Creekside Church Sermon of April 25, 1999 "Distinguishing the True From the False" John 10:1-10	Rev. David Bibbee
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We didn't have that much cash on hand at the church, so I called a member and explained the situation. Thirty minutes later, with five one hundred dollar bills in my pocket I was driving to meet a man named Carlos at a McDonalds in Mishawaka. I slowly drove past the entrance. Carlos came out, jumped into the car and said we would have to find another place to talk. "We need to leave immediately," he said. He had just seen an Immigration and Naturalization Service agent drive by. He said I needed to take him to the McDonalds in Plymouth to meet the other driver, and that we should take only back roads. "What have I gotten myself into?" I wondered.

On the way he talked about the suffering of Nicaragua and the atrocities inflicted upon the people at the hands of the U.S. funded Contras. He spoke of working with Church of the Brethren people in Central America, some of whom I knew well. He had an intimate knowledge of the ecumenical efforts of churches in this country. He shared information which only someone involved with this work could have known. As I pulled into the McDonalds, he reminded me of the need for Christians to help those who are least in the world. He took my hand and shared a moving prayer. "God Bless you, Pastor." he said. "Tell your church tomorrow about the needs of Nicaragua. Tell them to learn about what is really happening, and please ask them to pray for us," he said through teary eyes.

The next morning, I did. The congregation seemed glad I had helped. It felt good and right. That afternoon I was back in my chair watching football when the phone rang. It was a pastor in North Manchester who asked if I had given money to a man transporting Nicaraguans to Canada. This pastor had been to Nicaragua himself, and he said the man mentioned people working there who he knew. "What did you give him?" he asked. I said, "I gave Carlos $500." "Carlos? He told me his name was Juan and that he needed to make a contact in Indianapolis yet that night." "Since when is Indianapolis on the way to Canada?" I asked. "Did you give him any money?" "$250" he said. The teenage son of a Manchester College professor made out a check from his father's account for $750! I was feeling sick.

Who was Juan or Carlos and where was our money? Through a member at Crest Manor who teaches at Notre Dame, I learned that Mr. Slick had been on campus on Friday and that some sympathetic priests had given him $1,500. I called a Presbyterian minister in Phoenix who was a leading figure in assisting Nicaraguans fleeing their country. He said it had been two months since any refugees had come through the states. Who was this guy? An INS agent getting the goods on churches? Who was there to report the embezzlement to? Certainly not the Immigration Service. And what was I going to tell the parishioner who in good faith had given me $500?

P.T. Barnum said, "There's a sucker born every minute," and I felt like the sucker of the century. This guy had lots of facts. He quoted scriptures. He endeared my sympathy and trust. He seemed absolutely authentic and sincere. I was moved by his prayer but didn't know that as he prayed for me he was preying upon me! The man was a fraud.

There has never been a time that the world has been without con artists, counterfeiters, and people hiding their true intentions. We must be careful because there are unscrupulous people out to put the make on us. They may want your property, your money, your commitment, your mind. It is wise to be appropriately discriminating and have a certain level of wariness about us in our walk through the world. And unfortunately, it's a fact of life in the church.

The people of God have always had to deal with religious hucksters and false teachers who persuade people to follow their path to enlightenment or their version of the gospel. "I am against those who prophesy lying dreams," God said in Jeremiah. "I am against those who lead my people astray by their lies and recklessness." (Isaiah 23: 32) In Matthew, Jesus said, "False Christ's and prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect." (Matthew 24: 24)

But how can we distinguish the true from the false? Sometimes it is not difficult. If someone claims to represent Christ, but speaks with contempt toward those who believe differently; if their message sows seeds of suspicion and discord and even hatred; if their emphasis is upon what "they" say more than what Jesus taught and lived; if it's walls their words build and not bridges of understanding and reconciliation, or if every sermon or broadcast ends with, "please send money," then it is something or someone other than Jesus Christ being promoted.

This concern is at the heart of Jesus' message in John. He wanted his followers to develop critical listening skills to distinguish between true and false leaders. In teaching this lesson he employs the imagery of the shepherd and the sheep. This is probably the most familiar and beloved way of describing the relationship between God and his people. The shepherd was totally devoted. He guided his sheep and protected them. He went to great lengths and took considerable risk to find and rescue even one lost sheep. People resonated with the picture of the good shepherd, but not all shepherds were good.

To appreciate this passage we first need to picture a sheepfold. When the shepherd grew tired of keeping watch over the flock, he gathered them into an enclosure of rocks piled into a four-foot high wall with one entryway. The only way in was the main entrance. Jesus said he who doesn't enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs in another way is a thief. The only one who enters by the door is the shepherd. This is how Jesus enters lives. He never concealed his true intentions. He was always direct and to the point. "Take up your cross. Follow me. Sell everything you have and give it to the poor." No pulling the wool over people's eyes.

