Monday, March 27, 2017

Reflections on "Sheep and the Good Shepherd" John 10: 1-18

I have preached this text several times through the years, or at least texts dealing with image of the shepherd.  We also are studying The God We Can Know, by Rob Fuquay during Lent, and his chapter and DVD presentation on John 10: 1-8 had lots of information about shepherds.  I ended up with lots of material that I did not use (which means I will probably preach on the topic again one day!).

I don't think I had ever explored the idea that Jesus uses the image of shepherd and sheep to reveal his dry sense of humor that we are the sheep, who are described as dumb and had to handle.  I did not push that idea very hard in the sermon, but it had me chuckling all week.

In the class studying this text, one of the people who had actually raised sheep said, "they always say that sheep or dumb, but the shepherd who raises sheep is dumber."  I laughed, but figured that would not work very well in the sermon since it would be calling Jesus dumb.  Sunday night, it hit me (yes, the sermons keep running through my head) -- I could have started the section on the shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep with that quote, and then noted:  the Good Shepherd makes a dumb move.  He gives his life for sheep/people who are sinners and never quite get it right.  Dumb, but also revealing the love and grace of God.  I think I could have made that work.

“Sheep and the Good Shepherd” SAPC, March 26, 2017; John 10:1-18

John 10: 1Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. 18 No one takes[a] it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”

Introduction:  We continue through Lent reflecting on the “I am” statements of Jesus and how they reveal the God we can know.  this week, we hear Jesus say, “I am the gate,” and “I am the good shepherd.”

But his words also speak about the Pharisees and the sheep, so let’s begin there.

Move 1: the Pharisees.

a.  These “I am” statements immediately follow the healing of the blind man from Chapter 9

1.  You can go back and read it this afternoon at halftime during one of the march madness games.

2.  Basically, Jesus heals a blind man, and it upsets the Pharisees.

3. upset because they cannot believe, or do not want to deal with, this Jesus guy who supposedly healed the blind man.

b.  The Pharisees focus on whether the blind man was really blind, who was Jesus to heal, and so on.

1. No celebration of the healing of the blind man; in fact, no concern for the blind man.

2. All they can see is how the healing might impact their power and control.

c.  In the Greek, the story of the healing of the blind man is linked textually with what he have as Chapter 10.

1. what Jesus is about to say connects with the healing and the Pharisees response.

2.  We also notice that Jesus begins his comments by pointing to the thieves and bandits.

3.  A clear comment on the Pharisees.

d. It is easy to see this as just about the Pharisees.

1.  but remember the Pharisees were the leaders of the church; the ones in control; the ones who knew the most.
2.  If you are a leader, or you are one of those who has it all figured out, beware.

Move 1: what about the sheep?

a. I don't know much about sheep, but here's what I've read or heard about them from other people.

1. Baby sheep, that is lambs are pretty cute.  Lambs bleat a gentle "bahhh" and are nice and cuddly. But they grow into adult sheep that have a disturbing, somewhat distressing bleat.

2.  Sheep are filthy animals, generally covered in mud and their own waste. Their wool can tangle around all sorts of nastiness and hold onto it until the shepherd shows up to get it clean.

3. Sheep like to follow.  They will follow the sheep in front of them, even if it leads to their demise.  The old adage, “if the person next to you jumped off a cliff, would you?” would be answered with a “yes” by sheep. 

4. As one modern day shepherd puts it:  "Sheep are just born looking for a way to die." He can recall countless stories that involve sheep putting themselves in unnecessary peril, much of which could usually be avoided by doing something simple like turning around.

5.  Sheep hang out in groups.  It protects them from predators, but also gives them a group mentality.  If a sheep ends up off by itself, it can become highly agitated.

6. In fact, it does not take much to agitate or startle sheep.

7. Sheep do know the voice of the shepherd, but will only sometimes follow him or her. They follow other sheep far better than they follow a shepherd. Sometimes, however, sheep will follow a stranger—especially sheep who do not yet know the shepherd well. It takes time for a shepherd to know sheep well enough to tell them apart. Sheep apparently see us the same way.
Read more: http://www.patheos.com/Progressive-Christian/Dirty-Sheep-Mike-Baughman-05-06-2014.html#ixzz3Jpo3kj1h

7. In summary – sheep are cute as babies, but grow up into adults who get caught up in the messy details of life (as you welcome Vivian today you will see the cute, and then look around you, or looking the mirror and see the adults the babies become).   Sheep have a tendency to listen to others and follow, regardless of the consequences.  They listen for the right voice to guide them, but sometimes follow the wrong voice.

b.  Here’s the thing - when we hear Jesus say, “i am the gate,” or “I am the good shepherd”  it implies that we are sheep.

