SERMON: I AM THE GATE

(Photo Credit: craftmonkeys.typepad.com)

Preached by Gregory W. Lee
19 August 2007

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to John 10

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.
8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.
9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.
10. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

-- the other night, we were flipping through the channels on the t.v. and ran across a new reality show called, "Who wants to be a Superhero?"
-- the premise of this show is that the contestants come up with an original idea for a superhero -- they design a costume -- and they come up with the superpowers and characteristics -- and then they live it out
-- each week, they are tested for courage, integrity, self-sacrifice, compassion and resourcefulness -- and whoever fails the test, has to leave the show in disgrace
-- at the end of the season, the superhero who is left will be immortalized in a new comic book created by Stan Lee, the legendary comic-book creator who brought us Spider-man, The Hulk, The Fantastic Four, and the X-Men
-- as we watched a few minutes of the show, I had to laugh -- it was all pretty silly -- watching these grown-ups parade around in costumes and pretend to be superheros -- of course, when you grow up in the midst of real superheros, the fake ones just don't hold a candle

-- when I was really young, I became aware of these real superheros in our midst -- brave and courageous -- filled with integrity and self-sacrife -- defining compassion -- modelling resourcefulness -- of course, I am talking about the superheros that we all know and love -- our mothers
-- something happens when a woman becomes a mother -- she develops super-powers -- she gains the ability to see through the back of her head -- and can catch a child stealing cookies from a cookie jar at 20 paces
-- she gains super-hearing ability -- and can hear a lamp break as a result of horseplay from half a mile away
-- she gains super-sensitivity and can sense danger and trouble -- she can be in the middle of a telephone conversation when all of a sudden she stops and just knows, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that her child is up to something and needs to be stopped
-- she can kiss away hurts and dry tears -- and she knows how to fix everything from a toy car to a flat tire on a bicycle
-- but, more than anything else, she has the superpower of protection -- I remember when I was real little -- we were driving in town and someone cut us off -- my mother had to slam on brakes -- now this was before wearing seatbelts became the thing to do -- I'm sitting in the front seat -- the car abruptly stops -- and before I could move one inch in the seat towards the dash -- whoosh! -- a super-mommy lashes out and holds me firmly against the seat -- protecting me from danger and harm
-- you want to talk about super-protection? -- have you ever seen a mother when her child is threatened? -- she would walk on water and cross a raging sea to keep her baby safe -- and, just let something happen when a group of mothers is together -- they are like a pack of she-lions -- fiercely protecting their children from harm
-- it's a lot like what happens when a wolf tries to get too close to a buffalo calf -- all of the mother buffalo form a circle -- put their calves in the center -- and face out towards the wolf -- with their horns pointed at him and their eyes just daring him to get any closer

-- super-protection from super-moms -- but, truth be told, they are only living out the God-given ability and desire in their hearts -- at their best, they are only imitating the behavior of their God and their Savior

-- lest we forget, God has always been protective over His children -- don't forget -- it might have been Moses and Aaron who actually said the words to Pharoah, but it was God who said, "Let my people go" and poured out His wrath on the Egyptians until they did so
-- lest we forget, it was God who brought down the walls of Jericho and gave His people power to fight back the enemies that attacked from within and without
-- lest we forget, it was God who protected David from the lion and the bear -- and who gave him the ability to slay the giant Goliath
-- and lest we forget, it was Jesus who went to the cross and died for our sins -- who took our punishment on Himself so we didn't have to bear it -- who took our hurt on Himself so we didn't have to suffer
-- God has been and always will be the God who protects
-- we see that right here in this passage as we look at the third "I Am" statement of Jesus -- "I Am the Gate"

-- look back with me now, if you would, at verse 7

7. Therefore Jesus said again, "I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.

-- now, at first read, this doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to us -- how could Jesus be the gate? -- it would make better sense if He said, "I guard the gate" or "I keep the gate secure" -- but not, "I am the gate"
-- in order to understand this, you have to know two things about sheep and sheepfolds and shepherds in the first century
-- first, you need to understand that the relationship between the shepherd and his sheep was entirely different from what we understand in our country -- a lot of people around here have livestock -- granted, we don't have a lot of sheep -- but we do have a lot of cattle and pigs and other animals
-- farmers here gather their livestock up and put them in a pasture with plenty of food and water and basically just leave them alone -- they might check on them every day or so -- but they don't stay with them 24/7

-- it wasn't like that with the shepherds in Jesus' day -- the shepherds in Jesus' day lived with their sheep -- they didn't have fenced in pastures like we had here -- their pastures were poor quality and very sparse -- and it took quite a bit of area to feed a flock of sheep -- the shepherd would stay with the sheep, leading them from one valley of grass to the next -- leading them from the field to a water source in the middle of the day
-- because they were using communal pastures and communal drinking holes, there were times when the sheep from one flock would mix with the sheep from another -- but, because of the amount of time they had spent with the shepherd, they would recognize him -- and when it was time to go, they would see him leave and hear his voice calling to them and they would follow -- just like a bunch of ducklings follow their mother from the nest to the water
-- so, in the first century, sheep were not just livestock to the shepherd -- they were like family

