Good morning! Will you pray with me? – Lord of divine love, guidance, and mercy; shepherd us to that better table – to feed us good things – so that our service as Christ’s body to the world – is to your good pleasure and glory. Amen.
Travelling in any big city can have its challenges. Sometimes it is easier to walk than to get to where you want to go by car. But if trying to get somewhere with a large group is the goal, then you need a bus.
Once – I was on a bus with 50 other people in the middle of Manhattan. We were trying to get from St. Paul’s Chapel on the lower west side to the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the upper east side Central Park. Our driver was a native Londoner who had recently relocated to NYC. He was proud of his new GPS, which spoke with a very polite British accent.
Of course, the voice we heard was not a real person. It was a product of computer software and algorithms. I imagine it was programmed with an intricate mapping system of every street and avenue in Manhattan.
However, when we came to a construction area, the genie in the GPS told us, very nicely in a British Siri voice, to turn and proceed to the next street over. We made that turn only to find out that that street was a one way, which was not going our way. We listened to the GPS again and the driver took another turn which managed to get us trapped. Cars, pedestrians, and bicycles were soon blocking us in so that we couldn’t go in any direction. And then guess what happened – The New Yorkers in all the blocked cars found their horns!
The driver seemed vexed, flummoxed, and exasperated. He began to take umbrage with the cacophony of car horns meanwhile the GPS just kept asking us over and over to proceed and make another turn. So, we turned the GPS off.
We sat there for a good long while until the police could sort out the traffic allowing us to back up, to get on the right path, and finally make it to the Met.
Two things struck me about that experience. One was how the GPS maintained its confident tone. Meanwhile – we were lost. It feels terrible to be stuck pointing in the wrong direction.
The other realization? – When we do not know where we are going, we are likely to follow whatever and whoever speaks up at that time. That British Siri voice sounded so sure and convincing. So did all those blaring car horns too!
In our gospel text – some “wanna be” shepherds know this “lost sheep” dynamic happens to people from time to time. They are looking for it. False shepherds come across as if they are well intentioned guides to the scattered and the most vulnerable. Because people will, and often do, follow all kinds of strong opinions. But there is another voice present. A voice from God. And Jesus had compassion on those who were lost sheep without a shepherd.
What makes up a trustworthy guide?
Jesus gives us some examples in our gospel passage today.
· First – Jesus is the Good Shepherd who recognizes when people are lost, meets them where they are.
Did you know that when sheep travel as a flock the shepherd puts the oldest and strongest sheep on the outside of the circle? This is to protect the young but also because the older sheep know how to listen and follow the shepherd. Working together they help hold the flock in formation, if you will, so that they all arrive – and thrive – together. The mature sheep listen for their shepherd’s voice until they hear their shepherd’s voice. The hearing drives the steering!
Once renowned theologian Karl Barth had delivered a long lecture in front of a packed room of students and faculty – he was asked if he could put the entire bible into one statement, what would it be.
Barth thought and said:
– Jesus loves me this I know, for the bible tells me so, little ones to him belong, they are weak, but he is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me.
– Barth knew and trusted the Good Shepherd.
Second – Jesus has compassion for the crowd. So much so that he sets aside his own plans to spend time with them. Whenever he is with the scattered masses, he is healing the sick and teaching the lost.
· We can learn compassion from the Good Shepherd. Jesus’ compassion shows up in two ways: First he has compassion with the apostles who needed time to rest.
That is why the Good Shepherd also calls us to retreat with him. He recognizes when we need to take a break and have holy rest. “He leads me beside still waters.” (Ps. 23)
Jesus liked to spend time with people but also recharged in prayer with God by himself. Christ invites us to do the same so that we can get our bearings before we head out to the next thing.
· Third – We can follow The Good Shepherd who wants to guide us into the world to make a difference. When we follow Christ, we become part of the priesthood of all believers.
We can see this dynamic reinforced in our order of worship every week. The first part of the liturgy is all about the proclamation of the Word. We hear some of the same scriptures that Jesus studied as a boy and a young man. Then we hear Christ’s teaching the disciples with parables and healing stories – all distillations of God’s law of love.
While the first part of the liturgy is about the Word, the second part is about the table he sets for us.
Jesus teaches the flock and Jesus feeds the flock.
And Jesus does not do junk food. Jesus gives us all the spiritual nourishment we need to serve – in this world. This is why we share the Eucharist at the Lord’s Table and then are sent out in love.
We transform and go from being disciples to being apostles each week.
You ARE an apostle sent out with a blessing – to be a blessing!
No matter what happens in our week – Sunday worship is about praising God for whatever God has done in your life. This is why we say, “It is always right to give God thanks and praise!”
Sunday worship is about being fortified for a few days until we gather again.
Sunday worship allows us to recalibrate the connection – with our Jesus GPS. We hear our shepherd’s voice again. We can better recognize the difference between the alluring voices that lead us astray and the guidance of God’s way.
How do allow yourself to be led by the Good Shepherd?
Following God’s leadership usually requires adjustments, but it is the path that gets us out of the blocked streets in life.
It is about which voice we lend our ears to, because it is the hearing that drives the steering.
Thanks be to God. Amen.