Gate Sunday? - John 10:1-10
I love a liturgical theme. And I don’t just mean theoretically. I mean a physical, tangible liturgical theme. Who are we kidding? I’m talking about clothing. I love to match my wardrobe with the color of the church season. Many of you commented on the large, white, flower earrings I wore on Easter. They are technically poinsettias, so I also wear them at Christmas. A dual-purpose liturgical theme just makes my heart sing.
This love for dressing liturgically started not quite ten years ago at a church I served in Northern Virginia. One morning I saw a baby with a fluffy sheep’s tail on her onesie for Good Shepherd Sunday and I just melted. Ever since, not only have I loved a liturgical theme, but I have associated Good Shepherd Sunday with babies. I think the Holy Spirit might agree, because this morning we baptized one of our youngest and most precious members.
Today is indeed referred to as Good Shepherd Sunday, because each year, on the fourth Sunday of Easter, we read a portion of the “Good Shepherd” discourse from the Gospel of John. As with all annual lectionary observances, it can be challenging to come up with something new and interesting to preach about. But, I did come to an interesting realization this year.
The Good Shepherd discourse is divided into three sections, and we rotate through them on our three-year lectionary cycle. In this year’s section of the story, we don’t get to the part where Jesus says, “I am the Good Shepherd.” As you may have noticed, we only got as far as Jesus saying, “I am the gate for the sheep.” Of course, “Gate Sunday” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it, and I don’t think a gate would be as cute stuck on a onesie, so I can understand why we stick to the Good Shepherd theme.
But I don’t want us to overlook the gate. All of the I AM statements in John’s Gospel are important, so the gate must be, too. And when you think about it, it’s actually a lovely saying. Jesus is telling us, I am the way in. You can try to get to the place you’re headed by more furtive means, but it’s dangerous, both for you and for others. Come through me and I will guide you to safety.
A frequent interpretation of this saying is that Jesus is referring to the kind of salvation we receive after we die. Many people read these words and hear, “come in this way to be saved from eternal damnation in the outer darkness.” But there is so much more going on here! Jesus doesn’t offer this discourse out of context. He is responding to the peoples’ curiosity after he gave sight to the man born blind.
The blind man did not have to die to enter into the gate of Christ and be healed. He experienced the saving power of God in real time, not in some far off future where we sometimes imagine salvation to be. The blind man helps us understand the gate - and it’s not the pearly gates we see in cartoons. Jesus is saying to us, the best way to get from wherever you are to the place you’re meant to be is through him, by taking part in what Christ is doing in the world.
This morning, we welcomed little Annie into our family of faith through the waters of baptism, something most of us gathered here have participated in. Baptism is itself a kind of gate. It’s an opening, a way in. It’s a path to get from wherever you are to the place you’re meant to be, by joining the Body of Christ and taking part in Christ’s life and work.
If we were to stick to that narrower interpretation, those who get baptized go through the gate to be saved from a terrible fate in the afterlife. But again, Jesus is adamant that there is so much more going on here. Like the blind man who received his sight, baptism is about receiving the Holy Spirit in the most wonderful way.
She is going to be shown the love of God by all the people gathered who have committed to being part of her journey. She is going to be shown how to live in the world faithfully, with kindness, generosity, and mercy. She is going to know, her whole life long, how loved she is and how precious she is to God.
That is the miracle of the gate right here on earth. It’s not about securing good real estate in the pasture of heaven by following the rules and not jumping over the fence. It’s about allowing the life, death, and resurrection of Christ usher us into a new world of love and life that we can participate in every day. That’s the Christian hope we have for Annie and for all who live into the waters of baptism.
Obviously I did do some thinking about gates as a liturgical theme. I can definitely imagine a fence and pasture scene on some smocking, and I’ve seen some pretty ornate metal gate patterns that would make a fabulous cuff bracelet. But when it comes to celebrating today’s theme, I don’t think any outfit I come with could shine brighter than this morning’s baptism.
Because truth be told, the very best way to show the world what God is up to in today’s scriptures is with our lives, by living into our baptismal vows, by revealing through our prayers and words and actions that Christ is the gate, the way in, the path to getting from wherever we are to the place we were always meant to be. Amen.