does a sheep survive?
[01:04:36] How does a sheep survive out in the wilderness?
[01:04:39] There is only one way, and it's through a shepherd.
[01:04:42] It's through complete and utter reliance on the shepherd.
[01:04:47] And so look,
[01:04:49] Maybe you're here today and you're facing some fires in life.
[01:04:53] There are some things in life that you're going, God, why are you allowing it?
[01:04:56] You know, we all want to be the sheep with just green grass, you know, all around us as far as the eye can see.
[01:05:02] But it's during those times that the sheep lose sight of the shepherd.
[01:05:07] Have you seen that before?
[01:05:08] if animals are out grazing and they got a nice open grassy plains everything's perfect they don't look at the shepherd at all they're just focused on eating wander away you know it's when there is no grass yo shepherd what are we doing you know and look that's easier said than done
[01:05:31] But I want to encourage you.
[01:05:33] Some of you are in a season right now where you're a sheep and you're going, Shepherd, what are you doing?
[01:05:40] You know?
[01:05:41] Is that a wolf over there?
[01:05:42] Why are we going that way?
[01:05:44] You know?
[01:05:45] Are we in the valley of the shadow of death right now?
[01:05:48] What are we doing here?
[01:05:50] But I want to encourage you.
[01:05:52] Your God has not forgotten you.
[01:05:54] He's a good shepherd.
[01:05:56] He lays down his life for his sheep.
[01:05:58] You can trust him.
[01:06:00] He is trustworthy.
[01:06:02] I wanna speak to the person today going through illness and you're going, God, what are you doing here?
[01:06:08] Your God is a trustworthy shepherd.
[01:06:10] I wanna speak to the person going through relationship struggle today.
[01:06:14] You're entering into Christmas and maybe someone's missing at the table this year.
[01:06:19] And it's so easy to feel like, God, what are you doing?
[01:06:22] God, why didn't you change that?
[01:06:23] Why didn't you conquer that situation?
[01:06:25] Your shepherd knows your name.
[01:06:27] And he says, hey, stay close to me.
[01:06:29] I've got you.
[01:06:31] His word tells us that he draws near to the brokenhearted.
[01:06:35] He is close to those who are crushed in spirit.
[01:06:39] You know, it's during those seasons, it's during those times when nothing seems to be going right, that God draws near.
[01:06:50] That God, that we have to rely on him.
[01:06:55] You know, I think of
[01:06:57] One of my friends, Darren, he and Kelly, they've been bringing Christmas toys to the toy store for years now, but this year they really amped up.
[01:07:09] They said they wanted to throw a party in their neighborhood and collect Christmas toys from everyone in their neighborhood and then bring them
[01:07:15] and Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy, Deuteronomy
[01:07:46] I don't remember the name of the fracture it's the one where it sticks a compound fracture right the one where it actually like breaks the skin and and so I mean you look at that and you go oh my goodness why is that you know I mean that is a dark thing to be walking through now it happened just last week you know these kids even still came and served at the toy store that's how about it I don't know if you're watching this service you watch the last service Darren and Kelly but I want to tell you your God still knows your name
[01:08:15] Your God has not left you.
[01:08:17] He is a good shepherd.
[01:08:19] He is for you.
[01:08:20] He is with you and we are praying for you.
[01:08:24] I want to talk to the person today.
[01:08:26] You're facing fires.
[01:08:28] Your God knows your name.
[01:08:31] He has not left you.
[01:08:32] He is such a good shepherd.
[01:08:37] Look at this.
[01:08:38] Jesus said it plainly.
[01:08:40] Okay, so you can figure it out.
[01:08:42] He says there's all these people.
[01:08:43] You know, that's what he's getting at here.
[01:08:45] Because he also talks about the hired help hand.
[01:08:48] This represents the person, you know, they'll do the right thing as long as it's convenient, but the moment it puts them in danger, they run from the sheep.
[01:08:56] They leave the sheep.
[01:08:57] And what Jesus is desperate for over and over again is he's saying this, there's all these things you can put your faith in, that you can trust in, but none of them are the good shepherd.
[01:09:11] I'm a good shepherd.
[01:09:12] I've got you.
[01:09:14] I know you're sitting there looking around going, why are we going through this?
[01:09:17] What are you doing, shepherd?
[01:09:20] I'm with you.
[01:09:23] Before you try to fix the world, before you try to change every situation, would you just first look to me?
[01:09:31] Would you do that?
[01:09:33] What would that look like, to just first look to God?
[01:09:37] I'm the good shepherd.
[01:09:39] I know my own, my own know me.
[01:09:43] Just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.
[01:09:45] And look at this, I lay down my life for the sheep.
[01:09:49] I always find this so fascinating.
[01:09:51] He says, I lay down my life.
[01:09:53] Because I think, man, if we saw Jesus today and we didn't know he was the Messiah, would we think he was actually weak?
[01:10:03] Would we think, man, he wasn't bold enough?
[01:10:06] You know, you just let them walk all over them like that?
[01:10:10] I think many of us would.
[01:10:15] He says, I have other sheep that are not of this fold.
[01:10:19] He's talking about you and I.
[01:10:20] Because many would think that he was only talking to Israel.
[01:10:23] No, he's saying, I have other sheep.
[01:10:25] They're not of this group, but I'm going to bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.
[01:10:30] So there will be one flock and one shepherd.
[01:10:34] For this reason, the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.
[01:10:40] God's part of this plan.
[01:10:43] Jesus wasn't just working independently.
[01:10:44] This was God, Jesus, God the Father, Jesus.
[01:10:49] It was one plan.
[01:10:51] No one takes it from me.
[01:10:53] Look at that.
[01:10:55] No one takes it from me.
[01:10:57] but I lay it down of my own accord.
[01:11:00] Jesus willingly laid down his life.
[01:11:02] I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again.
[01:11:05] He rose from the dead.
[01:11:06] This charge I have received from my Father.
[01:11:09] Church, today I want you to know no matter what you're facing, you have a good shepherd.
