My Sheep Listen To My Voice
John 10:22-30[CEB]
22 The time came for the Festival of Dedication[a] in Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was in the temple, walking in the covered porch named for Solomon. 24 The Jewish opposition circled around him and asked, “How long will you test our patience? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
25 Jesus answered, “I have told you, but you don’t believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, 26 but you don’t believe because you don’t belong to my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life. They will never die, and no one will snatch them from my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them from my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”
GATHERING FOR SUNDAY
CAN BE FOUND AT:
https://www.facebook.com/NewDayCovenantChurch/
Following the worship gathering, worship services will be uploaded to our website and will be available at www.newdaycov.org/listen.
NewDay Online Giving: https://newday.churchcenter.com/giving
Hello NewDay Brothers and Sisters!
This week in worship we will be honoring our mom's, or women who have been like a mom to us.
AND- I always give a warning label of sorts to these kind of holidays to people- they can be hard for us, both men and women. Either we are missing our mom, due to death or relationship separation, have a conflicted relationship with our mom, or we wanted to be a mom and couldn't, or have had a disappointing journey through motherhood- maybe there are more reasons.
I say this to acknowledge the joys and sorrows special days can bring, and pray that no matter where you find yourself at in this relational space, you remember God's love always, which helps us in our sorrows, and rejoices over us with singing. He is with you- and we are in this together.
To honor the women in our lives this Sunday, Celeste has been working on some little gift bags for all the women to take on Sunday (thank you Celeste!)
Laura will be doing a craft activity with NewDay kids! (Thank you Laura). We are praying for you all to feel extra loved this Sunday.
This Sunday, the sermon text is from John 10- Jesus the Good Shepherd, and the One whose voice we know. This text in John 10 is such a beautiful passage in which Jesus gives the metaphor of Him being our Good Shepherd, laying down His life for ours, and also that we will know His voice, and recognize His voice. There are also themes related to belief, and us believing who He is, and says He is, especially based on what He has done, and the unity present with Jesus and God the Father.
We will explore, "How do I hear Jesus' voice?"
"What does Jesus' voice sound like?"
"How do I recognize His voice from others I hear?"
And, what does belief have to do with all of this too?
I can imagine every single follower of Jesus has asked these questions (and probably more) at one point or another, and they are tough questions. These questions are met with wonder and curiosity, as well as skepticism, and sometimes disappointment if we are not able to 'hear' God's voice (in the ways we are expecting to).
It's important to hold that there was a reason Jesus shared these statements and promises in His time on earth, and it is still needed, as people are still asking these questions related to the question of "how do I know it's God's voice speaking to me?"
It is also important to note that people saying, "God told me," or "I heard God say," at the expense of others or in abusive, manipulative ways have been hurtful and damaging to others (maybe this is personal to you as well.)
I am looking forward to sharing this with you on Sunday, and exploring this together. I pray we all will learn to understand, discern and experience the Good Shepherd Jesus' voice speaking to each of us in the ways He has created us to hear and respond to Him.
Have a good weekend! See you Sunday.
In Christ,
PKari