Welcome, everyone. It's good to see everybody
that's here. We do have several of our number
that are, is this loud. We do have several of our number
that are missing. But it's great to see all of you
and we have a wonderful crowd because you're here and it is
great to see you. We've been praying for you,
Jason, and it's wonderful to see you with us today.
And our prayers have been answered.
That's wonderful. This morning we're going to
continue our series on the great Sermon on the Mount, and we come
to Matthew Chapter 7 and verses 13 and 14 where Jesus is going
to teach us a lesson about the difficult way that leads to
life. I want to notice these passages
first of all, beginning in verse 13.
Jesus said this entered by the narrow gate, for wide is the
gate, and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there
are many who go in by it because narrow is the gate and difficult
is the way which leads to life and there are few that find it.
In chapter 6 and verses 19 through 21, the Lord teaches us
that there's life after this life, that man's existence is
going to extend or go beyond this life.
We know that in Chapter 7 and verses 13 and 14, the Lord's
going to tell us that that existence is going to be in one
of two places. So the choices that we make are
very important in our life because they're going to
determine where it is that we spend eternity.
We all know that. And Jesus gives in this
masterful sermon really, I guess, a reality check.
The Lord was great about keeping it real.
What I'm going to say is we're going to talk about some things
that are difficult to grasp. And sometimes as we go through
this, we may get a little discouraged, but have No Fear
because in the end, we're going to show that it's worth it.
We're in the end, we're going to show that we really can do it
regardless of the circumstances, regardless of the difficulties
and even the persecutions and tribulations that would come our
way in entering the gate that leads to the narrow way that
leads to life. That's why Jesus in the very
beginning of this passage, he says this.
You got to enter by the narrow gate.
Now I'm just going to say this in advance.
So you don't think, man, he's spending a lot of time on this
first phrase. We got a lot to cover in two
verses. We're going to be here for a
really long time. Have No Fear.
The majority of our lesson is going to be focused on this
phrase because that's the point, the choice of entering by the
narrow gate. And why is it narrow and why is
the way difficult? You know, the Lord is the was
the master at everything. He was the master at preaching.
And he as he had this this audience of people on the great
Sermon on the Mount, they would have understood the context of
what he's talking about. And the reason for that is he is
drawing a picture, a very vivid picture of two different walled
cities with two very different gates.
One is difficult and one is easy.
Now, why is that significant? It's very significant because
all ancient cities, or may I just say most ancient cities,
were walled. In fact, you can go back to the
Old Testament. You remember Nineveh.
I read historians that said that Nineveh's walls were so wide to
keep the enemy out that you could take two Chariots and
drive them side by side on the top of the wall.
That's how thick those walls were.
There was another thing that was very common too, by the way, and
Jerusalem very important. Around this time, Jerusalem was
exactly the same. They were fortified with walls
and how many gates? 11 main gate.
And there was a reason for that, to protect himself from the
enemy. Nobody can go back and
circumvent the deal and come in the backside.
You had to come in one gate and the guards would guard that gate
to keep the enemy out. So they understood the
illustration. The Lord is saying this to us.
Please get this, Our life is the preparation ground for eternity.
In fact, Diana reminded me of she called it one of my Frank
isms a while back. But I've said this many times
over the years. Here's the point.
Our life is the trial, meaning we are on trial now.
Where we're going to spend eternity is determined by the
trial. Our trial is the life that we're
living now. When we die, our fate is sealed
in death and one of two things, we are either acquitted or we
are convicted at death. Then when the Lord comes back at
the resurrection, that is the sentencing day when the Lord
will separate the sheep from the goats.
So our life is the trial. It is the preparing for where we
spend eternity, and that's what the Lord is saying here.
I like what Fowler said. He said it this way.
The emphasis is not on the entering as opposed to remaining
outside, since all humanity is regarded as entering one gate or
the other. So here's the emphasis.
The emphasis is on the choice of the right gate.
That's the emphasis of this passage, choosing the right
gate. Now, why is the narrow gate the
most unlikely? You know why?
Because it's the one that's the hardest, the one that leads to
life is the one that is the most difficult.
But in order to be saved, you have to enter the gate.
You can't just admire it. You can't just meditate on it.
