Fourth Sunday Of Easter
Preaching
Lectionary Preaching Workbook
Series III, Cycle C
The Church Year Theological Clue
Good Shepherd Sunday fell on the Second Sunday after Easter in the classic calendar and lectionary; it now occurs on the Fourth Sunday of Easter (or, in the older scheme, on the Third Sunday after Easter). Accordingly, the traditional gospel (John 10:11-16) is retained, specifically in Year/Cycle B of the contemporary lectionaries, but John 10 is also employed as the Gospel in Years/Cycles A and C. Last Sunday's theme emphasized that Jesus Christ was the Paschal Lamb, who was sacrificed at Calvary for the sins of the whole world; but the Lamb lives again after his resurrection forever. The risen Lord, who died as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world," becomes the Good Shepherd through his resurrection and ascension; he calls and gathers his own - as a shepherd tends his/her flock, and particularly the newly baptized Christians - to himself, protects them, and gives them the life of the kingdom of God forever. Virtually all of the churches that were constructed as the calendar and lectionary developed in Christendom portrayed the Good Shepherd and the sheep above their altars, showing Christ as the risen and ascended Son of God, who now sits on a throne in the eternal real of God. It is this theology that the lectionaries and the church year preserve on this Fourth Sunday of Easter. (In the classic calendar, this Sunday was known as Jubilate, from the introit Jubilate Deo Omnis Terra. Therefore, because the Good Shepherd has begun his reign and cares for his own, the whole world may "make a joyful noise to God.")
The Prayer Of The Day
The LBW offers two prayers for this Sunday; the first reads this way: "God of all power, you called from death our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep. Send us as shepherds to rescue the lost, to heal the injured, and to feed one another with knowledge and understanding; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever."
The Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 23 (L) - The Lutheran Book Of Worship appoints this psalm for all three cycles of the church year. Jesus really is the Good Shepherd, really is the Lord of all, and really is the one who watches over his own in all situations, reviving the souls of the faithful, leading them in life and death so that they will, feasting at the table he has set, "dwell in the house of the Lord forever." The imagery of the psalm clearly suggests the sacraments of baptism and holy communion. If the ancient churches would have had modern technology available to them, they might have had a recording of the 23rd Psalm beneath the mosaics of the Good Shepherd, playing continuously when there were no services in the churches, to call people to prayer and devotion - and preparation for the meal at the Table of the Lord - in the name of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. The Book Of Common Prayer offers Psalm 23 in Years A and B, with Psalm 100 as an alternate in Year B. The ORDO places Psalm 23 on the Fourth Sunday in Lent, as well as the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year A, as well as the Sixteenth Sunday of the Year, Year B.
Psalm 100 (RC, E) - Commentary was made on this psalm in the Lectionary Preaching Workbook III, Cycle B, and may be found there. It should also be pointed out that this was probably the entire introit-psalm originally. It "fit" Good Shepherd Sunday perfectly, even in modern translation:
Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands;
serve the Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
Know this: The Lord himself is God;
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are his people
and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise;
give thanks to him
and call upon his name.
For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting;
and his faithfulness endures
from age to age.
In congregations accustomed to singing more than one psalm, it would be appropriate to use this psalm and Psalm 23 together.
Psalm prayer (23 - LBW) - "Lord Jesus, shepherd of your Church, you give us new birth in the waters of baptism; you anoint us with oil, and call us to salvation at your table. Dispel the terrors of death and the darkness of error. Lead your people among safe paths, that they may rest securely in you and dwell in the house of the Lord now and forever, for your name's sake."
Psalm 100 (LBW) "God our Father, you have created us as your people and you sustain us with your hand. Help us always to give you thanks, for you alone are worthy of thanksgiving and praise and honor now and forever."
The Readings
Acts 13:15-16 (16a - L); 26-33 (E, L, C) (34-39 - E) - The impact of the gospel upon Jerusalem and the nearby world continues to be told in the story Luke tells. Paul's, as he is known after his conversion, missionary work has begun and, at the invitation of the president of the synagogue in Antioch in Pisidia, Paul faithfully preaches the gospel to the people by reviewing the history of God with his people Israel, beginning in Egypt and taking them up to John the Baptist and Jesus' death and resurrection. The sermon is reported in detail for ten more verses, after which Luke mentions a situation that every preacher dreams about: Namely, on their way out of the synagogue, the people beg Paul and Barnabas to tell them more about Jesus Christ and his gospel!
