A number of broadcasts, we have been seeking to direct your attention to what I like to call great texts of the Gospel. Now, we trust that these studies concerning prominent verses in the Bible are proving to be a help to every listener. But perhaps someone is listening today for the first time. My friend, not only do we deal with verses in the Bible, we seek to deal with truths in the Bible, and also from time to time give expositions of whole books. But now at this particular season we've been going through great texts of the Bible. And today again we have chosen for our study a well-known text from the Gospel according to John. John chapter ten verse nine. It reads like this. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture. Here again we come across one of the great words of the Gospel. It is the word saved. Let me read the verse again. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture. I trust the Lord will bless to all of us the reading of that verse. Let us bow for prayer. Our Father. We come to thee again, beseeching thee for thy blessing, to rest upon every listener today and upon every home where this message is being heard. Hear us in these things and bring glory to the Savior's name, as we ask all in his own worthy and precious name. Amen. Now, if you care to look at this chapter from which we have chosen our text, you would discover this, that there are at least three doors that are mentioned in the whole section, and not only the three doors, but also the good shepherd. The good shepherd is the one who giveth his life for the sheep. The first door that we read of is called the door of the sheepfold. We read of that in verse one. And from verse one to verse six, he's simply dealing with the door of the sheepfold and the character of the true shepherd in contrast to the others, such as the thief, the porter and the stranger and the hireling. But now from verse seven, and you connect that with verse sixteen, another expression is used where it speaks of the door of the sheep. But when we come to verse nine, I suggest here it's the door of salvation. For he says, I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved. So here is the door of salvation. that leads to salvation. Now it's that door we want to speak about in this broadcast today. Notice, first of all, in what the Lord says, we have the voice of authority. So we must think of his authority. This is a supreme claim and is the answer to the distracted heart. Since only one door has been provided, There we have a display of the wisdom of God. God has not provided different dolers. He doesn't segregate us into different groups or nationalities. God provides one doler and only one. This is a display of the wisdom of God. no matter what the social standing of a person may be, whether that person has risen to the topmost rung of the social ladder, or perhaps someone who has sunk down the social ladder and is down in the gutter, so to speak, and has been neglected and rejected by others. It matters not to God Whether we reckon ourselves at the top or at the bottom of that social ladder, God says there's one door. Jesus Christ said, I am the door. He speaks with absolute authority. One door and only one. No matter what your age may be, whether you may be old and nearing the end of life's pilgrimage, or whether you're just young, entering into your teens. Makes no difference. God doesn't make a special door for the aged and another door for the young people. It's the same door. If I may illustrate this way back in the Old Testament, when God was about to bring His judgment upon the people of this earth in the days of Noah, He provided for Noah a way of salvation. And Noah's way of salvation was the ark. Now in that ark there's only one door. Inside that door it meant salvation. If one remained on the outside of the door it meant condemnation, receiving the judgment of God. so that all who were to be saved had to go in at that door. Noah and his wife, with his three sons and their wife, they all had to enter the same door. Now might I remind every listener today that it's a simple thing to enter in at a door. You don't require to have a great degree in education to know what it means to step in at a door. You see, God uses language that is easy to understand. God comes down to our level so that no one is left out. There's no need for anyone to make excuses and say, I don't know how to be saved. Jesus Christ said, I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, He shall be saved, shall go in and out and find pasture. See, Christ speaks with absolute authority. He doesn't say, I am one of the doors. Some people today think that it's all right as long as you're sincere, that God will look upon your sincerity. And one person may be going one way and another person going another way, but says someone, we'll all get there somehow. No, my friend, you won't. The Lord Jesus Christ said, I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved. And there's no other way. God has made one door and only one. Here is a display of the wisdom of God. But we ought to make this very clear. that this is an open door. You know, you cannot go in through a closed door. When Adam sinned in the garden, then God had to put Adam outside. For God was a