Fenced In No More
The
Yorktown United
Pastor Roy Grubbs
4th Sunday of Easter John
10: 1-10
Seven years ago, our family moved back to
But of course, he was seven years old – right about that time when the nagging to get a pet begins to reach unbearable levels. Hard as I fought to prevent it, I finally caved and on Easter Sunday, 2001, Macy, our little Beagle, became a part of our family.
I have to tell you, although I vehemently protested the idea at the time, within about 5 seconds of her being in our home, I loved it. She has added so much joy and laughter to our life – it is like having another kid. And of course, as Dad, one of the things I began to think about right away was protection. You see, Beagles have the tendency to “bolt.” They are hound dogs, bred for the hunt. Their job is to track pheasants or other animals with their noses. Right after Bloodhounds, Beagles have the best sense of smell. And believe me; Macy has an awesome sense of smell. She comes running when she smells the barbeque grill going, the smell of bacon cooking, or let’s face it, when she smells any food whatsoever. She hasn’t met a food she didn’t like!
But by picking up a scent outside, these dogs do have a tendency to run. She was still a very little puppy when she decided to run all the way down the street in our development, and then again, across the main road to our neighbors. So Gina and I began to talk about getting an invisible fence. In the end, we just decided to put her on a leash. With the invisible fence, we did not like the “shock” it gave. We didn’t like that idea at all. So then we talked about getting a regular fence. Even though we never had a fence, it still would have provided us more peace knowing that everything was safe.
Fences can be a really good thing. They help to protect kids, pets, and property from harmful things. Farmers and ranchers use fences to keep wolves and thieves from stealing their animals. And the access point in a fence is the gate. The gate is the way in. Trying to get in without using the gate is not a good thing. In fact, it can be considered criminal in many circumstances.
This reminds me of a movie that came out
about 15 years ago called Sister Act.
Starring Whoopi Goldberg, it is the story of a Lounge Singer from
But this convent is in a neighborhood that has become less than ideal. As you look at the outside of the church, there are bars on the windows, wrought-iron gates surrounding the outside of the church, and padlocks on the doors. This church is an impenetrable fortress that no criminal could get into. Good for Whoopi Goldberg. But there is no way for anyone else in the community to get in either. The gate is locked, the doors are closed. These fences are a barrier to contact, to community, to love. A community in so much need has a church with no way in.
In our Gospel Lesson this morning, Jesus describes himself as a different kind of gate; as The Gate. “Whoever enters by me will be saved.” He is our Shepherd, constantly calling us to follow him. And sheep must be led. They are at peace around their shepherd and become uneasy when another tries to come into their fold. The shepherd can walk right through a sleeping flock without disturbing a single one of them, while a stranger could not step foot in the fold without causing pandemonium.
Sheep also know their Shepherd’s voice. When many small flocks are mixed together around one watering hole, a simple call from one shepherd will extract his sheep from the rest. We know that Jesus is the one who calls us, who leads us. As sheep, all we have to do is follow. This seems so simple. But as we know, this is not as easy as it sounds.
We live in a society of options. Everyday, more options are created that threaten us. We want the latest inventions to give us new pleasure or status. However, what we find is that this pleasure is short-lived as something new comes along. So we clamor for the next “whatever.” We are bombarded with messages, thoughts, opinions, stories. We listen for any voice that we might follow. But sheep focus only on the voice of their shepherd, the voice of the one that they trust. When we are drawn to any voice out there, we prove ourselves to be less than sheep.
As Christians, we know that Jesus is the way to abundant life and his love for us is everlasting. And we know that by entering the Gate, by following Jesus, we will live a life full of hope and promise. But one thing I know, following Jesus does not mean hiding behind some kind of fence. Jesus calls us to do something.
Gates are funny things. They actually swing both ways – in and out. We are not called to only follow Jesus inside the gate and simply rest there. If we are to follow Jesus’ voice then we are to follow him outside into the world; a world full of deceit, lies, hurt, and brokenness. As Jesus describes, his voice will call us out, leading us back out into the world to share God’s love with all those in need.
In the movie the Sister Act, the nuns
finally go out into the community and meet the people.
It was amazing to see the connections they made and the love that was
generated. New relationships were
formed, gifts were shared, and love grew. The
community was transformed. By
following the call of Jesus, the community in
I pray that our church can be a beacon of
hope like the one in the movie. We
too are in the midst of very troubling times.
We too have terrible issues to deal with, right here in our communities.
This past week, another incident of hate and violence occurred.
The Jewish Center in
I cannot tell you how saddened I am to see that our young people have so much hate in them. In just the months that Gina and I have been here, we have had a cross burning, and now this. I believe our children and youth are watching us. I believe that much of what young people have as core beliefs, they learn from parents, the church, teachers, and mentors. What they see us say and do, what they see us not say and not do, forms who they become as adults. What are we teaching our children now? What are we teaching them through our actions or inactions?
This is why I absolutely dread apathy. This sin is one that sneaks up on us. Over time, we can become complacent, comfortable. We may be saddened by the news we hear. We may feel sympathetic for a short period of time. But we have so much activity going on in our lives and thank God that things are going “ok” for us. In the end, what do we really do to speak out in God’s name? What do we really do to love one another? How do stop the cycle of ignorance, violence, and hate?
Our community is in trouble. There are too many who have found other gates to go through. Too many adults and youth alike are missing out on deepening their relationship with God. There are too many that don’t recognize the divine in one another.
We need to talk to our youth.
We need to talk to one another. And
we need to do more than talk. We
need to take action. At
We are His sheep. All we need to do is follow. The gate is open. We are fenced in no more. Our souls have been fed. We have received new life in Christ. Jesus is calling us out into the world to make a difference, to show that we truly do love one another. All we have to do is follow. It really is that simple. Amen.