"Coming in, Going out, and Finding Pasture"

 

John 10:1-10  

April 26, 2026

 

¹‘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. ²The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. ³The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. ⁵They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ ⁶Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

⁷So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. ⁹I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. ¹⁰The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

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            Any kind of agricultural work has its rhythms. There is “a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;” [Ecclesiastes 3:2].  In Genesis [8:22], God promised Noah that

“As long as the earth endures,

            seedtime and harvest, cold and heat,

summer and winter, day and night,

shall not cease.”

 

Similar rhythms apply to herding.  There are seasons when the animals go out to graze and seasons when they stick closer to shelter.  There are seasons when kids or calves or lambs are born, and seasons for shearing wool, and seasons when animals travel off to market.  Within that, every day is going to have its rhythms of feeding or milking or gathering the flock or herd together for the night.

            There are going to be variations, of course, but in the grand scheme of things, a prosperous ranch or a healthy farm is going to be one that recognizes these kinds of cycles and that works with them, not against them.  A good shepherd (another term Jesus applies to himself in this part of John’s gospel) is one where there is trust between the animals who have only a short-term view of what happens, and the human who has the long-term good of the whole operation in sight.  Jesus describes a close connection that grows between a shepherd and a flock that others may try to mimic for nefarious purposes but cannot quite reproduce.

“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.” [John 10:3-5]

In other parts of the gospel, Jesus expands upon how he, as the Good Shepherd, even risks his own life when just one of those sheep runs off and gets into a seriously bad spot or into a dangerous place without even realizing it.  Never forget that part of it.

            But today I simply want to point out for us non-agricultural people what it means for our lives (because it doesn’t take much imagination to see that he isn’t just talking about sheep here) that the Good Shepherd helps the sheep to flourish by maintaining the healthy rhythms that are part of life as God’s people.  Specifically, Jesus said,

“Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” [John 10:9]

There are times that the sheep need to be in the sheepfold but they cannot stay there forever.  They need to come and go, at the shepherd’s direction and at the shepherd’s discretion.

            We are never outside Jesus’ care and oversight, but for our own good – and the good of the world around us – we need to be guided through the rhythms that are part of a healthy spiritual life that bring growth and fruitfulness, where we “come in and go out and find pasture”.

            On a daily basis, there should be some set time of quiet, one-on-one time with God.  Within that, he speaks to different people in different ways and adjusts to what we, his people, will best respond to.  Silent prayer is good.  So is spoken prayer.  Maybe listening to music or singing a hymn is the best way to connect.  For some people, keeping a journal is an effective way of examining whatever is in their heart; for other people it always turns into a to-do list.  But every day there should be some moment consciously set aside to touch base.  That is part of what it means to be at home with the Lord.

            On a weekly basis, there should be time set aside to be with God’s people.  We, no less than cattle or lions or Canadian geese, do not survive long on our own.  Anthony of Egypt, considered the father of Christian monasticism, discovered out there in the desert that even hermits dedicated to solitary prayer needed to worship together at least once a week.  Part of it was just practical – if someone didn’t show up, somebody else would know to check on them to see if they were sick or had broken a leg or whatever.  Part of it was to encourage one another in faith.  Part of it recognizes that even extreme introverts have to get out of their own thoughts sometimes for their own mental health.

            On an annual basis, the church year provides for seasons that are more inward-directed than others.  Advent is supposed to be one of those, although the world does everything it can to take away the thoughtful, reflective side of the season and turn it into a consumerist binge.  Lent is the most obvious, however, with a forty-day emphasis on introspection and review. Then there are times of celebration: Christmas and Easter, when we center on what the Lord has done for us and respond with thanks and joy. 

            Those are followed, though, by times of being led out into the world every day and every season to share the good news and to serve others.  Just like every day has prayer-time, every day has work time. Sunday gives way to Monday, and we go out to live as God’s people in the world.  That is when we discover the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in places of opportunity and need alike.  It’s when we discover, in serving others and in simply being with and among all kinds of people, the vast resources that the Lord provides, not just for our own benefit but (through us) for the benefit of the world.