Acts 13:14, 43-52 (RC) - The Roman Catholic ORDO selects the same chapter (13) of Acts for the first reading, but uses different verses of the chapter. The picture of the effects of the proclamation of the gospel is enlarged by the story of what happened on the second sabbath in Antioch of Pisidia; the Jews were jealous of the crowds of people who wanted to hear Paul and his friends preach the gospel, and, as happened over and over again on his missionary journey, they renounced him and attempted to contradict his message. But Paul spoke also to the Gentiles and assured them of God's love for them and they, for their part, rejoiced that Jesus Christ was their Lord and Savior, too.
Numbers 27:12-23 (E - alternate first reading) - Here is the story of God speaking to Moses, who is near the end of his life, telling him that he should climb to the top of this "mountain of Abarim," and promising him a glimpse of the promised land from its peak. God also told Moses that, since he would not be permitted to enter that land, a new leader had to be chosen and ordained; God's nomination for this position was Joshua. Moses obeyed God and proceeded with the ordination of Joshua, who would lead the people of Israel on the final phase of their 40-year journey.
Revelation 7:9, 14b-17 (RC); 7:9-17 (E, L, C) - John continues to describe his heavenly vision in this second reading for the Fourth Sunday of Easter. It is almost as if some of the ceramics in the early churches, which picture the risen and reigning Christ with sheep and/or people gathered at his feet, had been given life and a voice with which to worship him and the Father. These are the ones in white robes - the newly baptized - who have been "washed in the blood of the Lamb." They cry out, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb." The angels, too, were there, and they joined in the worship of the Lord, picking up the "new song" that was sung in last Sunday's reading; "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen."
John 10:22-30 (E, L, C); 10:27-30 (RC) - The first part of this reading tells of the feast of Hannukah, and how Jesus was being questioned by the Jews, asking him to tell them plainly if he were the Christ. They are rebuffed by Jesus, who reminds them that he has already told them and has also shown them in miracles and signs his true identity, but they will not believe him. He says, "The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep." The ORDO picks up the story at this point so as to emphasize the Shepherd-sheep relationship of Jesus, the risen Lord, and the believers, for whom he is the living Christ of God. God will protect the faithful, Jesus tells them; no one can destroy - no matter what they do - the faith of those who are in the "Father's hand." His last word was out and out blasphemy to the Jews: "I and the Father are one."
Sermon Suggestions, Synopses, Sketches, Stories
John 10:22-30 (E, L, C); 10:27-30 (RC) - "Christ In Glory." - I heard a Roman Catholic priest describe a mosaic in the church of Santa Costanza, which is actually outside the walls of that city. His description was so intriguing that I had to see that church as soon as possible. My wife and I took a bus that went north and out of the city gate that is attributed to Michelangelo, and had no trouble finding the church - at least, we were let off where we could see an old church building. I knew it wasn't Santa Costanza, because it wasn't round; it turned out to be the church of St. Agnes, built to house the remains of the young girl who was tortured where "her church" stands facing Bernini's great fountain in the center of Piazza Navona in Rome; she was then executed. To get to that church, one descends a long flight of stairs, which has plastered walls in which relics of the past have been imbedded. When the church was built, it was level with the city around it, but the debris has piled up about it, almost making it disappear from view.
One gets to Santa Costanza by entering St. Agnes Church, leaving it by a side door and walking a short distance to a squat, round building - Santa Costanza - and what is left of its interior. The oldest Christian mosaics in the environs of Rome are there, and among them is the "Christ in Glory," as Graham Sutherland named his great tapestry that hangs in the new Coventry Cathedral. Christ is seated upon a throne, in a mosaic that used to be above a baptismal font (the church housed the coffin of Costantina or Costanza, Constantine's daughter, originally; later, it was converted to a baptistry and, still later, to a church), hand upraised in blessing. In yet another mosaic, he is standing, to portray an "active" and Good Shepherd. Peter and Paul are on either side of him, four streams of water come from the ground and form a river. And there are sheep there, looking to the Good Shepherd, who cares for them and provides them with all their needs to maintain their faith in him and the Father. On returning to St. Agnes Church and looking at the chancel more closely, I discovered that there is another version of the Christ in Glory over St. Agnes' altar. That image was standard in most of the western churches of Christendom, reminding the faithful that the Lamb who was slain "has begun his reign" as the Good Shepherd of the sheep.
