Following Jesus
This morning we read one of the most loved and best known passages from scripture – Psalm 23. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. That’s how I remember learning it when I was young. There’s another version – more of a paraphrase – that I read once that also sticks with me – The Lord is my shepherd. I have everything I need. Here is God’s promise to care for us and protect us and provide us with everything we need to live an abundant life, as we trust in God’s abiding presence with us.
As sometimes happens when I read a familiar scripture for the umpteenth time, I heard something new this week, as I was reading and pondering Psalm 23. My attention was drawn to a tension described in the psalm that I had not noticed before. It is the tension of being guided along right pathways and walking through the valley of the shadow. This is the tension of following along the path where the shepherd takes us knowing that it might lead to a time of discomfort; perhaps a time of suffering. Even then, we are told, we need not fear the evil around us, for the shepherd guides us to the path takes us through the valley to the other side – where we find a feast prepared for us and a life of goodness and mercy waiting for us in the house of the Lord, where we know we will live forever.
Those are, indeed, comforting words to hear; don’t you think? No wonder we hear this psalm so frequently at funerals.
Our gospel reading this morning gives us another way to think about this tension; this tension between following the shepherd along right pathways that lead toward eternal life and walking through the valley where evil waits to snatch us away (but doesn’t succeed, of course!) and new life waits for us on the other side.
In this reading from John, Jesus identifies himself as the shepherd. He is the kind of shepherd who has a deep relationship with his sheep; he knows them well. The sheep know him by the sound of his voice; they hear his voice and follow him. Following him is a sign that these sheep belong to the shepherd. They follow the shepherd over the rocky hills and valleys where they live. The shepherd keeps them safe; they do not perish. The sheep learn to trust and believe in the shepherd by following him safely through the dangerous places into the fullness of life (we might say the greenest pastures). And no one can snatch them away.
This is the work that the shepherd – that is, Jesus – is called to do in his Father’s name; the work that testifies to who Jesus is. Jesus’ work is to gather people together – people like you and me – to develop deep relationships with us; to love each one of us as the unique individual we are; to know us well and what we need to live fully; to call to us – insistently and persistently – until we hear his voice and recognize who is calling us; until we know we belong to Jesus and we respond by following him through the hills and valleys of life; until we can trust Jesus to protect us and keep us safe, no matter what happens in the world; and we come to believe that Jesus is bringing us into the eternal and infinite realm of justice and peace and mercy that is God’s kin-dom on earth now. And no one can snatch us away.
So, we gather here this morning as people who belong to Jesus.
We gather as people who are known by Jesus and loved by Jesus.
We gather as people who hear Jesus’ voice and willingly follow him.
We gather as people who trust Jesus is walking with us through the highs and lows of life; to keep us safe from evil; and to raise us up to new life.
We might wonder, then, how are we to live as people who belong to Jesus?
Really, when you think about it, this is the path that the people of Holy Trinity have been on during this last year, as you have faithfully followed Jesus, the one to whom you belong, listening for his voice to guide and lead you through this time of pastoral transition.
Through a series of Open Forums, you have had the opportunity to gather together for reflection and conversation to discern where God is leading Holy Trinity now. Each of these Forums has been structured in a similar way – we begin with time for coffee (of course!) and socializing; then we ponder a passage of scripture, listening for what God is saying to us that day, and we pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to come among us. Then we have focused conversation on the topic of the day. Everyone gets to speak and voice their point of view. We end the morning with prayer, thanking God for our time together.
We trust that Jesus is there with us, leading us through this process.
As I mentioned, each Open Forum focused on a specific topic for discussion. We used the data from the Congregation Assessment Tool (the CAT), the survey that many of you took last spring, to help us understand the unique characteristics of Holy Trinity today. We looked back at Holy Trinity’s history, searching for patterns of behavior and belief that continue to influence your life together as a congregation today. Then we looked forward, wondering where the Holy Spirit is leading Holy Trinity now.
All of these Open Forums were planned and led by your Transition Team; six members of Holy Trinity (I serve as their advisor); faithful people who love Jesus and listen for his voice and follow where he leads. This Team meets after every Forum to consider the ideas shared by the people gathered at the Forum. The Team works hard to listen and understand what was said at the Forum and to use what they heard to discern the next step of the process.
We trust that Jesus is there with us, leading us through this process.
Where is Jesus leading us?, you may ask. Good question! Based on what they have heard – through prayer and scripture and conversation – the Transition Team has drafted a proposed Purpose Statement for Holy Trinity:
In response to God’s call, Holy Trinity Lutheran Church acts boldly
by following the example of Jesus to love and serve diverse people and creation.
Let me be clear – this is a draft! The Transition Team is eager to hear your response to it over the next few weeks. Plan to come to the next Open Forum on Saturday, June 7, to talk about it. Once we have reached consensus on the wording, the Purpose Statement will be presented to the Council for approval.
This Purpose Statement answers one of the key questions on the Ministry Site Profile – Why does Holy Trinity exist? It does not say how Holy Trinity acts boldly or what Holy Trinity does to love and serve diverse people and creation. These are mission questions still waiting to be discerned.
For now, this draft Purpose Statement points to the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, that we heard this morning. It tells us that…
…the people of Holy Trinity belong to Jesus;
…you are known by Jesus and loved by Jesus;
…you hear Jesus’ voice and willingly follow him;
…you trust Jesus is walking with you through the highs and lows of life; keeping you safe from evil; and raising you up to new life. And no one can snatch you away.