I want to make a little side point here, OK?
I know a lot of people in my life that admire Jesus.
I know a lot of people that even quote Jesus.
I know a lot of people that speak words that Jesus spoke.
Here's the problem. Far too many people today lack
the commitment that it takes to commit themselves to the Lord so
they can get enter the narrow gate that leads to the way of
righteousness, that leads to the way of life.
You ever heard people say this? You ever heard people say that
we live in a godless society? You know that's not true.
We do not live in a godless society.
And I know it's very convenient for people to say, oh, look at
all the stuff going on in the world.
We live in a godless society. There are godless people,
absolutely. There are people that don't
recognize God. That's all true.
But make no mistake about it, we really don't live in a godless
society. Stay with me.
I'm going to prove my point here in the city of Bakersfield.
Did you know that we are not only #1 when it comes to bad
air, but we are #1 in the entire state of California?
By way of a survey that was taken regarding how many people
are likely to attend church services or profess
Christianity, Bakersfield, CA is number one in the state.
Does that sound godless? Not to me.
What's the problem? The problem isn't godless.
The problem is commitment. That's the problem.
It's commitment. If our society has a problem,
it's commitment. And that stems in all aspects of
our life. I remember coaching youth
athletics. I used to tell the parents, take
your vacations all year long. Do it.
But during this time, that's my time.
That's our time. Don't take vacations.
You know what they did? Some of them, they didn't care.
Took vacations. Commitment, commitment issues.
That's our society. So Jesus says enter by the
narrow gate. That's the new King James.
The old King James says straight gate, and the word means narrow.
That's why I love how the new King James says it, because it
just says what the meaning is. Enter by the narrow gate.
OK, what else? What does it mean?
It means to groan as being under pressure.
That's what the word means. The word straight or the word
narrow, in a figurative sense, it denotes a restriction or
constriction. That's what the word means.
In other words, it's this. The path that leads to the
Kingdom of heaven is extremely narrow and the only thing that
there's room for. In other words, there's not room
for anything other than these two things.
Number one, God's plan and #2 the Lord's teaching.
And that's found, by the way, in the New Testament.
That's all the New Testament. The New Testament is the last
will and testament of Jesus Christ.
In other words, that's why it is narrow.
That's why it is difficult. There's not room for anything
else except God's plan and the Lord's teachings, and that's all
that's revealed in the Word of God.
OK. In other words, the gate is not
wide enough for self righteousness, sinfulness, or
even pride. I like how Luke records this.
Notice what the Lord said in the Gospel according to Luke chapter
13 and verse 24. He said the word strive.
I got to talk about strive for just a moment.
Have you ever heard somebody say we got to strive for perfection?
I was coached old school and my coaches said we don't practice
doesn't make perfect unless you practice perfect.
And you know, they thought they were pretty wise by saying that.
It's wisdom. That's great stuff, right?
You know, it's a ridiculous concept to strive for perfection
because you cannot ever attain it.
When I coach football, I tried to emphasize something
different. We're not going to strive for
perfection. That's that's not attainable
because everybody makes mistakes and nobody's perfect.
We're going to strive for excellence, which is attainable.
When the Lord talks about this word strive, He means something
we can attain. We can actually attain
something. What is it?
The narrow gate, if we strive for it.
You know the word, the Greek word for strive is the Greek
word that we often come up with another English word too.
And it's this word here, agony, that sounds painful.
That doesn't sound like fun at all.
Here's the point. To enter the Kingdom, to live
the Christian life. It's not going to be a leisurely
stroll. There's going to be some
striving. There's going to be some
struggle and even a little agony in our life.
In other words, it comes with painful dedication.
And bear with me, it's going to be worth it.
We'll get to all that in Luke 16 and 16.
Notice how he says it here. The law and the prophets were
until John. Since that time, the Kingdom of
God has been preached and everyone get this is pressing
into it. The word actually means through
intense pursuit. The American Standard version
renders it like this. Every man entereth violently
into it. Now, this doesn't suggest, by
the way, it doesn't suggest that we can force our way into the
Kingdom. That's not what that's talking
about. The striving that we're talking
about is this. We enter by pushing past all of
the barriers that would stand in our way and sometimes that
selfish desires, sometimes that selfish ambitions, sometimes
that is things or anything in our life whatsoever you plug it
in that stands in our way of being fully devoted and
committed. There's that word again and
committed to our Lord. That's what it is.
