Teaching Text

JOHN 10:11-21

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it. The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd. The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life —only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” The Jews who heard these words were again divided. Many of them said, “He is demon-possessed and raving mad. Why listen to him?” But others said, “These are not the sayings of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Sermon Recap

This Sunday, Pastor Jon continued our sermon series, Making Sense of the Church, by examining the Church as the Bride of Christ, reminding us that the Bible is, at its core, a great love story. Beneath all the striving and ambition of New York City lies a deep-rooted desire of wanting to be loved. While culture tells us we must earn love through achievement, Scripture tells a different story about how our truest identity is found in being loved by God. 

The Bible begins with a wedding in Genesis and ends with a wedding in Revelation, framing the entire story around God’s covenant love for His people. Yet Scripture also reveals the Bride’s inability to remain faithful to the Lord, and the Old Testament prophets consistently describe sin and idolatry not only as moral failure but as relational betrayal. The separation sin causes is one of the deepest pains of the human experience, but God’s people remain His treasured possession.

Even in our unfaithfulness, God is revealed as a jealous, yet persistent lover. Despite idolatry and betrayal, God continues to pursue His Bride. The old covenant between God and His people, as written in Exodus, was filled with commands of “you shall,” but in the new covenant, God declares, “I will,” a faithful, loving response that communicates the power of the cross of Christ to reconcile His people to Himself. Through Jesus and His resurrection, the Bridegroom comes to redeem His Bride, laying down His life to restore her to Himself. Our truest identity as believers is shaped first and foremost by God’s initiating love, and God’s vision for His Church is a people responding to Him wholeheartedly in devotion. 

The story of the Bible ends in the eternal, joyful union of Christ and His Church with the wedding supper of the Lamb. It is out of the assurance that Jesus sees His Church as holy, chosen, and dearly loved, that we can live lives surrendered to the preparation of sanctification that will ultimately transform us into a radiant Bride. Pastor Jon reminded us that the love story of the Bible should reshape how we see our city and culture. Our city hungers for love in success, ambition, and relationships, but only God’s love can truly satisfy. Leadership, discipleship, and community become ways of directing desires for love towards Christ. The Church is at its best when it sees itself as the Bride of Christ who is beloved, pursued, and preparing for union with Him. Since God has declared His deep love for the Church, as believers, we too should place the sanctification of the Church at the center of our hearts and lives.

Rooted in this love story, we gain transcendent hope, eternal security, and the freedom to serve our world without being enslaved by it. The Church is not merely an institution or obligation, but an expectant Bride preparing for her wedding day. The invitation is to surrender to this love story, to build our lives on the truth that we are the beloved of Jesus, and to live as His radiant Bride, preparing for the joy that is to come.