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Sunday, January 16, 2011

Second Sunday after Epiphany
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Denver, Colorado
Pastor Dena Williams

It is Year A, the first year in the three-year cycle of our

Sunday morning readings.
Year A is Matthew’s year.
Last year was Luke. Next year is Mark.
John, the fourth Gospel, gets no year of its own.
Readings from John are scattered here and there on various
Sundays throughout the three-year cycle.
Today is one of those Sundays.

The Holy Gospel according to the Community of St. John in

the 1st Chapter Glory to you, O
Lord

The next day John the Baptist saw Jesus coming towards him
and declared, ‘Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the
sin of the world!

This is he of whom I said, “After me comes a man who ranks

ahead of me because he was before me.”

I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water
for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.’

And John testified, ‘I saw the Spirit descending from heaven

like a dove, and it remained on him.

I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to
baptize with water said to me,
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“He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the
one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.”

And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son
of God.’*

The next day John again was standing with two of his
disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed,
‘Look, here is the Lamb of God!’

The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed
Jesus.

When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them,

‘What are you looking for?’

They said to him, ‘Rabbi’ (which translated means Teacher),

‘Where are you staying?’
He said to them, ‘Come and see.’

They came and saw where he was staying,

and they remained with him that day.
It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.

One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was
Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.

He first found his brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have
found the Messiah’ (which is translated Anointed*).

He brought Simon* to Jesus, who looked at him and said,

‘You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas’
(which is translated Peter*).

The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you, O Christ

Jesus, Sheep, and Lambs

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Andrew and a friend,

standing around talking.
Standing around with John who baptized them.
They’re John’s disciples.
Jesus comes walking along.
John sees him and says,
“Look, the lamb of God!”

Andrew and his friend follow Jesus.

Jesus asks them, “What are you looking for?”
They ask Jesus, “Where are you staying?”
Jesus invites them, “Come and see.”

They follow.
They come and see.
They remain.
By four o’clock they are convinced.
Andrew and his friend decide to follow Jesus,
to learn from him,
to help him in his work,
to travel with him as he goes about doing good.
They invite Simon Peter, Andrew’s brother to come and
follow Jesus.
“We have found the Messiah.” they say.

Where do they go?

What do they see?
What is it like for them to follow this wandering Messiah
from village to village?

First stop, in this Gospel, John’s Gospel, the fourth Gospel . . .

first stop, a wedding!
You know the story . . .

So far, so good, think the brothers, Andrew and Simon Peter.

Good music, some dancing, great food, and extraordinary
wine.
Not bad—this business of following the Messiah.
He associates with some pretty fine people.
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A few days later though, in this fourth Gospel,

the party seems to be over.
Let’s imagine what it must have been like.
Andrew and Simon Peter leave the wedding with Jesus.
They follow him to Jerusalem.
It’s Passover and Jesus goes to the temple.
What he sees makes him angry!
You know the story . . .

I suspect Andrew and Simon Peter are wondering what they

have gotten themselves into.
Andrew takes Simon Peter aside,
“Maybe we should go back home.
The Pharisees and other leaders of the temple are angry with
this Jesus,
suspicious of his motives.”
Simon Peter replies,
“You’re right, of course, it could be dangerous,
but let’s stay with him a few more days.
We can always leave if things get ugly.”
Andrew reluctantly agrees to Simon Peter’s plan.

They decide to spend the night in the house where Jesus is

staying.
They’re sleeping soundly when there comes a hesitant knock
on the door.
They hear Jesus invite someone in.
It’s the middle of the night.
They sit up confused.
They can hardly believe it—
one of those leaders of the Jews at the temple,
a Pharisee,
has come to see Jesus.
Andrew and Simon Peter confer in nervous whispers,
“What do you suppose he wants?”
“This can’t be good.”
“We should have left and gone home today when we had the
chance.”
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“Why on earth did Jesus invite him into the house?”

You know the story . . .

Andrew and Simon Peter listen to this conversation

between Nicodemus and Jesus.
They exchange whispers:
“Well, Nicodemus doesn’t seem angry—
he just had some questions,
and Jesus’ answers are wonderful,
inspiring and hopeful.”
“Well, ok, but I really wish he wouldn’t hang out with these
kinds of people.
Doesn’t he know they’re dangerous!”

Jesus decides it’s time to go back to Galilee.

Now there are two ways to go—
one way, is down along the Jordan river.
It’s fairly safe there.
It’s Jewish territory.
The other way is up through the Samaritan hills.
No one goes that way.
It’s dangerous.
We can imagine Andrew and Simon Peter’s response when
Jesus announces,
“We are going to walk through the Samaritan hills on the
way back to Galilee.”
A silence falls over the group of disciples.
Andrew takes his brother aside:
“Is he crazy? Those Samaritans are dangerous people!
Doesn’t he know they’re all crooks and criminals, totally
uncivilized.”
Simon Peter replies,
“I know! It’s crazy! But we need to get back home to
Galilee.
It’s more dangerous to travel by ourselves.
Let’s go with the group and once we’re home we can get out
of this mess.”
“Well, alright. I guess we do need to get home
and we don’t really have any other options.”
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They walk through the hot, dusty hills until about noon.
They come to a well, Jacob’s well.
Andrew and Simon Peter and the other disciples go into the
city in search of food.
Jesus sits by the well.
You know the story . . .

