Good Shepherd Sunday
\nApril 17, 2016
\nRevelation 7:9-17<\/p>\n
After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.\u00a0 They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.\u00a0 And they cried out in a loud voice:\u00a0 “Salvation\u00a0 belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”\u00a0 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures.\u00a0 They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying:\u00a0 “Amen!\u00a0 Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever.\u00a0 Amen!”\u00a0 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes\u2014who are they, and where did they come from?”\u00a0 I answered, “Sir, you know.”\u00a0 And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.\u00a0 Therefore, they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.\u00a0 Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst.\u00a0 The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.\u00a0 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.\u00a0 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”\u00a0 (NIV1984)<\/p>\n
Dear fellow worshipers of our living Lord and Savior,<\/p>\n
He is risen!\u00a0 He is risen indeed!<\/p>\n
When you think of the life of a shepherd what comes to mind?\u00a0 The image of a shepherd always makes me think of a large open field.\u00a0 Scattered across that field are, of course, sheep.\u00a0 Those sheep depend on their shepherd for absolutely everything.\u00a0 He leads them to clean drinkable water.\u00a0 He brings them into green pastures where they can freely graze to their heart\u2019s content.\u00a0 If one of the sheep gets lost or begins to stray the shepherd goes and brings them back into the fold.\u00a0 Actually, in my mind\u2019s eyes the life of a shepherd is quite idyllic.\u00a0 I envision the life of a shepherd to be a life of peace and tranquility.\u00a0 But, of course, in reality the life of a shepherd is not always so idyllic.\u00a0 Being a shepherd is hard work.\u00a0 Since sheep are not exactly the smartest animals being a shepherd could be quite frustrating at times.\u00a0 And then there are the times when being a shepherd is downright dangerous.\u00a0\u00a0 In I Samuel 17:34-40 David reveals that as a shepherd he had to fight both lions and bears in order to protect his flock of sheep.<\/p>\n
Today, my friends, as you and I celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday I would like us to focus on the fact that our Shepherd, Jesus, has indeed fought our fiercest and most dangerous enemies in order to protect us, His sheep.\u00a0 The enemies that Jesus fought for us were not lions or tigers or bears.\u00a0 No, rather, the enemies Jesus fought for us were none other than sin, death and the devil himself.\u00a0 Since we gather together today still basking in the warm light of Easter our goal on this Good Shepherd Sunday is to use this portion of Scripture to focus our hearts on:\u00a0 The Shepherd\u2019s Victory.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 We will concentrate on two things today.\u00a0 First we will see that the Shepherd\u2019s victory rightfully brings Him honor and praise and worship.\u00a0 Then we will see that the Shepherd\u2019s victory guarantees our victory.<\/p>\n Our text for today gives us a glorious glimpse right into heaven itself.\u00a0 As the apostle John looked around in heaven what did he see?\u00a0 He says that he saw \u201ca great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Down through the history of the church there have been people who claim that heaven is only for certain people\u2014 usually people who look and talk just like them.\u00a0 Nothing could be further from the Truth!\u00a0 Jesus was born into this world to save all<\/strong> people.\u00a0 Jesus died on the cross to pay for the sins of the whole<\/strong> world.\u00a0 Jesus commanded us to go and make disciples of all<\/strong> nations.<\/p>\n As John views this \u201cgreat multitude that no one could count\u201d<\/em> where were they and what were they doing?\u00a0 John tells us that they were \u201c\u2026standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.\u00a0 They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.\u00a0 And they cried out in a loud voice:\u00a0 \u2018Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Does this scene remind you of anything?\u00a0 It reminds me of Palm Sunday!\u00a0 Just as Jesus rightfully received worship and honor and praise as He triumphantly rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, so also the risen Christ rightfully receives worship and honor and praise as He now takes His place on the throne of the Kingdom of Heaven.\u00a0 And why does Jesus deserve<\/strong> to receive such worship and honor and praise?\u00a0 Because He is the \u201cLamb\u201d<\/em>!