April 21 2024
Easter Season 

Lighting the Christ Candle

Welcome and Announcements 

 

Call to Worship
Jesus says:  I AM the good shepherd
the one who tends us, guides us into pastures,
who recognizes the sounds of our names.
Jesus says:  I AM the good shepherd
the one who bends to heal us, who keeps us safe
through the deepest valleys and who risks everything for us all.
Jesus says:  I AM the good shepherd
the one whose rod and staff protects us,
whose strength and love holds us.
whose cup of love overflows for us.
Jesus says:  I AM the good shepherd
and we will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever
We gather here
God’s People in God’s love for God’s world  

 

Hymn:  371 Love divine all loves excelling

 

Prayer of Adoration 

Thank you, loving God, for bringing us to this time of worship. Refresh us and heal us again. Remind us of the many ways in which you have blessed our lives with your abundant love and your presence. Teach us to see your work in unexpected ways and places and free us from seeing only the way we always have known.  Guide our hearts and our spirits that we may hear your words and our souls may be stirred into active service to your people. In the name of the Good Shepherd, who leads us to life, we pray. Hear us now as we make our confession before you:    

Prayer of Confession:
God of many pastures, we never tire of hearing
the voice of our shepherd; we never tire of hearing the call to lay our burdens down;
we never tire of hearing the invitation to dwell in your house forever.
Forgive us, loving shepherd, when we try to keep you as our own—thinking that we alone have your love, thinking that others wander alone
without your care and guidance.
Open our eyes, that we may recognize the sheep of your fold wherever they may be
and whatever they may look like. Amen. 

 

Assurance of Pardon 

The word of God comes to us, saying:   Come, all who are weary and need rest. Come, all who thirst for the springs that well up to eternal life. Come, all who hunger and thirst for righteousness.  

Let us all look to the shepherd who leads us through the shadow of death, the one who leads us into life.   Let us all rejoice that in him we are forgiven, today, tomorrow and for all eternity.  Amen 

 
Passing the Peace 

The peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you 

Hymn:  372 Praise him, Praise him

Scripture:

Psalm 23
John 10: 11-18  

 

Sermon:  The Good Shepherd 

We all love the 23rd Psalm.  It is comforting.  It is inspiring.  It brings up good feelings.  But does it help us know God? 

 

When we think about that psalm we see a green field, dotted by white sheep.  Maybe a sheep dog.  Blue skies strewn with fluffy clouds and a pond over by the hill.  Just the kind of place you want to go to rest and relax.  The perfect spot for a picnic.   

 

After all that is what the psalm is talking about.   

Right?   

A place where nothing can harm you.  Where food is provided for you in the presence of your enemies.  Really?  Wouldn’t you rather have the picnic beside those still waters?    

Maybe it is time for us to let go of our pastoral expectations regarding this psalm and look at it from the perspective of the person who wrote it.   

 

This psalm is ascribed to David.  He himself had been a shepherd, so he knew first-hand just what it meant to be the good shepherd who was in constant watch and care over the sheep. 

When David thought about the job of taking care of the sheep, this is the setting that he remembers. 

 

Sand, stones, and boulders.   

Dry dusty earth.    

Dirty brown sheep.  

Danger everywhere. 

  

It sure doesn’t look like there is a comfortable place to lie down in at all.  As for those still waters, maybe there might be a small pond near that outcropping of trees in the background; but is likely just a muddy hole.   

This reality is not really in line with what we have become comfortable believing. 

And in many ways this reality is BETTER than what we have long held dear.   

Psalm 23 is a psalm of trust.  That trust is usually developed through calamity; and that is something that David was very familiar with.  Certainly, coping with the dangers of shepherding would have taught him to learn to trust God; but the reality of trying to minister to and cheer up Saul, and the subsequent attack from Saul against David and the fight for his life taught him as much how to trust in God, if not more than his shepherding life had done.   

 

A lot of the commentators talk about the symbolic and metaphorical realities that this psalm invokes, like God taking care of the people through Joseph who brings his family out of drought, and through the leadership of Moses during the 40 years in the wilderness, and by constantly bringing them all back out of exile as he provided  a highway in the desert.  All of those stories are good, and they provide a perspective on this psalm that speaks of God’s constant care.  They also provide a perspective on what constant care entails.  