            I wonder, too, if there isn’t also a rhythm that only appears to God when he looks on entire lifetimes and sees more than we ever have the chance to see when we are busy living our lives.  Childhood is (or should be) a protected time.  Teenage years involve a lot of steps and missteps beyond the safe and familiar patterns.  Eventually, adult life involves a lot of work to balance being in the world without becoming overwhelmed by its side-paths to nowhere and its confused messages. 

“Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

I fear no evil;

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff – they comfort me.” [Psalm 23:4]

 

Then after that, by God’s grace, there comes a time when the Good Shepherd’s voice starts to grow clearer, even as life’s details grow a lot murkier.  It’s a point when people begin to appreciate just how much help they’ve already had and still have.

“You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

 you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.” [Psalm 23:5]

 

It’s a season where people have lived by faith long enough to feel safe relying on the Source of All for the rest of the journey.

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

my whole life long.” [Psalm 23:6]

 

(That’s the most recent translation.  I’m still going to say, “forever.”)        Amen.

"It Rings a Bell"

 

Luke 24:13-35

Third Sunday of Easter

April 19, 2026

(Note: This was written for a service during which we would be celebrating the ministry of our handbell choir.)

 

Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁴and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. ¹⁵While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, ¹⁶but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. ¹⁷And he said to them, ‘What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?’ They stood still, looking sad. ¹⁸Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, ‘Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?’ ¹⁹He asked them, ‘What things?’ They replied, ‘The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, ²⁰and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. ²¹But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. ²²Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, ²³and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. ²⁴Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.’ ²⁵Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! ²⁶Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’ ²⁷Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

²⁸As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. ²⁹But they urged him strongly, saying, ‘Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.’ So he went in to stay with them. ³⁰When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. ³¹Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. ³²They said to each other, ‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’ ³³That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. ³⁴They were saying, ‘The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!’ ³⁵Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

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            Once upon a time, there was a village high up in the Swiss alps, whose small but beautiful church stood on the town square.  To the left of the church door stood a tower, and inside the tower a winding staircase led up to a chamber where the ropes were found that rang the bell on the steeple above that.  For years and years one man had rung the bell for every service and for special occasions.  Then one morning he didn’t show up, and was found to have died peacefully in his sleep.

            That was when everyone realized how central and important this one small task was to the life of people up and down the valley, who had listened for the bells morning and evening, marking the day into morning, noon, and night.  There were people who could fill in temporarily, but the town council wanted a permanent successor to ring the bell announcing the funeral a day or two later.  They sent word out to neighboring villages as well as their own, looking for the next kappelbellmeister.  

            The next morning a man they didn’t know arrived in town, asking about the position.  They were glad to see him, but he had no arms.  Before they even got his name or his story, they asked him how he thought he could ring the bell.  He assured them that he had done the job many times in his own village, and offered to demonstrate.  They weren’t so sure, but thought it was only fair to give him a chance, and they all trooped up the stairs to the room with the ropes.  Once there, the applicant kept on going, up to the steeple where the actual bell was.  They were confused, but he shouted down the steps to them, “I’ll show you how it’s done!”

            He went over and pressed his forehead to the bell and pushed until it started to swing, then stepped back.  “Bong!” went the bell.  On the backswing he ran up to it again, and pushed.  This time it rang twice.  “Bong!  Bong!”  He was developing a rhythm.  The councilmen below were impressed and began to applaud.  Unfortunately, that distracted the man and he lost his footing this time and fell out of the tower to his own death in the square beneath.

            As people gathered there, someone in the crowd asked and obvious question: “Who is this man?”  The mayor felt awful about the whole event, and responsible for the accident.  He was also embarrassed how little he knew.  All he could say was, “I didn’t get his name, but his face rings a bell.”

            There is a follow-up section to this tale, which I will spare you now.  The point is that someone here has heard this story before and has been sitting there politely thinking, “Oh no! Not this old one!” and someone else is hearing it for the first time and is thinking, “I’ve got to remember this for the next time I see so-and-so.  He loves dumb jokes.”

