BLESSED ASSURANCE
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BLESSED ASSURANCE
BLESSED ASSURANCE
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
14 Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.
1 Sermon Ideas and Talking Points
JOHN 10:1-6
1 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
EXPLANATION
In the late nineteenth century, Fanny Crosby wrote the popular hymn “Blessed Assurance.” The hymn speaks of the comfort that we have in knowing Jesus and being known by him, a “foretaste of glory divine.” And this knowledge, that we belong to Jesus, is our story. As British soldiers in the Boer War passed one another headed to the front or returning from the front of battle, they would call out the hymn numbers to two songs, one of them being “Blessed Assurance.” This is the type of encouragement we need in the church today. To remind one another that we are God’s own cherished possession. To remember that no matter how uncertain things may seem in the world today or how frightening the near future may appear to be, we can trust in the faithfulness and goodness of God.
EXPLANATION
In the Gospel of John, Jesus talks about our relationship to God as sheep to their shepherd, and he speaks of the love of God as hands that will not let us go. In these descriptions, we gain a behind-the-scenes look into what it means to have blessed assurance that God is for us, loves us, and will take care of us. In John 10:3, Jesus says that the Shepherd (God) enters the sheep pen and calls “his own” sheep to him. We belong to God. This isn’t in some sort of property sense or abusive meaning; we belong to God in a loving way. It’s as if a parent has a lot of children, and one day someone sees the parent with the kids and says, “Are all of those yours?” And the parent responds lovingly, “Yes, these are all mine.” We belong to God, and he claims us as his own.
In the Gospel of John, Jesus talks about our relationship to God as sheep to their shepherd, and he speaks of the love of God as hands that will not let us go. In these descriptions, we gain a behind-the-scenes look into what it means to have blessed assurance that God is for us, loves us, and will take care of us. In John 10:3, Jesus says that the Shepherd (God) enters the sheep pen and calls “his own” sheep to him. We belong to God. This isn’t in some sort of property sense or abusive meaning; we belong to God in a loving way. It’s as if a parent has a lot of children, and one day someone sees the parent with the kids and says, “Are all of those yours?” And the parent responds lovingly, “Yes, these are all mine.” We belong to God, and he claims us as his own.
EXPLANATION
The intimate nature of this relationship, which is so essential when it comes to knowing that blessed assurance, can be seen in the repetition of the word “voice.” Jesus says the sheep hear the voice of the shepherd and immediately follow him out (John 10:3). There is a level of familiarity between the sheep and the Shepherd. The sheep know the voice of their shepherd, so when they hear him, they immediately know it’s okay to leave the safety and security of the sheep pen. They aren’t afraid to go out into the world, a world filled with danger, because they are with their shepherd.
The intimate nature of this relationship, which is so essential when it comes to knowing that blessed assurance, can be seen in the repetition of the word “voice.” Jesus says the sheep hear the voice of the shepherd and immediately follow him out (John 10:3). There is a level of familiarity between the sheep and the Shepherd. The sheep know the voice of their shepherd, so when they hear him, they immediately know it’s okay to leave the safety and security of the sheep pen. They aren’t afraid to go out into the world, a world filled with danger, because they are with their shepherd.
EXPLANATION
This familiarity isn’t a one-way street but an actual relationship. The sheep know the voice of their shepherd (10:3–4), but the shepherd knows them by name. The first step needed to move someone from being a stranger to a friend is the introduction: “Hi, my name is… What is your name?” He knows each and every one of his sheep, and he doesn’t just recognize them: he knows them by name. TheTheological Dictionary of the New Testamentpoints out that during the time of Jesus “there was and is a world-wide belief that the name of an object, man, or higher being is more than a mere label only incidentally associated with the one who bears it. The name is an indispensable part of the personality” (Gerhard Kittel, et al., The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament[Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1977], 5:244). When Jesus says that God knows the names of his sheep, he is saying he truly knows them, down to the very essence of who they are.
