Our sermon series on the ” I Am” statements made by Jesus, continued on Sunday at Elim.
The message title, “I Am The Gate”, came with such conviction. In John 9:23-25, we see the account of the blind man that Jesus healed. There were many interrogations and much opposition from the Pharisees. In John 10:1-2, Jesus tells the Pharisees that “anyone who does not enter by the sheep gate is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the Shepherd of the sheep”. Jesus declares, “I am the Gate for the sheep”. Jesus is the only Gate and unless we go through the Gate, we are not part of the sheepfold.
Benefits of having Jesus as our Gate:
We have complete protection – many of us have tall gates in our homes, cameras, security, barb wire, but we still don’t feel protected. We have to understand that only Jesus gives us full protection. He IS our protection! Exodus 12:13 tells us how the enemy passed over the houses whose doors were covered in blood. There is power in the blood of Jesus and He alone is our protection! God told the Israelites to stay indoors. If we are not in the sheepfold, we have no protection in the blood of Jesus. 1 Peter 1:2 tells us that if we obey we will be covered by the blood.
We have complete safety – Psalm 46:1-3 tells us in detail that Jesus is our safe place to hide; in the face of turmoil and disaster we can still enjoy safety in Jesus. We can have all protective measures in place but still not feel safe. Jesus is our safety! In Him we can be secure because He is the Gate; He alone keeps us safe! Psalm 27:3 tells us that we can be confident even when we are under attack because Jesus is our safety.
We have complete life – John 10:10 tells us that Jesus came to give us life more abundantly; complete life. When we enter through the gate of Jesus, he takes our broken lives and gives us new life, abundant life. Jesus is the only Source of true life. Eternal life is in Jesus Christ alone!