Acts 13:14,43-52
Psalm 100:1-2,3,5
Revelation 7:9,14b-17
John 10:27-30
There
are many voices which clamor for our attention in the world today. We are
constantly bombarded by advertisements on TV, radio, the internet, and various
forms of social media, which try to convince us to buy certain products. We
hear Politicians giving us long lists of our country’s woes, and telling us
that only they can fix the problems we face. We hear voices of people crying
out against what they have termed “organized religion,” calling it oppressive
and old fashioned. And in the midst of all of these voices, there is the one still, small voice of Christ, the Good Shepherd.
This is the voice of Truth: This is the voice that says “I know you, for you
are mine. If we listen for and follow the voice of the Shepherd, we will have
eternal Life.
Today is commonly referred to as “Good
Shepherd Sunday,” Since the Gospel Readings in all three cycles come from what
is called the Good Shepherd Discourse in Chapter 10 of John’s Gospel. Today, we
only hear the tail end of this discourse- but the central theme of the entire
passage is present: Christ’s sheep, his followers, hear is voice, and follow
after him. This is not a blind obedience
to a far off voice, but rather an intimate relationship of love. Christ knows
his sheep by name, and is willing to lay down his life for them. He is also
willing to go in search of the lost, as we hear in the Parable of the Lost
Sheep in Luke’s Gospel. This selfless love that the Good Shepherd gives is
intended for all, but why do so many seem to not hear this message?
Listening
for the voice of the Good Shepherd requires us to listen with ears of Faith,
and to believe in God’s ability to speak in and through others. Our Faith, by
its very nature, is incarnational, and that means that our experience of God
will always be mediated in and through human experience. Do we recognize and
accept when this is happening? Or do we, like the Jews described in today’s
First Reading, contradict the message being spoken, because it does not fit our
own preconceived notions of how things are supposed to be?
The Many
voices of the World also tend to get in the way of truly hearing the voice of
the Good Shepherd. The constant bombardment can make it very difficult to
discern what is true, and what is going to lead us astray. Some things may
appear to be good on the surface, but after a time we realize that the voices
of the world cannot bring us true happiness. It is in that moment that we are
better able to listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd, calling us back to
Truth, to love, and to the place where we will not want- the place of the
Heavenly Vision described in the Book of Revelation. Here, the Lamb is both
victim and shepherd, who cares for the sheep- not allowing them to hunger or
thirst, providing them shade to protect them, and wiping every tear from their
eyes.
While
this heavenly vision brings comfort, we are also reminded in the same reading
that those who are the recipients of this consolation have “survived the time
of great distress.” Here too, the Good Shepherd guides us, and protects us, as
it says in Psalm 23: “Even though I walk through dark valley, I fear no evil;
for you are at my side, with your rod and your staff that give me courage.” To
truly live and believe these words requires trust- trust that the path that the
Good Shepherd is leading us on is the right one, that will lead us to Eternal
Life with God. May we seek to listen for
the voice of the Good Shepherd, who gave of his life for us, so that we may
follow him down the path to Eternal Life.
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