But there are people who live behind slick talk, and a smiling face to mask their real intentions. There was a guy who insisted on visiting me because something exciting was happening to him, and he wanted to tell me all about it. I thought maybe he had a vision that God told him to give the church everything in his will. Instead he sat at my kitchen table and asked what I would do with an extra $2500 a month. Then he drew a pyramid on a legal pad. I'm always suspicious of people drawing pyramids anywhere outside of geometry class. "I want to talk with you about financial independence." "Is this Amway?" I asked. "This is about direct marketing. For just a few hours a mon ..." "This is Amway, isn't it?" "It's founded upon Christian principles and the American free enterprise system," he said. "Look, I don't have time to sell soap and spot remover." "You don't have to. That's the beauty of it. You can have others working for you." "I'm not interested." "I want you to consider becoming an Amway distributor." "And I want you to consider drawing this presentation to a close."

Jesus doesn't come with veiled intentions. He offers an invitation to abundant life, he asks for people's hearts, minds, and their very lives. His message and the message of those who follow him stand on its own merit. Those who share Christ use the front door. No deception. No bait and switch.

There is another way to gauge whether a person or perspective merits listening to. Those who speak for Christ do so with a distinctive voice.

A traveler to the Holy Land observed something fascinating while visiting a village. When the shepherds came to the village they would drive their sheep into a huge pen with the flocks of other shepherds. The gatekeeper would watch as the shepherds went into town to eat or shop. There were no distinguishing marks by which the shepherds could identify one flock from another. When a shepherd returned, he stood at the gate and in soft tones he called to his flock, and then the sheep separated themselves. His flock filtered forward at the sound of his voice and only his voice. "The one who enters by the door is the shepherd," Jesus said. "The sheep hear his voice. He calls them by name and leads them out. A stranger they will not follow."

There are times when distinguishing Jesus' voice from other voices is easy. When I hear a message about considering others needs before our own and a message on how Jesus can make you financially prosperous, it's not hard to tell which is which. But much of the time it's not all that easy or clear cut. There are false or faulty messages which contain at least a partial measure of truth. For instance, people say Jesus was a remarkable man who left the world a wonderful ethic, but that his claims do not supercede those of other great teachers. In other words, he's partially authoritative, but not the incarnation of God.

It's a struggle for us today because there are so many voices telling us what to wear, what to eat, what to buy, what to do, and what to believe. The voice of the world is slick and seductive and very appealing. There are many voices we hear which tell us how to be a real, faithful church. "Make this change and you'll lose all your young people." "Make that change and you'll lose your old people." We're asked to support a host of causes, most of them legitimate, but which to choose? Every Sunday school curriculum promises to revitalize your education program. The church is told how to double its membership and increase its stewardship, and if we listen to every claim, we will be paralyzed.

So what voice do we heed? What path do we take? What vision can we claim with confidence? The answer is that we hold each claim up to the ministry of Jesus. In the first verses of our text Jesus is a shepherd. Then he becomes a door ... a door through which the sheep come and go; a door that provides freedom and security. "Through him," Paul said, "we have access to the father." There is much to learn about God by studying the world. There are many ways to experience God. But there is one way to know God completely. There is a door we enter to worship, study, and grow in relationship-a door we exit to live and serve; one door by which we shall know the truth that sets us free. Tom Long says, "It's Jesus' ministry that distinguishes true sacrifice from sham and thievery in God's name. It's the saving, nourishing character of Jesus that defines what's real and true and good in the church's life."

Let me tell you a story before I stop. After worship one Sunday three years ago there was a call for me from the hospital. A man with a Hispanic accent said he needed to talk to a pastor. Said a nurse had given him my name. I went right over, walked into his room and did an immediate double take. Guess who? It was Carlos, or Juan or whoever. I didn't let on that I knew him. He said he was full of hate because Mexican soldiers had raped his sister. As soon as he was discharged, he was returning to Cheopas, Mexico, his home, to minister in Christ's name to the poor Indians being persecuted by the Mexican government. He then asked me to help this ministry by giving him money for an airline ticket to Dallas.

"You don't know who I am do you?" I said. "No, Pastor, we never met." "Yes we did ... six years and five hundred dollars ago. Your van broke down on the way to Canada. Remember?" He continued to deny it. And then as I left the room I learned that this man was a very resourceful drug addict who used Christ's name to deceive others.

How do we distinguish truth from falsehood, especially when what is being said and done is in the name of Jesus Christ? The messenger will use the front. He will speak with the vice of Christ. He will have a message and ministry that is a reflection of what Jesus said and did. By their fruits they are known. The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy. But the shepherd comes with the gift of eternal life.

*This message was inspired by a sermon written by Thomas Long entitled "Shepherds, Strangers, and Thieves."

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