John 10:1-10
We gather together today for Good Shepherd Sunday. For our liturgists out there, always the fourth Sunday of Easter. The day we draw our attention to Jesus as the shepherd – caretaker and guide to his flock… The one who goes ahead of us and leads us out… who knows us and makes himself known to us… who lays down his life for us… who came to save us – not just from something, but for something – that we might not only have life, but have it abundantly…
While I couldn’t begin to tell you what I preached about last year on Good Shepherd Sunday, as they were coming out of church following worship, Joan and Fred Horak thanked me for my sermon, and went on to share how important this day of the church year is for them, as people who had raised sheep together for 25 years.
Later that afternoon, Joan sent me a follow up email, looking back on their life as shepherds.
She attached these pictures of some of their flock… describing the sheep pictured, as “a rare breed” called Jacob sheep – a breed named after our Biblical Jacob and his spotted sheep found in the book of Genesis, believed by some to be far closer to the sheep of Jesus’ day than other breeds around today. A breed, to quote Joan, that is “cunning and smart… protective of their young and each other, resourceful, and perceptive… that are familial…” A breed that recognizes the voice of their shepherd… that seek safety by herding together… and from their shepherd…
If you worshiped with us on Easter, you heard me ask the essential question asked by countless other pastors on the day – Why are you here?
As I reflected on this weekend’s gospel, it hit me, that Jesus, on this Good Shepherd Sunday,gives us the essential answer to this essential question.
“Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep… Whoever enters by me will be saved… I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
It’s true, that we are all here for different reasons. Some of us are here, because we always have been. Our family has been here for generations… We were baptized here… we received our first communion here… we were confirmed here… we were married here… our hope is that we will receive our final blessing here before returning to the ground from which we were made… Others of us are here, because for one reason or another, God has led us here. A move… A marriage… A divorce… A friend invited us… Our kids were invited to youth group and drug us along with them… We heard this was a welcoming congregation and found it to be true… We heard how awesome the pastor and his sermons are… Yea, yea… Careful Vicar!
Regardless of these details, it seems safe to say, that each of us are here, because, at least on some level, we are in need of being saved from something… To hear a word of grace that we might let go of the guilt from sins committed… To be reminded that there’s more to life than earthly things… To be reminded that we are not alone in the things that we face – that we are one among the flock… To be part of a community, not based on how the world views us, but on who we are in the eyes of God… Not on what we have achieved – on how much we earn or the size of our house, on what clothes we wear or what we do for a living… But community rooted in love given freely, because of the image of God imprinted on each of us… that offers life, when the outside world seeks to strip it away…
This year – Year A on our three-year lectionary – offers us a unique perspective for this day of the Good Shepherd. While Year B draws our focus to Jesus as the Good Shepherd himself and Year C builds on this, fleshing out a bit more on what it means to be part of his flock, today’s gospel leads us to reflect on Jesus as the gate for the sheep.
The one who allows the sheep to enter the pasture… And Jesus is clear, it is by coming through the gate, through Him, that abundant life is possible…
A couple of weeks ago, by way of invitation from myself and our Council President, Jim Dunlop, our Congregation Council held a Zoom meeting with Pastor Nathan Swenson-Reinhold – An ELCA pastor and church consultant with Summit Coaching and Behavioral Consulting Group.
The topic for conversation – what it would look like to bring Pastor Reinhold on board here at St. James, to lead us in a church growth campaign. A topic, he quickly pointing out, from a consulting standpoint, he has never been approached to be in conversation about… one, in our post-COVID, post-Christendom era, very few congregations across the country are even capable of considering…
By the end of the meeting, Council voted unanimously to approve Pastor Reinhold’s proposal and move forward with the campaign. The process will begin in just a couple of weeks, with Pastor Reinhold hopefully being on site sometime in July.
If you’re like those members of Council – which, as your representatives, hopefully is the case – you probably have some questions… If the odds are stacked against us, with less and less people interested in church and faith, why are we entering into a church growth campaign? Are we ready for something like this as a congregation? What will this mean for me? For us as?
As with most things, there aren’t simple answers to any of these questions. We’ll have to sort them out for ourselves along the way. For me, however, it comes down to Jesus words from today’s gospel… that essential answer as to why we are here – that we would have life, and have it abundantly… not just those of us here already, but those not yet a part of the flock as well…
When I visited with Joan last week to check in on how she’s been doing since Fred’s passing back in January – gosh… how has it been that long… hmm… – while Joan and I didn’t talk about sheep… we did talk about what it means to be a part of this flock here at St. James… For Fred – following a difficult time wrestling with the church and the things of faith – according to Joan, finding a home here was exactly what he needed… It was literally his salvation – offering him new life and a renewed purpose…
“Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep… Whoever enters by me will be saved… I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
This weekend, over the course of our three worship services, we will bring in over thirty new people to our family of faith – some in just a few moments. Regardless of if you’ve been here for generations or if you’re a first-time visitor, or of the many reasons why found yourself here today, the gate is open, this abundant life is for you…
The world is full of thieves and robbers and those who seek to steal and kill and destroy and lead us astray. One look at the news will tell you that. For some of us, we don’t need to look nearly as far.
But here, in this place, surrounded by this flock, Christ the Good Shepherd, our caretaker and guide… the one who has laid down his life for us… who came to save us and continues to – not just from something, but for something – makes himself known to us… that we might not only have life, but have it abundantly…
So let us be sheep. Let us, together as a flock, be protective, resourceful, and perceptive… Let us be familial – seeking safety by herding together and from our Good Shepherd – listening to his voice as he calls us in and leads us out, doing all we can to extend life wherever it is needed the most…
For the God who so loved the world, no one is too broken, too lost, to enter the gate. A tool, not meant to keep people out, but a means to guide people to a life they were created and meant to have. One of forgiveness and grace, where all are welcome and accepted, cared for, and embraced. One, in which we are gathered into one flock regardless of our differences, bound together by Christ – the Good Shepherd – who loves us, not because of what we do or fail to do… because of who the world defines us to be… but because who we are to Him – the sheep of his pasture, set free from sin, healed, and called to follow his voice… led out to expand the flock and bring life in his name.
Thanks be to God. Amen.
~Pastor Andrew Geib
Sermons at St. James Gettysburg 