1. Maybe Jesus was having some fun with the listeners.

2.  A few hours after hearing Jesus, or maybe a few days, people go, “Wait a minute.  He says I am a sheep?”  
3.Jesus having some fun, but some fun with an underlying truth - we fit the image of a sheep to well.

c.  Sheep who need a shepherd to guide us.
              1.  Not just any shepherd, but the one who voice we know.

               2. Notice the intimate relationship being described

                3.  a relationship we need to work on, to learn the voice.

                4.  We need to know our shepherd.

Move 2:  What about the gate?

a. In the Gospel of John before getting to the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, Jesus calls himself the gate.

1. remember that sheep have poor depth-perception and have a hard time distinguishing a partially open gate along a fence line. 

2. They need a a gate that will open for them, a gate that welcomes them to pasture land or the safety of the pen.

3.  A gate the invites them into a place where they can be nourished.

4. A gate that acts to protect them against the perils they might face.

5.  as we saw on the DVD this week, then the shepherd can lay down blocking the gate to keep thieves or wolves out, and also 

b.  Jesus is the gate.

  1. Jesus is the one who invites us into a place where we can be fed on earth.

2.  Jesus also ties this image of the gate to a salvation theme that is a found throughout the gospel of John.

3.  Jesus as the gate has daily and eternal implications - who you want to be, where you want to go, passes by and through Christ.

Move 3:  Finally, the good shepherd.

a.  when Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd,” he is building on a mixed metaphor.

1. On the one hand, by 1st Century times, shepherds were not really considered good guys.

2. Shepherds have a bad reputation for being shiftless, thieving, trespassing people for hire.  Like the hired hands Jesus describes who run away when trouble arises.  Not the kind of shepherd a sheep wants for needs (The New Interpreter's Bible: Luke and John, Volume IX, 296 quoting Joachim Jeremias, Jerusalem in the Time of Jesus).

3.  Maybe the Pharisees listening to Jesus are thinking, “you got that right.  You're nothing but one of those low-life shepherds.”

4.  Ezekiel also prophesies judgment for the bad shepherds who do not care for God’s people.

5.  But we also have the image of the shepherd form Psalm 23, a shepherd who cares greatly for the sheep.

6. or the shepherd Jesus talks about who will leave the 99 to go find the 1 sheep which is missing.

b. Jesus lays claim to being the good shepherd.

1. the good shepherd has come to save sheep who choose to listen to his voice.

2. Do not miss that when Jesus describes those sheep, he mentions that some of them welcome from other flocks.

3.  In other words, the criteria for who will be in the Good Shepherd’s flock is not the Pharisees or some religions rules, but the sheep who chose to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd.

c.  we also notice Jesus talking about being a Good shepherd, who will even give his life to save the sheep.

1.  once again, Jesus is transforming people’s understandings.

2. sheep are to be killed as sacrifice.

3. ultimately, they are expendable.

4. But the Good Shepherd describes it differently.

5. the sheep are so valued, the Good shepherd will be the sacrifice.
   

Conclusion:   Jack was an old farmer in the church I served in KY. 

He was also a modern day shepherd, I suppose, because he raised sheep. I'm not sure he made money doing it, but he told me he loved raising sheep.

“Why?” I asked.

“Come with me, and I'll show you.”

Off we went to his farm.  We were driving his old, beat-up Sentra.  When we got to the field where the sheep were, he instructed me to go and open the gate to the field, then close it, and then hop back in the car.

I did.  Then we drove to the middle of the field.  I suppose I was a shepherd! 

The sheep came running from all directions and surrounded us.  Some were even trying to get on top of the car.  

I'm not much of a shepherd because to tell you the truth it seemed a little scary to be surrounded by a flock of sheep.

But not Jack. He had a great big smile on his face.  WE got out and stood there with the sheep, and he told me, “see these sheep come running to me no matter what.  You gotta like that, don't you?”

The sheep were hoping to find a good shepherd.


We have found one.  Jesus Christ himself.  Amen.

