April 22, 2018          The Good Shepherd                                      

A few years ago I purchased a young adult bible study by Adam Hamilton entitled, “When Christians Get it Wrong”. In the study, there were eight different areas in which people’s political values had corrupted their Christian faith. In these eight studies, he provided examples of how some Christians misuse God’s name for their own profit. Claiming that their business or politics are more Christian than others. How some Christians use God’s name to condemn people of other nations or races. Claiming that only a certain type of people are good Christians. How some Christians use God’s name to justify not taking care of creation. Claiming that God gave us the earth for us to use up in any way we see fit, rather than to care for creation. How some Christian use God’s name to justify violence in society. Claiming that certain people, living in certain places, deserve what happens to them. How some Christians use God’s name to justify poverty. Claiming that those who are poor are lazy or sinful, and don’t deserve our help.

Rev. Hamilton says that it is this kind of corruption of Christianity that drives people, specifically younger people away from the church. He says that when churches adopt these attitudes, the church spends more and more of it’s time, not in mission and ministry, but in maintaining itself, and trying to keep itself quiet, peaceful, and in good order. Finally, he claims that the more churches live like this, the less of an impact they have on people’s lives, either those outside the church or within.

I remembered this young adult study this week because of our reading from the Acts of the Apostles this week. This morning Peter is on trial for healing a sick man in the name of Jesus Christ, whom the priests and leaders of Judaism had condemned as a blasphemer. Throughout Jesus ministry, we have seen the priests lack of power to drive out demons, heal the sick, or to change the lives of sinners. They have become that safe, quiet, orderly, kind of church, that no longer has the power to change people’s lives – and so when Peter comes preaching the name of Jesus, they have him arrested, hold a quick trial, and plan to run him out of the temple as fast as they can.

But of course, Peter testifies to the power of Christ, the power of the one willing to lay down his life, to be rejected by the corrupt priests, and in so doing, has become the one who can make a difference, and can change the world and people’s lives. For what Jesus has, that the priests and the temple lacks is love – not flowery words of love without action, but words of love that are backed up by acts of love, in which people are willing to lay down their lives for one another. This is the kind of love that we find in our reading from the epistle of John this morning.

18. Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. 19. And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him …. 21. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; 22. and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.

In short, if we have that same love that Christ Jesus had for us, and we are moved to love not just in words but in actions, God will give us what we ask for, for what we will ask for is God’s love to be made known in our lives.  

Which brings us to our good shepherd reading. I have often heard people speak about Jesus our good shepherd, and sometimes I have heard people say that the pastor should be our good shepherd for the congregation – which is indeed true, but this passage is about more than Jesus or the pastor, Jesus is setting an example for his disciples to be good shepherds. Yes, that’s right, Jesus calls each of you to be good shepherds!

And because you all have a heart, and have the example of our good shepherd Jesus Christ, you have the ability to be good shepherds to all you meet. You can listen to a friend who has a problem, you can help out at a food pantry, you can help out with a church dinner, you can visit the sick, take meals to shut-ins, pack food for the starving, collect cans for the good Samaritan fund, and on and on. But most of all, as followers of Jesus Christ we are looking for ways to lay down our lives, to suffer ourselves in love for one another. Now this suffering is not random or pointless, but has a specific purpose to show forth God's love in our lives. I believe that this is what Jesus meant when he says he chose to lay down his life, and to pick it up again. We are called to recognize and intentionally choose to lay down our life to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

On Saturday, the Sandwich/Somonauk Clergy held a peace vigil service. When it came my time to speak, one of the thoughts I shared, was that in this current time of darkness, where violence, prejudice, corruption, racism and sexism, seem to fill our daily news programs, that this is a time when the message of the gospel should shine out all the more brightly, and bring good news to those who live in fear. And so I encouraged those who attended, and I encourage you to share this gospel in your daily life and love of one another!