• Once again in John: Mystical, metaphorical, loads of symbolism; extremely contextual.
• Sheep? Not our day to day go-to example the way it was in biblical times.• Shepherd? In my context, those are my dogs, presently lounging on comfy beds at home.
So when we hear the Good Shepherd, we might imagine a rather idyllic scene:
cute fluffy things, wandering a green hillside,
and a gentle man lifting an itty bitty lamb into his arms.
It’s comforting, it’s affirming, it’s no wonder we put this image into stained glass.
For the folks in biblical times, they heard this from a number of perspectives.
The notion of comfort is undeniable. Even the metaphors that are in the Gospel are full of assurances: Jesus is the good shepherd, who will lay down his life for his flock.
And he contrasts this with a hired hand – who runs away at the first sign of danger.
At this point: it’s good to remember that the immediate audience hearing Jesus’ words were familiar with sheep, and shepherds.
They knew that sheep could be obstinate, could be independent, could have any number of personalities combining within the flock.
They also knew shepherds: some of them had family members and friends who were in this profession; often as hired hands.
And they may have objected to their loved ones being described in such a way:
Jesus is calling them flighty, uncommitted, uncaring, fearful, self-focused.
That is, they might have objected IF they thought Jesus was being literal about the shepherd being the one in the field with the animals.
They understood that Jesus was not speaking literally; he himself had not been a shepherd in his career or in his family of origin: Joseph was a carpenter, not a farmer.
So the disciples hearing this recognised the nuance being shared.
A nuance that folks who are not believers wouldn’t catch on to; but that those of us throughout the centuries could discern as we read and prayed on this narrative.
Jesus is talking about care of community; of healthy leadership.
He is comparing the way of love that he taught, to the way of power that the governing officials demonstrated.
Those folks stayed away from the average people, they demanded unwavering loyalty and prestige, and so long as they were in the creature comfort of ruling elitism, they didn’t care what happened amongst the peoples they were meant to be there for.
These are the ones who would cut and run at the first sign of trouble;
who would offer their soldiers’ lives in times of conflict while they remained ensconced in safety.
Rulers in the time of Pax Romana were not known for kindness and compassion.
This is long before representative governments, and public voting, obviously.
To be fair, I’m not saying our political systems is perfect – it isn’t, it never will be.
But it’s not as divided and corrupt as the body politic in Jesus’ day.
And that’s a great time in the sermon to shift away from politics and back to Jesus!
• Jesus: GOOD shepherd. Not just A shepherd.
• Good – in the Biblical sense. Godly. Divine.
• Good – in the modern sense - because of the relationship.
• Knows his own – and his own know him.
• Community; collaboration.
• Coming together for common purpose: extending love and peace and grace.
• Inclusive: sheep from other flocks are welcome.
• Invited folks to follow along, to join in the midst, to assemble under a spiritual care that goes beyond what the world could offer.
• A flock that folks would WANT to be a part of.
So that invites us to ponder: who’s OUR flock? Who is in OUR community?
Community is an opportunity to connect, to share, to grow.
To give of ourselves, that we might better the whole.
To follow the example of Jesus:
To welcome in; with shelter and nourishment, of body and soul.
To visit; with open hearts and carrying messages of concern from others.
To love; embracing peculiarities and gifts that everyone has to offer.
Community isn’t about all being the same; it’s about embracing our differences in edifying ways.
Member in the flock isn’t about giving up our uniqueness, but finding ways to collaborate and share.
Being a sheep following the shepherd isn’t giving up personal autonomy, it’s choosing to follow a leader who extends agency to the whole community.
So we are welcomed into the flock: a group of us who choose to come together, flawed as we are, under a leader who will love us.
Who will ensure that we want for nothing; that we are led to places of comfort and provision.
Who will keep us safe, day and night; removing threats from our path that we will never even know about.
A shepherd who will calm our hearts, build us up, put people in our paths that will help us on our journey--- and who we will help on theirs.
A shepherd; who will offer the gift of salvation: who will lay down his life for his flock; who will demonstrate the promise of Resurrection and eternal life for all who believe.
A shepherd who loves us in this world, and wants to continue the building up of the kin and kingdom of God.
The Lord is our Shepherd indeed; for in God we have come together. Thanks be to God
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