For this reason, I think that we can find that a practical look at the life of a shepherd is beneficial.  That constant care of God isn’t as easily given as we may think.   

 

Those green pastures are the bunches of grass that surround the rocks.  The grass grows in the shade from the boulders, which protect the grass from being burnt in the sun and provide just enough moisture to keep the grass alive. 

Those still waters are not the ponds we long to rest beside.  Instead, they are the wells that all farmers and town folk used in common.  Like the well where Isaac met Rachael.  Like the well where the Samaritan woman encountered Jesus.  They are life giving in multiple ways. 

 

It was a long walk for the shepherd to lead the sheep down the hill to water them at the well.  The whole bunch of them were not always welcome there, as people complained about how much time it took to water the animals, and they had to wait.   

After that came the long walk back to the pasture.  On the way there would be dangers, like bears or lions, and even the odd humans who would threaten to steal the sheep. 

The sheep, of course, don’t know that there is danger at every turn.  They trust the shepherd; they know his voice and they follow where he leads.  Down into the valley, back up into the hills, they trusted that the shepherd would take care of them in all circumstances. 

The truth is that the rod and the staff were their comfort and protection.   

 

In fact, the shepherd used that rod and staff to prepare a table for them in the presence of their enemies.  That’s a reality we rarely think about.   

Once back in the pasture, the shepherd would poke the rod and staff into the clumps of grass and clear out the snakes and scorpions that would be a real danger to the life of the sheep.   

If a sheep fell into a crevice that staff could be turned upside down, so that the crook could slip around the sheep, and lift him so he could be brought back to those still grazing in the field.   

For those of us accustomed to seeing sheep grazing in the pastures without anyone keeping a watch over them we can’t even begin to imagine the kind of vigilance that the shepherd was required to keep.   

Nor can we imagine how he was daily putting his own life at risk, in order to protect the sheep. 

 

The psalm ends with David’s personal confession of faith as he proclaims his confident trust in God’s ordaining and leading.  He knows that he will live and walk in the love and guidance of God all the days of his life.  But he says that, knowing the cost of that love and guidance. 

 

So, when the Gospel of John talks about Jesus being the good shepherd, it is certainly more than we have envisioned.  And yet, when we look back at the events of Holy Week and Easter, we know that Jesus has certainly done all of those things.  He has risked everything.  He cleared the path of the hidden dangers.  He prepared the way in the desert.     

He has prepared us with the green pasture of salvation in which we rest in the security of God’s grace.  He provided for us the still water of the baptismal font, to anoint us and to seal us in the mercy and grace of forgiveness.  With gratitude we remember the cost of his provision. 

He has gone into the valley of darkness and endured so much for us in order to prepare those safe paths for us to navigate.  And more importantly he endured death to provide for us a feast in the presence of our enemies.  

Those of us who were lost in sin, walked the slippery road of temptation, and were in danger of becoming lost forever.  All of us were lost in sin, all of us walked the slippery road of temptation and all of us were in danger of becoming lost forever.  All of us still struggle with the temptation to sin.  AND, all of us have the good shepherd to redirect our footsteps. 

On the cross, Jesus defeated the enemies that brought, sin, temptation and damnation on our heads.  Then he called us to celebrate his resurrection in the feast he provided, where we eat bread and drink wine in remembrance of what he gave for our salvation.   

Kelly Murphy writes:   Psalm 23 reminds readers that God sustains, provides, and cares for his flock not once but time and time again — fleeing from Egypt, returning from Exile, and as we walk through darkness.  Psalm 23 reminds readers that goodness can pursue them as well as [difficulties]. Moreover, in this Easter season, Psalm 23 serves a reminder to live — in the face of danger and misfortune, even in the shadows of darkness that might surround us, and to know that in living we will be sustained. 

Does the stark truth about what really comprises the work of the shepherd change the ways in which we have incorporated the promises of this psalm?   

No.   

