Are You the Messiah?

Gospel: John 10: 22-30

Jesus never directly states that he is the Messiah of God.  Even when directly asked in today's Gospel portion, Jesus merely refers those who ask to the works he performs.  The Messiah was said to be the healer of the nation, the liberator of Israel, and the provider for the people.  Jesus went about healing people of their infirmities, liberating them from their demons and what possessed them, and feeding people at table and in fields.  The works seemed to fit the title.

However, people in Jesus' day saw the works as a means to an end rather than the end itself.  They saw the healings and such as all well and good, but for them the important thing was to turn that work into what they saw as the real work - the use of political and military power to oust the Romans from the region and restore the kingdom of Israel.  At that point, in their view, these works of healing, exorcism, and feeding are no longer important or necessary.

But for Jesus, the works of healing, liberation, and nourishing are the end in itself.  That is the work of the Messiah, not the political and military aims.  Since that time, the debate over the Messiah continues along the same lines.  Many would use Jesus' works for political and military ends, while others see the healing, liberating, and nourishing as the work itself.  The example of Jesus makes clear what the authentic answer to the question is in every time and place. 

The Model Leader

Gospel: John 10: 11-18

Everyone has a sense of who truly cares for them in their lives.  The people who spend time with them, who pay attention to them, and respect them are those we come to trust as those who have our interests and welfare at heart.  We may find such people among our family, friends, teachers, mentors, and clergy.  Their interest in our life has nothing to do with their self-interest or gain.  They genuinely care for us as we are and for ourselves alone.

We might find such relationships rare nowadays where self-interest and transactional relationships seem to be the norm of modern society.  Nevertheless we have this ideal of a shepherd - one we seek for ourselves, and one we seek to be ourselves for others.  This ideal is found in the person of Jesus who sent from place to place modeling this care for others: engaging people face to face in their needs and at table, sharing and listening to others in their hopes and fears, joys and sorrows.  

People long for and need such people in their lives, and they need to be such for others as well.  So often even church feels transactional and self-interested activity where selling time shares in a pew is really the goal rather than care for others.  Today is a day for us to reflect on how we might model the example of Jesus in being a good shepherd for others.  It is a day to reflect on who those shepherds are in our lives, people we trust and rely on.   

Being Good Shepherds

Gospel: John 10: 1-10

People look for reliable guides to help them in their lives.  Many claim to be such guides.  How are we to know whether they are reliable guides or not? We might look at education which is important, and we might look at connection to reliable institutions which give us some reasonable assurances as well.  Yet, we have all experienced or known others with bad experiences from guides with such credentials and institutional warrant which leave us shaken and mistrustful.

A good guide is described in today's Gospel portion.  It is the one who patterns their life on that of the Lord Jesus.  They look to heal others from their ailments, liberate people from what enslaves them, and nourish those who are hungry.  They are about the needs of people, but also aware that they are in need themselves, seeking help and support from others as well.  The good shepherd is aware that they are not The Good Shepherd, and that they need help too.  

Each of us is both a guide for others as well as one in need of a guide themselves.  The Lord Jesus is our ultimate guide and shepherd who models for us what we seek to be as guides and in discerning who are genuine guides for us in our lives.  The discernment of a guide is akin to the fig tree - by their fruits we will know them.  Do we see love, joy, mercy, and loving-kindness, or do we see other things - in ourselves and others?