Sermon Tone Analysis

**4,000 new churches begin each year and 7,000 churches close.

**Over 1,500 pastors left the ministry every month last year.

1 out of every 10 pastors will actually retire as a pastor.

It seems intentions often begin well - but then - things FADE out...

Commitment fades

Interest fades

And before you know it - you’re wondering - WHAT HAPPENED?

Leaders come and leaders - GO

Many have even come along over the decades, seeking glory for themselves...

Sound familiar?

1960: Piazzi Smyth, a past astronomer royal of Scotland, wrote a book circa 1860 titled "Our Inheritance in the Great Pyramid."

It was responsible for spreading the belief in pyramidology throughout the world.

This is the belief that secrets are hidden in the dimensions of the great pyramids.

He concluded from his research that the millennium would start before the end of 1960.

1970's: The late Moses David (formerly David Berg) was the founder of the Christian religious group, The Children of God.

He predicted that a comet would hit the earth, probably in the mid 1970's and destroy all life in the United States.

1984 to 1999: In 1983, Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, Guru of the Rajneesh movement predicted massive destruction on earth, including natural disasters and man-made catastrophes.

Floods larger than any since Noah, extreme earthquakes, very destructive volcano eruptions, nuclear wars etc. will be experienced.

Tokyo, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Bombay will all disappear.

1986: Moses David of The Children of God faith group predicted that the Battle of Armageddon would take place in 1986.

Russia would defeat Israel and the United States.

A worldwide Communist dictatorship would be established.

In 1993, Christ would return to earth.

Early 1990's: In 1992, David Koresh of the Branch Davidian group in Waco Texas changed the name of their commune from Mt. Carmel to Ranch Apocalypse, because of his belief that the final all-encompassing battle of Armageddon mentioned in the Bible would start at the Branch Davidian compound.

They had calculated that the end would occur in 1995.

After a 51-day standoff, on 1993-APR-10, 76 members died as a result of a deliberately set fire.

Sometime in 1996: The book "The Return of Jupiter: End of the world in the light of the Bible" Dorrance Publishing, Pittsburgh PA predicted a disaster starting in the Pacific Ocean:

"A terrible earthquake is going to break the oceanic earth crust under the Pacific Ocean by the year 1996 AD

And there’s so much more we could walk through...

This list doesn’t even mention:

Jospeh Smith - founder of Mormonism

Charles Taze Russell - founder of the Jehovah’s Witness religion

Muhammad - founder of Islam

and the position of the Pope

These leaders - ALL vie for FOLLOWERS...

But ALL of these people listed here and THROUGHOUT history…would have done well to heed the words of Christ…in John chapter 10...

It’s interesting to think - that even back in the first century…Jesus KNEW that there would be those who would SNEEK into a fold…to destroy that fold...

OR

SNEEK in to lead people astray!

It’s interesting to think - that even back in the first century…

Jesus KNEW that there would be those who would SNEEK into a fold…to destroy that fold...

OR

SNEEK in to lead people astray!

• And so we MIGHT think that this is something that’s just a “TODAY” problem…

• That Christ was just – looking into the future – and really just speaking for our PRESENT time because we see this everywhere - NOW

• Not the case – we’ll see later that this has been an issue from the very beginning.

• If we just think back to the context of where we’re at in John, Jesus has been constantly dealing with and butting heads with – the Pharisees…

◦ The – “LEADERS” of the time…

◦ And WHAT was the mindset of the Pharisees!??

They sought power over purity…and so when people started following Jesus, they viewed that as a “power-play”

Not only that but they relied so much on TRADITIONS (oral), that they really believed themselves to be dictators of what was TRUE…

These LEADERS pursued power - at the sake of TRUTH

Pursued power - BASED on their own truth

And so they felt that they were THE WAY to God…

That if people wanted to get to God…that they would have to OBEY THEM…

Jesus - He addresses that today…

SLIDE: Jesus Christ: The Good Way

Jesus Christ

Here we have Christ saying - I am - THE WAY...

That if you want to belong in this group - then you MUST enter THROUGH Jesus Christ!

Listen to the benefit of ENTERING through Jesus...

He’s literally declaring that He himself is - the DOOR...

If you know anything about Shepherding sheep in the 1st century...

You would come across a picture similar to this one...

SLIDE: Shepherd is the DOOR

When the sheep were rounded up for the night...

And placed back in the Sheepfold…this was the most vulnerable time for the FLOCK...

the shepherd himself would LAY HIS OWN BODY down and act as the DOOR...

So that if anyone was going to try to enter - they’d have to deal with the DOOR…

Again - think back to our context…

The Jewish leaders have already publicly declared that if you follow Jesus……

you ARE to be - PUT OUT of the synagogue…

Well what did that mean for the 1st century Jew??

The synagogue was a place for Study, prayer, ritual observance, and community building.

THIS is why the parents of the man born blind would have NOT WANTED to be banned from the synagogue…It was the lifeline of the Jewish Community

And Christ KNEW the people VIEWED the synagogue as their LIFELINE…

NO WONDER Jesus wanted to attack that idea!

And he does so by declaring Himself to be - the DOOR to the sheepfold…

NOW THIS is RELEVANT on the one hand - and HARD TO UNDERSTAND on the other… WHY???

BECAUSE - of the spiritual nature of the sheepfold/church

**If a physical STRANGER walked into your house….would

you NOTICE?

Yes!!

Why? - because you know what your FRIENDS/FAMILY look like!

Now - What if a SPIRITUAL stranger (lost) walked into this church….would

we notice?

No - we can’t READ people’s hearts.

we don’t KNOW if someone is SAVED or NOT saved…

And this is what Jesus is referring to here in our text…

He’s POINTING to the Spiritual nature of the person who SNEEKS into a sheepfold…

WE can’t ALWAYS tell people’s MOTIVES…

But Christ CAN - And HE’s telling us that UNLESS that person in your SHEEPFOLD came into that place THROUGH HIM, then that person is LOST…

Regardless of how great they seem, or how spiritual they seem!

Jesus is the GOOD WAY - the ONLY way!

Do you see?

Jesus is THE ONLY WAY…to heaven - to God

He’s the ULTIMATE FILTER…

He’s saying - NO - the pharisees AREN’T the gatekeepers to TRUTH before God…I AM -

And where the pharisaical rulers couldn’t really CARE less about the people….JESUS - was a different story

Not only