That is the violently part. We press through those things,
through those barriers aggressively.
By the way, you've heard me say this before, but living the the
Christian life is not a life of passive acquiescence.
In other words, I'm just going to passively sit here and just
hang in there till the Lord comes back.
That is not Christianity. Christianity is a fight.
Our weapon is the sword of the Spirit.
That's the Word of God. And our life is about standing
for the truth of the Word of God and following the Lord all the
days of our life. And sometimes that means that's
going to be really hard. Sometimes it's going to be
really difficult. OK, what about this aspect right
here? What about the violent part?
What about that? The violence refers to the
extreme demands that are on the Christian, but it also refers,
get this to spiritual crucifixion.
I'm going to get back to this in a minute, but I'm going to put
one verse up. When we talk about spiritual
crucifixion, notice then he said to them all, if anyone desires
to come after me, let him deny Himself and take up His cross
daily and follow me. That is spiritual crucifixion.
May I just remind us that sometimes with this intense
pursuit comes hard times. So don't be, don't be
discouraged because it's always been that way.
Notice with you some Bible for that in Acts chapter 14, a long
time ago these were brethren that were being warned of what
was coming in their life. And in Acts 14 and 22, it says
strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to
continue in the faith, and saying we must through many
tribulations enter the Kingdom of God.
These were people that lived a long time ago, and they were
told through many tribulations that were going to enter the
Kingdom of God. I think it's important to
reflect on the sacrifices that the forefathers had gone through
in the days of the early church. That's true.
But please understand, just because we are not persecuted
like they were and we're not being martyred for our faith and
really that in our life we may say that we have it easy.
Make no mistake about it. The Bible says that all that
will live godly will what, suffer persecution of some kind,
something. It may be a lost job because you
said I'm not going to forsake the assembly.
It may be that you lose out on something in your life and you
didn't get a promotion or you didn't get something that you
had coming that you deserved because you put the Lord first.
Or you wouldn't side with people that are sinful doing sinful
things and then you're being avoided as a result of it.
Or somebody may make fun of a young person because they say,
no, I'm a Christian. I don't do those kind of things.
Regardless in your life, whatever it is, if you live
godly, the Bible says you will suffer persecution.
So let's just understand, tribulations come our way too,
even in the modern time. And do you know why?
Because Satan is still working. Satan is the enemy.
He's still working. He was working when these words
were spoken, and he's still working today.
He just changes his tactics a little bit.
He's cunning and crafting and he changes his tactics.
OK, but just remember this. It's only going to be for a
short time and then it's glory forever.
Then that make you feel a little bit better when the words to the
seven churches of Asia in the Book of Revelation went out.
I love this passage. You've heard me preach on this
passage in Revelation chapter 2 and verse 10.
Smyrna was the persecuted church.
So John the Revelator penning these words of Jesus, divinely
inspired by the Holy Spirit said this.
Do not fear any of those things which you're about to suffer.
Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison
that you may be tested and you will have tribulation. 10 days.
I'm going to get back to 10 days in a minute in a figurative
sense, but let me just tell you what I can do anything for 10
days. I can do anything for 10 days
when I know that the outcome is great and the suffering is only
for a short time. I remember when I had cancer, I
remember the treatments were awful.
OK, they were awful. And there were times when, man,
I had to do a lot of praying just to get through it.
Just to get through it and bear it.
It was awful. Chemo was terrible, but
radiation was even worse for head and neck cancer was
terrible. The pain was awful.
OK. But I always knew that I had the
Lord #1 #2 the prognosis was good, my test results were
getting better, and I knew if I just endure it for a little
while, I'm going to be OK. It's amazing what we can do when
we only have to endure it for a little time.
You know what Jesus says, if you're going to have
tribulation, it's only 10 days. It's only 10 days.
But then he says be faithful until death.
And by the way, this does not mean, although you can lump it
in a general sense, it doesn't mean be faithful all your life
and you'll get a crown of life. Although that's true, that's not
what he means here. The context of the passage is
really this. You're going to have tribulation
10 days, but be faithful even if it means your death.
That's the context. And even if it means your death,
don't worry, Jesus said I'm going to give you a crown of
life. So here's my point.
People talk about the days of tribulation.
I was holding a meeting in Kentucky recently and there was
a visitor that came one night and he came up and he wanted to
talk to me after services about the period of tribulation.
He want to talk about the rapture and the period of
tribulation at the end of time. And I, I just said, look, I
don't have time to go into all this with you today, but I will
in the future if you'd like. But what I said is I said the
period of tribulation is not at the end of time.
The period of tribulation is right now in your life.
It was in these people's lives. And by the way, the Book of
Revelation, scholars say, was either written in the eighty 60s
or in the eighty 90s and we don't know for sure.
Scholars are all over the map. I'm just going to say it this
way. That part doesn't matter.
What I'm saying is when Jesus made this promise about the
period of tribulation, it was a long time ago and every one of
those people are dead now. OK, So what does it mean?
What did the Lord mean when he said tribulation?
10 days? What is 10 days?
Here it is, one short lifetime. You're going to have tribulation
1 short lifetime. Don't worry though, if you're
faithful even to the point of even if they come and kill you,
don't worry about it. The Lord said, I'm going to give
you a crown of life. Another passage, John 1633.
Jesus is speaking to his disciples, OK.
Early eighty 30s he's speaking to his disciples.
These things I've spoken to you, that in me you may have peace in
the world, you will have tribulation speaking to his
disciples, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.
And one more final passage in Acts 14 and 22, strengthening
the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in
the faith, and saying we must through many tribulations enter
the Kingdom of God. OK, Because of that, because of
the tribulations, because of the difficulty.
That is why Jesus said few there be that find it.
And the reason for that is because not everybody is willing
to make the sacrifice. Do you remember in the days that
the Hebrew writer wrote to the Hebrew Christians, it was
looking forward to the point of the destruction of Jerusalem and
they were under great persecution.
That's why Hebrews 10/25 says not forsaking the assembling of
ourselves together as a manner of some is, but exhorting one
another so much more. You see they're approaching and
I know there's different variations of opinions and
there's merit to it. Is it the first day of the week?
That day is at the end of time. There's merit in that, but the
context really is the destruction of Jerusalem because
that's what they could see. And as they were going toward
the destruction of Jerusalem, they were being persecuted
greatly. Oh, tribulations.
And many of them quit and went back to the old Law of Moses
because they said we don't want to pay the price, folks.
That's why Jesus said few there be that find it because not
everybody wants to pay the price.
That's why it doesn't mean few are going to have access to it.
It means few are going to make the willful choice to choose it
because of what all of it comes with it.
OK, all right, here's the contrast though.
For wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leads to
destruction. And there are many who go in by
it. OK, that's the contrast.
Another way people flow where the gates wide.
It's a place that has no restrictions, No restrictions.
The path is broad. One scholar said it this way.
It suggests the fact that the Broadway is wide open country.
In other words, it's not like going through a narrow gate to
get on a path. It's like going through a big
gate to a pasture. That's what it's like with no
fences or boundaries. There's no rules or regulations
to hinder one from doing what they want on the Broad Rd.
One may go anywhere he wants to and live as undisciplined a life
as he chooses. Does that kind of sound like
the? World a little bit where people
choose. To do whatever they want.
When they place. Themselves in control instead of
God being in control. Because they don't want.
To have any restrictions. They don't want to have.
Any rules at all? Now trust me.
Living the Christian life is not just about obeying rules, but
rules are part of it. The Word of God does give us
rules to abide by in our life. Surely it is.
I'm just saying being a Christian is more than just
rules. But yes, make no mistake about
it, it does include rules. Those that follow this way,
please get this. It's like a wayward sheep that
leaves a Good Shepherd. Now we know we have the Good
Shepherd. I'm going to get back to that in
a moment. We're going to get to that
later. But a Good Shepherd tended his
flock. When a sheep.
Wandered away from the shepherd. The sheep was in danger.
You know why? No restrictions go wherever I
want to. But he was in danger.
