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May 6/7, 2006 Fourth Sunday of Easter (B) Rev. Timothy P. Schehr Acts 4:8-12 X 1 John 3:1-2 X John 10:11-18 On this Sunday in the Easter season we give praise to Jesus as the Good Shepherd. What is it that makes him good as a shepherd? It has nothing to do with the quality of his flock or the size of his ranch. It has everything to do with his readiness to sacrifice his life for his sheep. This is quite the reverse of what we might expect. Ordinarily in biblical times it is the sheep that are sacrificed. But this is no ordinary shepherd.
The picture of a shepherd leading the flock is quite prominent in the bible. We see it for the first time as we read about Abel’s terrible fate at the hand of his brother Cain. The image surfaces again with Abraham and Sarah. Who can forget the image of Moses as shepherd? He is shepherding his flock when he encounters God on the mountain. And then he receives the mission to shepherd the people of Israel out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. David is a shepherd when he first comes into view to be anointed as king by the great Samuel.
For all their good qualities these biblical shepherds are no match for Jesus. On the final Passover recorded in John’s gospel Jesus, the Lamb of God, is sacrificed for the salvation of all. Already at the midpoint in the Fourth Gospel Jesus anticipates everything he will do at that Passover.
We learn some other very significant lessons from this passage in John’s gospel. We learn that Jesus is wholly committed to the welfare of his flock. When danger approaches, other shepherds, less concerned for the sheep, run away to save their lives. We will see this plainly in the case of the Lord’s own apostles who are ready to abandon all association with Jesus as soon as danger surfaces on the night of the Lord’s arrest.
We learn that there are other sheep beyond the fold Jesus is caring for when he speaks these words. Jesus comes first to the flock of Israel, but his saving work extends to all the nations of the earth. Just before Jesus announces the arrival of the hour, when he will lay down his life for the sheep, Greeks come forward expressing a desire to see Jesus. So as the Lord’s hour begins there are people present who belong to those other flocks.
We learn that Jesus is fulfilling a command from his heavenly Father. This seems to take us all the way back to the beginning of the gospel where we learned that Jesus is the Word of God that came into the world to lead to eternal life all those who believe in him. Jesus fulfills his Father’s saving plan. He is the one who lays down his life; he is the one who takes it up again.
In spite of their failure during the hour of the Lord’s passion and death, Peter and others were later transformed into good shepherds too. In the first reading we witness Peter boldly proclaiming the gospel before many of the same leaders and elders who opposed Jesus during his earthly life. No longer fearing for his life, Peter confronts them all with the truth of the gospel. They rejected Jesus, but he is now the cornerstone of life.
In the second reading John likewise boldly proclaims his faith in Jesus. The world dismisses God’s children. But what does it matter? John values being a child of God over anything the world could possibly offer in place of such an honor. |
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