This familiarity isn’t a one-way street but an actual relationship. The sheep know the voice of their shepherd (10:3–4), but the shepherd knows them by name. The first step needed to move someone from being a stranger to a friend is the introduction: “Hi, my name is… What is your name?” He knows each and every one of his sheep, and he doesn’t just recognize them: he knows them by name. TheTheological Dictionary of the New Testamentpoints out that during the time of Jesus “there was and is a world-wide belief that the name of an object, man, or higher being is more than a mere label only incidentally associated with the one who bears it. The name is an indispensable part of the personality” (Gerhard Kittel, et al., The Theological Dictionary of the New Testament[Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing, 1977], 5:244). When Jesus says that God knows the names of his sheep, he is saying he truly knows them, down to the very essence of who they are.
APPLICATION
Jesus then contrasts the shepherd whom the sheep know with a stranger. They will follow the shepherd because they know his voice. A stranger, however, “they will not follow” (10:5). This contrast causes those hearing Jesus’s teaching to ask a question: Is God someone I know, or is God a stranger to me? If he is a stranger to me, what can I do to grow my knowledge of God? The blessed assurance which lets us trust God into following him even at times when safety and security seem far away is the knowledge that we are known by him.
Jesus then contrasts the shepherd whom the sheep know with a stranger. They will follow the shepherd because they know his voice. A stranger, however, “they will not follow” (10:5). This contrast causes those hearing Jesus’s teaching to ask a question: Is God someone I know, or is God a stranger to me? If he is a stranger to me, what can I do to grow my knowledge of God? The blessed assurance which lets us trust God into following him even at times when safety and security seem far away is the knowledge that we are known by him.
A SHEEPFOLD IS EXTREMELY LARGE ENCLOSED OR FENCED
AREA IN WHICH SHEEP CAN SPEND THE NIGHT.
THE SHEEP ENTER AND LEAVE BY A GATE OR A DOOR.
DURING THE NIGHT A GUARD WATCHES THE SHEEP IN THE SHEEPFOLD AND PROTECTS THEM DURING THE NIGHT.
AFTER AN EVENING OF REST THE SHEPHERD WILL ARISE , EAT BREAKFAST, AND EVENTUALLY COME AND CALL HIS SHEEP TO HIMSELF.
LET ME EXPLAIN THAT A SHEEPFOLD WILL USUALLY PROVIDE SHELTER FOR MANY FLOCKS BELONGING TO DIFFERENT SHEPHERDS,
YET , THE SHEEP WILL KNOW THE VOICE OF THEIR SHEPHERD AND FOLLOW ONLY THEIR OWN SHEPHERD.
ILLUSTRATION
Perhaps the most famous are Siri and Alexa, but they are not the only products out there which knows you are talking to it and responds. God speaks our name, we know his voice, and we know that we are known by him and respond by trusting him and following him.
Perhaps the most famous are Siri and Alexa, but they are not the only products out there which knows you are talking to it and responds. God speaks our name, we know his voice, and we know that we are known by him and respond by trusting him and following him.
THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT JESUS IS THE TRUE SHEPPERD.
JESUS IS THE GOOD SHEPHERD.
WHO WAS WILLING TO DIE AND DID DIE FOR THOSE WHO PUT THEIR FAITH IN HIM.
Blessed Assurance
Blessed Assurance
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
I'm born of His spirit and washed in His blood
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
I'm born of His spirit and washed in His blood
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
Perfect submission, perfect delight
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight
Angels descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy and whispers of love
Perfect submission, perfect delight
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight
Angels descending, bring from above
Echoes of mercy and whispers of love
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
Perfect submission, all is at rest
I, in my Savior, am happy and blessed
You know I'm watching and waiting, I'm looking above
Filled with His goodness and I'm lost in His love
Perfect submission, all is at rest
I, in my Savior, am happy and blessed
You know I'm watching and waiting, I'm looking above
Filled with His goodness and I'm lost in His love
This is my, I know that this is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
All the day long
Songwriters: Fanny Crosby, Douglas Wagner, Phoebe P. Knap