Sunday, April 26 – 4th Sunday of Easter - Reflection by Jeff Koch
Readings: Acts 2:14a, 36-41; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2:20b-25; John 10:1-10
“The merciful love of the Lord fills the earth; by the word of the Lord the heavens were made, alleluia.”
A while back God gave me some insight, that I would like to share with you. In the Genesis story of creation, when God created the world and all that is within it, He at the end of each day, said “it is good.” But at the end of the 6th day, he looked and the totality of his creation and how it fit and worked together and said, “it is very good!”. The very good comes as we understand that God put creation together to work a certain, wonderful way. We know what happened next. Adam and Eve turned from God and ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and brought sin and death into this ‘very good’ world. Because of that turning from God, to self, and their own reasoning and understanding, which was now without the input of God they began to fulfill the creation mandate, to be fruitful and multiply, out of their own mind and understanding. Things didn’t work as God had intended them to, while exercising their own selfish way, establishing the world and its systems and ways of life without God. The result was disastrous for that wonderful creation.
But the Lord showed me, in the chaos of this present world’s system, that “the very good world did not cease to exist.” That very good world, the way God desired it to function is still here, where He has the voice in how it should be. The very good is still here, we just can’t see it, hear it or function within its reality because we have turned to other sources of life and voices.
With that said, we can see that the scriptures today all talk about this “Shepherd” that will come and give us an example of what the very good life looks like and then lead us to a place where we can again live in, to hear and see this very good. Look at the passages:
· 1 Peter 2:20-25 – Jesus suffered for us and gave us an example how we should follow his footsteps. Turned toward ourselves, we want to protect that “false self” that is seen in wanting to do it my way, rather than the way of God. Jesus gave us the example of self-giving love; “not my will, but yours be done,” is to die to self and live in the very good of God. When he was insulted, he returned no insults. That is something we all could learn. When he suffered, he did not threaten, again something our society needs to see how that functions to bring and see the very good of God. Adam and Eve turned from God and tried to be God without God. But through Jesus, we now have returned to the shepherd and guardian of our soul.
· Our gospel – John 10:1-10. This world has been established on the perverted and faulty understanding of man’s reasoning. After turning from God to self, humanity offers the world what the enemy has to offer, killing, stealing and destroying. We are following too many different voices, and the world is confused because those who are supposed to live in the very good of God, are often, showing the voice and leadership of the enemy. Jesus says, those who follow him, hear his voice and he leads them. That world needs to see that the place the Great Shepherd leads and opens the door/gate to a better way of living. The very good of God
· Psalm 23 – I have heard that many believe that Psalm 23 is the Lord’s prayer of the Old Testament Scriptures. The shepherd provides all we need; He leads us to green pastures where we can feast on the things of God. He guides is and provides water where drink in the fulness of God and rest. He guides us in the right paths, that path on which he intended us to walk. Even in the darkest hour he leads us through. He sets a table before us in the presence of the enemy’s effort to kill, steal and destroy. He anoints us with oil and goodness, and kindness are close at hand to us, and we dwell in the house of the Lord forever. We can live by following the great shepherd in the very good of God.
· Acts 2:36-41 – will this kind of life be difficult in this world? Yes, remember This shepherd came to lead them and us to the very good of God, and they killed him. But God raised him from the dead, defeating death for those who live in the fear of death. What are we going to do? Peter says, we repent, change the way we think and turn back to God and in turning and following, we are saving ourselves from this corrupt generation, corrupted by self and man’s faulty understanding in a world that is founded on faulty realities. We need to turn back to God, and watch what input we are allowing into our lives, how we spend our time, and the voices we listen to. Why? Because there is very good of God near us. In fact, in him, in that very good of God . . . we live and move and have our being. The very good is here and the shepherd is calling, hear his voice and turn around. Because the world needs to see this “very good” of God.
That is why praying this prayer below is so important. In this prayer we are asking God to help us hear the shepherd’s voice, to see what he is doing in our midst and as we turn back to him, we share in the joys of heaven, right here, right now. We are not waiting for the very good in the sweet by and by, it’s about living in and letting others see our lives, living in the “very good” right here in the nasty now and now. Another way to put this is what the Gospels proclaim that Jesus taught us, . . . “thy will be done here on earth as you desire it from heaven!”
Almighty ever-living God, lead us to a share in the joys of heaven, so that the humble flock may reach where the brave Shepherd has gone before. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen!