Charlotte
Collins Reed
Christ
Church Episcopal
May 3, 2020
4 Easter A
On Friday morning, I woke up to a text
message from my sister. Sarah had sent
me a link to a real estate listing for our grandparents’ old house outside Princeton,
New Jersey. When we were young, we spent
many happy hours and days playing there, but I must say the house was a bit shabby
then, with a musty smell, two bathrooms that were pretty sketchy even by 7 year
old standards, and a kitchen that left a lot to be desired. Now someone has completely remodeled the whole
house and there is no trace of shabby or sketchy by any stretch of the imagination. But looking through the photos of the house on
Friday, I could clearly hear my grandparents’ voices in my head, even though
they have both been gone over 25 years.
Their voices called our names to bring us inside after an afternoon of
play in the expansive yard, or offered to take us to the nearby town to buy
candy, or tucked us in bed. We always felt safe, secure, and loved in that
house and the memories the house holds for us are precious.
This Sunday is Good Shepherd Sunday,
which is always the 4th Sunday of Easter. Today, we hear Jesus call himself the
Shepherd of the Sheep and tell us that he calls his sheep by name and leads
them out. The sheep follow the Shepherd
because they know his voice. Jesus also
tells us that he is the gate for the sheep, and he has come that the sheep may
have life and have life abundantly.
This passage alone tells us a lot about
the Christian life. First, Jesus tells
us that he leads the sheep out and the sheep follow him. The sheep are not meant to stay in the
sheepfold but to follow Jesus out, where there is plenty of pasture to graze
and move about. Secondly, Jesus has come
that the sheep may have life and have life abundantly. Jesus has not come to steal, kill, or destroy,
but to give abundant life. And thirdly,
Jesus tells us that he is the gate for the sheep. No one else gets to decide who is in the sheepfold
and who is not. Later Jesus will give
the disciples a new commandment-that they love one another as Jesus loves
them. The criteria for sheep is that
they love one another as Jesus loves them.
While that is far more difficult than it sounds as first-after all Jesus
lays down his life for the sheep-that is the sole criteria for being a sheep.
Combine this passage from John with the
beloved 23rd psalm and the familiar words “The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want,” the image of a table being set for us in the presence of
those who trouble us, and God’s presence with us even in the valley of the
shadow of death, and we have a comforting image of the Shepherd who calls us by
name and will keep us safe, in whose presence there is fullness of life. Add to that the passage from Acts where Jesus’
followers all seem to live together in perfect harmony, sharing all things in
common, and spending their days devoted to the apostles’ teaching and
fellowship, the breaking of bread, and the prayers, and we could easily have a
very pastoral image of following the voice of Jesus who calls us by name and
leads us to a life of safety, security, and love as well as peace and harmony.
The reading from 1 Peter stops us
short, however. I Peter was written to encourage faithful Christians who were
suffering unjustly at the hands of their masters. No one was setting a table for these Christians
in the presence of their enemies. I Peter
was not written to glorify unjust suffering, much less condone it. I Peter was written because unjust suffering
was and is a fact. The letter was
written to encourage those who were suffering unjustly by reminding them of the
unjust suffering Christ endured, and the teaching and witness of Jesus not to
repay evil with evil.
There is much unjust suffering in the
world. Right now, some populations are
hit harder than others by Covid-19 through no fault of their own, but because
of poverty, poor nutrition, sub-standard housing, and the inability to
shelter-in place. There are victims of human
trafficking, children who are separated from their parents at the border, and people
more likely than others to be incarcerated due to the color of their skin. The list goes on and on. I Peter puts such suffering right smack in
front of us.
On Good Shepherd Sunday, if all we
hear is the part about verdant pastures and Jesus calling us by name and giving
us abundant life, then we have missed the point. The reading from Acts tells us that the early
church made sure everyone had what they needed and they lived with glad and
generous hearts. What some people need
is food, clothing, health, shelter, or freedom.
The psalmist says “When I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil. For you are
with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” When we stand up to evil, we are promised
that God will be with us. The gospel
reading tells us that Jesus calls us by name and leads us out of the sheepfold
into the world to follow his voice where he goes. And where Jesus goes is to bring love and
justice where there is suffering and cruelty in the world. If Good Shepherd Sunday is about safety and security
and being protected by the great Shepherd of the Sheep, this Sunday is about
that safety and security for all people and Jesus’ call to his followers to work
for abundant life for everyone.
Amen.
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