The Good Shepherd (Sunday, Easter 4, Year B, 2021)

INTRODUCTION

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday or Vocations Sunday: it’s a day we set apart to pray for all vocations: priesthood, religious life and the marital. By our vocations, we’ve been called to serve in the footprints of Jesus the Good shepherd who came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. May the Spirit help us respond to God’s call in our chosen states in life! To celebrate this mass worthily, we are sorry for those times we did not lay down our lives for others in humble service. We humbly ask for God’s pardon and mercy!    

Every Fourth Sunday of Easter, the gospel tells us something about the “Good Shepherd”. The theme of the Good Shepherd speaks to us all: it is not just about Reverend Fathers and other Church leaders. Parents, teachers, and so on are all shepherds. Insofar as there is someone who looks up to you for some direction, you are a shepherd. But do we understand what it means to be a good shepherd? There is no better way to understand this than to reflect on Jesus the Good Shepherd. 1 Cor. 3:11 says “no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ”. 

The readings of this period especially those that are taken from the Acts of the Apostles and the Gospel of John refer us to the foundation details of our faith; how we started off as a faith community and gives us some life details of Jesus Our Leader. John 10:11-18 describes Jesus as the Good Shepherd and tells us what it is expected of a good shepherd and the sheep that he leads. Amongst other things, let us take note of three points: a good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep; he knows his sheep and his sheep know him; and he makes effort to bring all his sheep into one fold.

A shepherd must be ready to lay down his life for the sheep. One thing about a sheep is that it can easily wander away. An impatient person can’t be a shepherd. A person who cares so much about his comfort can’t be a good shepherd. The sheep follows the footsteps and voice of the shepherd. A shepherd who wanders into wrong/dangerous places endangers the lives of the sheep. As a good shepherd, Christ patiently bears with us His sheep: in our weaknesses, he does not give up on us; in our ignorance and stubbornness, He does not abandon us. His life was utterly exemplary. Story about two fighting brothers. 

Christ sacrificed His very life for the sake of His sheep. He was even killed by the very sheep He came to lead. That is why Peter tells the people that whatever they see them do is being done in the name of that Christ the Good Shepherd whom they crucified (cf. Acts 2:14a.36-41). There are times when the sheep will revolt against you as the Jews revolted and persecuted Christ even to the point of nailing him to the cross like a common criminal. There are times when the sheep will even decide to wander away. Will the shepherd leave them because of that? No! He must be patient with the sheep as Christ has been patient with us, always seeking to bring us back to the right path through His words. 

Secondly, the good shepherd knows his sheep and his sheep know him. The sheep recognize the shepherd by his voice and by the smell of his garment! Hebrews 4:15 says that in Jesus, “we have a perfect high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses, one who in every respect was like us, yet without sin”. Jesus identified with us in all things except sin. He knows us through and through. His voice is a voice of mercy, kindness, sympathy, and love. His voice is not condemnatory, extortionate or threatening. He is not a hireling; He is a good shepherd. There are many voices in our time pretending to be the voices of good shepherds; but in reality, they are voices of hireling. Many who call themselves are not even ready to sacrifice for the sake of the sheep. A good shepherd must smell like the sheep. In some places, herders sleep by their animals and smell like them. A good shepherd must identify with his sheep in their brokenness and pains. In that way, he may know his sheep and serve them better. The hireling feed on the sheep instead of feeding the sheep; prey on their sheep instead of praying for them. Please, beware of the hirelings! 

Thirdly, the good shepherd seeks to bring the stray sheep back to the fold so that there will be one flock one shepherd. In recent times, the church has been seriously hit by the scandal of disunity. Christians are becoming denomination-conscious: everybody thinks and claims that his or her church is the best, and then writes off other churches as noisemakers. This does not even stop at church level: it filters into almost every aspect of our lives in society. We have examples of family members who are seriously divided along denominational lines. In John 17:21, Jesus prayed that those who believe in Him may be one. Many people joined the early Christians, not so much because of the miracles being performed, but because of the fact that those early Christians lived in unity. Ours is a different story all together. As shepherds, let us seek to unite not divide!