Save Your Sheep

There was a moment in ancient Israel every family knew too well.

A father would step into the small pen behind the house. His children would stand at the doorway, quiet, watching. He would kneel among the gentle, wool-covered shapes and place his hand on one particular lamb—soft, innocent, trusting.

That lamb had no idea why it was chosen.

Its eyes were bright.

Its legs were still a little wobbly.

Its whole little world was green grass and sunshine.

But the father knew.

He would lift that lamb into his arms, begin the long walk toward the sanctuary, and the children—wide-eyed and silent—would follow behind.

In our language, we might say, “He took one of the family’s sheep and gave it up.”

And every time he did, those children learned a lesson that was burned into their conscience:

“Sin costs life.”

It was the central truth of the old covenant.

Every time a lamb was carried to the altar, Israel was reminded of two things:

1. Their sin was real.

2. A substitute would stand in their place.

But all of this—the lambs, the smoke, the priests, the curtain, the sanctuary—was never the destination.

It was a signpost.

A shadow.

A prophecy acted out in flesh and blood.

Every sacrifice whispered, “Someone is coming.”

Every lamb preached, “This is not the final Lamb.”

Every altar pointed beyond itself toward a hill where another Lamb would climb—not in arms, but under the weight of a cross.

And when that Lamb arrived—the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world—everything the old system pointed to reached its fulfillment.

But here is the tragedy:

Not everyone recognized Him.

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They Missed Him the First Time

The Savior wasn’t recognized the first time He came.

Why?

Because the people were looking for the wrong Messiah.

They expected a king, not a Lamb.

A warrior, not a sacrifice.

A throne, not a cross.

Their eyes were fixed on political liberation, national restoration, and temple glory. They believed prophecy would be fulfilled through a sword, not through suffering.

And with all their studying

and all their rituals

and all their charts

and all their certainty…

they walked right past the Lamb God sent.

They missed Him.

And now you and I must ask the sobering, necessary question:

Do you think it’s possible to chase false prophecy the second time around?

Is it possible, in longing for Jesus’ return, to fixate on the wrong signs?

Is it possible, in studying the future, to misunderstand what God has already fulfilled?

Is it possible, in watching Jerusalem, to lose sight of Jesus?

The answer, according to Scripture, is yes.

Not only possible—probable.

The same misdirection that caused Israel to miss their Messiah is alive today in the form of prophetic speculation, temple fascination, and sacrificial expectations God Himself has already ended.

And that brings us to the heart of this message:

Save your sheep.

Don’t bring the lambs back to the altar.

The Lamb has already died.

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The Pull of a Future Temple

Many believers today are taught to expect a rebuilt Jewish temple in Jerusalem—complete with a new altar, a revived priesthood, and renewed animal sacrifices.

They’re told:

“The temple must be rebuilt before Jesus comes.”

“The sacrifices must restart.”

“Prophecy requires a third temple.”

“Watch for the red heifer.”

“Watch for priestly garments.”

“Watch for architectural plans.”

And sincere Christians begin to think:

“If this is what God wants, then we should hope for it.”

“If this is prophecy, we should embrace it.”

But something deep inside the gospel cries out, “No.”

Because if we call for a restored sacrificial system, we are calling for lambs again.

If we insist on a rebuilt altar, we are insisting on new offerings again.

If we preach that God needs a third temple, we are preaching that Christ’s finished work is somehow unfinished.

We are asking God to reopen the sheep pen.

We are asking children to watch their father lift a lamb again.

We are asking for blood that the cross has forever replaced.

It is spiritual regression disguised as prophetic insight.

And this is why a shepherd must speak.

This is why a pastor must clarify.

This is why every believer must guard their heart:

Because the modern teaching of a restored sacrificial temple contradicts the very gospel it claims to support.

It is, in essence, saying:

“Bring the lambs back.

Start the sacrifices again.

Return to the shadows Christ fulfilled.”

But Heaven has already answered that idea.

Not through an angel,

not through a prophet,

not through a vision,

but through the most dramatic act in the Bible short of the resurrection itself.

And it happened the moment Jesus died.

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The Story That Changes Everything

Jesus has been lifted up.

The mockers are jeering.