Message: Do You Have Anything to Eat?
The fourth Sunday of Easter is sometimes called Good Shepherd Sunday. The Gospel Reading is from John 10, the “I am the Good Shepherd” chapter, each lectionary year reading a successive excerpt. These readings are paired with Psalm 23, “The Lord is my Shepherd,” and the recommended other readings, both from the New Testament, theoretically tie in with this Shepherd theme, not always well.
This year, though, I was inspired by our conversation in worship last week. Do you remember what we spoke about?
Disciples in the locked room, wondering what would happen to them next.
Scared, frightened.
Jesus appears – unrecognizable.
Why do the disciples not recognize Jesus?
Has he changed, or is it too wonderful and unimaginable to see him there?
Question: Do you have anything to eat? Serves two purposes.
Prove Jesus is alive.
Remind disciples they need to exit the locked room and do the work of feeding and caring for the people Jesus fed and cared for.
The reading from John’s first epistle, more than the Gospel reading, felt like a natural continuation of our thoughts from last week especially when combined with the familiar prayer of the 23rd Psalm. There are seven verses to the epistle reading, and six verses of the Psalm, so following the order below, read these woven together, with the addition of the first verse of Psalm 24 as a blessing reminder at the end.
I want you to pay attention to the words, what catches your attention? What idea arrests your speech, latches onto your mind and refuses to let go? How do the words of the 23rd Psalm respond to the ideas in the epistle?
We recognize love through this: he laid down his life for us, and we should lay down our lives for each other.
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
How does God's love abide in anyone who has the world's goods, sees a sibling in need, and yet refuses help?
The Lord makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters.
Little children, let us express our love, not in words or expressions, but in truth and action.
You restore my soul, O Lord, and guide me along the right pathways for your name’s sake.
We will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and God knows everything.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil, and my cup is running over.
In addition, this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love each other, just as he has commanded.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
All who obey his commands abide in him, and he abides in them. Moreover, by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.
The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world and those who dwell therein.
What does it mean to give up one’s life?
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