Fourth Sunday of Easter
Lectionary: 49
Reading 1
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven,
raised his voice, and proclaimed:
"Let the whole house of Israel know for certain
that God has made both Lord and Christ,
this Jesus whom you crucified."
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart,
and they asked Peter and the other apostles,
"What are we to do, my brothers?"
Peter said to them,
"Repent and be baptized, every one of you,
in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins;
and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
For the promise is made to you and to your children
and to all those far off,
whomever the Lord our God will call."
He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them,
"Save yourselves from this corrupt generation."
Those who accepted his message were baptized,
and about three thousand persons were added that day.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (1) The Lord is my shepherd; there
is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Alleluia.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
In verdant pastures he gives me repose;
beside restful waters he leads me;
he refreshes my soul.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He guides me in right paths
for his name's sake.
Even though I walk in the dark valley
I fear no evil; for you are at my side.
With your rod and your staff
that give me courage.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Alleluia.
You spread the table before me
in the sight of my foes;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Only goodness and kindness follow me
all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for years to come.
R. The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Reading 2
Beloved:
If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good,
this is a grace before God.
For to this you have been called,
because Christ also suffered for you,
leaving you an example that you should follow in his footsteps.
He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.
When he was insulted, he returned no insult;
when he suffered, he did not threaten;
instead, he handed himself over to the one who judges justly.
He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross,
so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness.
By his wounds you have been healed.
For you had gone astray like sheep,
but you have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the good shepherd, says the Lord;
I know my sheep, and mine know me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus said:
"Amen, amen, I say to you,
whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate
but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber.
But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.
The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice,
as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has driven out all his own,
he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him,
because they recognize his voice.
But they will not follow a stranger;
they will run away from him,
because they do not recognize the voice of strangers."
Although Jesus used this figure of speech,
the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.
So Jesus said again, "Amen, amen, I say to you,
I am the gate for the sheep.
All who came before me are thieves and robbers,
but the sheep did not listen to them.
I am the gate.
Whoever enters through me will be saved,
and will come in and go out and find pasture.
A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy;
I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly."
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
Today is Good Shepherd Sunday, a day to reflect on how Jesus Christ is leading us in our lives, while also reflecting on our responsibilities and expectations as Children of the Resurrection as we continue to celebrate the Easter Joy in this season. Jesus constantly calls us to follow Him and listen to Him. This is one of the many gifts that we are given from Him. Our God wants to enter into a personal relationship with us and become as intimidate with us if we will allow it. He demonstrated His willingness to do this through His crucifixion and then emphasized His dedication through His words of encouragement:
“Remain in me and I will remain in you.”
“No, I will not abandon you as orphans-I will come to see you.”
“And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
These words were used to comfort His Apostles and disciples. They have also been spoken to comfort us. As a shepherd calls his sheep, so does Jesus call to us to follow Him and pass through the gate to the Father. He is the one true gate and the one true shepherd. As sheep are familiar with the shepherd’s voice, we too must familiarize ourselves with the voice of Jesus if we are to recognize His influence within our lives and if we are going to be able to hear Him when He speaks. This does take effort and dedication on our part; a commitment beyond just periodic worship and prayer. When we familiarize ourselves with something (a person, relationship, place, or object) we naturally assign a value to it. During this Easter Season, we can challenge ourselves and ask a question:
“How much importance do we assign to our Lord Jesus Christ, and how important is our relationship with Him?”
We can easily say that Jesus Christ is important to us, but how important is He really? What sacrifices have we made and what are we willing to give up in the future to become closer to Him? It is very easy to just claim our intentions regarding our relationship, but to do the hard work and make the sacrifices demanded is another thing altogether. This can take a lot of dedication and work, but it is definitely worth it.
Unfortunately, society has developed in us a demand for immediate results and immediate stimulation when things are sought after. Research has revealed to us that, as a society, our attention span has lessened greatly over the past decades. The introduction of television, the home computer, the internet, cellphones, and an increased importance placed on self-indulgence has all chipped away at our fortitude and determination when pursuing something worthwhile, especially when the benefits may not be revealed until a much later date. One recent study has shown that our attention span has decreased more than 66% over the past 20 years. This means that, as a society, we are more resistant to working on something that does not offer immediate gratification in comparison to something that increases the dopamine levels in our brain. Regardless of this, we are individuals who can voluntarily commit to something that needs to be worked on, if it feels like it is the right thing to do. Wouldn’t it be good for us to fully understand Jesus and the Incarnation (the word becoming flesh), then spread the Good News, while letting this knowledge influence our decision-making process? That is what Jesus is telling us to do: To follow Him as the shepherd’s voice, and to listen to what He has to say.
Many of us carry “self-inflicted wounds” which have made parts of our lives very challenging. These wounds can include alcoholism, drug addiction, incarceration, or just simply a focus on the material instead of the spiritual. The Apostle Paul tells us today that,
“He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross,
so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness.
By his wounds you have been healed.
For you had gone astray like sheep.”
Those of us who may have gone just a little bit deeper and darker, in comparison to other people, may find ourselves suffering immensely with this guilt and regret. Knowing that we have already been forgiven and healed for those times can offer us relief where we thought there was none. If our God has already did the heavy lifting, why do we still beat ourselves up over these things? It truly is time to move on, going forward as new creations and Children of the Resurrection.
It is true that, as Christians, we are destined to suffer for some time, just because of who we are. Embracing that suffering and asking Jesus to alleviate these things will always render positive results.
Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd and we are His sheep. Knowing something means that we will not be able to forget it. Once we have that understanding, then we will be able to embrace our brokenness and hand it over to Jesus, who will make us whole again.
Deacon Tom
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