Facebook and following the Good Shepherd this Christmas
VIDEO – http://www.sermonspice.com/product/37237/a-social-network-christmas
INTRODUCTION
If you’re on Facebook or Twitter, then you know all about following. These social networks are a great way to follow what your friends are up to; to keep up to speed with what’s going on. But whether or not we’re on facebook or twitter we all follow someone or something.
You might follow the news. You might follow a football team. You might follow your own instinct. You might follow your horoscope. You might follow the markets. You might follow the crowd. You might follow your heart
What’s your philosophy of life? What and who do you follow?
The thing is, whatever it is we follow, it influences the way we live our lives and that may be good or that may be bad. The question is, whatever it is YOU’RE following, is it working for you? Are you living more successfully because of it? Are you happier for it? Are you healthier for it? Are you content and free from worry because of it? Is your life worth living because of it? Are you making a difference? Is it really working for you?
The reason I ask this question at Christmas time is because one of the many names Jesus was given was “The Good Shepherd.” He was a shepherd of people. It’s not a very flattering picture but people followed Jesus like sheep, and so the name “The Good Shepherd” is an appropriate name for him.
When he was born Jesus was given several different names …
Emmanuel – which means God with us (Matthew 1:23).
Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69)
Son of the Most High God (Lk. 1:32)
The Son of God (Luke 1:35)
A Nazarene (Matthew 2:23)
And of course the name Jesus – (Matthew 1:25 – Joseph named him)
But what about this name “The Good Shepherd?” People were drawn to and followed Jesus from the moment he was born.
First there are the shepherds we read about who were in the field at night when angels appeared to them to tell them that Jesus had been born in a stable in Bethlehem. The shepherds were drawn to Jesus and went to see him.
Then there were the wise men – the Magi. They saw Jesus’ star in the night sky and sought him out to worship him. - - They were drawn to follow Jesus, the Good Shepherd. And they travelled a long way to see him.
When Jesus began his ministry as an adult one of the first things he did was to approach people and simply say, “Come follow me.” And they did! Men like Peter, Simon, John and Matthew simply left their professions and began to follow Jesus.
And as we read through the Bible we discover this is in fact what Jesus wants us to do; to simply follow him.
But why? Why should we follow Jesus?
Well, there are many good reasons. This Christmas I want to get real personal with you and give you five reasons why I follow Jesus and why I think you should too …
1. HE GIVES THE MOST SATISFYING PATHWAY TO WHOLENESS/FULFILLMENT IN MY LIFE
First, I follow the Good Shepherd because He gives the most satisfying pathway to wholeness and fulfilment in life.
We all only have on life to live and most sane people have stopped at some point to consider how they are going to invest this one life we have to live.
And I guess when it comes to deciding what we’re going to do with our lives we have three choices …
a. We can do whatever WE want to do – i.e. we can live to please ourselves.
b. We can do what someone else wants us to do – i.e. live to please other people.
c. Or we can do what God wants us to do – i.e. we can live to please God.
The question is, which is these is most satisfying? The first is all about being a selfish, egotistical person. The second is all about being a doormat. But in the third, we are offered a new and far more satisfying way to live - - the problem is, it’s not an easy way to live. Jesus once said …
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me. 25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. 26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul? 27 For the Son of Man will come with his angels in the glory of his Father and will judge [and reward] all people according to their deeds. (Matthew 16:24-27 NLT).
Here Jesus presents us with two approaches to life …
Deny yourself. Take up your cross. Follow Christ. Lose your life for His sake. Give up the world. Keep your soul. Share in his reward and glory.
OR
Live only for yourself. Ignore the cross. Follow the world. Save your life for your own sake. Gain the world. Lose your soul.
Lose your reward and glory.
To follow Christ is not an easy life, but it is the most fulfilling life a person could live. It’s not about living for yourself. It’s not even about living to please other people. It’s about living for the eternal and lasting purposes and plans of God.
You see, this world is temporary (The last funeral you went to reminds you of that). But the work God is up to will last forever, and you can be a part of that!
That’s why it’s a good idea to follow the Good Shepherd this Christmas. Only He can give us the most satisfying pathway to wholeness and fulfilment in life.
2. HE’S GIVING OUT FREE STUFF
Another reason why I follow Jesus the Good Shepherd is because he’s giving out free stuff. Christmas is time when most people blow the budget, so when you hear about free stuff it’s worth checking it out.
Jesus once said …
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6:33)
Some people think all God wants to do is take stuff away from us; that God wants to take the fun and enjoyment out of life. But nothing could be further from the truth. God is so generous. When we seek after (or follow), our Heavenly Father, he makes sure we get everything we will ever need.
Some people are gripped by anxiety because they don’t know what the future holds. Will they get what they need? Are they going to be able to pay the bills? Will their health last?
What they don’t realise is that this baby whose birth we celebrate every Christmas, is giving away free stuff! Following Jesus the Good Shepherd sets us free to leave all those worries in God’s hands. Jesus said, “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Essentially what he is saying is that if we follow him he will see to it that we will never go without anything we need. It is such a relief not to have to worry about anything except pleasing the Good Shepherd.
When was the last time you had a good nights sleep without any worry or anxiety? Don’t you know that God has sustained your life from the moment you took your first breath? He’s made sure you’ve been fed and clothed from the moment you came into this world. And so he can also sustain you through whatever it is you’re facing now. He wants to give you everything you need.
For me that’s too good a deal to pass up, and so that’s why I follow the Good Shepherd.
3. I NEARLY MISSED THE POINT OF MY LIFE BUT JESUS SHOWED ME THE PURPOSE FOR MY BEING HERE
A third reason I follow the Good Shepherd is because I nearly missed the point of my life but Jesus showed me the purpose for my being here.
Do you know why you are alive? What is the purpose for you being here? Why are you even on this planet? What is the purpose of your life? Are you here just to eat, sleep, make money, reproduce and then die? There has to be more to life doesn’t there?
Several years ago Rick Warren wrote a great book called the Purpose Driven Life and he starts the very first chapter by saying …
“The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfilment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose.” (Rick Warren – The Purpose Driven Life)
You can read the first chapter of this book online if you want to, I’ve put a link on our church web site for you to follow (You can download it to the iPad you’re getting for Christmas – or simply read it online). It’s a fascinating read.
You know, the Bible is not as concerned about HOW we got here (That’s a question for the scientists to debate). The Bible is more concerned about WHY we are here. And frankly I think that’s a far more important question.
Here’s what the Bible says about why you are here ….
The LORD has made everything for his own purposes (Proverbs 16:4)
God was thinking of you long before you began thinking about him. God began planning your life before you were even born.
In this life you might choose your career, your spouse, your hobbies, and many other parts of your life, but you don’t get to choose your purpose.
We find a clue to our purpose in the Christmas story. One of the names Jesus was given was “Emmanuel.” Like all names “Emmanuel” has a meaning, it means “God with us.”
God created you just so that you could enjoy living in His presence.
You might say to yourself …
I was born to be a mum
Or I was born to write
Or I was born to teach
Or I was born to be an artist
Or I was born to be an entrepreneur
Or any number of things.
I used to say that I was born to be a Pastor because I find it such a fulfilling vocation. But in actual fact we are all born simply to live as children in the presence of the Father who created us. That’s the only reason we are alive.
God doesn’t love me because of what I do. He loves me because of who I am, and I am his child and he is my Heavenly Father.
What I do is not who I am.
God likes it that you’re a mum. And God likes it that you’re the breadwinner for your family, and although those things are good and important, that’s not why you’re here. You are here to simply to know God and enjoy His presence and for him to enjoy you.
Look at it this way, to a degree it doesn’t matter what job my kids do in life, but what is absolutely essential to me is that we love one another and enjoy being together. And it’s like that with you and your Heavenly Father. God just wants you to enjoy him and be with him for all eternity.