1. Jesus Christ, the risen, continues to call his people to himself, the Good Shepherd. He calls all people, because he loves all people and died to save every person under heaven.
2. We, his sheep, are called upon to believe in the new life of the kingdom, and follow him faithfully through this world and into the life of God's eternal kingdom.
3. He protects his people as they go through life, like a shepherd watching over his sheep; all are precious to him. He feeds his sheep with his word and satisfies their hunger and thirst with his own body and blood.
4. By their faithfulness and their continuing witness to his lordship, his people/sheep tell the whole world that Jesus is Lord forevermore.
Acts 13:15-16, 26-33 (E, C); 13:15-16a, 26-33 (L) - "Mission One."
1. That's the story. Paul's first missionary journey began with an invitation to preach in Antioch in Pisidia.
2. The sermon: A bridge from Jerusalem to Antioch, from the Old Testament to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
3. God has fulfilled his promise "to the fathers" in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
4. And this one, Jesus, is the very Son of God, the only-begotten Son of God, for them, for us, for all people and for all time.
Acts 13;14, 43-52 (RC) - "Return Engagement."
1. What Paul had to say to the people of Antioch intrigued them to the point that they issued an invitation to speak to them again on the next Sabbath. The whole city turned out to hear Paul and his friends.
2. It was a case of being too popular and the result was that the Jews, who had been open to hearing them at first, now attempted to discredit the preachers and the good news they were speaking to the people. Paul and the disciples had participated in the conversion of many to Christianity.
3. This time, they heard two preachers, Paul and Barnabas, and both told the Jews that they had other business: a mission to preach the gospel to the whole world. They were sent to be "a light to the Gentiles" and now, to the horror of many hearers, that's what they were about to do. (One preacher might have been more than enough for the Jews to stomach; two might have been one too many. Sometimes one is too many, as on a recent trip to China, a Roman Catholic woman, unused to listening to a long sermon, got up and walked out of the church before the sermon ended. She was heard to say, as she departed, "Pull the plug." She did. The Jews tried to.)
4. And, as the Jews had, at first, the Gentiles received them with open arms, welcomed their words, embraced the gospel, and were "ordained" into the Christian faith and the service of the Lord.
5. But the jealous Jews drove them out of the city and their preaching mission came to an end. They went on to Iconium and preached there and, finally, their word came to us and we believed, too.
Numbers 27:12-23 (alternate - E) - "Tough Love."
1. Despite all that Moses had done for the people of Israel, God informed him that he would not be allowed to enter the promised land, because he had failed him in the wilderness. The best he would get was a glimpse of it from the top of a mountain.
2. Moses, who had been something of a hot-head in his younger days, meekly accepted the judgment and the punishment of God. He even went so far as to ask the Lord to select another leader to replace him.
3. So God chose Joshua as the one to complete the 40-year trek with the people of God and Moses obeyed God's order to commission Joshua before the congregation of the Lord.
4. God is no push-over; he is a God of mercy, but a God of "tough love," too, and those who reject him and Jesus will come to know it but those who believe and obey will find how kind and loving he really is in the Lord.
Revelation 7:9, 14b-17 (RC); 7:9-17 (E, L, C) - The first people who read the Revelation that John wrote about must have thought he was "high" on something or other. People just don't see visions like the one he saw, unless they are on drugs or have some kind of fanciful dream. That's pretty much the way it is today. But it was different for Christians in the first century; they knew what he was talking about, and because they expected the Lord to return soon, they were intrigued by John's vision of the risen Christ and heaven - the Good Shepherd.
1. Today, his reign continues; it has continued a long time and he has not returned. Will he, can he possibly, return as he said he would?
2. But can we accept John's vision of the worshiping congregation, the angels and the four living creatures gathered around the throne of Christ?
3. But the promises given with the vision are intriguing - "they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat" - and the gracious word of hope: "For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water."
