Church Sermon - May 2, 2004

Rev. Mark F. Bartels

Epistle Lesson; Revelation 7:9-17
Old Testament Lesson; Ezekiel 34:11-16
Sermon Text; John 10:27-30

All of us know the 23^rd Psalm, maybe even by heart. It may be one of your favorite passages of scripture. The 23^rd Psalm begins:

The Lord is my Shepherd,

I shall not want.

There is a little phrase in the 23^rd Psalm that says:

What in the world does that mean? We have said that many, many times in our lives.

Your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

What does that mean? How do a rod and a staff, comfort a sheep?

What is a shepherd’s rod? It was like a big stick, a big club, or maybe even kind of like a baseball bat, of today. A shepherd would carry that rod and hold it.

Now, the question is: Why would a sheep say, "Thy rod comforts me." What is so comforting about a shepherd holding something like that? It is because sheep can’t defend themselves. Sheep cannot protect themselves. Sheep can’t run fast. Sheep aren’t very smart. Sheep don’t have good eye site. Sheep don’t have claws and teeth. Sheep have many enemies, such as lions, bears, wolves, coyotes, and robbers, who would love to capture them, kill them, and eat them. And, a sheep has no way, absolutely no way, of protecting itself, except by a shepherd who loves that sheep, a strong shepherd who is there to defend that sheep and protect that sheep against any enemy that may come.

And so, a sheep looks at his shepherd, his loving shepherd, with that rod and that staff in his hand, and a sheep says to its shepherd, "Your rod, that comforts me. That makes me feel so safe, knowing that you love me, and you are going to defend me. You are going to protect me, if any enemies come."

And a sheep, that knows its only safety is there by the shepherd, is going to stay close, right close by its shepherd. When that shepherd calls and says, "Come, and follow me", it is going to listen to the voice of its shepherd, and know that its shepherd is going to protect it, with his rod, when any enemies come.

Jesus said, in today’s scripture reading, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and no one, no one, can snatch them out of my hand."

That is what Jesus was talking about. Jesus is saying, that when my sheep stay close by my side, when they follow me, wherever I lead and wherever I go, nobody, nobody, can take them out of my hands. I will defend my sheep against any enemy, any foe, and they are absolutely, completely safe and secure.

Whose arm is it that is hanging onto that shepherd’s rod? It is the almighty, right arm of God. It is Jesus, the victorious Savior, who is stronger than any enemy, even stronger than the devil himself.

And what is that rod that He holds in His hands, with which He protects His flock? You know what it is? You know what that rod is, that protects us? It is the almighty, all-powerful Word of God. It is the Word and Sacraments. With the Word and the Sacraments, Jesus drives away any enemy, and any trouble. So Jesus, here in our scripture reading, wants to bring comfort and confidence to any sheep that is troubled and worried. "Am I going to be safe in this world? Is God going to protect me? Is He going to keep me in my faith?" Jesus says, "No one, no one, can snatch you out of my hand."

But here is what we all need to know. The wolf, the lion, the devil knows that as long as the sheep stay close by their Shepherd, they are safe. As long as they stay close by their Shepherd, nobody can snatch them out of the Shepherd’s hand.

So what is the devil going to try to do? The devil is going to try to lure the sheep away from the Shepherd. He is going to try to get the sheep to follow, off at a distance, so they are far away from the Shepherd’s Rod and the Shepherd’s Staff. Then, they are not close by, so they cannot be protected by the Good Shepherd’s Rod.

So, what does the devil try to do, in our lives? The problem is not with the Shepherd. The problem is with the sheep, which love to wander and love to stray. The devil is going to place in front of us, what appear to be green pastures, maybe greener than the pastures Jesus is leading us into. The devil is going to say, "Why don’t you come over here, to these green pastures? I have ‘wonderful’ things for you. You can have friends, money, clothes, popularity, many fun activities and hobbies."

He tries to lead us away, so we follow our Shepherd at a distance. There, we lay down in pastures that we start to fall in love with. Eventually, he can lead us away, until maybe you don’t have time to listen to the voice of the Shepherd. Maybe you don’t have time to go to church. Maybe you don’t have time to study scripture. And he keeps us away from the Shepherd’s Rod, which the Shepherd uses to protect us. Eventually, he can snatch our souls away and get us to lose our faith.

Or, maybe the devil tries to lead us away from following close by the Shepherd’s side, and gets us to follow at a distance, by putting all kinds of temptations to sin in front of us. Maybe he sets up another flock of sheep, which are his sheep. They look strong and sleek, handsome, and beautiful. And, they look like they are having lots of fun. He says, "Why don’t you come over here, where you will have fun. You will enjoy yourself. You can do things that the Good Shepherd says you can’t do."

It looks attractive, so we head over that way. We begin to fall into sin. Eventually, that wolf, the devil, wants us to fall in love with some sin. He wants us to fall in love with it, so that we don’t want to follow our Shepherd anymore, and we are away from His safety and protection. Then he can destroy us, for eternity.

