Following the Shepherd, Continuing His Mission
September 7, 2022 · 1:46:31 · Watch on YouTube ↗
These notes - summary, key points, and highlighted thoughts - were generated by AI from the recording and are not the preacher’s exact words.
Summary
God's eyes are open on all our paths (Jeremiah 32:19), and He rewards each one according to his ways. Enoch walked before God and was taken up without seeing death. Now is the acceptable time: while there is still breath in us, we can examine our lives and set our steps right. The preacher testifies that months ago he nearly died, yet God granted him another chance to make things right.
Christ finished His redemptive work on the cross (John 17:4, "It is finished"), but the mission of saving humanity is not yet complete. Jesus chose ordinary disciples - fishermen and tax collectors - and entrusted them with this work, and today those disciples are us. In church we are called to be participants, not spectators, for the same Holy Spirit who empowered Peter to win thousands lives in each of us to meet every need around us.
In the second message Jesus is the Good Shepherd of Psalm 23 and John 10 who lays down His life for the sheep. We all strayed like lost sheep and cannot find our way back alone; defenseless before the prowling lion, our only safety is to stay close to Him, feed on His Word, and not forsake the gathering. As David risked himself against lion and bear for his flock, Christ freely gave His life for us.
Key Points
- God sees every path we walk and rewards us by it, so walk before Him as Enoch did.
- Now is the acceptable time: while breath remains, examine your life and make it right.
- Christ finished His redemptive work, but the mission of saving the lost continues through us.
- We are today's disciples - be a participant in worship and witness, not a spectator.
- The first disciples were ordinary people; the power comes from the Holy Spirit, not our talent.
- Jesus is the Good Shepherd who knows us by name and laid down His life for the sheep.
- A defenseless sheep is safe only beside its shepherd - stay close, feed on the Word, keep meeting together.
Devotional
Picture yourself as a sheep on an open hillside: easily lost, unable to find your own way home, defenseless before the lion that prowls nearby. Your one hope is to keep your eyes on the Shepherd and stay as close to His side as you can. Ask whether you have been a spectator or a participant in His work, and whether you are still feeding on His Word. The same Spirit that emboldened plain fishermen waits to work through you, and today, while there is still breath in you, is the acceptable time to follow Him fully.
Christ finished His work, yet the mission of saving the lost goes on, and He has no other plan but us.
A straying sheep never finds its own way home; the return is always the Shepherd's work.
While there is still breath in us, today is the acceptable time to set our lives right.