4. And, finally, there is peace and comfort, for "God will wipe away every tear from their (and our) eyes."
Good Shepherd Sunday fell on the Second Sunday after Easter in the classic calendar and lectionary; it now occurs on the Fourth Sunday of Easter (or, in the older scheme, on the Third Sunday after Easter). Accordingly, the traditional gospel (John 10:11-16) is retained, specifically in Year/Cycle B of the contemporary lectionaries, but John 10 is also employed as the Gospel in Years/Cycles A and C. Last Sunday's theme emphasized that Jesus Christ was the Paschal Lamb, who was sacrificed at Calvary for the sins of the whole world; but the Lamb lives again after his resurrection forever. The risen Lord, who died as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world," becomes the Good Shepherd through his resurrection and ascension; he calls and gathers his own - as a shepherd tends his/her flock, and particularly the newly baptized Christians - to himself, protects them, and gives them the life of the kingdom of God forever. Virtually all of the churches that were constructed as the calendar and lectionary developed in Christendom portrayed the Good Shepherd and the sheep above their altars, showing Christ as the risen and ascended Son of God, who now sits on a throne in the eternal real of God. It is this theology that the lectionaries and the church year preserve on this Fourth Sunday of Easter. (In the classic calendar, this Sunday was known as Jubilate, from the introit Jubilate Deo Omnis Terra. Therefore, because the Good Shepherd has begun his reign and cares for his own, the whole world may "make a joyful noise to God.")
The Prayer Of The Day
The LBW offers two prayers for this Sunday; the first reads this way: "God of all power, you called from death our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep. Send us as shepherds to rescue the lost, to heal the injured, and to feed one another with knowledge and understanding; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever."
The Psalm Of The Day
Psalm 23 (L) - The Lutheran Book Of Worship appoints this psalm for all three cycles of the church year. Jesus really is the Good Shepherd, really is the Lord of all, and really is the one who watches over his own in all situations, reviving the souls of the faithful, leading them in life and death so that they will, feasting at the table he has set, "dwell in the house of the Lord forever." The imagery of the psalm clearly suggests the sacraments of baptism and holy communion. If the ancient churches would have had modern technology available to them, they might have had a recording of the 23rd Psalm beneath the mosaics of the Good Shepherd, playing continuously when there were no services in the churches, to call people to prayer and devotion - and preparation for the meal at the Table of the Lord - in the name of the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ. The Book Of Common Prayer offers Psalm 23 in Years A and B, with Psalm 100 as an alternate in Year B. The ORDO places Psalm 23 on the Fourth Sunday in Lent, as well as the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year A, as well as the Sixteenth Sunday of the Year, Year B.
Psalm 100 (RC, E) - Commentary was made on this psalm in the Lectionary Preaching Workbook III, Cycle B, and may be found there. It should also be pointed out that this was probably the entire introit-psalm originally. It "fit" Good Shepherd Sunday perfectly, even in modern translation:
Be joyful in the Lord, all you lands;
serve the Lord with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
Know this: The Lord himself is God;
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are his people
and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise;
give thanks to him
and call upon his name.
For the Lord is good;
His mercy is everlasting;
and his faithfulness endures
from age to age.
In congregations accustomed to singing more than one psalm, it would be appropriate to use this psalm and Psalm 23 together.
Psalm prayer (23 - LBW) - "Lord Jesus, shepherd of your Church, you give us new birth in the waters of baptism; you anoint us with oil, and call us to salvation at your table. Dispel the terrors of death and the darkness of error. Lead your people among safe paths, that they may rest securely in you and dwell in the house of the Lord now and forever, for your name's sake."
Psalm 100 (LBW) "God our Father, you have created us as your people and you sustain us with your hand. Help us always to give you thanks, for you alone are worthy of thanksgiving and praise and honor now and forever."
The Readings
Acts 13:15-16 (16a - L); 26-33 (E, L, C) (34-39 - E) - The impact of the gospel upon Jerusalem and the nearby world continues to be told in the story Luke tells. Paul's, as he is known after his conversion, missionary work has begun and, at the invitation of the president of the synagogue in Antioch in Pisidia, Paul faithfully preaches the gospel to the people by reviewing the history of God with his people Israel, beginning in Egypt and taking them up to John the Baptist and Jesus' death and resurrection. The sermon is reported in detail for ten more verses, after which Luke mentions a situation that every preacher dreams about: Namely, on their way out of the synagogue, the people beg Paul and Barnabas to tell them more about Jesus Christ and his gospel!
