[Propertalk] Fwd: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Proper 23A

Sat Oct 11 21:14:17 EDT 2014

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-----Original Message-----
From: Judy <judy_boli at ecunet.org>
To: propertalk.topic <propertalk.topic at ecunet.org>
Sent: Sat, Oct 11, 2014 6:35 pm
Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Proper 23A

Dear Friends,

This Sunday’s sermon isentitled “The Lord Is My Shepherd” and deals with the Psalm (Psalm 23).  Here it is:

Wehave one of my very favorite Psalms- the 23rd Psalm, in our Biblereadings today, and I’d like to look at it. This one passage of scripture has brought comfort and strength tocountless Christians through-out the centuries. It’s a good one to memorize, so you can repeat it to yourself instressful times.  My mother had a pictureof Jesus, the Good Shepherd in a frame in our kitchen.  Over the years, it got stained with greasefrom cooking and dust from the Detroit factories, but I can still remember thatpicture.  Since we’re city folk, it’seasy to miss subtleties of Jesus, the Good Shepherd image, but that shepherdcarrying the lost lamb over his shoulders made an impressive statement aboutGod’s love and care for us.  Let’sexamine the Psalm, verse by verse.

“TheLord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” We can count on God to supply all our needs (not wants or desires-needs).  This does not mean that God willtake away the consequences of our sins. In other words, if we gamble away our food money, we can’t expect God toprovide us with more money.

“Hemaketh me to lie down in green pastures.” Sheep usually graze from early morning (around sunrise) until latemorning.  After that, they need to liedown and rest while they digest their food. Our Good Shepherd also provides rest time for us by commanding us toremember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. 

“Heleadeth me beside the still waters.  Herestoreth my soul”.  Sheep will notdrink from fast-moving streams.  Perhapsthe water going up their nostrils frightens them, since sheep frighten veryeasily.  Fast-flowing streams also pose athreat to sheep because if they lose their footing and fall in, their heavycoats usually become saturated with water and they drown.  Often the shepherd will make a cup with hishands so the sheep can drink from it. Our Good Shepherd provides holy food and drink (his Body and Blood) togive us the strength to continue.

“Heleadeth me in paths of righteousness for his Name’s sake.”  Sheep know the voice of their shepherd andthey follow when he or she calls.  One ofmy Internet friends visited the Holy Land and told of her experience while inIsrael regarding sheep and shepherds. Passing by a field with many sheep while touring, she noticed that manyof the sheep had different colored paint marks on their sides.  She asked the tour guide what the colorsmeant.  “Oh, those sheep don't belong tothe shepherd.  He's just a hired hand,”responded the guide.  “How can you tell?”asked the tourist.  “What do the colorspainted on have to do with that?” “A real shepherd (one who owns the sheep)knows his sheep and they know him,” said the guide.  “These sheep have paint markings because ahired hand is watching several different flocks for the shepherds and the hiredhand never gets to know any of them.  Hehas to have the paint to tell them apart. A real shepherd just knows and calls.” In John (10:27-28), Jesus says: “My sheep know my voice, and I knowthem. They follow me, and I give them eternal life, so that they will never belost.”  Sheep don’t get in trouble ordanger because they know the voice of their shepherd and follow him.  What about us?  Do we know the voice of the Good Shepherdbecause we pray and listen daily or do we just go with whoever speaks theloudest or most convincingly?

“Yea,though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil;for thou art with me.  Thy rod and thystaff, they comfort me.”  There is anactual valley of the shadow of death in the Holy Land.  It has an extremely narrow path for the sheepto use.  In fact, in one spot theshepherd makes the sheep jump across a gully that is about 18 inches wide.  Wild dogs and other wild predators often waitfor a sheep or lamb to fall into the gully. When this happens, the shepherd uses his rod to beat back the attackwhile he uses his staff to hook the sheep or lamb and bring it up tosafety.  God does the same for us.  In those difficult times in our lives, in thetime of our death- we can count on God to protect us and reach out to bring ussafely to him. 

“Thoupreparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies.”  Each morning before the shepherd lets thesheep out to graze, he inspects the pasture. He clears it of poisonous weeds and snakes.  He also fills in all the holes that mightcatch a sheep’s leg and cause injury.  Inthe same way, our heavenly Shepherd looks over our coming day to be sure thereis nothing that we can’t handle in his Name.

“Thouanointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.”  When the sheep come into the pen for thenight, the shepherd inspects each one carefully for cuts and insects.  He applies healing oil to cleanse and beginthe healing process for wounds.  In thesame way- when we say our bedtime prayers, our Heavenly Shepherd cleanses oursouls and heals the wounds of the day.

“Surelygoodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell inthe house of the Lord forever.”  Thispromise is a gift from the Lamb of God who redeemed us on Calvary.  I’m going to repeat a story I’ve toldnumerous times of how the blood of one lamb saves another, and how the Blood ofour Passover Lamb saves us.  This truestory offers the best example I’ve ever heard of how Jesus, the Lamb of God,saves us from our sins.  Remember how-just before we receive Holy Communion- I bread the Holy Bread and say, “Christ,our Passover, is sacrificed for us.” Jesus has become the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”  Have you ever heard of Jeff Smith, also knownas the Frugal Gourmet?  (He used to be onTV years ago.)  Anyway, in his bookcalled The Frugal Gourmet Keeps the Feast, he tells about a conversationhe had with a shepherd from the Middle East. He learned that very often during lambing season, the shepherd would awakento find a dead mother sheep with a live baby lamb and another live mother sheepwith a dead baby lamb.  The mother sheepwhose lamb has died has milk ready to feed a hungry lamb, but no babies.  The lamb whose mother sheep has died isstarving for lack of milk.  Easilysolved, you think.  Just let the orphanlamb suckle from the childless mother sheep. Great idea, but it won’t work; because the mother sheep knows the orphanlamb doesn’t smell like her baby.  Do youknow how the shepherd solves the problem? He drains the blood from the body of the dead lamb and washes the liveorphan lamb with that blood.  Now theorphan lamb smells like one of her own, and the mother sheep will adopt theorphan and feed it.  That’s what God didwith us- washed us in the Blood of his Lamb- Jesus, the Christ, so we could beadopted as sons and daughters of God and freed from our sins.

So,where are you in all of this?  Have youaccepted Jesus as your Good Shepherd?  Ifnot, just invite him into your life right now and then seal it at the altar asyou come up for Communion?  Do you followhim daily, or do you just expect him to rescue you every time you get yourselfin trouble?  Do you spend enough quiettime with our Lord so you recognize his voice, or do you keep busy, busy, busywith the radio blaring, the TV on, or the stereo blasting away?  Finally, is Jesus not only your GoodShepherd, but your MODEL Shepherd?  Doyou just happily accept God’s blessings, keeping them to yourself; or do youreach out and touch?  May God bless us aswe follow our Good Shepherd.

Foranyone who is interested, this sermon and updated African-American wisdom statementsare posted on our parish’s NEW WEB SITE under “Sermons & Stuff”. Theaddress is: http://www.stpaulsepisag.org.

Blessed preaching,
Judy Boli
St. Paul's EpiscopalChurch
Saginaw, Michigan

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