My Father

Text:

John 10:27-30:

 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

 29 My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.

 30 I and my Father are one.

 

Theme:

My Father

 

Introduction:

• Within the Black or African-American community, one can find a strong reliance upon kinship and specifically the paternal ancestry of every individual – It’s important to know Who’s Your Daddy!
  • Kinship – Knowing who you are by whose you are – you represent your ancestors in looks and character
  • Resources – We need someone to run to for money, help, advice, refuge, support, leadership
  • Authority – You Daddy has authority over you at any age – keeps you humble!
    • Daddy can pull rank even on a grown man or woman
    • A light saying in the younger black community use to be to ask the question when taunting another
      • Exhibited superiority in a given competition – after the spectacularly-made shot in basketball, the player says to the defender, “Who’s your Daddy?!?”, to mean that the player “owns” the defender or can be successful in spite of the defender’s efforts to stop them.
• The Bible gives us direction in answering the question of “Who’s Your Daddy?” in the Gospel According to St. John:
  • The Gospel of John is the fourth gospel written by the Apostle John. Some believed that it was to fill in the gaps left by the first three gospels, but no concrete evidence makes this universally true.  However, it does in a unique and genuine way divulge the depth of the relationship between the God and the Son and the relationship between the believer and the Godhead.  It’s about the Divine Jesus and the divine power fueling our very life.
• In our text, there were two relationships described:

• Firstly, Jesus and the “sheep”

  • This relationship is a marital relationship. Jesus is the “groom” and the “sheep”, or the church, are his “bride”.
    • Jesus is the head, the chief cornerstone, the “Son of God”. In another way:
    • The husband is the head of the household. In addition, the husband and wife are a team.
    • The husband is held accountable for the well being of his wife. In addition, both husband and wife are subject to the Will of God.
    • This relationship does not answer the question of “Who’s Your Daddy?”

 

Body:

• Secondly, Jesus and His Father

  • This relationship is the consummate Parent-Child relationship. With Jesus, you had to know who His Daddy was.  As the Centurion said at the cross in Matthew 27:54, “…Truly this was the Son of God.”
  • There are three characteristics of this relationship that support this statement:
  • The Father was in the Son – Jesus had Divine power
    • Beginning of His Earthly Ministry — Luke 4:18, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,”
    • End of His Earthly Ministry — Matthew 28:18, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”
    • Wouldn’t it be great if the beginning and end of our work for God was infused with His power?
      • Directs – us in our walk
      • Corrects – us for the walk
      • Rejects – bad influences put in the way of our walk
  • The Son was in the Father – Jesus knew the mind of God
    • In John 5:43, Jesus says, “I am come in my Father’s name” – Jesus was only of the Will of God, His Father.
    • Jesus represented His Father – which leads to the third characteristic of their relationship…
  • Jesus and His Father were one in the same. — In our text, verse 30 says, “I and my Father are one”.
    • Existence: Triune God —  Godhead – Trinity – “Three in One” – “One in Three”
      • Father – Creator
      • Son – Liberator
      • Holy Spirit — Comforter
    • Purpose: Mission for mankind
      • John 10:10, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”
    • Reputation: What men think
      • Matthew 11:27, “All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.
• Given the perfect Parent-Child relationship between Jesus and His Father, what separates us from the same relationship with our Father.
  • SELF gets in the way
    • We won’t ADMIT — who is your parent or that you are a child (parent)
    • We won’t SUBMIT – give respect & honor to your parent
    • We won’t COMMIT – be consistent in our dedication to our parent
    • We won’t TRANSMIT – speak honorably and highly of our parent
  • SELF also separates us from God’s salvation through Jesus Christ
    • We won’t ADMIT – We are sinners needing to be saved by the grace of God, the Father
    • We won’t SUBMIT – to the Will of God by believing in Jesus Christ and the remission of sin
    • We won’t COMMIT – to the Will of God in our life…denying self and glorifying God in all that we do
    • We won’t TRANSMIT – that if God saved us, He can save someone else also.

 

Conclusion:

• Who’s your Daddy?
  • Are you your own Daddy? – Living in Self
  • Is sin your Daddy? — Conceived in Sin and shapen in iniquity…without Salvation – Life of sin
  • Is your earthly father your only Daddy? – Jesus had two Fathers and respected both
• Who’s my Daddy?
  • Joseph C. Graham – earthly Father
    • – died when I was 6
  • William Louis Powell – Grandfather
    • – now I help take care of him in his old age
  • Calvin G. Sampson – Licensed me into the Gospel Ministry while living in New York
    • – I left New York
  • God, The Father – my Heavenly Father
    • Will always be there for me – “He’s just a prayer away”
    • He takes care of me – “All things work together for the good to them that love the Lord and are the Called according to His purpose”
    • I’m an heir to the Kingdom – “My father is rich in houses and land”
    • I’m growing to be like Him
      • When I treat my neighbor right >>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
      • When I give reasonable service to my church>>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
      • When I take care of my family and am faithful to my wife>>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
      • When I trust God and not the world>>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
      • When you see me walking right>>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
      • When you see me talking right>>>It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!
        • It’s not me…It’s my daddy in me!

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