Loving God, you have revealed to us life in all its fulness through your Son, Jesus Christ.  Help us to do all things through him, that we might have life, and have it abundantly; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    As often happens with Biblical texts, sometimes one thing stands out, and sometimes another. In this week’s gospel, I was struck this time around by how many times the thieves and the bandits are mentioned.  These thieves and bandits seem to be lurking everywhere, just waiting “to steal and kill and destroy” (Jn. 10:10).  The contrast, of course, is Jesus, who has come that we “may have life, and have it abundantly.”  So do you feel like you have abundant life today?... It seems as though there are so many things that rob us of the abundant life that Jesus came to bring.

    I don’t know if this ever happens to you, but every so often I get what I would describe as a stress reaction in my gut.  It feels kind of like my blood is running cold, and it always has a flood of negative messages that go with it.  I don’t seem to have any control over when a reaction like this is going to happen, and every time it does, it just sucks the life right out of me.

    A few weeks ago, I had several stress reactions like this in very close succession to one another, and I was even having trouble sleeping because of it.  Finally, I announced to myself that this was absolutely ridiculous and absolutely not the kind of life that Jesus came to bring.  I began to visualize Jesus with me – whether sitting at the table, or standing beside me – and consciously allowed myself to rest in him -- and at least some of that life was restored.  This is simply one example of the things that threaten to rob us of the abundant life that Jesus came to bring.

    Another example is found right there in the Gospel of John - in the chapter that comes right before today’s gospel.  It is the story of the healing of the man born blind, which I believe should have a subtitle that goes something like: “how to stomp on abundant life”!  It almost blows your mind to think that in the face of such a life-giving miracle, all the Pharisees can do is find fault with Jesus and badger the man who had been healed.  They completely ignore the fact that this man has been set free from his life of begging and dependence and has been given the gift of sight and light.  Instead, they are totally focused on how Jesus ignored their Sabbath rules and therefore must be a sinner.

    And so, the man who had been given his sight and had been restored to his community, is just as quickly thrown out of the synagogue.  It is left to us to presume that as one who believes in Jesus, this man then becomes one of the sheep who go in and come out through Jesus, and in doing so experience abundant life.

    Really, what is given to us in John 10 is an image of having your basic needs provided for in community with others.  The sheep are led out to find good pasture and water.  At the same time Jesus provides protection from evil, as he lies down and becomes the gate at night, and others can only enter through him.  For a sheep, this is abundant life!

    Yet, at the same time, it’s not so different from the picture of the early church community that we hear about today in Acts.  In fact, there are a number of things described there that sound an awful lot like abundant life.  They live in awe because of all the signs and wonders.  They’re always worshiping together and breaking bread together and praying together.  They experience glad and generous hearts, and because they sell their possessions in order to provide for one another, everybody’s basic needs are met.  “And day by day the Lord added...” (Acts 2:47).

    There have been times when we have read this passage in the congregation and people have wondered aloud, “why can’t things be like that now?”  It’s a valid question, I think.  We worship the same God.  We believe in Jesus Christ.  God still gives the Holy Spirit.  So what robs us of the abundant life that Jesus came to bring?

    One observation that was made at our council meeting this week was that some of these things were happening because they were worshiping and praying together all the time.  That was their number one priority – to gather together in order to worship and to learn and to give thanks and to support one another in their faith.  Essentially, they put their whole selves in – including their possessions and their resources.

    As for what robs us of abundant life, we could probably come up with a pretty long list.  Some of the things that come directly out of today’s readings might be things like: failing to see the life-giving miracles that are right in front of us; or greed; or having things other than worship and prayer as our priorities; or failing to go in and come out through Jesus.  At the same time, there are an incredible number of things in the world around us that rob both us and others of life.

    Some are haunted by memories of abuse.  Some never seem to have enough to make ends meet.  Some are plagued by illness or addictions.  Some have had their freedom and their dignity taken away from them.  Some are ruled by fear and anxiety.  And some believe that they are never good enough and can never measure up to other people’s expectations.  “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn. 10:10).

    In today’s gospel, the key to dealing with these thieves and bandits seems to be to come in and go out through Jesus and to listen to his voice.  In the confirmation materials that I use from Crossways, the word ekklysia - or church - is illustrated by going back to the town council or similar body that would meet in Greek cities.  They would come together to discuss and to vote and then would go out and do what they had decided.  In similar fashion, we as a church come together to worship and to be strengthened in our faith and then go out in order to be the presence of Christ in our world.

    In this coming in and going out through Jesus is salvation and abundant life – the life that we first receive from Jesus and then carry forth to others whom we encounter on the journey.  Thanks be to God for this precious gift of life.  Amen.

Easter 4(A)                                        John 10:1-10
May 11, 2014                                    Acts 2:42-47
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

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