\u00a0 He is the \u201cLamb\u201d<\/em> who holds in His possession the gift of eternal \u201csalvation.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 He is the \u201cLamb\u201d<\/em> who was slain and with His blood He \u201cpurchased men for God\u201d<\/em> (Revelation 5:9).\u00a0 He is the \u201cLamb\u201d<\/em> who alone has the right to say, \u201cI am the First and the Last.\u00a0 I am the Living One; I was dead and behold I am alive for ever and ever!\u00a0 And I hold the keys of death and Hades\u201d<\/em> (Revelation 1:17-18).<\/p>\n Yes, my friends, our Good Shepherd, the One upon whom we depend for absolutely everything is the Lamb of God.\u00a0 He is the Lamb of God who was sacrificed on the altar of the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.\u00a0 He is the Lamb of God who physically rose from the dead to prove that He has secured the victory over sin, death and the devil!\u00a0 This unparalleled victory is what brings Him worship and honor, praise and thanks from both the saints and the angels in heaven above.\u00a0 This unparalleled victory is what brings Him our<\/strong> worship and our <\/strong>honor, our<\/strong> thanks and our<\/strong> praise today.\u00a0 The victory that we so desperately needed, the victory that was completely impossible for us to achieve on our own, that glorious eternal victory was secured for<\/strong> us by our Good Shepherd.\u00a0 Let\u2019s make sure that no matter whether we are here in church or at home, no matter whether we are at work or at play that we bring our Good Shepherd the glory and the praise, the worship and the thanks He deserves for the victory He has won!<\/p>\n As we turn now to the second half of our text let\u2019s focus on the joy and the confidence of knowing that the Shepherd\u2019s victory is what guarantees to us our own victory.\u00a0 John writes, \u201cThen one of the elders asked me, \u2018These in white robes\u2014 who are they, and where did they come from?\u2019\u00a0 I answered, \u2018Sir, you know.\u2019\u00a0 And he said, \u2018These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.\u2019\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The \u201cgreat tribulation\u201d<\/em> that is spoken of here in our text refers to the life of a faithful child of God in this sin-darkened world.\u00a0 It includes the persecutions that the Christians were enduring in the days of John.\u00a0 It includes the exile that John himself was forced to endure as a result of his faithful proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.\u00a0 It includes any difficulty and every hardship that you and I endure as a result of our faithfulness to Jesus and to His holy Word.\u00a0 If you take just a moment to think back on your own personal life it won\u2019t take long to see exactly why our life as a child of God in this sin-filled world is described as a \u201ctribulation.\u201d\u00a0 <\/em>But the key point in this portion of our text, my friends, the words which reveal to us how the Shepherd\u2019s victory guarantees to us our own victory are the words, \u201cThey have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Now I will admit that I don\u2019t do a great deal of laundry at home\u2014 for very good reasons!\u00a0 But humanly speaking if we wanted to take something that is filthy dirty and make it sparkling clean and white, the last thing that would come to mind would be to wash it in blood.\u00a0 At yet, the God of heaven and earth has consistently revealed in His Word that the only way to \u201ccleanse\u201d<\/em> something, the only way to make us sinners \u201cclean\u201d<\/em> and \u201choly,\u201d<\/em> \u201cpure\u201d<\/em> and \u201cperfect\u201d<\/em> in His sight is through blood\u2014 specifically, the blood of the Lamb of God.\u00a0 In 1 Peter 1:18-19 we are told, \u201cFor you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 In 1 John 1:7 we are told, \u201c\u2026the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 And in Hebrews 9:22 the writer to the Hebrews, quoting from the Old Testament book of Leviticus (5:11, 17:11) reminds us that \u201cwithout the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n When by the power of God the Holy Spirit we were given the gift of saving faith in our heart, the faith that enables us to believe and confess that Jesus Christ is our personal Savior from sin, at that very moment we were clothed with a white robe of pure sparkling righteousness.\u00a0 This precious robe guarantees to us that all of our sins have been completely \u201cwashed away\u201d from God\u2019s sight forever.\u00a0 This precious robe guarantees to us that eternal life in heaven is now ours as a free gift from our Savior God.\u00a0 This precious robe guarantees to us that no matter how much tribulation and no matter how many trials we may endure in this life the victory is<\/strong> ours purely by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.