Sunday, March 12, 2017

Reflections on "Filling Up" Exodus 16: 1-8; John 6: 22-59

The sermon grew out of three different perspectives:  1. My first response to reading the Exodus text was how the Israelites always wanted more from God; and when I saw the context of the second passage was just after the miracle of the loaves and fishes, I saw a similar theme from those who wanted more from Jesus.   2.The week's theme focused on how we are never satisfied and always want more.  3. While working on the text, there was much emphasis on linking this passage with the Lord's Supper.  

The sermon ended up reflecting these disparate thoughts.  I tried to tie them together.

I would really like to spend a whole sermon on the change in Greek words for 'eat," that takes place in the passage.  I mentioned it in point three, but it might be fun to spend some more time on that insight.  

As I preached the sermon, I freelanced a bit because it felt like the sermon as presented here did not connect enough with the week's theme of only being satisfied by the "bread of life."  i can't really remember the places where I added some content, so you'll just have to listen to the sermon (go to saint-andrew.com for the audio) if you want to hear the changes.

The sermon probably should have ended four sentence earlier.  The final story followed by the two statements after it felt like a good stopping point, but I sort of liked the conclusion, so I kept going.  In retrospect, my instincts while preaching the sermon were probably correct.

“Filling Up” SAPC, March 12, 2017; John 6: 22-59; Exodus 16: 1-8

As a reminder, we are spending Lent focusing on a Lenten study entitled The God We Can Know (by Rob Fuquay), which focuses on the “I am” statements of Jesus.  

Wednesday night class and two classes on Sunday mornings will be over the weekly topic.  See a DVD; discuss the them of the week.  

You can also pick up the study guides.

Last week, we began with Moses at the burning bush hearing that God’s name is “I am who I am.”

This week, we turn to the “I am statements of Jesus.”

As an aside, a few weeks ago one of my daughters called home to report on going to church (all three think that’s a good way to impress their minister father!).  

She was not very happy that church had gone over by 15-20 minutes (glad she wasn’t here last week!).  She said, “You never read long Scripture lessons.  it took forever for the minister to read the Scripture.  And then we had to listen to his sermon!

The text we are about to read is really long.  I decided not to cut any of it out; it all seemed so important.  I suppose after the long Scripture lesson, listening to the sermon is option.


The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there. They also saw that Jesus had not got into the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23 Then some boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.[f] 24 So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum looking for Jesus.
25 When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?” 26 Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. 27 Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” 28 Then they said to him, “What must we do to perform the works of God?” 29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” 30 So they said to him, “What sign are you going to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? 31 Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32 Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is that which[g] comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 34 They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. 37 Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away; 38 for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. 39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. 40 This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day.”
41 Then the Jews began to complain about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42 They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43 Jesus answered them, “Do not complain among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53 So Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day; 55 for my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink. 56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. 58 This is the Backbread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.” 59 He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.

Introduction:  a little Greek background as we approach the “I am” statements of Jesus. 

typically, when we read in English a sentence like “I eat,” or “I drink,” the Greek does not use two words.  The verb form tells us whether we should say, “i eat,” or “we eat,” or “they eat.”  the pronoun is implied.

If, however, the writer wants to emphasize, the writer can add the personal pronoun, sort of like tweeting in all caps.

The “i am” statements in Greek use the emphatic personal pronoun “ego,” with the verb to be.

Instead of “I am the bread of life,” or ‘I am the light of the world,” it reads, “I am the bread of life”


Move 1:  God’s people can be hard to satisfy.

a.  the story we read in the Gospel of John this morning comes right after the miracle of the loaves and fishes.

1. You remember — five loaves, two fish + the blessing of Jesus and 5000 people fed.

2. Powerful moment.  Only miracle Jesus performs that is recorded all four gospels.

3. the next day, those who have been fed cannot find Jesus.

4.  they go looking for him.  In fact, they go to some real effort and detective work, figuring out who went where in what boat, and then they find him.

5. Before we give them too much credit, notice what Jesus thinks — they do not want to ind him because of who he is and what he can do for them; they just want some more food.  
b.   reminiscent of the Israelites in the wilderness.

1. there they are, led out of slavery in Egypt, headed for the Promised Land

2.  But freedom is not enough.

3.  Hope for the Promised Land is not enough.

4. they are not happy so they complain — “we might as well have stayed in Egypt.”

5. Followed by “Give us some food.”

6.  the Israelites always seem to want more, and even when they get it, it does not seem to satisfy them.

c.  Do you find yourself satisfied, or are you always longing for something more?

