What's The Point?

Sermon-4 Easter May 15, 2011
John 10:1-10

[Jesus said:] "Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers." Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So again Jesus said to them, "Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."

The Cloud of Unknowing, "O God, our great companion, lead us ever more deeply into the mystery of your life and ours, that we may be faithful interpreters of that Life to each other, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
Stick with me on this one, it’s going to take a while to develop. I don’t get to the point til near the end.
First, some history. Every year on the 4th Sunday of Easter we have what is known as “Good Shepherd Sunday”. For some reason the church decided that every year a part of the 10th chapter of the gospel of John would be read. It’s in this chapter that Jesus says he is the Good Shepherd. Every year we read a different one third of this chapter and Jesus explains this self image. We always read the 23rd psalm on this Sunday-the 4th Sunday of Easter. The image on this Sunday is not just of a shepherd, but of sheep, a place where sheep are kept (the sheepfold), a gate, strangers, thieves and bandits. Lots if images for a short reading. And we even have John the gospel writer tell us, “Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.” It’s not always clear what Jesus is trying to say. In this reading from chapter 10 Jesus says, “I am the Gate.” You all know many of the “I am” phrases Jesus uses-“I am the bread of Life, I am the light of the world, I am the way, the truth, and the life”-but very few people get this one-“I am the gate”! But I can shed a little light on it. The shepherd in Israel would bring the sheep into the enclosure, the sheepfold, at night, and then the shepherd would lay down in front of the opening, like a human gate-so that danger could not come in, and sheep could not go out. Jesus says, “I am the gate” I am the shepherd who lies down to protect the sheep.
Ok, all of that is interesting-but it’s not my point.
There is a program on PBS called Frontline. They do some pretty interesting in depth stories. They did a series two years ago called “The Persuaders”. The Persuaders was about modern advertising. The program said that starting in the 1990s, brands stopped talking about whiter, brighter, bigger and instead advertisers began to invest in “pseudo spiritual marketing.” Khaki pants were sold without ever referring to pants. You just saw a bunch of guys talking and being cool. Nike was about” achieving transcendence through sports.” Starbucks wasn’t a coffee shop-they were a place where you could go and be part of a community. Starbucks said, we want to be your “3rd place”-not home, not work-just a place where you could go and just “be”-with other people. Do you remember all the ads about the colors of Benetton? They always showed a million colors-they were selling multiculturalism, diversity. Each brand was trying to connect with people emotionally-and spiritually. Every company had to have a “big idea” behind their brand-not just a product. One advertising guy said that his job now is to create a whole “meaning system for people through which they get identity and understanding of the world.” Advertisers began looking at different groups and why they are so devoted to something. They discovered that people join a cult or buy a product-for exactly the same reason-they want to belong, and they want to have a meaningful life. They want to figure out what the world is all about and they want the company of others as they go on that journey of discovery.
The narrator at one point said this, “that "emotional branding" seeks to fill the empty places that non commercial institutions like schools and churches might have once done the job…brands become an invitation to a longed for lifestyle”
Advertisers are” fulfilling the needs that we have for community and a life story and belonging to something bigger than just ourselves” At the end of the day-a running shoe, a cup of coffee, a box of cereal, laundry detergent-even a car- doesn’t give your life meaning-they’re just things. That’s what one advertiser said-the only thing a person could do, he believed, was simply to keep going out to buy more-hoping that they would feel a connection to other people-and find a purpose in their life. But, he said, these “things” don’t make our life abundant-no matter much they promise, no matter how many we buy.
30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31But these are written so that you may come to believe* that Jesus is the Messiah,* the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
That’s how the Gospel of John ends in chapter 20. That through believing we may have life. 42 times in this Gospel the word “life” is used. 5 times in the 10th chapter of John alone. Do you think John the gospel writer thinks that Jesus is life? Do you think that it’s important? “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly."
Do you think Jesus wants us to live? John 1.4: in him was life,* and the life was the light of all people. John 3.16:‘For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life., ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
Over and over throughout this gospel Jesus offers all who listen a new way, the way of life. It begins with believing in him-and it ends in eternal life. It is both in this existence, AND in the next one. It is a spiritual life that takes us into a new way. It is often difficult, sometimes it is sad, it requires a great deal of trust, it will find resistance and there are a lot of people out there who will see it and try to offer us a knock off version of it-thus the thieves and robbers. But they are not true, and we will stay hungry for the “true life” until we find Jesus..John 8.12:”Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’”
This is from a sermon by Sr. Joan Delaplane many years ago: "The glory of God, is the person fully alive," said Irenaeus. We've seen what that looked like for Jesus! What would it look like for each of us at this time? Would it mean that we could finally let go of our anger and refusal to forgive a past hurt or betrayal? Would it mean less fear of the new and different? Would it mean less clinging to what other people think about us, less grasping and clutching for things in our search for happiness and peace? Instead, would we be able to pray confidently Psalm 23: "Surely goodness and kindness shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long."
We have the gift of life today to take time to look at our lives and our priorities in the face of eternity. Jesus has come that we might have life, and have it to the full and it is in doing just that—living fully—that God is glorified by each moment of our existence. In the words of John Henry Newman: "Fear not that your life will come to an end, but rather that it shall never have a beginning."
Here’s the point of my sermon. Jesus came so that we might live. And live abundantly, fully, completely. Jesus came that we might not just exist, but that we would flourish and thrive. Jesus came so that we might live lives of intensity and faith, hope and power. Jesus came and offered a life that would be so attractive, so wonderful that every other kind of life would look like theft of the real thing. Here’s the point-Jesus came so that we might live abundantly. He was made , he came, he taught, he healed, he suffered, he died, he rose, all so we could live. “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. ”Our purpose in faith-is to live –and to say to the world-this is what real life looks like. Here’s the point , Jesus wants us to live incredible, amazing, wonderful, exciting, intense, full and abundant lives. And that’s the point. Amen.