Word to the Wise
Tuesday, May 17, 2011 - 4th Week of Easter - Tues
[Acts 11:19-26 and John 10:22-30,906]My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father's hand. The Father and I are one.
If we, knowing that believing what we know and believe now, were standing in that audience, listening to the dialog between Jesus and his questioners, our reaction to the the last line of the quote would be one of those "Uh Oh!" moments. The very next line in the passage says that they picked up stones to cast at him! The build up of dramatic tension in the Gospel of John is tremendous. But we cannot let that distract us who claim to be believers from understanding the truth - a truth which we often take for granted or just don't pay any attention to because we think we know all of this.
The relationship which the shepherd/sheep image presumes is a close one. It depends on attention to the shepherd. If his voice is not heard then he is not followed and the result is loss to wolf and hireling! Jesus assures the believer that if he/she hears his voice and follows him, he gives to him/her eternal life and that no one can take the believer from him! That is a very reassuring reality! However, the gospel goes further to tell us WHY he can make that claim - he and the Father are ONE. Does that make us hesitate after relaxing in the cozy picture of the Shepherd and sheep? Here we are confronted with a theological truth - a challenge to faith. What do we do when the others pick up stones? Do we relegate the theological basis of Jesus' claim to some kind of "Whatever....?" The implications of what Jesus says are what cause his questioners to pick up those stones! Do we duck and run, or do we join the dialog? AMEN