Open Gates

Sermon John 10:1-10 May 7, 2017 4^th Sunday of Easter year A (Portions of this sermon first preached in 2011)

Open Gates

Fences, walls, dams, sandbags, barricades, all do well at keeping things we don’t want out.

These keep bunnies from eating our vegetables, they keep out the cold drafts, they hold back water, and they prevent people from going too close to an obstacle. But they also protect the things inside the barrier.

The Bible uses walls and barriers as illustrations all the time.

God is the One who holds fast to the children God calls by name. God keeps them within the walls of security, the walls of God’s covenant love.

I remember when we had our French scouts and later our French youth group come to America; one of the first things that visually stuck out to them, was the lack of fenced yards.

They kept saying, “All these houses next to each other and no fence, no wall?”

I realized that in the towns and cities we had lived in overseas, all the yards were marked clearly with a perimeter of some sort-wall, fence, or bushes-there was no doubt where one person’s property began and the other’s stopped.

Unlike the US- in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and other ancient places- cities, towns and villages were protected by walls to keep out invaders and those who would do harm.

Here in John 10, we notice (as we do throughout Scripture) that fences, sheep, gates, and shepherds were all a part of daily life.

In the Old Testament, we first see God introduced as a shepherd to Moses. In Genesis 48:15 Moses calls God the Shepherd who has been with him all his life. In Numbers 27:17 Moses appoints Joshua to succeed him because the people will not be like sheep without a shepherd. Moses declares that Joshua is to go out and come in before them. He is to be one who will lead them out and bring them in.

Psalm 121 God is the One who guards our coming in and our going out.

It is in this context that Jesus speaks.

The people of God belonged to God and no one or no ‘thing’ was going to separate them from the power of God’s love.

In Scripture we learn, there are always those who would try to steal away God’s people. Throughout Old Testament stories God’s people were wooed away by golden images, ephods, Asherah poles, wild ways, and doubts of God’s love.

As consistent as the people were in departing from God, so even more consistent was God’s seeking them out to return them to the fold.

Even, though most of us are not familiar with this business of sheep and shepherds we’ve seen pictures, stain glassed windows, and coloring pages, all showing the gentle Jesus as a gentle shepherd. We see him holding a lamb in his arms and carrying a staff. These images conveyed a kind and caring Jesus who loved all of creation and dared to love even the smallest and most helpless of all.

So, when we get to this part about Jesus claiming to be the gate, it throws us into a tailspin.

Jesus is supposed to be the one who brings everyone into a life of freedom.

He is the one who brings the story of Exodus forward into the lives of the Gentiles and all humanity.

These words from Jesus did not set well with me.

So, once again we meet the exclusive Jesus?

Is that who he is saying he is?

Is this there where Christians go around pointing fingers at people saying, “I’m in and you’re not-nanananana!”

Is this where churchgoers, say to others, “I’m special and you’re not.”

It all seems so country club like.

I’ve got a membership that you don’t have and so I’m better than you.

I’ll have to say, this is the stuff that kept me far away from this believing in Jesus.

It seemed like a rather cruel set of folks.

I certainly knew I wasn’t good enough for a group that acted like they had it all together. I knew that I was far from having it together.

Yes, gates, to me, were very negative.

The images of gates that came to mind were those TSA booths in the airports in those early days when they were afraid of anyone and we were afraid of them.

Or, those border patrol crossings through newly organized countries, where no matter who you were, you were labeled suspicious.

I saw the giant gates to the castles in Europe, huge doors that hide secret courtyards.

I saw cattle gates and garden gates.

I viewed all of these as a bunch of rules and mean people whose only interest was to make life difficult for everyone who dared to approach their gates.

But then I taught a class, using the book called Boundaries by Cloud and Townsend. This study talked about the boundaries that God placed as a positive wonderful gift.

The authors refer to a fence around us as God’s way of claiming us and declaring that we are unique and we are God’s special creation, not more special than my neighbor, but just as special.

A fence is a way we can protect ourselves from those who would try to harm us.

This fence is the ability to set limits with others, to declare what is rightfully ours, and the ability to say no.

The fence is the boundary of love out of which we operate in order to show love to others.

This boundary of love is the corral where we are surrounded by the safety of Jesus.

A special space that we get to choose the size of it.

A space that helps us hold it together

without the threat of somebody coming in

to steal our integrity of humanity.

Jesus is the shepherd who claims us as his own.

His protective fence, his corral for the sheep, wraps us tight, or loose, depending on those who would come in the night trying to steal from us.

It protects us from harmful words,

or abuse,

or all those hurtful things from the world out there.

He is standing at the gate calling out to all and will not stop calling their names until all have heard him. He will not stop until all turn to follow him.

This gives me hope and joy to know that I belong to a God that has not and will not leave anyone out.

That is why we have the 23^rd psalm as our reading today.

The Hebrew word in the verse that God follows us all the days of our lives

actually means to pursue us.

It means that God will never give up on us

no matter how much we run.

We might be afraid for those of our loved ones

who seem to have gone a different way.

Remember the pursuit of God.

Know that God will remain with us

coming after us

with love

all the days of our lives.

Cloud and Townsend continue in their teaching to say that a fence needs a gate.

The gate is the way to freedom.

By the gate, we learn to open our hearts to others.

We learn to open up to God.

We learn to risk saying yes without losing our character or our sense of self.

The gate provides for freedom to explore and venture out; to try new ways, and discover new opportunities with others.

Jesus is the gate to freedom.

Jesus is the gate that opens up the community and grants access to God.

Through the gate of Christ,

God’s people discover immeasurable grace

and unconditional love.

Jesus is the gate so we don’t have to be.

This text follows the healing of the blind man who was barred from entrance into the Temple because of his ‘sin’ of disability.

Jesus makes it clear that disability is not a sin.

Jesus makes it clear that there are no barriers to entering into the sanctuary of God. Jesus makes it clear that all those with infirmities are welcome in the house of God.

Yes, Jesus is the gate that makes it possible for all to enter in.

By his grace, by his love and by his continuous calling

he has made room for everyone,

short or tall,

blue or green,

one eyed or peg legged.

We don’t have to be the gate that decides who can come in and worship here because Jesus has declared that is his job.

The Gate brings us to freedom.

In this freedom, Christ guides us to green pastures and brings us into safe community. Amen.

 Note: Following this sermon, communion was served. AT the invitation to the Table, it was announced that our denomination (PCUSA) has declared as part of our new discipline, our new order of worship, there is nothing that can be a barrier to the Table of our Lord Jesus Christ. Those baptized or not may come to the Table-this opening of the gate of freedom for pastors to serve, allows the Spirit to transform those who receive the bread and cup  of Christ.