Word to the Wise
Sunday, April 21, 2024 - 4th Sunday of Easter - B
[Acts 4:8-12; 1 John 3:1-2; John 10:11-18]"I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A hired man, who is not a shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away, and the wolf catches and scatters them.....I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep. I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd. [John]
The image of Jesus as the "Good Shepherd" is one of the most beloved in Christianity. Stained glass windows depict Jesus with a lamb in his arms and a ewe standing at his feet looking up at him adoringly. It is altogether a comforting and caring image. The image of the Good Shepherd is taken from the Gospel According to John and today's passage is taken from the middle of the discourse. The discourse begins with Jesus comparing himself to the gate of the corral which governs who or what gets in and out. Then Jesus turns the image a bit and becomes the shepherd. Then the image focuses on one aspect of the shepherd - his voice!
The whole image is taken from actual herding practice in Palestine then and now. A village would have one corral with one gate. At night all the sheep from all the different flocks are put in the corral. The shepherd on watch would lie down at the gate!!! In the morning, each shepherd would come and give a distinct call. His sheep, and only his sheep, would hear the call and separate themselves to follow him to pasture. That "call" is the call to the faith of the one who believes in Jesus. And we are told that there is another flock somewhere that Jesus must tend to. This could be a caution against smugness in thinking that anyone not in our particular flock is doomed.
Sheep are not the most intelligent members of the animal world, so the image should not be pressed too hard! The focus is on the gate and the shepherd and his voice. Following the shepherd is a matter of life and death for the sheep, and the sheep are the reason for the life of the shepherd. The relationship is the point of the image. If we consider ourselves a member of Jesus' flock, we may ask ourselves how attentive we are to his call? AMEN