just God, God was a righteous God. And so when Adam violated the revealed will of God, God had to deal with him, and God put him outside of the garden. And there was only one way of approach back to God. But the way into the garden was closed. If you care to read your Bible again, you'll find it was guarded. It was guarded by a shining cherubim. And they had the flaming sword, turning in every direction. There they represented God's throne, characterized by justice and judgment. And man could not by himself go back in. However, When the Lord Jesus Christ came to this earth, and he made this great claim and spoke with authority, I am the door. The Lord Jesus Christ was competent to open the door. See, there's no way back to the Father but by him. A way over in the Epistle to the Hebrews read like this. He is able to save to the very uttermost all who are coming unto God by him. He was able to open the door whereby guilty sinners need not be expelled. That guilty sinners need not stay at a distance. The door has been opened and we're able again to approach to a holy God. But there's only one door. But it's an open door and it gives a welcome. But then we should also point out this. that while the Lord Jesus Christ opened the door, there will come the day when that door will be closed. The Bible distinctly speaks of the day of salvation. You know, you read in your newspapers concerning certain events that have to take place in certain places. It tells you that the doors will be open at such and such a time. and the doors will be closed at such and such a time. And you know perfectly well that after the door is opened you'll be able to go in, that is provided you have the ticket of entry or you pay the fee and when the door is opened you go in. But there comes a time when the door is closed and if you come too late and the door is closed then you will not be allowed to go in. So it's common sense to get there on time. Now then, the Lord Jesus Christ has opened the door of salvation, and we're living today in that day of salvation. Now there's a door, and that door speaks of the wisdom of God in providing one door for all comers. There's a welcome over the door because it's open, and you're welcome to come. But there's also a warning that someday the door will be closed. Have you ever thought that after Noah went into the ark, that door of the ark remained open for another seven days? I wonder how many people passed to and fro in front of that ark and perhaps looked in. It may be there were some people there who admired the structure. And they thought of the great work that Noah had done, for it took him a long number of years to build it. And they perhaps looked inside the door, but they didn't go in. I wonder how many were standing around that door the day that it was closed. But when it was closed, they found themselves on the outside. Oh, they had been well warned. Noah had preached to them. He was a faithful preacher. He believed in come judgment. and he preached righteousness to the people. They had been well warned of what was about to take place, but they would not heed the warning, and they did not go in. The Lord Jesus speaks with absolute authority and says, I am the door. You see, my friend, men and women need to be saved. And God has provided salvation in the person of Jesus Christ. There's only one way back of God, and it's by way of the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the only door that leads to salvation. There's a welcome for every poor sinner even now in the day of salvation, but you could wait too late, and the door could be shut. Now notice again what he says. I am the door. By me, if any man enter in. Here is the thought of acceptance. I suggest there is a double acceptance here. First of all, if the invitation is given, there's a welcome over the door and we're invited to come in, we accept that invitation and we step in. And the moment you step in, you are accepted in Christ. God accepts you in all the acceptability of His beloved Son. How simple it is. When men are given an invitation to be present at some particular function and they write back and say, yes, they accept the invitation, they'll be pleased to be there. And when the hour arrives, they are there. And the moment they step inside, there's someone there to receive them and perhaps to show them to their place. at the function. Oh, my friend, God has been inviting. He is an inviting God. He said to Noah, Come thou and thy house into the ark. And through the prophet Isaiah, he said, Come now and let us reason together. And then the Lord Jesus Christ said, Come unto me all, ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. And then in the last book of the Bible, whosoever will let him come and take the water of life, really. Our God isn't inviting God. He invites us to come for salvation. He invites us to come for cleansing. He invites us to come for life. He invites us to come for rest. You see, God isn't inviting God. And I believe that every one of you listening to my voice now have responded in some way or another at some time in your life. And you said, yes, that's right. And someday I'm going to get right with God. I must get this thing settled. But up to the present time, you have never settled the issue