“Emmanuel.” God with us.
One of the key reasons I follow the Good Shepherd is because he shows us the deeper meaning behind why we are even here on this planet.
4. HE HAS NEVER FORGOTTEN ME.
The fourth reason I follow Jesus the Good Shepherd is because He has never forgotten me.
I have forgotten him plenty of times. I’ve rebelled against him, ignored him, rejected his advice and loving guidance, blatantly sinned against him, let him down time and time again. I’ve tried to hide certain parts of my life from him. But the Good Shepherd has never forgotten me.
Jesus said this …
“… be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20)
He has never disappointed me. I can trust him. He has never let me down. I may be unfaithful, but Jesus never is.
Of all the millions of people on earth who follow the Good Shepherd, he has never forgotten about me. Unworthy as I may be, he has never forgotten me. As awesome as He is above everything that’s been created, he has never forgotten me. Of all the stars in the sky and all the creatures on earth that he sustains he has never forgotten about me.
Listen to these spine tingling words from the book of Psalms …
7 I can never escape from your Spirit!
I can never get away from your presence!
8 If I go up to heaven, you are there;
if I go down to the grave, you are there.
9 If I ride the wings of the morning,
if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
and your strength will support me.
11 I could ask the darkness to hide me
and the light around me to become night—
12 but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.
To you the night shines as bright as day.
Darkness and light are the same to you.
13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Every moment was laid out
before a single day had passed.
17 How precious are your thoughts about me, O God.
They cannot be numbered!
18 I can’t even count them;
they outnumber the grains of sand!
And when I wake up,
you are still with me!
Psalm 139:7-18 (NLT)
Have you ever been forgotten? Left behind? Overlooked? Underappreciated? Ignored? Sacked? Rejected? Abandoned? Deserted? Others may forget you, but the Good Shepherd will never forget you. You are far too important to him.
That’s why I follow the Good Shepherd.
5. HE HAS EARNED MY ALLEGIANCE.
The most important reason I follow the Good Shepherd is because he deserves it. Jesus has earned my allegiance.
We have to remember that Jesus didn’t stay a baby in a manger. Christmas is only half the story. Easter is the other half of the story.
One of the gifts the wise men brought to Jesus that first Christmas was Myrrh and Myrrh was used to embalm dead bodies. Later on, Jesus pointed out that the only reason he came to earth was to die for us …
The Son of Man came… to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45)
Jesus said he died “for” us. The “for” means “instead of.” Jesus died on the cross so that we wouldn’t have to. He took the punishment for all the wrong things we’ve done so that we wouldn’t have to.
Jesus the Good Shepherd has earned my allegiance, my following, because he paid for it with his life!
WHAT NOW?
Friends, this is the whole reason why we give gifts at Christmas time, to remember the supreme gift God gave to us …
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
The Bible makes it clear that we have to do something in order to receive the gift of forgiveness and new life that God offers. And this is an act of faith. John says, “Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Believing involves an act of faith. We have to put our trust in Jesus.
So ask yourself, whatever it is YOU’RE following is it working for you? You could be following your own instinct, your horoscope, the financial markets, the crowd, your heart. But is it working for you?
I want to challenge you to open up your life to God, to take a new direction with him this Christmas. To accept God’s gift of forgiveness and new life and to start following his Son, Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd. The way people take this step varies from person to person. But one way is speak to God, to pray and to say something like this …
Heavenly Father, I’m scared. I didn’t even know you wanted me to follow you. I didn’t know how hurt you are that I have not followed you. I’m sorry for all the wrong things I’ve done. Please forgive me.
Thank you for sending your Son Jesus Christ to take my punishment on the cross so I wouldn’t have to. Thank you for your forgiveness.
Please come into my life and be my Good Shepherd. Lead me. Guide me into the life you have intended for me.
Amen.
