Taking Care of the Sheep—Lectionary Reflection for Easter 4B (John 10)

 

Peter Koenig, The True Shepherd and the Wolves 

John 10:11-18 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

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 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.”

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                Perhaps the most beloved passage of scripture of all is Psalm 23. It is the scripture passage most often chosen for funerals. Even if a family doesn’t know much scripture, they likely know this Psalm. They take comfort in the declaration that “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” The fourth verse reads: “Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness, I fear no harm, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff—they comfort me” (Ps. 23:4 Tanakh, JPS). That image of God, the shepherd, who provides for and protects the sheep, is appropriated here in John 10, as Jesus claims to be the Good Shepherd. In a preview of what is to come, Jesus speaks of himself laying down his life for the sheep.

                As an aside, although this shepherding image is appropriated by the churches to speak of clergy, we must be careful in how we use the image. We may be pastors, but we are not God or Jesus. As for the people in the church being sheep, that image is also problematic, for it suggests an image of spiritual dependence on clergy that can lead to passivity and manipulation (on both ends—I know this from experience).  So, while God is our shepherd, and we are the sheep of God’s pasture, we need not be passive in the way we live our faith.

                The Fourth Sunday of Easter is known as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” The Gospel readings for Good Shepherd Sunday draw from John 10, where Jesus speaks of himself as the Good Shepherd. These passages are read along with Psalm 23. In these passages from John 10, Jesus addresses a concern for the community going forward. He contrasts the Good Shepherd who willingly lays down one’s life for the sheep with the hired hand who runs away when danger approaches. While the hired hand doesn’t have ultimate responsibility for the sheep, such that the hired hand doesn’t care for the sheep, unlike the Good Shepherd to whom the sheep belong.

                Jesus tells us here that he is the Good Shepherd. Therefore, he knows his sheep, and the sheep know him. That mutual knowledge reflects the relationship Jesus has with the Father, whom he knows and who knows him. Knowing here speaks of a relationship that exists between Jesus and the sheep and between Jesus and the Father. Because of the depth of the relationship, such that Jesus cares for his sheep deeply, he is willing to lay down his life for the sheep. That is, the good shepherd is all in, unlike the hired hand who is only in it for the money (and shepherds didn’t make a lot of money).

As for Jesus, when confronted with danger, he doesn’t flee but stands firm, laying down his life for his friends. However, even as he laid down his life, he would take it up again. Indeed, Jesus tells his audience “No one takes 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” (Jn. 10:18). As for the authority to do this, it came to him from his Father.  This reference to taking up his life connects our reading with the overall message of Eastertide, that of Jesus’ resurrection.

One verse that stands out to me is verse 16. In that verse, we hear Jesus declare: “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.” Who might these other sheep be to whom Jesus must go, so that there might be just one flock? It is important to note that these “other sheep” will listen to his voice. That would seem to suggest that they also belong to Jesus. My interest in this verse is rooted in my long-standing involvement in interfaith and ecumenical ministry. While it likely is a reference to the growing presence of Gentiles in what originally was a Jewish sect, might it have more to say to us as a predominantly “Gentile” church as we live out our faith in a pluralistic world?

We might start by asking this question as laid out by Stephen Cooper:

The “other sheep” of today must be determined by the setting in which the word is preached and heard. Who are “other” for us? This line of questioning brings the affluent churches of the developed world into discomforting reflections on the “other” in our midst—in our own societies— and the “others” elsewhere in the world. Both “others” are on the margins of our horizons, the horizons established through circumstance, habit, and counsels of prudence. The key point is that these “others” are Christ’s sheep, just as we are, and they too recognize his voice. [Feasting on the Word, p. 450].

In an increasingly divided world economically and politically, our religious divisions, starting within the larger Christian community, work against the idea that we are one flock with one shepherd. Despite decades of ecumenical efforts, we seem as divided as ever. The Lord’s Table, which should be a symbol of unity, remains a point of contention. Efforts to bring about full communion among denominations continue to be a challenge, especially in light of the decline of churches. While the boundaries are less narrow and rigid than they once were, especially when we think of lay people who move easily from one church to another, they still exist even though we all claim to be part of Christ’s flock. We often divide ourselves ideologically, such that liberals and conservatives each look at the other with disdain, and thus we tend to live in our own ideological silos while claiming to represent Jesus. Therefore, it would appear that God dislikes the same people I dislike. So, who are these other sheep?  We might also ask who isn’t present in our congregations and fellowship circles. Most churches are racially/ethnically segregated. While we can rationalize this as an expression of cultural and language differences, there is an “otherness” to this reality. Economic barriers are often in play. There are the theological barriers mentioned above, as well as ideological/political barriers. My denomination, especially clergy, was one rather purple. We’re now quite “blue.” Then there is the full inclusion of LGBTQI persons in our faith communities. How might these differences be bridged? What does it mean to say “All are welcome?” Are we open to welcoming those who hear and respond to Jesus’ voice but are not of “our flock?”

Things get even trickier when we think in terms of our interfaith relationships. How might they listen to Jesus? I could adopt the idea of the “anonymous Christian,” but that seems rather paternalistic. Nevertheless, might we find some shared place of spiritual fellowship that reflects Jesus’ embrace of other sheep? Does Jesus lay down his life for my friends whose faith professions differ from mine? How might I do the same?

John invites us to listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, who lays down his life for us (and takes it back up). Jesus tells us that the shepherd knows the sheep and the sheep know the shepherd, might we know the shepherd well (be in a relationship with him), knowing that the shepherd leads us to green pastures and still waters while preparing a table for us in the presence of our enemies. May this be true for us this Easter season as the Savior leads us “like a tender shepherd.”   

Image Attribution: Koenig, Peter. True Shepherd and the Wolves, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=58510 [retrieved April 11, 2024]. Original source: Peter Winfried (Canisius) Koenig, https://www.pwkoenig.co.uk/.