Hi and welcome to the Pearls from the Word program. I'm Miisu Piipari -
and today we'll talk about the topic "My own shall follow me".
Let's look at John's Gospel chapter 10, verse 4.
"And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; -
and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice."
Have you ever thought why this verse says we should follow Jesus?
These sheep clearly followed Jesus and knew His voice.
First of all, Jesus is our Saviour, the Son of God who came into the world -
as a man and gave His life for us, so it's wise to do like He did.
Even kids imitate their parents, so it's good that we imitate Jesus.
One aspect of God's person is wisdom. Let's look at it a bit.
Why is this wisdom something we should pursue and follow?
Isaiah 11 verse 2 talks about the different characteristics of God.
"The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom -
and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, -
The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord."
The word 'wisdom' in Hebrew means a skillful person, -
wisdom in war and governance, intelligence, wisdom -
and prudence in religious matters.
It also says about wisdom in James 3:17 according to the Amplified.
"But the wisdom from above is first of all pure (undefiled); -
then it is peace-loving, courteous (considerate, gentle).
[It is willing to] yield to reason, full of compassion and good fruits; -
it is wholehearted and straightforward, -
impartial and unfeigned (free from doubts, wavering, and insincerity)."
There were so many good things that are included in wisdom.
I'm sure everyone noticed something they lack.
So one characteristic of Jesus is wisdom that guides us forward in life.
It includes peace, considerateness, compassion and honesty in life.
God guides us through all these.
He does it with considerate wisdom and intelligence.
So the way of Jesus is full of good fruit and life, -
and He guides us with His wisdom.
Here we already have many reasons to follow Jesus if we want these things.
It says in 2 Corinthians that we are being transformed into His image.
So we really want to get these things from Jesus.
So God does raise us, but are we willing to be raised?
Are we willing to follow Him and to be lead by Him?
I give you one good reason to do this. Psalm 111, verse 10 says: -
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..."
All these characteristics of God, the Spirit of the Lord, wisdom, -
the spirit of understanding, counsel, knowledge and fear of the Lord -
already in themselves tell us what we get from following Jesus, -
but one of them is very important. It's the spirit of the fear of the Lord.
It rises above others because without it we might not care -
about these other things. When we have the fear and respect of the Lord -
we will automatically listen to Him and stop in front of Him.
If we know God thinks that something is wrong we don't rush into it.
For this reason parents should pray for the fear of the Lord for their kids.
It will guide and protect them from a lot of problems.
And especially because God is a Father who raises His children, -
He does it through His love. So the fear of the Lord is not harsh, -
but we cannot mess up with God. He is the holy God -
but he brings us up through love and can set us firm boundaries, too.
Jesus shows us the direction and the pace of our lives, -
at what speed do we walk forward in life doing what God wants us to do.
That brings us a lot of new life and good harvest.
As Jesus Himself is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6), -
He can show us the best direction and rhythm.
Then we'll get a lot of good harvest out of our lives -
and it is going to be seen also by others.
It's also good to follow Jesus because of out safety.
It's safe for us to walk after God. We know He wants us good.
It's calming to know that Jesus always knows which way we must go -
in different situations of life, even when we are lost -
and don't really know what we should do. It says in Psalm 91:2 -
"I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge and my fortress; -
My God, in Him I will trust.'" And also in 1 Peter 5:7 it says: -
"...casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you."
So it's safe to travel with Jesus.
Well, how about care and looking after? It says in Psalm 23:1 -
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."
God proves in the Bible again and again that He wants to take care of us.
However, we must be lead by Him.
So is He your Shepherd? Are you willing to go where He wants you to?
It is also the safest route for us -
and the route where Jesus can take care of us.
It's as if I told my kids not to run against the red light -
because a car might hit them, -
but if they decide not to obey the commandment of their mother -
and that I cannot take care of them, something very bad can happen.
He promises that if He is our Shepherd, we lack nothing.
We might not have everything we'd like to have -
but we lack nothing we really need.
All this happens in obedience and listening to God's voice.
His looking after is there also when we cannot, are not able to -
and don't know how to obey God. He comes as a loving God, -
takes us into His arms and brings us to the right direction.
We should follow Jesus also because in it people see a testimony of Christ.
In the previous episodes I told you how it shows when Jesus is with us.
A testimony of Christ is sometimes very powerful even without words.
When our lives, attitudes and decisions change -
and what we are and how we live changes, it's a powerful testimony -
in this world especially as the time gets darker all the time.
I don't know if you've thought about it but when you walk with Jesus -
and do what He asks you to do, you release life around yourself, -
the God-given, abundant life into that atmosphere.
The freedom, love, peace and the inner rest you are carrying -
are released everywhere you go.
Has anyone ever asked you all of a sudden: -
"What is it that you have? There is something awesome in you."
Then you have a chance to tell who has given you that awesome thing.
We also follow Jesus because He came to show us the Father.
We will get to know Father God and also the Holy Spirit, amen.
But first and foremost you will learn to know how God loves you.
Maybe you've thought about it. God tells about Himself in the Bible.
He wants to tell how much He loves you and what kind of God He is.
He also wants to hear your voice and to have a relationship with you.
You'll learn to know God the more you're willing to walk with Jesus.
This is a lovely passage of the Bible, John 14, verse 21.
"He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, -
and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."
Did you know that this is exactly how it happens?
If I have a lovely friendship with someone or with Jesus -
and I experience good things with Him, -
that He turns me away from sin -
and pours peace, well-being and safety into me, -
I want to do what He asks me to do -
so that His testimony and love in me would progress -
and would be seen everywhere more and more clearly.
So have the courage to walk with Jesus and you can be sure -
that it is a wise decision. Be blessed, amen.
Thank you for watching this episode of the Pearls from the Word.
Did you know that God wants to help us and take care of us, -
to lift us up, encourage us, cheer us up and bring us forward?
This same thing is also on my heart and I'm sure it's on yours, too.
So if you want to be involved in this, please support us by praying for us -
and also by supporting us financially so that we can do more programs.
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I just want to thank you for your support and prayers.
Let's do this work together with our God. Amen.
English translation: Anni Lähteenmäki / TV7