I just want to be a sheep

This is the sermon manuscript for the sermon preached on 28/29 April, the fourth Sunday after Easter.  The Gospel text is John 10:11-18. 

I come from a long line of farmers.  Back in the 1840s my forefathers from Germany crossed the Atlantic to find a new start in Texas.  Since 1875 my family has been farming a piece of land just outside of Winedale, Texas.  This farm literally gave me life.  When I was a kid I helped to tend its gardens, I was raised on fruits from its bountiful harvest.  Fresh tomatoes like you wouldn’t believe!  I am a son of farmers.  As I continue to learn and grow in my faith, as I continue to encounter the risen Christ, my identity as a son of farmers will not change.  I will always be a son of farmers. 

I firmly believe that it is important to know where you have come from, to know your history.  These things help to form an identity.  They provide a foundation and a set of lenses for looking at and encountering the world.  Remember how that old saying goes, “if you know where you have come from, there are no limitations to where you can go.”  Knowing who we are helps to pave the way into the future.

Today we know exactly who Jesus is; he comes right out and says it, no need to beat around the bush.  “I am the good shepherd,” Jesus says.  He stands in front of a gathered crowd after a brief conflict with a group of Pharisees.  Jesus has just given sight to a man born blind, an event that has caused quite a ruckus in the little town.  The Pharisees have given the man and his family a rather hard time in their quest to find out about Jesus.  Even in the face of a life-giving, healing event and the clear witness and confession of the now open eyed believer, the Pharisees just don’t get it; just who is this Jesus? 

“I am the good shepherd,” Jesus says.  Now this is one of his many “I am” statements in John’s Gospel; “I am the bread of life,” “I am the light of the world,” “I am the good shepherd,” and so on.  It is in John’s Gospel that we get the clearest picture of Jesus’ self understanding.  And amidst the many metaphors that Jesus uses to describe himself, bread, light, resurrection, truth, one clear theme emerges; Jesus gives life.  He states this very clearly right before our Gospel story today, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly,” Jesus says in verse 10.  “I came that they may have life...”  Jesus comes to bring us abundant life.  And he grounds this idea of abundant life in image of a shepherd.  

Now shepherds are those who look after the sheep, they make sure there is water and food and shelter, they protect the sheep from danger.  But I think Jesus is talking about more than just the basics.  Jesus’ idea of giving life as the good shepherd goes way beyond providing food and water and shelter; Jesus gives us new life.  “The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep,” Jesus tells the crowd.  The good shepherd doesn’t just meet the needs of the sheep; he goes beyond the call of duty to meet the greatest need of all, life.  When push comes to shove, the good shepherd will go all the way to the end and embrace death on behalf of the sheep.  The hired hand will run away he says, but the good shepherd will lay down his life. 

In this moment Jesus alludes to cross where he will indeed lay down his life for all people.  Jesus knows that he has comes from God and that his life leads to the cross.  That’s what we celebrate at Easter, that’s what we are still celebrating today.  Jesus as the good shepherd goes way beyond meeting our basic needs.  Jesus lays down his life for us, so that we may have new life.  Resurrected life.  Abundant life.

And so even in the midst of this great speech, Jesus points back to us.  Jesus is always working on our behalf.  Jesus is the good shepherd because he has a flock to look after.  He did not say that he came to give himself life.  No, he came so that all may have abundant life.  He does not lay down his life for himself; he lays down his like for his sheep.  Jesus’ identity is intimately connected to us.  And it’s from Jesus’ identity as a life giving, good shepherd, that we learn a great deal about ourselves.  While there is no specific call from Jesus in our Gospel story today, John is weaving cleverly into the narrative something very clear about our identity as followers of Jesus.  We are his sheep.

 Dear friends, we are part of the flock of Jesus Christ.  Our identity as the sheep of Jesus Christ can be traced to our baptism.  In baptism we are claimed by God in the name of Jesus.  He is our source of life.  When we gather at the font in our baptism, we are brought to new life and called the children of God.  Our identity in this world is forever changed.  The old bonds of sin and death are washed away.  In waters of baptism God tells us that we are enough.  In the promise of baptism God tells us that we are loved.  We are set free from all that would hold us back from following Jesus.

Because that’s what sheep do, they follow.  If the sheep knew the way they would not need a shepherd, but this is clearly not the case.  We would not be able to manage on our own; the witness of scripture is enough to tell us that when we try to make it on our own we end up getting hurt and bruised.  But God is always there, calling us back into relationship, finding new ways to love us and bring us back into the fold.  In Jesus, the good shepherd, we have a promise that we will never be on the journey alone.  Jesus will always be there to lead.  Jesus says very clearly that there is one Shepherd and one flock.  He is the shepherd.  We are the sheep.  We are called and set free to be the sheep of Jesus.  To follow where he goes and participate in his life giving love.       

Dear friends, today we are reminded of where we have come from; we are reminded of our identity.  We are the sheep of Jesus Christ, baptized into his fold forever.  There is nothing in this world that can separate us from the love of Jesus.  We will always be his sheep.  And since we know where we have come from, there is no limit on where we can go.  The path before us may be unclear, but we know that the good shepherd will always be there to guide us.

And so here on the fourth Sunday of Easter, the question for us becomes, how will we continue to be the flock of Jesus?  As the part of the witness of Jesus Christ here in Bradenton, Florida, how will we continue to shows Jesus’ life giving love to others?

 This week I spent some time looking over materials for vacation Bible school.  This community has a rich history of VBS.  In a few weeks we will once again open our doors to the community as we hold our annual vacation Bible school.  In those five days we will have the chance to shows Gods love to kids and parents alike.  Perhaps VBS is a place where you can participate in showing God’s love.  And it is one of many opportunities that we have to be a witness of Jesus’ love; to follow Jesus as one of his flock.  Every day we have the chance to follow.  Because Jesus will always be our shepherd.  And we will forever be his sheep.