I will extol you, Lord, for you drew me clear…
Do we rely upon the Good Shepherd?
Do we love as he loves?
After the Resurrection, Jesus’ apostles seem at a loss about what to do. Though they do eventually leave the upper room in John’s Gospel, the apostles are restless and fall back on what they know: they go fishing at the sea of Tiberias. They are holding onto what has been; Jesus’ appearance on the shore is, for them, both very real and also a mystery, a mystery they will plumb a little bit at a time – yet it also frees them to do what is necessary. The apostles will slowly learn to rely on the Lord, and to trust that he is still accessible to them in their daily lives. Once they’ve had breakfast, Jesus gives Peter the opportunity to reconcile with him by affirming his love for Jesus three times, once for every denial of Jesus during Jesus’ Passion. Although he might not entirely understand the instructions Jesus gives him – feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep – Peter will remain faithful to Jesus, becoming the good shepherd the Lord asks him to become, knowing Jesus’ love will stay with him always, and following Jesus’ lead.
By the time the apostles are preaching in earnest in Jerusalem, in the Acts of the Apostles, there is no doubt of their faith: they are arrested, questioned, and ordered (for the second time) to stop preaching in the name of Jesus. The Sanhedrin fear the apostles because the apostles themselves have become a source of mystery, performing miracles that draw tremendous crowds. God’s work in them is very real, yet it remains a mystery to all those who lack the faith of Peter and his fellow apostles. Attentive to Psalm 30, the apostles do not hesitate to praise Jesus, who has rescued them repeatedly, giving witness to his death and resurrection to the very Sanhedrin themselves: We are witnesses of these things, as is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey them. The Book of Revelation continues in this vein in a universal song of praise: Worthy is the Lamb that was slain, to receive power and glory! One of the most mysterious of our scriptural texts, its author John’s vision is the revelation of how God’s plan is unfolding through Jesus Christ, a plan in which we too must have faith.
Paradox is necessary part of our journey; faith is about what is beyond what we can understand or choose. Our own future contains many unknowns, for our journey is not yet complete. And yet we have faith in Jesus who leads us, confident that the love of our Good Shepherd remains with us, never leaving us alone. If he is ultimately the one we love, then we too must shepherd our world; Jesus makes this possible because he loved us first, and so we have the capacity to love all, following his lead – so long as we remain faithful to the Good Shepherd.
This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com
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