Follow Me!
The Fourth Sunday of Easter
21 April 2024
The Rev. Robert J. Kossler
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. (Jn. 10:27, NRSV)
Good morning, and peace be with you, my friends.
I have been hoping for Spring to arrive, and I think it finally has. All kinds of trees are in bloom with fragile pale petals. Some trees started earlier, only to have their blossoms dispersed by rain and cold winds and fall soggily to the ground. All of this reminds me of Japan and its Sakura season, also called Cherry Blossom Season.
Some of you may have witnessed the cherry tree bloom at the Tidal Basin in Washington, DC. We have our own Cherry Blossom Festival in Japantown, which started last weekend and ends this weekend. The events celebrate Japanese culture – ikebana flower arranging, tea ceremonies, music and dance, and even a sword exhibition. If you have time today, head to Japantown and check it out. All of this talk makes me hungry for a trip to Japan.
During my career, I made 52 trips to Japan. Yes, I said 52 visits. It only sticks in my head because someone asked me how often I traveled there. Despite going that many times, I only witnessed the Sakura season once. It was as beautiful as I imagined. During the season, hotels and restaurants are full of flower worshippers. They have blossom-watching Hanami parties in the parks and hang colorful pink paper lanterns lighting up the trees at night. The Japanese do not just enjoy the season; they savor it! They plan for it months and months in advance. It is a focus, an obsession.
One lesson from this cherry blossom obsession is to ask ourselves what should grab our attention and where we should focus our efforts. (Kelly, 2024) Attention and focus are particularly important during this interim period. An old Zen saying summarizes this sentiment: “No moment comes twice. Each moment savored is more precious than a span of jade.” We could focus on fragility and impermanence in our church – the loss of our vicar, friends leaving, and a few dying. We experience the life of a community firsthand, and it is not always easy.
What is true, though, is that learning how to savor life’s joys—I mean genuinely savor them—is just as vital to our emotional and spiritual health as learning how to cope with life’s challenges.
I recently started reading a book titled “Master of Change, How to Excel when Everything is Changing – Including You.” It is too early to recommend reading it, but the introduction captivated me. The author describes what he calls “disorder events.” These disruptions in our lives fundamentally shift our experience of ourselves and the world around us. (Stulberg, 2023)The pandemic is an obvious example. Individual events also disrupt such as getting married, starting a new job, or having children. You get the picture. Research, he said, found that the people, on average, experience thirty-six disorder events in their lives, which breaks down to roughly one every eighteen months. The conclusion I took away is that everything is constantly changing!
It is not surprising that we are in a state of flux. The question we face, which we hope Vital and Thriving helps us answer, is, what do we do? Where do we focus? And how do we savor the joys and cope with our challenges? Next week, we might find a few clues when we meet after church to create a timeline reflecting Holy Innocents history.
This Sunday is often called "Good Shepherd Sunday," where Jesus identifies himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life. Our lectionary has three different readings for this Fourth Sunday of Easter. In Year A, Jesus tells his opponents,
"The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his sheep by name and leads them out." (Jn. 10:3)
John tells us his audience did not understand and remained hostile to Jesus’ message and miracles.
In Year B, today’s Gospel continues where Year A left off. Jesus contrasts himself, the Good Shepherd, with the "hired hand," who runs away at the sight of a wolf, leaving the wolf to ravage the flock. Jesus goes on to say,
"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." (Jn. 10:16)
Furthermore, in Year C, Jesus continues with his Good Shepherd metaphor. The religious authority confronts Jesus once more.
"If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly." (Jn. 10:24)
Jesus replies that he has answered them multiple times – in action and explanation. However, they still pester him, refusing to accept his miracles and teachings. Exasperated, he finally tells them,
"..., but you do not believe me. My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me." (Jn.10:26-27)
I think the background, reviewing all three readings, helps us understand why the shepherd theme is so important.
Last week's Gospel reading reminds us that Jesus' disciples faced lives filled with what I earlier called “disorder events.” There was their life before Jesus called them to be "fishers of people." They became itinerant followers and healers with Jesus' blessing. Then they faced the most challenging “disorder event” of all – becoming post-crucifixion leaders, fearing for their lives. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus says to them,
Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have. (Lk. 24:38- 39)
Although not explicit, Luke and John imply that the disciples must follow in Jesus' footsteps, and the proverbial sheep will follow.
If you distill the readings about the Good Shepherd, you see that they are focused on "following" and consequently "leading." Jesus tells the religious authorities and the crowd that he is the Good Shepherd, the leader who sacrifices everything for his followers. It is insufficient only to teach. The Pharisees and Sadducees taught a hidebound doctrine of 613 regulations in the temple and synagogues, which crushed the marginalized subsistence farmers of the day. What they taught and how they taught were the problems. Jesus, on the other hand, embodied his teaching. He lived it and expected his disciples to do the same. "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people" was his first command. "Love one another as I have loved you” was an even more central command that defined what Jesus was about. Today we heard, "I know my sheep (them), and they follow me." Moreover, finally, John ends his Gospel with, "Jesus told Peter, "Follow me." You must teach but you must also act, live what you teach!
Who we follow has always been tricky. Reading our history reminds us that you can only sometimes trust the most eloquent, those with a simple message that demands acceptance rather than discourse, where compromise becomes a four-letter word. Mindlessly following someone or some ideology often leads to unforeseen consequences. Jesus knew this, so he undergirds his leadership with action and love. The Good Shepherd loves the sheep of the fold and willingly faces danger, leading them to safety. Today's Gospel reminds us that leadership and following are two sides of the same Christian coin.
As you move through the day, take a moment to reflect on who you follow and how you lead, given joys and challenges, and lives that are in a state of constant change.
Amen.
Works Cited
Kelly, J. (2024, April 13). Sakura Season and the Art of Savouring Life. The Financial Times.
Stulberg, B. (2023). Master of Change, How to Excel When Everything is Changing - Including You. New York: HarperOne.