            Our brains are built to make connections.  More often than we realize it, there is something that “rings a bell”, that sets things off so that we realize what may be going on behind the scenes or just out of sight, and we have an “Aha!” moment.  “Oh!” we say, “That was her sister!” or, “I always thought he was up to something,” or, “Now it all makes sense!”

            On the road to Emmaus, two disappointed disciples of Jesus – not part of the inner circle, but familiar with them, and with Jesus himself – were plodding home, sharing their grief and loss at his death.  As they told a stranger who struck up a conversation with them, they were thinking

“about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.  But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” [Luke 24:19-21]

That was when the stranger began to help them make the connections that would stitch their hope back together.  He reminded them of things they had already heard in the scriptures, but helped them hear them in a new way, a way that spoke of a Messiah who would overcome through suffering, not violence.  He helped them see that what Jesus had undergone pointed not to defeat, but to the fullest testimony of God’s love.

“Then he said to them, ‘Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!  Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?’” [Luke 24:25-26]

The bells began to ring.  Later they would say,

“‘Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?’” [Luke 24:32]

            What finally clinched things for them, the last, loud clap of the bell, was what happened when they reached their destination and invited him to stay as their guest.

“When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.   Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.” [Luke 24:30-31]

They recognized Jesus.  He reminded them – they remembered him – in the way that he had told his disciples to do when they were all gathered together for one last supper.  Only now they knew that it was not truly the last supper.  Now they knew that when he said that when two or three of his followers gather together in his name he would be among them, he really would be among them.  That would be true on the road and true around the dinner table.  It has been true in prisons and in hospital rooms and at summer camps and Sunday School picnics and on street corners and playgrounds and in thousands of places we would never expect.

            Keep your eyes and ears open, folks.  It may be that you find yourself somewhere in some position, good or bad, where something totally unexpected and wonderful happens and you don’t know who brought life and joy into the room, but you have your suspicions that Jesus has been there.  Something just rings a bell.

 

"An Inheritance that Is Imperishable, Undefiled, and Unfading"

 

Second Sunday of Easter

April 12, 2026

1 Peter 1:3-9

 

            There are reasons that mainline Protestant preachers don’t spend a lot of pulpit time speaking about heaven and hell.  Some of them are historical: there was a time when those were almost the only topics you would hear about on a Sunday morning and non-believers came to ridicule that.  On the one hand, they said, all we do is tell people with real problems and real pain not to worry because “there will be pie in the sky by-and-by”.   Devoted and faithful followers of Jesus who set their minds on things above were accused of being “too heavenly-minded to be of any earthly use”.  On the other hand, emphasizing our eternal destination can also lend itself to the notion that we (rather than God) determine who is going where.

            It’s foolish, and does the whole world a disservice, though, to pretend that we have nothing to say about both time and eternity.  Our lives here are a subset of our total existence, and both this world and the world to come are God’s creation and gift through Christ, who was in the beginning with God, and was God; and who is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.  It’s not escapism, but hope, that reminds us that there is more beyond this world.

            I say that not because this world is a horrible place.  Recognizing its fallenness does not negate that it was created good.  Sometimes we are blessed with a glimpse of what God had in mind.  For some reason, I remember going for a walk through Kenmore Square in Boston one spring afternoon in 1983.  I can’t say that anything particularly unusual happened, or why I would remember that particular day.  I can only say that Commonwealth Avenue was a beautiful place and everything was good.  Moments like that are rare, but real.  Robert Browning wrote about such a moment of his own:

“The year’s at the spring,

And spring’s at the morn,

Morning’s at seven,

The hillside’s dew-pearled.

The lark’s on the wing,

The snail’s on the thorn;

God’s in his heaven,

All’s right with the world.”

 

So I know it’s not just me.

Yes, there is sin.  People get scammed.  Parents do things that scar their children.  Powerful people play games using hunger, war, disease, lies, imprisonment, and oppression as if the millions of people they may kill along the way mean nothing.  This week there were wildfires in the Midwest that forced the entire population of Topeka to be ordered to stay inside to avoid breathing toxic smoke.  Sometimes the wicked flourish and the innocent suffer.  Always it is wrong to shrug that off. 

