THE GOOD SHEPHERD AND HIS SHEEP Pastor Art Watkins of Coden Bible Church (Coden, Alabama) November 15, 2018 Did you ever read what Christ the Good Shepherd says about his sheep in John 10? Here is a summary: ****The sheep hear his voice! They understand what Christ the Good shepherd says when they hear him because they have his Spirit dwelling in them. The goats do not understand his word when they hear it. What he says goes right over their head, because they do not have the Spirit of the Good Shepherd in them. ****The sheep follow him! Once they enter the flock of God, they spend their time and life following Christ the Good Shepherd. Their life is devoted to obeying and following the Good shepherd. The goats do not follow or obey the Good Shepherd. They follow false shepherds who pretend to be true shepherds. ****He calleth his own sheep by name! He knows each one by their names, for he chose them before the foundation of the world. At his coming the Good Shepherd will say to his sheep; come you blessed of my Father and to the goats he will say; depart from me ye cursed I never knew you. ****They know his voice! They know the difference between the words of the Good Shepherd and the words of false shepherds. They love to hear and read the words of the Good Shepherd. The goats have no appetite for the words of the Good Shepherd. And they can’t tell the difference between his words and false shepherds for they are blind. ****A stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him! True sheep do not follow false teachers and false doctrines. They flee from false teachers and corrupt religious systems. The sheep stay out of modernist liberal churches or any church that preaches salvation by works such as, the sacraments, water baptism, and keeping commandments. It’s the goats who attend these churches. ****They know not the voice of strangers! They do not give heed to doctrines of devils taught by false shepherds who have seducing spirits. The sheep do not hear them. They give them no audience. The goats are tossed to and fro by every wind of false doctrine taught by any false shepherd they hear. ****I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep! Christ loves his sheep so much that he died for their sins. He said he died for them 5 times in this chapter. The goats are blind to the cross and many are enemies of the cross. ****I know my sheep, and am known of mine! The sheep know the Lord personally and can tell you all about him and the Lord knows them too. The goats are clueless as to who the Good Shepherd is and what he is like. They have no interest in him. ****And I give unto them eternal life! The Good Shepherd gives eternal life as a gift to all of his sheep who believe on him and follow him. They have eternal life now and know it. The goats all end up in hell. ****They shall never perish! The salvation of the sheep is secured eternally by the Good Shepherd. His promise to the sheep is: they will never perish. The goats have no promises and will all perish in the lake of fire, unless they become one of the sheep. ****Neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand! The sheep are safe eternally in the hands of the Good Shepherd. He has never and will never lose one of the sheep the Father gave him. The goats are all under the wrath of God. ****I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly! The Good Shepherd supplies all the needs of his sheep abundantly above all they ask or think. The goats have no claim to the blessings of the Good Shepherd. ****And other sheep (Gentiles) I have, which are not of this fold (Israel)! The Good Shepherd has both Jew and gentile sheep. ****There shall be one fold, and one shepherd! The Good Shepherd divides the sheep from the goats, but he does not divide the sheep. He places them all in the same fold (Church) for they all have the same shepherd. ****But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep! The difference between the sheep and goats is: the sheep hear and believe the words of the Good Shepherd and follow him and the goats do not. Today there are two groups of people in the world; the sheep and the goats. Which one are you? Are you one of the sheep the Good Shepherd describes in John 10? Are these things true of you such as verse 27: My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. If you are not one of the sheep, Jesus the Good Shepherd says to you: I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. You can become one of his sheep, for the Good Shepherd who is God’s Son, laid down his life for you as a sacrifice for your sins and God raised him from the dead. Today God says that if you will believe on the Good Shepherd and call on him, he will make you one of his sheep.