April 29, 2009 + “Jesus Is Speaking To You: Are You Listening?” (John 10:22-30) + Hayward Fong

At first glance, our gospel lesson as prescribed in the Lectionary for the Fourth Week in Easter seems out of place. This story takes place before the events of Passion Week, before Jesus’ death on the cross, before his resurrection. As a matter of fact, the events in this story lead to the events of the past several weeks. So why has the Lectionary placed this text at this point in time for our study?

For three weeks, the Lectionary has led us to see Jesus appearing to Thomas, appearing to the people in the upper room, appearing to the two people along the road to Emmaus, appearing to the disciples as he made breakfast on the lakeshore. The physical fact of the resurrection has been very clearly documented in the scripture. We have seen that Jesus has risen indeed.

Today, the Lectionary leads us to see who Jesus is, the Son of God, the Good Shepherd. Today our Scripture tells us that Jesus and the Father are one. Today, we see who Jesus is beyond the resurrection. We see Him as the Son of God.

Our text begins as Jesus is walking in the portico of Solomon in the temple in Jerusalem. It was a cold day as John says it was winter. Winter in Jesus’ day meant that the wind came in from the east and it was raw and cold. He was walking in the part of the temple that was enclosed which sheltered him from the raw east wind. As he walked, prayed and meditated, a group of Jews came to him and asked him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”

Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my father’s name, they bear witness to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life,…”

Jesus tells the Jews that he is the Christ, the Messiah. He tells them that he has told them over and over again who he is, but they will not believe. He speaks, but they do not hear.

Jesus wants us to hear his words; he wants us to understand who he is for our lives. He wants us to know and believe that he is our shepherd and we are his sheep. He wants us to follow his voice; he wants us to hear his words of peace and comfort in our lives. But sometimes you and I have a difficult time hearing.

Let me share a story about a dear old lady whose hearing had largely failed and was experiencing great difficulty understanding what was being said to her. Persons trying to communicate would draw close and shout loudly. They would cup their hands and scream into her ears. And even with all this, the dear old lady would often shake her head and sigh that she was unable to hear.

But she was married to a kind and patient man whom she had shared love and life for more than 60 years. It was strange to many that she could hear him when she was able to hear no one else. He would take her frail hand in his, look deeply into her eyes, and speak distinctly in a tone which seemed only a trifle louder than normal. And the wife he loved always heard and understood.

There wasn’t anything really strange about this. It was a matter of relationship, of basic understanding, a sense of love, compassion… a link connecting these two people. There was a bond of understanding, true mutual love and a sense of kindness that let the man have patience with his hard of hearing wife, and let her surrender herself to him for she knew he wanted only what was the best for her.
One of the consequences of the resurrection that is pointed out in this text, one of the things Jesus is asking us to understand about our risen Christ, is that we need to hear his voice and follow it in this world. Though we might have a difficult time hearing his voice, though it might seem we are deaf to his voice, Jesus is reminding us that he wants to be patient with us, he wants a bond of trust and understanding between us so that we can hear his voice, so that we can trust him, so that we will know he wants what is best for us.

But I think you and I are too easily distracted in the rush of the modern world. Maybe we are deaf to the words of Jesus; maybe we don’t have a hearing problem as much as we hear what we want to hear so we tune out Jesus and tune in on all the sounds and words of the world as it rushes by. Maybe part of our problem is we don’t have a trusting relationship with him to listen intently to his words.

And maybe the other part of the problem is we only listen to what we want to listen to, and far too much of our listening is centered on the world and not on Jesus. I think the following story will demonstrate far better what I’m trying to say.

Two men were walking along a crowded city sidewalk. Suddenly one of the men remarked, “Listen to the lovely sound of the cricket,” but the other man couldn’t hear the sound. He asked his friend how he could hear the sound of a cricket amid the roar of traffic and the sound of the people. The first man, who was a zoologist, had trained himself to hear the sounds of nature. He didn’t explain to his friend in words how he could hear the sound of the cricket, but instead, he reached in his pocket, pulled out a fifty cent piece, dropped it onto the sidewalk, and watched intently as a dozen people began to look for the coin as they heard it clanking around amid the sounds of the traffic and the sounds of the crowded city living. He said to his friend, “We hear what we listen for.”

Maybe that is our problem with the voice of Jesus as he is trying to get us to follow him. We hear everything else but him because we aren’t willing to listen. We don’t want to hear his voice; we tune it out instead of focusing our attention on it.