[01:11:14] And this is not just a good shepherd like, oh, his law is good, oh, his morals are good.
[01:11:18] No, you have a shepherd that literally laid down his life so that you might be protected.
[01:11:26] And I know you're sitting here going, well he hasn't protected me from everything this world has thrown at me.
[01:11:30] I get that.
[01:11:32] That wasn't the end goal though.
[01:11:34] He's laid down his life so you might have a life of abundance.
[01:11:38] You serve a good shepherd.
[01:11:40] You can trust a good shepherd.
[01:11:44] And Jesus says, I haven't come here to flip everything upside down.
[01:11:47] I haven't come here to fix all the world's problems.
[01:11:51] I've come here to flip the power of sin upside down.
[01:11:56] I've come here to defeat death and conquer death and conquer sin.
[01:12:02] And he did that.
[01:12:04] We wanted him to conquer a government.
[01:12:07] He did something much more than that.
[01:12:11] Let me pray for us today.
[01:12:12] Father God, we thank you so much that you are a conquering Messiah.
[01:12:18] That you've sent your son Jesus and he has conquered in so many ways.
[01:12:24] Even though your people didn't recognize it, thank you that you have conquered sin and death, and you've given us an invitation to an abundant life, that you have served as a doorway that we would be able to stand before you, our Heavenly Father, perfect, blameless, sinless, only because Jesus has died on the cross and taken away the weight and the shame of sin.
[01:12:47] Thank you that Jesus came here not to be a conqueror, not to fix a world that will just be broken again, but that he came here to be a shepherd, to lead us, God, into your presence.
[01:13:03] Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for my God is with me.
[01:13:12] God, I know there are many of us here today and we're feeling a great weight.
[01:13:17] We feel like there are many fires.
[01:13:19] There are many things that need to be conquered.
[01:13:21] And God, we do just surrender those situations to you.
[01:13:24] And God, we pray that you'd open our eyes and open our hearts to just, how do we do the simple thing of keeping our eyes fixed on you and following you and honoring you even in the midst of darkness?
[01:13:36] How do we not wander to and fro?
[01:13:39] God, open our eyes and our hearts.
[01:13:40] How do we trust you?
[01:13:42] Through our prayer life, through our obedience to you, through our refusal to worship other gods, but to keep our eyes fixed on you, the Good Shepherd.
[01:13:57] God, thank you that you're so faithful.
[01:13:59] Thank you that you've sent your son, Jesus, and he's died on the cross for our sins, that you lay down your life for the sheep.
[01:14:06] What will you not do?
[01:14:09] And so this Christmas, I pray that that would be the cry of our heart, that in the middle of all the craziness, we'd remember we have a good shepherd.
[01:14:19] Even in the dark times, the challenging times, we have a good shepherd who has not left us, who knows our name.
[01:14:25] Thank you, God, for that.
[01:14:27] You're here today, you've never put your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.
[01:14:32] We've been talking about it.
[01:14:37] Calling Jesus Christ Lord and Savior is not simply believing Jesus is the Son of God.
[01:14:43] It's believing in your heart, confessing with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, Master.
[01:14:49] Meaning I believe that he died on the cross for my sins, he has fixed my sin problem for all eternity, and he has all authority over my life.
[01:14:57] My life is not my own.
[01:14:59] That God, I call you Lord, I call Jesus Lord.
[01:15:03] Believe in your heart, confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord.
[01:15:07] He died and rose again.
[01:15:10] He has authority.
[01:15:12] And so if today you believe that, it's, you know, becoming a Christian, as we say it, giving your life to Christ, isn't about, you know, oh, you have no doubts about anything or you have no struggles anymore.
[01:15:24] It's a choice of faith.
[01:15:27] Faith is a choice.
[01:15:30] It's to say, God, I believe Jesus died on the cross for my sins.
[01:15:34] I believe you've saved me.
[01:15:35] And you know what?
[01:15:36] I give you my life.
[01:15:38] I want to follow you.
[01:15:40] I don't know how to do that perfectly yet, but God, I surrender to you fully right now, right here, right now.
[01:15:46] Would you make that your prayer?
[01:15:48] I believe, Jesus, you died on the cross for my sins.
[01:15:50] You've saved me.
[01:15:51] I give you my life.
[01:15:53] Show me how to follow you.
[01:15:54] Jesus said, I'm returning to the Father, and I'm sending to you a helper, the Holy Spirit, God's very presence with you.
[01:16:02] Would you just invite him?
[01:16:04] Father, send me the Holy Spirit.
[01:16:07] It's a bold prayer.
[01:16:11] Show me how to live for you.
[01:16:13] Show me how to serve you.
[01:16:15] Show me how to trust you.
[01:16:17] Show me how to walk with you.
[01:16:19] God, we cast aside all other things.
[01:16:22] Say you first.
[01:16:25] You are my God.
[01:16:26] You are my Good Shepherd.
[01:16:28] Thank you, Father.
[01:16:30] Thank you for this Christmas that we can stop and remember that you sent us a king, you sent us a conqueror, you sent us a savior, you sent us a shepherd.
[01:16:40] Thank you for Jesus.
[01:16:44] We love you and we come to you in his name.
[01:16:49] Hey, let's celebrate with those making the decision today to follow Jesus.
[01:16:52] Love that.
[01:16:54] Let us know.
[01:16:54] You can do that at the Next Steps area.
[01:16:57] And we'd love to pray with you.
[01:16:58] We'd love to get a Bible in your hands.
[01:16:59] Also, if you have any prayer requests, we have a team here just to pray with you.
[01:17:04] Don't miss that.
[01:17:05] They'd love to pray with you.
[01:17:06] So if you have anything going on that you're looking for prayer, go to the Next Steps area.
[01:17:10] We'd love to pray with you.
[01:17:11] Hey, love you guys.
[01:17:13] We will see you next week for our last Sunday of 2025.
[01:17:18] Can you believe it?
[01:17:19] Love you guys.
[01:17:19] See you later.
[01:17:20] Oh, chairs.
[01:17:21] Something about chairs.
[01:17:22] Stack chairs.
[01:17:23] Go ahead, Josh.
[01:17:24] What you got?
[01:17:26] Six high.
[01:17:28] All right, we're doing chairs.
[01:17:29] I'm so sorry.
[01:17:30] Some of you have already left.
[01:17:31] It's fine.
[01:17:32] Josh, are we rolling them too?