The disciples return and are astonished to find Jesus talking

with a Samaritan,
and not just any Samaritan,
but a woman!
First a Pharisee, and now a Samaritan woman!
Doesn’t he know how disgusting these people are?!
Andrew and Simon Peter shake their heads,
telling each other that as soon as they get home safely,
they are finished with this guy!

When they reach Galilee,

Jesus leads the group back to Cana where the wedding took
place.
This city, like all the others,
is under Roman control.
The soldiers and the government officials rule with an iron
hand—
taxing the people harshly,
keeping them living in poverty,
allowing the soldiers free reign to keep the people in line.
As they enter the city,
a Roman government official comes running toward them.
This can’t be good!
The disciples begin to panic.
They watch afraid and amazed as Jesus talks with the man.
Seems the official’s son is ill and he wants Jesus to come and
heal him.
Andrew says to his brother,
“I can’t believe he’s talking with that man!
I hope he doesn’t expect us to go to his house.
A Pharisee, a Samaritan woman, and now a Roman!”
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They listen as Jesus tells the man his son is healed.

The man seems to believe Jesus and goes on his way.
The disciples are relieved.
“At least we didn’t have to go to the house of that Roman
dog!”
“Maybe Jesus has finally figured out that there are some
people he needs to avoid!”

We can imagine that with some hope that Jesus has finally
come to his senses,
Andrew and the others decide to follow Jesus back to
Jerusalem for a festival.
They enter the city by the Sheep Gate.
There’s a pool there with five porches around it.
It’s where the homeless people hang out,
begging, and drinking, and smoking.
Most of them are sick.
They have horrible, contagious, disgusting diseases.
The disciples pick their way carefully through the smelly
masses,
in a hurry to get by.
They’re almost through the gate,
when they hear Jesus talking to someone behind them.
What now?!
Yes, there he is—
he’s picked out the slimiest, most disgusting man—
someone who has clearly been a resident of this foul
community for a long time.
He’s paralyzed, laying there on his filthy mat, begging.
And Jesus has actually stopped to talk to him!”

We can imagine Andrew and the others calling back to Jesus:

“Jesus, for crying out loud, hurry up before you catch
something from these scum.!”

Jesus ignores their calls.

He looks the man in the eyes and asks him,
“Do you want to be made well?”
Jesus says to him,
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“Stand up, take your mat and walk.”

At once the man was well,
he took up his mat and began to walk.

The disciples watch.

They are stunned and, for once, silent and still.
Who is this man who keeps company with
Pharisees, Samaritans, women, Romans, and beggars?
Who is this man who only needs to speak and the sick are
healed?
That night, Andrew and his brother talk again.
Maybe they were hasty in their judgment.
They are disgusted with the company he keeps,
but could anyone who was not the Son of God heal in this
way?

The disciples follow Jesus.

They slowly learn to put away their prejudices and disgust
for others who are less fortunate or different.
Over the next several years they watch and learn by
example as Jesus forgives the woman caught in adultery,
gives sight to the man born blind,
goes among the unclean dead to raise his friend Lazarus
from the tomb.

Then, near the end of the fourth Gospel,

they learn one more lesson in humility as Jesus washes their
feet.
Simon Peter denies Jesus three times.
The cock crows.
Jesus is crucified.
You know the story.
Jesus is crucified, dies, is buried, and rises again.

After all these things,

the writer of the Gospel of John tells us,
after all these things,
Jesus shows himself again to the disciples by the sea
where they are fishing.
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He cooks fish and bread and eats with them on the shore.
The writer ends his Gospel with this story:
When they had finished breakfast,
Andrew and the others watch as Jesus says to Simon Peter,
“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
Simon says to him,
“Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”
Jesus says to him,
“Feed my lambs.”
A second time Jesus says to him,
“Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Simon says to him,
“Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.”
Jesus says to him,
“Tend my sheep.”
Jesus says to him the third time,
“Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Simon feels hurt because Jesus asks him the third time,
“Do you love me?”
Simon says to him,
“Lord, you know everything;
you know that I love you.”
Jesus says to him,
“Feed my sheep.”

This is how the writer of the Gospel of John ends his story.
Feed my lambs.
Tend my sheep.
Feed my sheep.
Sheep, lambs, Pharisees, Samaritans, women, Romans, filthy
beggars.
Sheep, lambs, adulterers, the blind, the entombed, unclean
dead.
Sheep, those who have questions, who don’t understand.
Lambs, those who come are lonely, who come seeking love
and acceptance.
Sheep, those of other faiths and cultures and languages.
Lambs, those who are the most vulnerable, women and
children and teenagers.
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Sheep, those who have hard hearts and afflict others and do
not yet know their need for God.
Lambs, those who beg on street corners, sleep in alleys.
Sheep, those whose lifestyle we refuse to acknowledge and
accept.
Lambs, those of whom we most disapprove,
those of whom we are afraid,
those we find disgusting.

“Do you love me?”

“Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep.” Amen