1. That is the question we are asked to consider this week in our small groups.

2.  Are we living lives that demand more and more, yet find no satisfaction?

3.  Reflect on your life and see how much time and effort is spent trying to accomplish that one more thing, or attain that one more item, or find one more sign.

4.  Trying to fill up our lives, but never being satisfied.

Move 2:  Even when God provides what we need, we are not always satisfied. 

a.  The Israelites in the wilderness need food.

1. God provides manna with the morning dew.

2.  Enough for each day.

3.  If they take more than they need, it will go foul and be inedible.

4.  All they need for the day, but no more.

5.  We might think that having food provided each morning for forty years would not only fill the bellies of the Israelites, but also satisfy them spiritually.

6. and yet, the only thing in the wilderness as consistent as manna with the morning dew is the grumbling and complaining of the Israelites as they turn away from God again and again.

6. they are never satisfied.
b.  the crowds listening to Jesus share from the baskets of bread and fish but are not satisfied.

1. they take and eat “as much as they wanted” (John 6: 11).

2.  they ought to be filled up literally and satisfied spiritually, but it only makes them want more food.

3.  Sort of like when we eat a meal that fills us,  but then want that extra bite, or that ice cream; and then, e begin dreaming of the next meal.  No matter how full, we want something more.

c.  In the Lord’s Prayer, we pray:  “give us this day our daily bread.”

1.  And God does.

2.  But we are not quite satisfied.

move 3:  Jesus offers us what can satisfy.

a.  Jesus invites us to look beyond the immediate moment and our earthly needs.

1.  More than just bread to fill our bellies.

2. Jesus says, “I am the bread of life,” and calls us to discover the bread God sent down from heaven, the bread of life which carries with it the promise of eternal life.

3. the hope that does satisfy.

b.  They do not understand what Jesus means.

1. They pick apart Jesus’ statement.

2.  How can the son of Joseph say he came down from heaven?

3. How can we eat of his flesh?

4. legitimate questions, I suppose, particularly if we re looking for bread simply to fill our bellies.

c.  But Jesus offers more than food to fill us; he offers himself and the hope of eternal life.

1.  he offers that which may not make sense, but can only be taken on faith.

2. faith in the God who provided food in the wilderness for the Israelites; faith in the God who provided food for the 5000; faith in the God who sent Jesus to save us and redeem the world.

3.  The offers begs the question:  are we after that which fills us up in the moment, or that which satisfies us for this life and beyond?

4.  Our answer, of course, determines whether we seek what can fill us for the moment or the one who satisfies us for a lifetime and beyond.

move 3:  The invitation to eat of the bread of life is an invitation to a feast! 

a. Fascinating use of the Greek word “to eat”

1. Throughout most of this chapter Jesus used the typical Greek word for “to eat.” 

2.  It was the word phagein which, had you been a Greek-speaking parent back then, was the word you would have used when you said to your child, “Jimmy, eat your carrots now!” 

3.  But suddenly in verse 54 Jesus switches to the word trogein, a word which meant something like “to chew with your mouth open.” 

4.  This is the word a parent would use if a child was smacking his food and chewing in a rather rude and impolite way: “Jimmy, don’t eat like a pig! Keep your mouth closed when you chew!”

5.  Not just, “Eat my flesh,” but goes further: “Chew on me, smack your lips over me, eat in a way that no one will miss what you are doing because they will be able to see what’s in your mouth!” (Scott Hoezee, http://cep.calvinseminary.edu/sermon-starters/proper-13b/?type=the_lectionary_gospel)

b.  I am reminded of the times I have been at the table of Holy Communion receiving the bread and cup and was moved in such astonishing ways. One Sunday I was serving communion to my son, who was about 4 at the time. I offered him the bread, saying, “This is the bread of life,” and he looked up at me and said, “I want a BIG piece of Jesus.” He knew this was a feast. He was asking for what all of us have a hard time finding the words to request — more. More God, spiritual nourishment, connections to the Holy, hope, abundance, being part of the Body of Christ, bread that keeps us from hungering and belief that keeps us from thirsting (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/karyn-l-wiseman-phd/john-6-35-41-51-not-another-bread-passage-please_b_1753514.html; 08/08/2012; Karyn L. Wiseman blog)

A piece which satisfies.

A piece of the bread of life.

conclusion: Jesus tells the crowds, “I am the bread of life.”

They respond, “Give us this bread always.”

Jesus tells you, “I am the bread of life.”


what do you respond?