A synopsis of the sermon delivered by the Rev. David L. Hicks at St. Paul’s Reformed Episcopal Church on Sunday, May 4, 2003, Easter II. Please read St. John 10:11-16.

The traditional Gospel and Epistle readings for today center upon the theme of Christ as the Good Shepherd, hence today has been popularly known as “Good Shepherd Sunday.” While this image of Jesus as the Shepherd of his people has become well known to Christians through sermons and artistic depictions, how often have we considered what it means for the Lord to be our Shepherd? How does he care for his sheep?

Saint John mentions two ways in which we know Jesus Christ to be the Shepherd of our souls. The first is that the Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (St. John 10:15). As St. John also writes in his first epistle, “In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him” (I John 4:9). We know the care of the Shepherd in his demonstration of love on the cross. He gives his life in order that the sheep might have life. This life, however, is not temporal life but eternal life. If our Lord were only concerned about our temporal comfort then he would not be a very good shepherd at all. However, we must remember that what we endure in this life is to be measured against eternity. Wherever the Shepherd leads us, and however difficult the trial may be, his guidance is based upon what leads us to eternal life with him.

Secondly, the Shepherd’s care for his sheep is known through his communication with them – “my sheep know my voice” (St. John 10:3, 16). It is vitally important that we learn to recognize the voice of our Savior. There are many other voices competing for our attention, such as the messages we hear through television, magazines and acquaintances, and they do not always lead us in a godly direction. For this reason it is incumbent upon us to meditate on the Scriptures, so that we recognize the voice of the Shepherd above the noise of the world. The Psalmist writes,

Blessed [or happy] is the man who walks not in the council of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that brings forth its fruit in its season (Psalm 1:1-3).

The stability and blessedness that the Psalmist mentions come from knowing the word of God – by making it our daily meditation. That same word is the voice of the Good Shepherd who has given his life for us. May we be attentive to his voice always, so that we may truly understand what in means to have Jesus Christ as the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls (I Peter 2:25).