\u00a0 This precious robe guarantees to us that the victory that we will<\/strong> experience when it is our turn to leave the \u201ctribulation\u201d<\/em> of this life and join together with all the saints and all the angels in heaven is a victory that goes far beyond anything we can even begin to imagine.\u00a0 Yes, my friends, this precious robe is the gift of saving faith in our hearts.\u00a0 It is the faith that enables us to look at the cross and know deep in our heart that our Good Shepherd did all this for me<\/strong>!<\/p>\n Think that through just a little bit.\u00a0 The precious gift of faith guarantees to us that the Shepherd\u2019s victory is now our victory!\u00a0 But what exactly does that victory include?\u00a0 Well, if this life is described as a \u201cgreat tribulation\u201d<\/em> the victory that our Good Shepherd guarantees to us is described in these words:\u00a0\u00a0 \u201c\u2026they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.\u00a0 Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst.\u00a0 The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat.\u00a0 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; and he will lead them to springs of living water.\u00a0 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n By the grace of God you and I know that this victory is ours, my friends, because by the grace of God you and I know that Jesus is our Good Shepherd.\u00a0 That is a truth, that is a victory that we need to keep clearly in focus not just today on Good Shepherd Sunday, but every single day of our lives.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Because as we all know, we don\u2019t always \u201cfeel\u201d victorious do we?\u00a0 Satan does his best to use the \u201ctribulations\u201d<\/em> that we endure on this earth to make us \u201cfeel\u201d defeated and hopeless.\u00a0 Again, think back on your own personal life\u2014 whether you go back years or days or perhaps just hours.\u00a0 Do you wake up every single day \u201cfeeling\u201d victorious in your life and victorious in your faith?\u00a0 Or, are there days when you wake up and wish you could just stay in bed?\u00a0 Do you face every single difficulty you encounter, every single set-back you experience whistling \u201cI\u2019m But a Stranger Here\u201d?\u00a0 When you go toe-to-toe with the temptations that the devil, the world and your own sinful flesh bring against you do you do so with the same confidence that fills your heart and soul on Easter Sunday?\u00a0 If we were to depend on how we \u201cfeel\u201d from one day to the next we would all be in serious trouble!\u00a0 Praise God, that instead of depending on how we \u201cfeel\u201d we can depend on the One who has done so very much for <\/strong>us (Pointing to the cross), the One who has so very much waiting for us in His heavenly Kingdom, the One who has the right, the power and the authority to say, \u201cI am the Good Shepherd, I am your <\/strong>Good Shepherd.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n The Shepherd\u2019s Victory.<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0 Thank and praise God, my friends, that the gift of saving faith which God the Holy Spirit has created in your heart enables you to know that The Shepherd\u2019s Victory<\/em><\/strong> truly is a victory that brings honor, praise and unending love and devotion to Jesus, our Good Shepherd\u2014 not only from the saints and angels in heaven, but also from us, His saints here on this earth.\u00a0 Thank and praise God, that the gift of saving faith which God the Holy Spirit has created in your heart enables you to know that the The Shepherd\u2019s Victory<\/em><\/strong> is what guarantees to you your own victory.<\/p>\n To God be the glory!<\/p>\n Amen<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Good Shepherd Sunday April 17, 2016 Revelation 7:9-17 After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.\u00a0 They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.\u00a0 And they cried out in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-666","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermon"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/666","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=666"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/666\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":667,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/666\/revisions\/667"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=666"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=666"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.livingwordpetaluma.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=666"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}