When we realize the actual hard and dangerous work of the shepherd, then we can also find the comfort that has always spoken to us in our spiritual lives. 

For those of us who are grieving, it is comforting to know that God walks with us in the shadow of the valley of death.  We have that image of the ones whom we have loved being escorted through the valley until they come to the heavenly gates.  But that image has now developed teeth. It is not just a calm safe stroll through the valley holding God’s hand.   

It is a challenging walk, where there is danger on every side, in which God protects us from the danger of those who seek to destroy us.   

We walk with security, because we have known the feast in the presence of mortal danger.   

We have had that deep drink at the well of redemption.   

We have eaten the bread of salvation.   

WE have sipped from the cup of forgiveness.   

 

The one who prepared that feast while on the cross, constantly guards and protects the valley through which we will travel.  Fiercely vigilant he walks staff and rod in hand, ready to sweep away all danger as he walks with us.   

The good shepherd never rests and is always ready to spring to our aid and to provide for our safety. 

 

For those of us who are prone to succumbing to sin, (and that would be all of us), we have assurance that when we wander off the path his rod and staff are always being employed to protect us and to bring us back into the fold.   

 

So by all means let us hold onto the romantic view of the 23rd Psalm; but let us also see this psalm from the point of view of the stark reality from which David wrote it.  And then, let us be grateful, that God in his mercy makes all the good things of the resurrected life true in our lives.   That’s what Good Shepherds do.  

Amen 

 

 

Hymn:  356  You lord are both lamb and shepherd

 

Offering and Doxology 830

Offertory Prayer 

We bring our offering in response to your call.  We bring our tithes in obedience to your call.  We bring our lives, our talents and our compassion in gratitude to your call. 

Open our eyes and our ears so that wherever we go, 
we may hear your voice calling us by name; 
calling us to serve, 
calling us to share, 
calling us to praise. 
May we never give up on the promise of your kingdom, 
where the world is transformed, and all can enjoy life in all its fullness. 
Amen. 

  

Gathering Prayer Requests
Prayer of Thanksgiving and Intercession 

Dearest Lord, Holy Lamb of God, Shepherd of the world, we bring you our praise and thanksgiving as you lead us to respite and relief. 

We thank you that you are our provider and sustainer and through Your providence, we will never want for Your Presence. 

You lead us to fields of plenty and You refresh our souls with the cool clear waters of Your spirit.  

today we pray for our sisters and brothers, especially for those who suffer. 

We pray for the children—those who live in plenty, but also for those who live in want.  We pray for all of those who live alone, the homebound and the aged.  We pray for those who are absent from us—those who live far away, or are stationed in far places and live in great danger or those who are absent from us even though we share a house with them. 

We pray for those who grieve and mourn.  Don and family 

We pray for those who are imprisoned by addiction or disease.  

Hear our specific prayers for: 

Thanksgiving 

 

 

 

Our community 

 

 

 

 

The world that aches in pain 

Sudan, civil unrest and the neigbours who are affected by the conflict 

Israel, Palestine and Iran—the whole middle east as the conflict continues 

Ukraine as Russia increases pressure and attacks.  

May your peace be known in these and all other areas that are bound in conflict.  May justice prevail so that peace may be true, deep and permanent.   

 

Merciful God, who is more than we can ever imagine, give us a wider vision of the world; give us a broader view of justice; give us dreams of peace that are not defined by boundaries of geography or race or religion, or by the limitations of worldly structures and systems.   Call us to be more like Jesus in whose name we pray, saying:   

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, for ever.  Amen 

 

Hymn:  457 Now thank we all our God

Benediction
The Suffering Servant has become the healing source.
The stone rejected has become hope’s cornerstone.
The Crucified One has become the path to new life.
The God of healing, hope and life is in our midst:
Let us go forth from here in the blessing that only God can provide.  

Be filled with grace, peace, and mercy from God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Blessing Song: 

Sing a new song unto the Lord
Let your song be sung from mountain’s height
Sing a new song unto the Lord
Singing hallelujah 

Schutte, New Dawn Mills, 1979 

3 Fold Amen