For most of us I think it is safe to say this image of the Shepherd is not
something we see very much everyday. It was a very common scene in
the early Church: – it is a common scene in the Middle East. People in
the early Church could really understand what was involved in being a
shepherd. It was very real and earthy to them. The Biblical figure of the
Shepherd – has been romanticized a lot in paintings, pictures, Holy
Cards, “rosy cheeked young men – among pure white fluffy sheep on
beautiful green hillsides – very serene and peaceful.”
I did a little research into what Shepherds were like in the Time of
Jesus. It was a very lonely, dirty, dangerous job – that could not be
managed from a distance. Shepherds lived among the sheep in the filth
and stench – the lives of the sheep were their primary concern. A sheep
sometimes wandered far off from the others – when it got lost and could
not find it’s way back, it would simply lie down where it was and refuse
to budge – the shepherd would search out for the lost sheep – carefully
pick it up and carry it home. There was a personal relationship between
the Shepherd and each individual sheep. They were not just numbers.
I believe this image of the Shepherd points us to God. God is
not squeamish; God will not run away when things get messy in our
lives; – God’s hands are dirty (not lily white); God’s clothes are stained
with waste, mud and blood – the waste, mud and blood of our roller
coaster lives. This God gets in the middle of the mess with us.
Does the mess magically disappear? Not most of the time; but
there is a sense we are not alone and that helps us get through it. A key
question for us; Are we afraid to share our messes with God?
How does this shepherding image of God come alive? Become real to
people – Today –
I believe most of the time thru people – we are called to be shepherds
for each other. We are responsible to pick each other up when we are
down.
“I thought just priests and ministers were shepherds – no we all are if
we call ourselves Christian and mean it.”
“Don’t we need special skill and talents – training to do this? No! We
need a caring heart, a little common sense and a few less excuses.
“What about when you don’t have the answers or solutions to people’s
problems? You don’t know what to say or do. Just listen and just be
there for them.
I close with a story I am sure we all have heard;
A man dreamed he died and went to heaven and there was met
by Jesus. The man had lived a long Christian life, but it had not been
without some time of great trial and tribulation as well as those times
of joy and victory. As he met with Christ, the man was given a
panoramic review of his life – all the highlights and low periods. In
the review of his life one of the things that continued throughout were
his footsteps along the sands of time.
The man noticed that at those times in his life when it had really
been rough there was only one set of footprints – not two as in the
good times. The man turned to the Lord and said, “Lord, I don’t
understand. You promised to be with me always. But when I look
back now, I see that in those really rough times there was only one set
of footprints. Lord, why did you leave me then?”
The Lord looked at him, smiled and said, ‘Leave you? I didn’t
leave you at all. Dear friend, if you look at the one set of footprints
carefully, you’ll notice they are a little deeper than the others. Those
were the time I was carrying you.”
Archive for the ‘4th Sunday’ Category
The Good Shepherd 4-30-2003
Thursday, April 27th, 2023The Blind Man 3-19-2023
Friday, March 17th, 2023The response of the Pharisees to this miracle of healing is a classic
example of the old adage, “There is none so blind as he or she who will
not see.” We do not fault these men for their investigation of the facts.
Faith should never be equated with naviete. The fault lies in their failure
to face the facts and deal with them openly and honestly. They refused
to see anything that contradicted their own little concept of the truth. We
should keep in mind that these men were not atheists. Every one of
them believed in God. Neither were they morally degenerate. In many
ways, they were people much like ourselves; yet, these were the men
who were spiritually blind. What exactly does that mean?
I. The first thing I see is their indifference to human
suffering. They obviously had little or no compassion for the
man who was born blind. Had they been genuinely
concerned for his problem, they would have rejoiced in his
healing, regardless of how it came about. But such was not
their response. I get the impression that they would have
preferred the man remain blind than have his receiving of
sight contradict their theological theories.
What that says to you and me is that we can be
religiously devout and spiritually blind at the same time. If I
understand at all the message of the New Testament, it is that
God is more concerned about people than his religious rules.
Jesus said, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for
Sabbath.” Religious rules are relevant only as they serve to
protect and enrich the lives of people.
So, Jesus would not be intimidated by the orthodoxy of
the Pharisees. In his system of values, keeping the law was
not nearly important as helping the people for whom the law
was given. If you and I can learn that lesson and live by it,
we will have opened our eyes to a major truth about God and
life. The Pharisees never saw that. With them, people were
expendable; the protection and propagation of the system
were all-important. They lived in a world of spiritual
darkness and did not even know it.
II. A second element of their blindness was their inability to
see themselves. Notice their contempt for the man born
blind. They said to him, “You were steeped in sin from your
birth. Who are you to be teaching us?” They were, of
course, right about the man. He was a sinner. The interesting
thing is how they failed to see the same truth applied to them.
They were moralistic people, and they had a sharp eye for
sin, but there was something artificial about it. Whenever
they spoke of sinners, it was always in the second person or
third person, never the first person: “you sinner,” or “those
sinners,” never “we sinners.”
Exactly how they exempted themselves from the
fellowship of the fallen is not quite clear. But one thing is
Blessed Are You 1-29-2023
Sunday, January 22nd, 2023Picture This. Jesus pulls up a metal folding chair in the parish hall
or takes a seat on the couch in the living room and begins to teach:
“If you’re struggling to pay the bills, but insist on making time to
be with your children whenever they need you, blessed are you – you
may never own the big vacation home and the Lexus, but heaven will be
yours.
“If you are overwhelmed by the care of a dying spouse, a sick child
or an elderly parent but you are determined to make a loving home for
them, blessed are you – one day your sorrow will be transformed into
joy.
“If you willingly give your time to cook at a soup kitchen, vacuum
the church, help in a classroom; if you befriend the uncool, the
unpopular, the perpetually lost, blessed are you – count God among your
friends and biggest boosters.
“If you refuse to take shortcuts when it comes to doing what is
right, if you refuse to compromise your integrity and ethics, if you refuse
to take refuge in the rationalization that ‘everybody does it,’ blessed are
you – you will triumph.
“If you try to understand things from the perspective of the other
person and always manage to find a way to make things work for the
good; if you’re feeling discouraged and frustrated because you are
always worrying, always waiting, always bending over backwards,
always paying the price for loving the unlovable and forgiving the
undeserving, blessed are you – God will welcome, forgive and love you.
“If you struggle to discover what God asks of you in all things; if
you seek God’s presence in every facet of your life and every decision
you make; if your constant prayer is not ‘give me’ but ‘help me,’ blessed
are you – God will always be there for you.
“If you readily spend time listening and consoling anyone who
looks to you for support, for guidance, for compassion; if you manage to
heal wounds and build bridges; if others see in you graciousness, joy and
serenity; if you can see the good in everyone and seek the good for
everyone, blessed are you – you are nothing less than God’s own.
“If you are rejected or demeaned because of the color of your skin
or the sound of your name; if your faith automatically puts you at odds
with some people; if you refuse to compromise to ‘get along’ or ‘not
make waves,’ blessed are you – one day you will live with God.
“Rejoice and be glad,” Jesus tells those who have gathered, “you
are the blessed of God. In the end, heaven is yours.” Remember this.