The Jews heard, but did not believe. They saw his signs, but did not get the message. We have heard his word down through the centuries through the Bible, through preaching, through the sacrament, that Jesus is the Christ, the risen Lord. We have seen his deeds as the Holy Spirit has worked in the lives of countless people, but still we don’t believe, still we have a difficult time centering our attention, our focus on this shepherd who would guide our lives. In one sense we have an advantage over the Jews of Jesus’ time; we have the whole story. We have seen in the scripture the witness to the resurrection. We have heard sermons these last three Sundays from Frank, Sam and Elizabeth, giving powerful witness that indeed Jesus has risen. So we should be able to trust him, to follow him, to believe in his Lordship for our lives with greater conviction than the Jews who approached Jesus in the temple. But sadly, many people still doubt; many people still do not trust Jesus as their savior. Many people are still looking, still searching for meaning and purpose to their lives. Many people have found no one to help them with the burdens they carry. Many people are still wandering aimlessly in life, with no direction, no goal, no idea what to make of their life, what they want to accomplish with the God given gifts that have been so generously given to them.

I think one reason so many people are direction less, are aimless, are just wandering around with no purpose is because they have not let Jesus control; they have not surrendered to him so that he can be the good shepherd, so that he can take care of them giving them guidance, giving them peace, giving them a sense of worth and direction.

I want to close with a story that speaks of a guide who will guide us through the abyss of life. It was published among a collection of stories in a book entitled, “A Fresh Packet of Sower’s Seeds, Third Planting” back in 1994.

“A traveler was returning to his home from a journey to a distant country. At nightfall he arrived at the entrance to a vast forest. Unable to either delay his journey or retrace his steps, he was prepared to traverse the sullen forces when he came upon an old shepherd from whom he asked the way.

“‘Alas!’ cried the shepherd. ‘It is not easy to point it out, for the forest is criss-crossed by hundreds of paths winding in every direction. They are almost all similar in appearance, though all with one exception lead to the Great Abyss.’ ‘What is the Great Abyss?’ the traveler inquired.

“‘It is the abyss which surrounds the forest,’ replied the shepherd. ‘Moreover, the forest is filled with robbers and wild beasts. In particular, it is ravaged by an enormous serpent, so that scarcely a day passes but we find the remains of some unfortunate traveler who fell prey to it. Still,’ the shepherd continued, ‘as it is impossible to arrive at the place where you are going without traversing the forest, I have, through a motive of compassion stationed myself at the entrance of the forest to assist and direct travelers. I have also placed my sons at different intervals to assist me in the same good work. Their services and mine are at your disposal, and I am ready to accompany you is you so desire.’

“The candor and venerable appearance of the old man satisfied the traveler, and he accepted the proposal. The shepherd held a lantern with one hand and with the other took the arm of the traveler. Then they set out upon their journey through the dark forest.

“After walking for some distance, the traveler felt his strength waning. ‘Lean on me,’ said the shepherd. The traveler did so, and was able to continue the journey. At length the lamp began to flicker. ‘Ah!’ groaned the traveler. ‘The oil has nearly spent, and the light will soon be gone. What will become of us now?’

“‘Do not fear,’ consoled the shepherd. ‘We shall soon meet one of my sons, who will supply us with more oil.’ Just then the traveler perceived a glimmer of light shining through the darkness. The light shone from a small cabin by the side of the narrow path. At the sound of the shepherd’s well-known voice, the cabin door swung open. A seat was offered to the weary traveler, and some plain but substantial food was set before him. Thus refreshed, the traveler set out again, guided by the shepherd’s son.

“In this manner the traveler journeyed on for the rest of the night. From time to time, they stopped at different cabins built along the path. At each stop he obtained refreshment, a bit of rest and was furnished with a new guide. With the dawning of daylight, the traveler arrived, without incident, at the farthest boundary of the forest. Only then did he appreciate the magnitude of the service rendered him by the shepherd and his sons. At the very edge of the forest, right before his feet, lay a frightful precipice, at the bottom of which he could distinguish the roar of an angry current.

“‘This,’ said his guide, ‘is the Great Abyss which my father spoke about. No one knows its depth, for it is always covered with a thick fog which no eye can penetrate. As he spoke, he heaved a deep sigh, and wiped a tear from his eyes. ‘You seemed grieved,’ said the traveler. ‘How can it be otherwise?’ replied the guide. ‘Can I look at the abyss without thinking of the thousands of unfortunate people who every day are swallowed up in it? In vain do my father and my brothers offer our service. Very few accept them, and of those few the greater portion, after journeying for a few hours, accuse us of needlessly alarming them. They despise our advice and set out on paths of their own choosing. The consequence is that they soon lose their way and are devoured by the serpent, murdered by robbers, or plunge headlong into the abyss. You see there is only this one little bridge by which the Great Abyss can be crossed, and the way which leads to the bridge is known to us alone. Pass over with confidence,’ continued the guide. He turned to the traveler, embraced him and said, ‘On the other side is your true home.’

“The traveler, overcome with gratitude, thanked his charitable guide and promised never to forget him. He crossed the narrow bridge and discovered he was now in his own land and his family was there to welcome him.”

Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.

Amen.