Acts 13:14, 43-52 (RC) - The Roman Catholic ORDO selects the same chapter (13) of Acts for the first reading, but uses different verses of the chapter. The picture of the effects of the proclamation of the gospel is enlarged by the story of what happened on the second sabbath in Antioch of Pisidia; the Jews were jealous of the crowds of people who wanted to hear Paul and his friends preach the gospel, and, as happened over and over again on his missionary journey, they renounced him and attempted to contradict his message. But Paul spoke also to the Gentiles and assured them of God's love for them and they, for their part, rejoiced that Jesus Christ was their Lord and Savior, too.
Numbers 27:12-23 (E - alternate first reading) - Here is the story of God speaking to Moses, who is near the end of his life, telling him that he should climb to the top of this "mountain of Abarim," and promising him a glimpse of the promised land from its peak. God also told Moses that, since he would not be permitted to enter that land, a new leader had to be chosen and ordained; God's nomination for this position was Joshua. Moses obeyed God and proceeded with the ordination of Joshua, who would lead the people of Israel on the final phase of their 40-year journey.
Revelation 7:9, 14b-17 (RC); 7:9-17 (E, L, C) - John continues to describe his heavenly vision in this second reading for the Fourth Sunday of Easter. It is almost as if some of the ceramics in the early churches, which picture the risen and reigning Christ with sheep and/or people gathered at his feet, had been given life and a voice with which to worship him and the Father. These are the ones in white robes - the newly baptized - who have been "washed in the blood of the Lamb." They cry out, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits upon the throne, and to the Lamb." The angels, too, were there, and they joined in the worship of the Lord, picking up the "new song" that was sung in last Sunday's reading; "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen."
John 10:22-30 (E, L, C); 10:27-30 (RC) - The first part of this reading tells of the feast of Hannukah, and how Jesus was being questioned by the Jews, asking him to tell them plainly if he were the Christ. They are rebuffed by Jesus, who reminds them that he has already told them and has also shown them in miracles and signs his true identity, but they will not believe him. He says, "The works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep." The ORDO picks up the story at this point so as to emphasize the Shepherd-sheep relationship of Jesus, the risen Lord, and the believers, for whom he is the living Christ of God. God will protect the faithful, Jesus tells them; no one can destroy - no matter what they do - the faith of those who are in the "Father's hand." His last word was out and out blasphemy to the Jews: "I and the Father are one."
Sermon Suggestions, Synopses, Sketches, Stories
John 10:22-30 (E, L, C); 10:27-30 (RC) - "Christ In Glory." - I heard a Roman Catholic priest describe a mosaic in the church of Santa Costanza, which is actually outside the walls of that city. His description was so intriguing that I had to see that church as soon as possible. My wife and I took a bus that went north and out of the city gate that is attributed to Michelangelo, and had no trouble finding the church - at least, we were let off where we could see an old church building. I knew it wasn't Santa Costanza, because it wasn't round; it turned out to be the church of St. Agnes, built to house the remains of the young girl who was tortured where "her church" stands facing Bernini's great fountain in the center of Piazza Navona in Rome; she was then executed. To get to that church, one descends a long flight of stairs, which has plastered walls in which relics of the past have been imbedded. When the church was built, it was level with the city around it, but the debris has piled up about it, almost making it disappear from view.
One gets to Santa Costanza by entering St. Agnes Church, leaving it by a side door and walking a short distance to a squat, round building - Santa Costanza - and what is left of its interior. The oldest Christian mosaics in the environs of Rome are there, and among them is the "Christ in Glory," as Graham Sutherland named his great tapestry that hangs in the new Coventry Cathedral. Christ is seated upon a throne, in a mosaic that used to be above a baptismal font (the church housed the coffin of Costantina or Costanza, Constantine's daughter, originally; later, it was converted to a baptistry and, still later, to a church), hand upraised in blessing. In yet another mosaic, he is standing, to portray an "active" and Good Shepherd. Peter and Paul are on either side of him, four streams of water come from the ground and form a river. And there are sheep there, looking to the Good Shepherd, who cares for them and provides them with all their needs to maintain their faith in him and the Father. On returning to St. Agnes Church and looking at the chancel more closely, I discovered that there is another version of the Christ in Glory over St. Agnes' altar. That image was standard in most of the western churches of Christendom, reminding the faithful that the Lamb who was slain "has begun his reign" as the Good Shepherd of the sheep.