And often times a wild beast would come and kill the sheep.
You know why? Because the Shepherd wasn't
there to protect it. That's what happens.
When you wander on your own without the Shepherd, there's no
protection at all. Then Jesus.
Says this in Matthew 714. Because narrow is the gate and
difficult is the way that leads to life and there are few who
find it OK. The King James.
Version says narrow, but the word actually means this.
It means press or compress. That's what it means.
And the illustration of the picture is this.
It's like the squeezing of grapes, right?
You squeeze the grapes to get the juice.
That's the compression here. That's what he's saying.
Narrow is the gate and difficult meaning press or compress is the
way. But there's another.
Illustration to another analogy. Robertson says it like this.
Robertson says that the analogy is like this, like a tight place
between high rocks. Now you might remember this a
long time ago when I preached on the I AM statements of Jesus and
I talked about when Jesus says I am the Good Shepherd.
You might remember when I said that often times keeping the
same analogy of between two rocks, sometimes those sheep
would be taken by the shepherd early in the morning outside of
a great big pen. OK.
The. Place that they had to go graze
was not a great big pasture of plush grass.
They had to take him up the side of a mountain oftentimes, and
rocky terrain. And when they did, you know what
often happened? One of those little sheep would
get their legs stuck in between two rocks.
Would the shepherd do? That's the difficult way.
That's this difficult thing we're talking about.
But you know. What the shepherd did, though,
the shepherd was watching all of his sheep, and the shepherd
would go and pull that leg out between those two rocks.
I actually read that a shepherd worked so hard during the day
watching his sheep. He wasn't just kicking back,
taking a snooze. He worked so hard during the day
that scholars say that they were absolutely exhausted at the end
of the day. That's what the Shepherd.
Does. Kind of a picture of.
Another shepherd I know. It's the same word.
By the way, the root word that's translated afflicted in Second
Corinthians one and six, and hard pressed in 2nd Corinthians
4 and 8. Let's notice those two passages.
Now if we are. Afflicted it is for your
consolation and salvation which is effective for enduring the
same sufferings which we also suffer, or if we are comforted,
it is for our consolation and salvation.
Difficult also means same root word afflicted.
Here's another one. We are hard pressed on every
side, yet not crushed. We are perplexed, but not in
despair. You know what Paul was saying?
I'm going to have some hard times, but it's not going to
beat me. And I'm not going to.
Quit. Paul says we're.
Perplexed. But not in.
Despair, the King James says. We are cast down but not
destroyed. He was not going to.
Be counted out. The way that leads.
To life is opposite from the wide open way that the mass is
trod. Barnes says it this way.
It's a tight, narrow, lonely path where one travels in
solitude and singularity. OK, and I know that comes with
difficulty. We all understand that.
Let me get specific and let me talk about the.
What I was talking about. Before about.
Spiritual. Crucifixion.
It's a path where the cross is carried.
Where the cost? Must be counted.
And even. If it's necessary, it's a place
where one's household may be his enemies.
Matthew 10 and 36 in Luke chapter 14 and verse 27.
Notice what Jesus said. Whoever does not bear his cross
and come after me cannot be my disciple again.
Here's the Lord being brilliant. Jesus said these words.
You know what happened 24 years before this?
Please get this picture. There was a man by the name of
Judas of Galilee, and he was a Zealot, and he led a revolt
against the census for taxation purposes in Rome.
You know what happened historically.
You know what happened? Hundreds of Judas's followers,
not Judas Iscariot, but hundreds of his followers, were executed
and crucified on a Roman cross. So what did they?
Understand 24 years later, because that happened in 86.
What did everybody understand that was listening to Jesus when
he spoke these words in Luke 14 and 27 when he said bear his
cross, they would have known this very important fact.
Crosses are for dying. They would have known that.
Crosses are for. Dying.
OK, Whose death? Our death.
My death. Everybody.
Everyone's death. Now how do we do?
That Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice on the cross for our
sins. But how is it that I bear my
cross? How do I do that?
Two ways.
Here we go. We do that by dying to sin, and
that's at baptism. Remember, crosses are for dying.
Number one. We do that by dying to sin.
That's at baptism. But it doesn't stop there when
we died of the world with our life.
