Key verses I wish to emphasize are as follows:

Vs1 " Verily, verily I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door of the sheepfold. but climbeth up some other way, is a thief and a robber. Vs-7 Then said Jesus unto them again, "Verily, verily I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep". Vs-9 " I am the door, by me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and he shall go in and out and find pasture."

Now let's talk about doors for a minute. Many of us have been around long enough to know, there are many different kind of doors.
1. wood doors 3. filled doors 5. garage doors
2, steel doors 4. solid doors 6. barn doors

What is the function of a door?
It is to keep what is outside from getting in and, it to keep what is inside from getting out!!!!!!

There are three types of doors that I wish to comment on today and the last one having 2 "halls"

I. The Door of Opportunity: Jesus is the door "OUT" !!!!!

A. Jesus is the door of opportunity out of sin's slavery and bondage
B. Jesus is the door of opportunity out of God's condemnation.
1. "There is Now, no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus............Romans Chpt 8 vs 1
C. Jesus is the door out of Eternal failure.

Point:
The greatest failure in life is not "getting fired from your job"!!!!!!
The greatest failure in life is not "getting divorced"!!!!!!!
The greatest failure in life is not "Declaring bankruptcy"!!!!!!!!!!

The greatest failure in life is dying L- O -S- T !!!!!!!!!!!!!

1. It doesn't matter how much fame we gain in life.
2. It doesn't matter how much money we amass in life...thousands, millions, or billions!!!!!!!
3. It doesn't matter how many homes we own, like many of the movies stars and rock stars own, around the
world.
4. It doesn't matter how many cars we own---some movie stars, etc own 300 to 400 cars!!! You can only drive
one at a time!!!!!!
5. It doesn't matter how much jewelry you have we own......Elizabeth Taylor hasn't been dead a year and her
Jewelry is going on sale in the next few days.
6. It doesn't matter how many clothes we have!!! They will be sold, given away to Catholic Charities or
thrown in the trash some day.

See., when you die, all these things will go to someone else and all of these things combined in financial worth, can not by you one minute, let me repeat, CAN NOT buy you one minute in Heaven.
Whey do you think Jesus said in Mark 8:36 "What profit a man if he gain the whole world and lose his own soul? Do you not think that Jesus stressed the value of the soul of man.

II. The Door of Security: Jesus is the Door "THROUGH" !!!!!!

A. An uncertain future
1. None of us know what the future holds.
a. Our finances
b. Our health--Alzheimers, cancer, blindness, crippled--unable to walk.
c. Our welfare

B. Jesus is the door through difficulties
1. of life
2. of wife
3. of the knife
Jesus said He would never leave us or forsake us. Many times when trials and hardships come, friends will fade away, become scarce . Boy, have I experienced this is life.
a. Bottle friends
b. Those who you thought you could count on.
Not everyone who says they are your friend, or acts like a friend, is a true friend.

Here are some examples of my personal life that has happened to me and these were all three my Pastors at the time. Is it any wonder that people do not want to go to church, etc. I can see their point.

Listen, many times a spiritual hurt is worse than a physical hurt. It goes deeper and lasts longer.
1. Years ago, I had a Pastor, who praised me and said that I was the greatest Children's Church Preacher that his church had ever had. 2 years later, he was calling me "chaff in the church" because I disagreed with him about a woman wearing pants.

2. Another Pastor had an issue come up in the church and the trustees met with him and asked him to address this issue and he refused. The issue got out of hand and many left the church. After I had left the church, he told the congregation that, because of my past as a biker, he was afraid I would do something or attack his wife and kids. This was a Pastor that I had preached for when he broke his back, a friend who I had helped build his chain link fence, a Pastor that I had taken food to when his wife was sick and a Pastor that I had bought a new suit for, and a Pastor that I washed, waxed and detailed his car for him so his car would look nice when he came to church.

3. I was a member of a church whose Pastor had been a friend of mine since 1982. I had preached for him when his wife had surgery and we had ate together, had cookouts together, etc. I was filling in as an interim Pastor, for a church, until they found a Pastor of their own denomination, in 2005. My son was killed in July of 2005. My Pastor did not call me, he never came to my son's visitation nor did he come to my son's funeral. Did this hurt me? Absolutely!!!!!!!! I could write a book about my Christian life.

C. Jesus is the door through death:
1. He was there at the stoning of Stephen
2, He was there when the lady in the hospital asked for the 23rd Psalm to be read. When the Pastor came
to the place where the scripture says "yea though I walk though the valley of the shadow of death, thou art
with me, she said "shhhh, He is here " and she went to be with the Lord at that moment.
3, He was there when my Grandfather passed away and he asked those in the room, "can you see all the
Angels standing around the bed"? "They are everywhere"!!!!!

III. He is the Door to Eternity: Jesus us the door "IN" !!!!!
(hallway #1)

A, John 14 vs 6 says, "I am the way, the truth and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by ME!!!!
1. In John 3: 16 Jesus shows that we have worth to God. He gave Jesus, that we may have Eternal Life.
2. In John 17, Jesus prayed for you and I before He went to the cross to die. Do you not think he cares?

Not only is Jesus all these 3 doors but, He is also the door "UP"!!!!!!!!
(hallway #2) (Eternity in Heaven)

The great Apostle Paul wrote these words in 2 Corinthians Chpt. 12 vs 2-4
" I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I can not tell or whether out of the body I can not tell, God knoweth) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And I knew such a man, (whether in the body or out of the body, I can not tell, God knoweth) How he was caught up in to Paradise and heard unspeakable words, which is not lawful for a man to utter".

I believe this man that Paul referred to was himself, when he was stoned and left for dead outside the city of Lystra. Acts Chpt 14 vs 19 "And there came certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people and having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead.

I believe God let Paul have a glimpse of Heaven. This is why Paul did not fear death or what anyone could do to him because he knew what was waiting for him after death.

Christ is the DOOR to all things:
1. Happiness 4. Peace 7. Eternity
2. Joy 5. Present
3. contentment 6. Future

You will never be satisfied without Jesus.
You will never be secure without Jesus.
You will never be saved without Jesus.

You cannot have these things without knowing where and who the Door is. Do you know?


Oldbiker