Or maybe the wolf, the devil, tries to pull us away from the Shepherd this way. He disguises his voice, so it sounds like the Shepherd’s voice. He teaches us false teachings about scripture. He says, "This is what God says. This is what the Bible says."

And, then he leads us away from the voice of our Shepherd. Eventually, he could maybe even get us to lose our faith in Jesus, as our Savior, and begin to depend upon something else for salvation.

You know the Bible says, all of us, "all we, like sheep, have gone astray. All we, like sheep, have gone astray." Every one of us has gone his own way. Every single one of us. Think about that.

Here is the Good Shepherd, who loved us dearly, the Good Shepherd who loved us so dearly that He laid down His own life, for the sheep. And, the Good Shepherd promises to defend and protect us, from all enemies. But have we stayed close by His side, every day of our lives? No. The Bible says, "We, all like sheep, have gone astray."

And, yet today, even today, we see what a loving Savior, what a powerful Shepherd we have. What is happening right now, even right now? Our Shepherd, through the Word, is calling out to you.

He is the Good Shepherd, who goes and looks for the lost sheep, picks it up, puts it on His shoulders, and brings it home, rejoicing. Even today, the Good Shepherd wants you to know that no matter how far you have strayed away, no matter what sin you have fallen into, the Good Shepherd has taken His Rod and has literally, on the cross, when He gave up His life for the sheep, when He took our sin to the cross, He has shattered, absolutely shattered the power of sin. Sin has no power over you. It cannot hold you in its guilt anymore, because our Good Shepherd has paid for all of our sins, every one of them. And He calls you by His side, to keep you safe.

Our Good Shepherd, Jesus, said, "The Good Shepherd lays down His life, only to take it up again." When Jesus stood up out of the grave, with His Shepherd’s Rod, He shattered the power of death. Death has no power, no power, over Jesus anymore. That Good Shepherd calls you by His side and says, "Come. Follow me. Stay close by me. Death, even death, can have no power over you. I will take you to be with me in Heaven. Someday you will rise from the dead."

Brothers and Sisters, let us stay close by the side of our Shepherd. Let us listen to His voice, and follow Him, because He gives us eternal life. And, no one can snatch us out of His hand.

Let’s stay close by the voice of our Shepherd, by His Word, which is His mighty Rod, which defends us against all of our enemies. Then, when the devil tries to tell you, "Oh, you are guilty. You are guilty. You have sinned. You’re sins should drag you down to Hell."

We stay close by the side of our Shepherd and His Word. And, His Word shatters the power of the devil. In His Word, He tells us,

"Though your sins are red as crimson,

they shall be as white as snow."

When the devil tries to lead us into temptation, what does Jesus do with His mighty Word, that Rod of His Word, when we stay close by His side? What does that Gospel message, the message that the Good Shepherd laid down His life for the sheep, the message that Jesus forgives all of my sins, do? That message works in my heart. The Word works in my heart and gives me a desire not to listen to the voice of the devil, but rather to listen to the voice of my Shepherd. Scripture says, "I have been crucified with Christ. I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." There, that Gospel message of knowing Jesus loved me, and gave Himself up for me, causes me to want to fight against the temptations of the devil. And Jesus, by His almighty Word, keeps me safe with the Rod of His Word.

When false doctrine, false teaching comes, and Satan tries to lead me astray, when I stand close by the side of my Savior, and I listen to His voice in His Word, then I know it is written, it is written, I can stay close to the Word and the voice of my Savior, and be defended against false doctrine.

"Thy rod and thy staff,

they comfort me."

What a comfort for us, as Christians, to know that when we stay by the side of Jesus, our Savior, in His Word, He will keep us absolutely safe. In fact, I want you to listen, as I close with this little section from the book of Romans. It says this, "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" In other words, is there anything that could separate the sheep from the Shepherd’s love?

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble, or hardship, or persecution, or famine or nakedness, or danger or sword?"

Can any of those stop Jesus, my Savior, from protecting me and loving me?

The passage goes on, "As it is written, for your sake, we face danger all day long. We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered."

The devil considers us as sheep to be slaughtered. He is trying to slaughter us. He is trying to lead us away from our Savior, by troubles, and hardships, and persecutions.

But, listen to what the Bible says. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble, or persecution, or famine or nakedness, or danger or sword? No. No, in all of these things, we are more than conquerors, through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, neither angels, nor demons, neither the present, nor the future, nor any power, neither height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God, that is in Christ Jesus, our Lord."

Nothing can snatch us out of Christ’s hand - nothing, because He is the almighty, powerful, Savior. When we stay close by His side, we are totally safe.

Let’s not follow our Savior at a distance. Let’s use His Word. Let’s come to church. Let’s use the Sacraments. Let’s use His Word in our lives. And then He promises safety and security.

Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me!

Amen.

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