1. Jesus Christ, the risen, continues to call his people to himself, the Good Shepherd. He calls all people, because he loves all people and died to save every person under heaven.
2. We, his sheep, are called upon to believe in the new life of the kingdom, and follow him faithfully through this world and into the life of God's eternal kingdom.
3. He protects his people as they go through life, like a shepherd watching over his sheep; all are precious to him. He feeds his sheep with his word and satisfies their hunger and thirst with his own body and blood.
4. By their faithfulness and their continuing witness to his lordship, his people/sheep tell the whole world that Jesus is Lord forevermore.
Acts 13:15-16, 26-33 (E, C); 13:15-16a, 26-33 (L) - "Mission One."
1. That's the story. Paul's first missionary journey began with an invitation to preach in Antioch in Pisidia.
2. The sermon: A bridge from Jerusalem to Antioch, from the Old Testament to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
3. God has fulfilled his promise "to the fathers" in the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
4. And this one, Jesus, is the very Son of God, the only-begotten Son of God, for them, for us, for all people and for all time.
Acts 13;14, 43-52 (RC) - "Return Engagement."
1. What Paul had to say to the people of Antioch intrigued them to the point that they issued an invitation to speak to them again on the next Sabbath. The whole city turned out to hear Paul and his friends.
2. It was a case of being too popular and the result was that the Jews, who had been open to hearing them at first, now attempted to discredit the preachers and the good news they were speaking to the people. Paul and the disciples had participated in the conversion of many to Christianity.
3. This time, they heard two preachers, Paul and Barnabas, and both told the Jews that they had other business: a mission to preach the gospel to the whole world. They were sent to be "a light to the Gentiles" and now, to the horror of many hearers, that's what they were about to do. (One preacher might have been more than enough for the Jews to stomach; two might have been one too many. Sometimes one is too many, as on a recent trip to China, a Roman Catholic woman, unused to listening to a long sermon, got up and walked out of the church before the sermon ended. She was heard to say, as she departed, "Pull the plug." She did. The Jews tried to.)
4. And, as the Jews had, at first, the Gentiles received them with open arms, welcomed their words, embraced the gospel, and were "ordained" into the Christian faith and the service of the Lord.
5. But the jealous Jews drove them out of the city and their preaching mission came to an end. They went on to Iconium and preached there and, finally, their word came to us and we believed, too.
Numbers 27:12-23 (alternate - E) - "Tough Love."
1. Despite all that Moses had done for the people of Israel, God informed him that he would not be allowed to enter the promised land, because he had failed him in the wilderness. The best he would get was a glimpse of it from the top of a mountain.
2. Moses, who had been something of a hot-head in his younger days, meekly accepted the judgment and the punishment of God. He even went so far as to ask the Lord to select another leader to replace him.
3. So God chose Joshua as the one to complete the 40-year trek with the people of God and Moses obeyed God's order to commission Joshua before the congregation of the Lord.
4. God is no push-over; he is a God of mercy, but a God of "tough love," too, and those who reject him and Jesus will come to know it but those who believe and obey will find how kind and loving he really is in the Lord.
Revelation 7:9, 14b-17 (RC); 7:9-17 (E, L, C) - The first people who read the Revelation that John wrote about must have thought he was "high" on something or other. People just don't see visions like the one he saw, unless they are on drugs or have some kind of fanciful dream. That's pretty much the way it is today. But it was different for Christians in the first century; they knew what he was talking about, and because they expected the Lord to return soon, they were intrigued by John's vision of the risen Christ and heaven - the Good Shepherd.
1. Today, his reign continues; it has continued a long time and he has not returned. Will he, can he possibly, return as he said he would?
2. But can we accept John's vision of the worshiping congregation, the angels and the four living creatures gathered around the throne of Christ?
3. But the promises given with the vision are intriguing - "they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat" - and the gracious word of hope: "For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water."
4. And, finally, there is peace and comfort, for "God will wipe away every tear from their (and our) eyes."