[01:17:34] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]:
Yeah, if they, no.
[01:17:35] If we can stack up the chairs six high, we have our amazing power cross event coming up this week.
[01:17:41] So if we could stack the chairs up, you can leave them right where they are.
[01:17:45] We're going to be using most of them this week, but you could stack them up six high and leave them exactly where they are.
[01:17:51] That would be amazing.
[01:17:53] Thank you guys so much and have a great rest of your week.

[01:18:26] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]:
Na'vedah
[01:18:59] We want to wish you a Merry Christmas from the bottom of our hearts Feliz Navidad

[01:20:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me A partridge in a pear tree On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me Two turtledoves and a partridge in a pear tree On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me Three grand shacks, two turtledoves and a partridge in a pear tree On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me Four calling birds,

[01:21:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me six geese a-laying, five golden rings Four calling birds, three flying chimes, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying, five golden rings

[01:22:36] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]:
We are four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree.
[01:22:59] What's a partridge?
[01:22:59] And what's a pear tree?
[01:23:00] Well, I don't know, so please don't ask me.
[01:23:00] Looking back, those are terrible gifts to get.
[01:23:01] On the tenth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me Ten words only, benignly, standing eight maids of milk and tea.
[01:23:18] This is our true love gate to me!
[01:23:39] 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 51, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 51, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 51, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58, 59, 52, 53, 56, 57, 58

[01:24:05] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
There it is.

[01:24:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
And the mountains in reply echoing their joyous strains
[01:25:26] Shepherds, why this jubilee?

[01:25:41] [SPEAKER UNKNOWN]:
Why your joyous strains prolong?
[01:25:41] What the gladsome tidings be!
[01:25:42] Riches by your heavenly song!

[01:26:14] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]:
Let's sing together.