Father Rick Bolte's Homily

A: Fourth Sunday of Easter

Our first reading today is the conclusion of Peter’s speech to the people on the day of Pentecost.  He concludes by telling them that this Jesus whom they crucified is actually Lord and Christ.  For the people to hear this would be very difficult.  Those who believe him respond by asking what they should do.  He tells them to repent and be baptized.  That’s not a simple task; it is much more than being sorry for individual sins.  As he has pointed out to them, they were the ones who crucified Jesus, at least by collusion.  They have to take a hit to their pride and admit they misjudged or were duped when they called for Jesus’ crucifixion.  Not many of us are able to admit to being so wrong about something so important.  They also have to believe that the very one whom they crucified, whom they are now to realize is the Son of God, is willing to forgive them.  It’s difficult to believe we are loved when we are good.  Most of us find it much more difficult to experience in our hearts the love of God when we know we have offended him.

In Luke’s Gospel, John the Baptist challenges his hearers to repent and be baptized.  As he does so he tells the people there is one to come who will baptize not with water but with fire and the Spirit.  Peter now calls the people to this new baptism made possible by the gift of the Spirit.  This baptism is igniting a new way of living.  Jesus, who was crucified as a powerless and perhaps delusional prophet, is now to be seen as the model for a new way of living.  Jesus lived a life without earthly power or strength but relied on the promises of his Father and the Spirit that was with him.

In today’s gospel from John, Jesus portrays himself as the shepherd who truly cares for his sheep.  In one of the commentaries I read it talked about sheep.  They were described as basically helpless animals who can not survive alone.  They easily stray from the fold and can’t find their way back.  In fact they don’t even try.  When they realize they are separated from the flock and shepherd, they panic, sit down, and just bleat hoping to be found.  Perhaps we should be insulted by Jesus comparing us to sheep.

But being compared to sheep reminds us of the humility that Peter called the people to as he invited them to repent and be baptized.  We like Jesus are invited to trust totally in our Father.  Our baptism also ushers in a new way of living.  To live like Jesus trusting in our Father is to live without seeking success in the world as our top priority.  It invites us to realize our limits and powerlessness to control our lives and our world.  And it allows us to realize we don’t have to.  We can recognize there is something far more important than the things this limited world can offer.  Sometimes we don’t come to this until we are so overwhelmed by life that we are like the lost sheep bleating for God to find us.  Sometimes we can gain this experience by sharing in the experience (being poor in spirit) with another.

It’s not easy choosing to be a sheep.  Our pride and fear get in the way.  We are baptized in the fire and Spirit to live a new way.  No longer trying to prove ourselves by success and accumulation of the things of this world, we are invited to trust in God alone.  Jesus refers to us as sheep to demonstrate the depth of his love and care for us.  Do we dare trust in the Good Shepherd?