between your soul and your God. You've never settled the issue of your soul's eternal salvation. In plain words, you're still outside. And it may be some of you are saying, well, I have grave doubts about it. Do you think God can do anything for a sinner like me? Listen, my friend. Here is the answer to the doubting heart. and for all who approach the door. Listen to this. If any man enter in. Now, as you approach the door, you must recognize that there are two sides to every door, an inside and an outside. And only one step makes the difference. How often have you sung only a step to Jesus? Then why not take it now? You see, you're at the door. you've been brought again and again to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is both able and willing to save you. And you've realized that as a sinner you need to be saved, or you'll never occupy a square inch of God's heaven. In plain words, you've got to be inside the door. Suppose a man was a mile from the door, and another man was only a yard from the door, and the door was shut. Both of them would be outside. You see, my friend, it doesn't make any difference how far you're away, or how near you may be, if you're still outside the door of salvation, and God was to close that door today, and the day of salvation was to come to an end, you would be just as much lost as that poor, down-and-out sinner who had no desire and no interest in the things of salvation. You're outside the door and you're doubting. But here is the answer to the doubting heart. If any man enter in. You see, the invitation reaches out to you. God hasn't said if any good person will enter in. He hasn't said if any church member will enter in. He hasn't said if any good living citizen will enter in. He doesn't make these distinctions when it comes to salvation. He said if anyone will enter in. Now that breaks down every barrier that man could erect. It takes away the religious barrier. It takes away the national barrier. It takes away the intellectual barrier. It breaks down every barrier that segregates men, one from the other. And God looks upon us all as being one. That is, we're all members of Adam's lost and ruined race. And therefore God says, if anyone, Jew or Gentile, black or white, rich or poor, learned or illiterate, no matter who you may be, my friend, The door is open, and God says if anyone, that is if you will enter in. There's to be the acceptance. You accept God's invitation. You step inside the door by faith. You receive Jesus Christ as your Savior and walk inside. And God accepts you. That's why I said it's a mutual acceptation. God says, there is my Son. In him is salvation. If you accept him, then you are accepted in Christ. Ah, but look at the assurance. He shall be saved. When a person enters in and is saved, he has a permanent possession. He has eternal life. You see, the shepherd says, I give unto my sheep eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one shall pluck them out of my hands. My Father is greater than all, and none shall pluck them out of my Father's hand. Here is a permanent possession, the possession of eternal life. So when a man or a woman receives Christ, that is, they enter in at the door of my faith, they become the possessors of eternal life. But they have a permanent protection in the Savior's hand. He says, no one shall pluck them out of my hand. When Noah went into the ark and God shut the door, God didn't say to Noah, go in. He said to Noah, come in. And when Noah came in with his wife and his family, God shut the door and God shut him in. And God was with him in the ark. And no one on the outside would ever have been able to have taken Noah out of that place of protection. He was protected by God. Might I say this to every listener today, when you have received Jesus Christ as your Savior, there's no power on earth or in hell would ever be able to take you out of that place of protection in God's hand. You see, it's a permanent position in the Father's hand. The Father's hand is a place of eternal security. This is a sublime certainty. And every person who has trusted Christ a Siddha, can live in the enjoyment of this wonderful salvation. And he says, if he does that, it will be a life of activity. He'll go in and out and find pasture. The person who follows the true shepherd can find profitable activity in feasting upon the green pastures and walking beside the still waters. Remember the text. He said, I am the door. By me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved. Now let me quote to you the words of an old hymn. So near to the kingdom, yet what dost thou lack? So near to the kingdom, what keepeth thee back? Renounce every idol, though dear, it may be. and come to the Saviour, now pleading with thee, so near that thou hearest the songs that rebound from those who believing a pardon have found, so near, yet unwilling to give up thy sin, when Jesus is waiting to welcome thee in. To die with no hope, hast thou counted the cost? To die out of Christ and thy soul to be lost? So near to the kingdom, O come, we implore, while Jesus is pleading, come, enter the door. Pleading with thee, pleading with thee, Your Savior is pleading, is pleading with thee. Oh, I trust, my friend, that you consider the truths embodied in the