-- secondly, you need to know that the shepherd was the supreme protector of the sheep -- sheep aren't the brightest bulb in the lot, if you know what I mean -- they needed protection and they needed guidance -- and they depended on the shepherd to do that for them
-- so at night, the shepherds wouldn't leave the sheep alone like we do with our livestock -- they'd make a sheep-fold for them -- using rocks or branches or something like that to make a temporary corral -- and they'd make a circle out of it, leaving just a small opening for the sheep to enter for the night
-- but, these sheep-folds didn't have a gate -- the shepherd himself would be the gate -- he would lay down in front of the opening and sleep there at night -- making sure the sheep didn't wander out during the night -- and making sure that nothing would come in and harm the sheep
-- in this passage, Jesus is teaching the people and He's telling them, "I am the gate for the sheep" -- "I am the gate" -- I know who you are -- I gather you in -- I bring you to safety -- I protect you from harm -- nothing is going to bother you when you are in my fold -- nothing is going to harm you when you are in my care -- I am the gate -- and I won't let nothing in at night
-- verse 8

8. All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.

-- many people had come before Jesus, claiming to be the Messiah -- claiming to know the secrets of life -- claiming to be able to protect the people and to guard them -- but none of them were the real deal -- none of them were the gate -- they were only thieves and robbers who came to steal the sheep away in the night
-- but Jesus said, "Those who knew my voice -- those who knew the Promise of the real Messiah -- those who knew who I was -- they refused to listen to the stealers of their souls and instead listened only for their Master's voice"

-- verse 9

9. I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.
10. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

-- Jesus is the gate -- He is the only way to safety and security and rest -- He is the only way to eternal life -- as it says in Acts 4:12, "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." and in Romans 10:9, "If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."

-- the only way to eternal life with the Father -- the only way to Heaven -- is through the gate -- through Jesus -- and none other
-- and Jesus promises that if we enter through Him -- then we will belong to His fold -- we will be part of His flock -- and He will not allow harm to come our way

-- to enter through the gate means that we are in the hand of Jesus -- and nothing can take us out of that hand -- nothing can separate us from the love of God that we have in Christ Jesus -- not death nor life -- not angels or demons -- not the present or the future -- nor any powers -- not height or depth -- nor anything else in all creation

-- you think Mommy arms are powerful? -- wait until you are safe in the arms of Jesus -- there is nothing that is going to harm you -- there is nothing that is going to hurt you

-- oh, the world might throw all it has at you -- it might throw trials and trouble and storms your way -- it is going to try to steal and kill and destroy you and all you hold dear
-- but once you are safe in the sheep-fold of Christ -- once you have gone through the gate of Christ and salvation and been justified by the blood of the Lamb -- then there's nothing that the world or the thieves or the robbers can really do to you

-- in Matthew 10:28, Jesus says, "Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell."
-- they might take your material possessions -- they might take the temporary things of this world -- they might even take your life -- but they can't take you out of the super-strong arms of Christ -- they can't kill your soul
-- only God has the power of death and life in His hands -- only God has the power to destroy both soul and body in hell -- but Jesus says, "If you come in through the Gate -- I will protect your soul -- I will guard your life -- and I will lead you out to green pastures -- I will make you lie beside the still waters -- I will give you rest -- you have nothing to fear -- I Am the Gate"

III. Closing
-- several years ago, one of the top game shows in America was "Let's Make a Deal" -- if you remember that show, people would dress up and try to get chosen to be the next contestant
-- they'd run down to the stage and Monty Hall would offer them a prize just for coming on the show -- but, they'd always be given the opportunity to trade their prize for something that was hidden in a box or behind a curtain or behind a door
-- at the end of the show, there was always "The Big Deal" -- the top two contestants who had won the prizes with the highest value were shown three doors -- the top contestant was allowed to pick one of the three doors -- and then the second contestant had to choose between the two remaining doors
-- they never knew what was behind the door -- it could be a prize greater in value than what they had won -- or it could be something that was worth a lot less
-- but, the only way to find out, was to choose a door and see what was beyond it
-- we find a similar choice in our lives today -- we confronted with many doors and many gates -- some of them promise wealth beyond imagination -- others lead to nothing but trouble and heartache
-- while the world screams at us -- "Pick us -- pick us -- go through this door -- go through this gate" -- Jesus quietly says, "I am the Gate -- I am the Door -- I am the only path that leads to where you really want to go -- listen to my voice -- trust in Me -- and know that I Am"
-- what gate will you pass through today? -- what door will you choose?
-- one leads to destruction -- the other to life -- abundant and full life
-- what will you do?
-- let us pray