Loving God, in your love and care you save us and feed us with the bread of life. Teach us to worship you with glad and generous hearts, trusting you for all that is needed; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

From the sounds of today’s gospel, the sheep are in a lot of danger (Jn. 10:1-10). There seem to be thieves and bandits everywhere, just waiting to climb in when the shepherd isn’t looking and mislead the flock. These thieves do not have the best interest of the sheep in mind. Instead, they come to steal and to kill and destroy. Jesus, on the other hand, has come “that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn. 10:10).

It is easy for things to get fuzzy when we think about Jesus and sheep and shepherds and gates. At various times, Jesus is described as the Lamb of God, the Good Shepherd, and also as “the gate for the sheep”. Each one of these images communicates a truth to us about Jesus and about how he relates to us.

Jesus as the Lamb of God is the sacrificial lamb – the one who gives his life for the life of the world. Jesus as the Good Shepherd is also the one who lays down his life for the sheep. Yet, it is also an image of how Jesus leads us and cares for us – protecting us from danger, leading us to good pasture, and maybe even giving us a thump on the rump every so often to get us going in the right direction.

However, Jesus as the gate for the sheep has some slightly different overtones. If Jesus is the gate, then there are others who are shepherds and under-shepherds who come in and go out through Jesus, for it is the shepherd who enters by the gate. Perhaps we are not all “just sheep,” but also shepherds and under-shepherds who are called to care for one another in Christ. Perhaps we could even say that some days, you’re the sheep, and some days, you’re the shepherd. Whichever day this happens to be, we are all under the care of the one Good Shepherd who knows us by name. This is the same one who came that we might have life, and have it abundantly.

And so, I have to ask how many of you regularly see signs of abundant life in those who follow Jesus and in his body, the church? I would have to say that I have seen it and experienced it, but I have also often seen the absence of any abundant life both in the church and in the followers of Jesus. So – what has happened?

There is certainly an abundance there in the early church, which is described in today’s first reading from Acts (2:42-47). The believers are filled with awe and have glad and generous hearts. They break bread together and pray together and worship together and learn together. They praise God and have the goodwill of all the people. They experience the abundant life that Jesus came to bring. – So we know that it is possible by the power of the Holy Spirit. And so, if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ and are experiencing an absence of such abundant life, what is it that is getting in the way?

One person who has some good answers to this question is Anthony de Mello, SJ, whom some of you saw in the video series called “A Rediscovery of Life.” In his writing, he talks about a number of things which he calls impediments to life. These are things that block the abundant life that Jesus came to bring.

One of the biggest things that de Mello talks about as an impediment to life is attachments. The basic idea is that we attach ourselves to things that cannot and will not last and cling to them as if they are God. And so, what are some of these attachments that rob people of abundant life? The list is a long one! – Possessions, money, a particular house, a particular church building, particular people, the approval of others, the need to win, a fixed set of ideas and beliefs, a particular job or career... And we could add so many other “particulars” to this list!

It strikes me that the believers who are described in Acts 2 had given up at least a few of these attachments. They sold their possessions and goods, and even property, and held everything in common, distributing the proceeds according to people’s need. At the same time, any attachments they may have had to family or to their job or career became far less important than the abundant life which they had found with their brothers and sisters in Christ.

Now, this is not to say that this is the only way to live. Most attempts to recreate the type of community described in Acts have failed because of people who are greedy and power-hungry. Still, it is no accident that they live with glad and generous hearts, having dropped their attachments to their earthly possessions. After all, didn’t Jesus teach that the only real and lasting treasure is to be found in heaven (Lk. 12:32-34)?

It seems to me that de Mello is pretty much on target with his talk about dropping attachments. It is absolutely in line with the Scriptures and with the teachings of Jesus. It is also true that when we are hanging on so tightly to those things that we don’t want to lose, we close ourselves off from any life that might be knocking on the door of our hearts, or from any new and amazing thing that God might be getting ready to do. When we hang on so tightly, we live in fear of losing those things or those people to which we have attached ourselves.

Fear, as it turns out, is another of the things that de Mello talks about as an impediment to life. Fear is also a response that is quite literally “cast out” by the love of God and by trust in God. The Scriptures teach that “perfect love casts out fear” (1 Jn. 4:18). The Scriptures also teach us not to fear those who can kill the body but have no power over the soul (Mt. 10:28). Ultimately, God is the one with the power over both body and soul, and those who have come to God through Jesus Christ and have put their trust in him have nothing to fear. At the same time, those who have attached themselves and have put their trust in all kinds of things and people other than God, have also opened themselves up for all kinds of fear and sorrow.

And so, it is not that Jesus is in some way unable to bring us abundant life. It is simply that we manage to block it through our attachments to things and to people and to fixed ideas and beliefs. A good deal of Jesus’ teaching has to do with discerning those things that are really most important in our life on this earth. He warned about the lure of possessions and wealth. He taught about whom to fear, and love and trust in God as an alternative to fear. He showed us how to love and serve one another, just as God has first loved us. He came that we might have life, and have it abundantly.

There is a person who stands alone, surrounded by a wall that has been built out of attachments. In this wall are a bunch of fixed ideas, the desire to possess and control other people, a love of material things, a desperate search for approval from others, and a fear of losing all of these things. The wall is so high that it is difficult even for Jesus to get in there, let alone any kind of loving interaction with other people. As long as this person clings so tightly to all of these things, the wall remains the same.

Yet, Jesus came to tear these walls down. As soon as this person starts letting go of some of these attachments – starts opening up to the incessant knocking on the door of their heart – starts opening up to the life and the power of the Holy Spirit – the days of the wall are numbered. Jesus will not allow us to remain isolated and alone. Jesus came that we might have life, and have it abundantly. Amen.

Easter 4(A) John 10:1-10
April 13, 2008 Acts 2:42-47
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore

© 2008 Lynne Hutchison Moore All Rights Reserved