But I will maintain, and I believe that the Christian faith, based on the resurrection that we celebrate not only at Easter, but whenever we come together on Sunday, the day of the resurrection – I maintain that in the face of all the destructive powers of earthly existence and the sin that makes it even worse, God holds for us in eternity all the good that we experience or seek for others.  Even when we watch things fall apart and fade before our own eyes, in God’s eyes that see all eternity at once, nothing good is ever lost.

Excuse, if you will, one more poem this morning.  This one, called “The Leaden Echo and the Golden Echo”, is by Gerard Manley Hopkins.  The words are complicated and it will take two people to read it, but it’s worth hearing.

THE LEADEN ECHO

“How to kéep—is there ány any, is there none such, nowhere known

some, bow or brooch or braid or brace, láce, latch or catch or

key to keep
Back beauty, keep it, beauty, beauty, beauty, ... from vanishing away?
Ó is there no frowning of these wrinkles, rankéd wrinkles deep,
Dówn? no waving off of these most mournful messengers, still

messengers, sad and stealing messengers of grey?
No there's none, there's none, O no there's none,
Nor can you long be, what you now are, called fair,
Do what you may do, what, do what you may,
And wisdom is early to despair:
Be beginning; since, no, nothing can be done
To keep at bay
Age and age's evils, hoar hair,
Ruck and wrinkle, drooping, dying, death's worst, winding sheets,

tombs and worms and tumbling to decay;
So be beginning, be beginning to despair.
O there 's none; no no no there 's none:
Be beginning to despair, to despair,
Despair, despair, despair, despair.”

 

THE GOLDEN ECHO

“Spare!
There ís one, yes I have one (Hush there!);
Only not within seeing of the sun,
Not within the singeing of the strong sun,
Tall sun's tingeing, or treacherous the tainting of the earth's air,
Somewhere elsewhere there is ah well where! one,
Oné. Yes I can tell such a key, I do know such a place,
Where whatever's prized and passes of us, everything that's fresh and

fast flying of us, seems to us sweet of us and swiftly away with,

done away with, undone,
Undone, done with, soon done with, and yet dearly and dangerously

sweet
Of us, the wimpled-water-dimpled, not-by-morning-matchèd face,
The flower of beauty, fleece of beauty, too too apt to, ah! to fleet,
Never fleets móre, fastened with the tenderest truth
To its own best being and its loveliness of youth: it is an

everlastingness of, O it is an all youth!
Come then, your ways and airs and looks, locks, maiden gear,

gallantry and gaiety and grace,
Winning ways, airs innocent, maiden manners, sweet looks, loose

locks, long locks, lovelocks, gaygear, going gallant, girlgrace—
Resign them, sign them, seal them, send them, motion them with

breath,
And with sighs soaring, soaring síghs deliver
Them; beauty-in-the-ghost, deliver it, early now, long before death
Give beauty back, beauty, beauty, beauty, back to God, beauty's self

and beauty's giver.
See; not a hair is, not an eyelash, not the least lash lost; every hair
Is, hair of the head, numbered.
Nay, what we had lighthanded left in surly the mere mould
Will have waked and have waxed and have walked with the wind what

while we slept,
This side, that side hurling a heavyheaded hundredfold
What while we, while we slumbered.
O then, weary then why

O then, weary then whý should we tread? why are we so haggard at the

heart, so care-coiled, care-killed, so fagged, so fashed, so cogged,

so cumbered,

When the thing we freely fórfeit is kept with fonder a care,

Fonder a care kept than we could have kept it, kept

Far with fonder a care (and we, we should have lost it) finer, fonder
A care kept.—Where kept? Do but tell us where kept, where.—
Yonder.—What high as that! We follow, now we follow.—Yonder, yes

yonder, yonder,
Yonder.”

 

            Hear again the words of scripture:

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead

and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials,

so that the genuineness of your faith--being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire--may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.

Although you have not seen him, you love him, and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,

for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” [I Peter 1:3-9]