And we separate. Our life and we live a Christian
life. That's not a life of sin.
You know, that's actually. Beautifully illustrated before
this passage. In this passage and in the one
before, because in verse 26 Jesus says this, if anyone comes
to me in this passage, he says and comes after me.
I like what Caldwell said. He explains this subtle
difference. He said this coming to Jesus
suggests the establishment of relationship and that's it,
Baptism. That's it.
Baptism when we die to sin. But I like this.
Here, let's not brush past this. Let's look at that right there,
Relationship I. Have made a.
Determination in my mind that I'm going to spend the rest of
my life trying to explain to people.
From a scriptural. Standpoint The importance of
having the proper relationship with the Lord.
And don't. Minimize the statement or reject
the statement if somebody says the only thing that matters is
having a relationship with Jesus.
Because that's true. The question.
Is not that. The question is, how do you
actually have one? You can't do it on.
Your own, You have one by being baptized for their mission of
your sins and living a Christian life and following the Master.
That's how you have one. A relationship.
OK, so the idea of coming to Jesus suggests the establishment
of a relationship. But notice in this passage
coming after me suggests the continuing of that relationship.
Even though it may be. Faced with persecution in
difficult times. And because of all.
Of those things. Jesus says.
There are few who find it. Meaning there are a.
Few that choose it. The word find according to fair
means to come upon, to hit upon, to meet with, to find something
that's sought. In other words, we're talking
about a choice. My question is this.
OK, find what Jesus says. Few there be that find it what
we want to do. We'll stay in the context of
what he said, because this is really the general popular
interpretation. Well, few.
That be that. Find heaven.
In other words, only a few of us are going to heaven, and we're
the few. So everybody, what did he say in
context? Few there be that find it.
What's the IT the difficult way that leads to life?
Because that's a. Choice.
That's a choice, you know. The narrow.
Path is wide enough for all Christians though.
All of us. It's wide enough.
For all Christians, if we do, what if we follow the Lord our
shepherd, single file on one narrow path?
I thought about this this week. I was driving down the road and
I thought I remembered back in the 70s.
Growing up on a ranch. Was the greatest life for a kid,
having horses and cattle and dogs, Greatest life for a kid?
I didn't need anything. I didn't.
We didn't have. One of that Nintendo Wii didn't
have any of that or Xbox or we didn't do any of that.
None of that. That's back in the days, eight
track. Yeah, didn't have any headphones
or nothing like that or OK, So what we had is we had we had to
go outside and do stuff. It was the greatest life.
We had a dude ranch in Ojai. We had a hundred horses at one
time. People would.
Come from all over and they would pay money to go on a trail
ride up through the mountains of our property and there was a
leader, a guide out in the front.
And there was one that. Always was in the tail, like the
caboose in the back of a train and would be in the very back.
Do you know that every one of our horses were so trained you
could drop the reins and we'd get these city folk that come
from all over, man, they'd be scared to death just holding the
horn like this, thinking they're really doing something.
And those horses, you could take the bridle off of them and they
would just walk straight after the horse that's in front of
them all the way around on that entire trail.
That is the picture of the sheep which we are following our
shepherd. And he's leading us.
Straight to heaven. You know what happens?
Though if one of those horses peeled off, another one would
peel off behind it. So it's kind of like.
This let's be like the Apostle Paul.
May I just say this too? I may have a tiny bit of
influence with you. I don't know, Maybe I got a
little. But if I got any.
At all. Only follow me if I follow
Jesus. Like Paul says, follow me as I
follow Christ. What happens is sometimes people
are on the path and one guy decides to go off the
reservation and peel off and look at the damage.
People follow. Got to get back on the path and
follow the Master, the Shepherd. That's the path that the Good
Shepherd leads his followers with love.
I'm going to share with you a story.
Maybe you've heard it's a very old story.
Long time. Ago, there was an old preacher
and he was celebrating his 50th year of ordination.
And he called up the. Famous actor Richard Burton.
And Richard Burton. Had had a lot of success and a
lot of experience even as a Shakespearean actor.
He was a wonderful orator and the preacher said I want you to
come to my 50th celebration of my ordination and when you do, I
would love it. If you recited.
