Message Playback: Fully His - Fully Known & Fully Loved | Week 3 | Noah Fox | Liberty Church

Jesus, the Good Shepherd, knows His own, and His own know His voice. The sheep on the Jerusalem hills ran through armed guards because they knew exactly who they belonged to. John 10 shows that belonging is not merely saying the right things or trying harder to behave. Belonging is living in the life Christ has given, secure in the hands of the Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep.

Ezekiel 34 had promised that God Himself would search for scattered sheep after Israel’s leaders fed themselves, neglected the weak, and fled when trouble came. Jesus stands in John 10 as the fulfillment of that promise. He does not scatter, flee, or protect Himself at the flock’s expense. He goes after what belongs to Him, even when the sheep are as good as gone.

The first mark of belonging is following. Galatians 5 says that those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires and now keep in step with the Spirit. Belief changes behavior, not the other way around. Culture, social media, anxiety, and wrong friendships can sound confident, but wrong voices always lead to wrong places. The Shepherd’s voice becomes clear when His people intentionally place themselves in His Word.

The second mark of belonging is forgiving. Ephesians 4 calls bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, and malice to be put away, because those things destroy kindness and harden tender hearts. Forgiveness costs because it cost Jesus everything first. Christ was not a victim at the cross. He willingly laid down His life and took it up again in resurrection. Those forgiven by Him can voluntarily release the debt of those who harmed them.

The third mark of belonging is making amends. Romans 12 calls evil what it is and refuses to repay evil for evil. Forgiveness takes one, but reconciliation takes two. Still, amends begins with the part that depends on one person: owning personal evil, seeking peace, and going to the door that needs to be knocked on. Christ’s sheep can take that terrifying first step because their reputation is no longer their currency. Their security is locked in the palm of Jesus’ hand, and no one, including themselves, can snatch them out.

Belonging grows one day at a time through following Christ’s voice, forgiving as Christ forgave, and making things right one relationship at a time. Christ continues calling wandering sheep home, and every person has a next step to take.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Know the Shepherd’s voice [18:13] Jesus does not call His sheep to follow every voice that sounds confident or comforting. Culture can tell people to fit in, anxiety can tell them they are not enough, and sin can promise a better path. God’s Word gives Christ’s sheep the sound of their Shepherd’s voice, so that discernment becomes more than guessing. [18:13]
• 2. Belief changes the way life works [13:10] Galatians 5 does not present Spirit-filled living as behavior management. Those who belong to Christ have received the Spirit, and the Spirit gives power to crucify fleshly passions and desires. Following Christ is not earning a place in His flock, but living from the belonging He has already given. [13:10]
• 3. Forgiveness releases the heart’s debt [26:19] Bitterness does not preserve justice; it slowly kills kindness and makes a tender heart hard. Jesus freely laid down His life to forgive sinners who had wounded Him. Forgiveness does not call evil good, but it releases personal vengeance into the hands of the God who sees rightly. [26:19]
• 4. Amends begins with owning personal evil [33:27] Sin often gets sugarcoated when it belongs to the person confessing it, while another person’s sin gets counted in full. Romans 12 calls believers to do what is honorable as far as it depends on them. Reconciliation may require two people, but humble ownership, confession, and a sincere effort toward peace can begin with one. [33:27]
• 5. Security in Christ creates courage [34:44] Jesus gives eternal life, and no one can snatch His sheep out of His hand. That security frees His people from treating reputation as currency that must be defended at all costs. Because Christ paid for both the harms received and the harms done, His sheep can forgive freely and make amends bravely.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:46] - Fully Known, Fully Loved, Fully His
• [02:05] - Sheep Who Know Their Shepherd
• [05:27] - Jesus the Good Shepherd
• [06:14] - Ezekiel’s Promise of Rescue
• [09:44] - Belonging Through Follow, Forgive, and Amends
• [10:25] - Following the Spirit’s Voice
• [13:33] - Wrong Voices Lead Wrong Places
• [19:21] - Forgiving as Christ Forgave
• [23:33] - The Cost of Forgiveness
• [27:10] - Making Amends and Seeking Peace
• [33:44] - Secure in Jesus’ Hand
• [36:33] - The Next Step of Belonging
• [37:43] - Invitation to Salvation
• [43:04] - Questions for Response and Prayer

Bible Reading

John 10:14-15, 27-30
“I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one.” [05:27]

Ezekiel 34:11-12
“For thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that have been scattered, so will I seek out my sheep, and I will rescue them from all places where they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness.” [07:20]

Galatians 5:22-25
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” [10:34]

Ephesians 4:31-5:1
“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.” [19:40]

Romans 12:17-18
“Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” [27:30]

Observation questions

1. In John 10, what does Jesus say He does for His sheep, and what do His sheep do in response to His voice? [05:44]
2. What problem with Israel’s leaders is described around Ezekiel 34, and what does God personally promise to do for the scattered sheep? [06:24]
3. According to Galatians 5:22-25, what is the connection between belonging to Christ, crucifying fleshly desires, and keeping in step with the Spirit? [11:51]
4. In Ephesians 4:31-5:1, what attitudes and actions are to be put away, and what three qualities are believers called to put on instead? [21:05]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus connects hearing His voice with following Him. Why is following Christ more than agreeing with Christian beliefs or trying harder to behave well? [12:43]
2. Ezekiel promised that God Himself would seek scattered sheep, and Jesus says He is the Good Shepherd. What does this show about Jesus’ heart toward people who have wandered, failed, or feel far from God? [08:14]
3. Ephesians says to forgive “as God in Christ forgave you.” How does Jesus willingly laying down His life shape a believer’s understanding of the cost of forgiveness? [24:30]
4. Romans 12 calls believers to seek peace “so far as it depends on you.” What is the difference between forgiveness, making amends, and full reconciliation, especially when the other person is unwilling to respond? [29:03]

Application questions

1. What voice has been especially loud in your life lately—social media, anxiety, the desire to fit in, a friendship, or something else? What would it look like this week to make more room to hear the Shepherd’s voice in God’s Word? [18:13]
2. Galatians says that those who belong to Christ keep in step with the Spirit. Is there a specific desire, habit, or pattern where you sense the Spirit calling you to take a different step? What might that step be? [13:21]
3. Is there someone whose wrong against you you keep replaying or “keeping score” over? What would it mean to release personal vengeance to God without pretending that the wrong was good or harmless? [44:22]
4. Bitterness can make kindness difficult, and anger can harden a tender heart. Which of these signs—bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, slander, or malice—might be taking root in you? How could kindness or tenderheartedness begin to replace it? [21:38]
5. Is there a person you have harmed through words, actions, avoidance, retaliation, or dishonesty? What part of the situation can you honestly own without minimizing it or shifting blame? [29:34]
6. Is there an appropriate door you need to knock on—a conversation to begin, an apology to offer, or a wrong to make right? What wise preparation, prayer, or biblical counsel might help you take that step? [45:08]
7. Jesus says no one can snatch His sheep from His hand. How could confidence in Christ’s secure hold free you from protecting your reputation and help you forgive or make amends with courage? [34:52]