The 23rd Psalm with all of your oratory skill.
Richard Burton said. Sure, I'll do it on one
condition. He said preacher.
When I'm done, you do the same. And he said, OK, there was a
huge. Crowd in that auditorium.
And Richard Burton. Got up and with oratory skill he
absolutely beautifully recited the 23rd Psalm without flaw and
people stood and applauded. Because it was.
Beautiful. He turns to the old.
Preacher, he says. Now it's your turn.
And the old preacher. Just got up, he had no speaking
skill. But from his.
Heart He recited the 23rd Psalm like this.
He said the Lord. Is my shepherd.
And I shall. Not want He maketh me.
To lie down. In green pastures.
He leadeth. Me beside the still waters.
He restoreth. My soul.
He leadeth me. In the paths of righteousness.
For his name's. Sake.
Yeah, though I walk. Through the valley of the shadow
of death. I will fear no.
Evil. For thou art with me thy rod,
and by staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before
me. In the presence.
Of mine enemies. Thou anointest.
My head with oil, my cup runneth over, surely?
Goodness. And mercy shall follow me all
the days of my life. And I.
Will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.
When he was. Finished.
The crowd was dead silent. There were no.
Applause. They were just tears.
And as he sat. Down there was a man sitting
next to Richard Burton. He leans over and he said, hey,
Burton, why was it when you got up and recited the 23rd Psalm,
the result was thunderous applause.
But when the old preacher. Got up.
They were just silently. Moved.
And Burton said. Here's the difference.
I know the 23rd Psalm, but that man knows the shepherd.
That man knows. The Lord.
You ever stop to? Consider how valuable it is to
know the Shepherd. And for the Shepherd to.
Know you? Back in Bible.
Times when that shepherd would go to that sheepfold in the
morning. There was a number.
Of shepherds, and they would all have all their sheep in one
great big pen. But every day.
That shepherd had to go get his own sheep out.
Now, I don't know about you. Sheep look all like to me.
A shepherd, though, knew his sheep so well that every one of
them were named. He knew him by.
Name. That's how much the shepherd
knew the sheep. And the sheep.
Knew the Shepherd so much they knew his voice.
So when the. Shepherd would come to the gate.
He would call. The sheep.
By name and they would come. Because they knew his voice.
And that shepherd. Would have his sheep.
That is our Lord. That's our Lord.
Let me ask you something. Do you know the Shepherd?
If you don't know the. Shepherd, nothing matters.
I just. Gave you a picture of what a
shepherd did. Why is Jesus?
The Good Shepherd #1 he gave. His life for his sheep on
Golgotha's brow. He died for the sheep.
And why I love this? Because he loved his sheep.
And he brings us into intimate unity with himself and with each
other. You.
Know what that's called? It's called having a
relationship with Jesus and having a relationship in the
body of Christ with each other to all because of our Good
Shepherd. Can we live the?
Christian life, you better believe we can.
Is it going to be worth it? Absolutely.
You may have some tribulation 10 days, but it's only 10 days.
Jesus said I'll give you a crown of life.
I love it. Jesus further said in my
Father's house are many mansions.
If we're not so I would have told you I go to prepare a place
for you, that where I am, there you may be also.
Isn't that great? The word prepare.
Means reservation. I'm going to go make a
reservation for you, for his people.
So don't ever think in your life, no matter what goes on in
your life, no matter how difficult it may be, don't ever
think for one minute you're alone.
You are not. You got the shepherd.
I'm finished. Thank you for your kind
listening. We never close.
A time that we teach from the Word of God without extending an
invitation. And by the way, this is how you
know the shepherd. This is the only way to know the
shepherd. You got to hear the Word of God.
Romans 10/17 So faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word
of God. Upon hearing the word of God,
you got a choice to make. You got to believe it with all
your heart. Hebrews 11 and 6.
Without faith, it's impossible to please Him, for he who comes
to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of
those who diligently seek Him. Then we got to.
Repent, got to change some stuff.
Repent of our sins. Acts 17 and 30.
Truly these times of ignorance got overlooked but now commands
all men everywhere to repent. Then we must be willing to say
the greatest thing we will ever say.