The Fourth Sunday of Easter
Mother’s Day
May 11, 2025
John 10:22-30
Because He Lives— We Know that Jesus is Trustworthy and True!
22Then came the Feast of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23and Jesus was in the temple area walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
25Jesus answered “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, 26but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. 29My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30I and the Father are one.” (NIV1984)
Dear fellow worshipers of our living Lord and Savior,
He is risen! He is risen indeed!
I’d like you to put on your thinking caps for just a moment. Out of all the people you know, out of all the people you have ever met— is there anyone whose word you simply do not trust? Why? Why don’t you trust what they tell you? Personally, I don’t trust someone who tells me they are going to do something— or tells me that they won’t do something— and then simply doesn’t follow through on what they say. This is the type of person who “talks the talk” but does not “walk the walk.”
Now spin your thinking cap around and look at just the opposite. Out of all the people you know, out of all the people you have ever met— is there anyone whose word you automatically trust? Why? Why do you automatically trust whatever they tell you? For me, the reason is quite simple. They always back up what they say with actions. They are the type of person who both “talks the talk” and “walks the walk”!
Today as we continue our celebration of Easter we rejoice in knowing this truth: Because He Lives— We Know Jesus is Trustworthy and True!
John chapter ten is commonly known as the Good Shepherd chapter of the Bible. That is why we turn to this portion of Scripture every time we celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Easter. In the opening words of our text we find Jesus in the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem during the Feast of Dedication. This feast commemorated the victory of Judas Maccabeus and his forces over the Syrians. During the occupation of Israel by the Syrians the Temple of the Lord had been desecrated by Antiochus Epiphanes. After his victory over the Syrians Judas Maccabeus repaired and rededicated the Temple in 167 B.C. The Feast of Dedication was celebrated each December to mark both the victory of Judas Maccabeus and the dedication of the Temple. Today this celebration is called Hannukah.
After telling us why Jesus was in Jerusalem, John then tells us here in our text, “Jesus was in the temple area walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. The Jews gathered around him, saying ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.’” Two months before this particular confrontation the religious leaders of God’s people had accused Jesus of being “demon-possessed and raving mad” (John 10:20). Why? Because after telling the people that He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep, Jesus also told them, “The reason the Father loves me is that I lay down my life— only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father ((John 10:17, 18).
It appears that these religious leaders had been stewing on these words for two months. And so now, when they saw Jesus in Solomon’s Colonnade, they surrounded Him and with a mock show of sincerity and surprise they demanded a clear answer to the question, “Are you the Christ?” We get the impression that they were trying to pressure Jesus into saying something that they could use to either discredit Jesus in the eyes of the people and/or report Him to the Roman authorities.
Jesus’ response to being surrounded by people who opposed Him and rejected Him is clear, it is direct, and it is powerful. Look at verses twenty-five and twenty-six of our text. Our Lord says to them, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep.”
Notice how Jesus calmly reminds these men that He has already given them the answer to their question— in two ways! First, Jesus’ answer to their question is found in His description of Himself as the Good Shepherd— the Good Shepherd who would not only die for His sheep, but the Good Shepherd who would rise to life once again. Second, Jesus’ answer to their question is found in the “miracles” that He had performed in His Father’s Name. In both His words and His actions Jesus clearly and openly and plainly proclaimed that He is “the Christ.” The only reason that these men could not accept and acknowledge that Jesus is “the Christ” is because of their own unbelief: “But you do not believe because you are not my sheep.”
To emphasize His point even further Jesus goes on to explain to these men, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
Notice how closely Jesus connects His words and His actions. “Listening” to Jesus’ words, “hearing” Jesus’ “voice” gives us insight into what Jesus promises to do for us— His sheep! Jesus promises to give us the gift of eternal life. Jesus promises that we will never perish! Jesus promises that no one— not the devil, not the sinful world in which we live, not our spiritual enemies— no one will be able to “snatch” us from His hands. Jesus promises us that as His sheep who listen to His voice we are safe in the heavenly Father’s hands— because Jesus and the Father are one!
Could there be a more clear answer to the demand of Jesus’ enemies, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” The question now becomes: Did they understand Jesus’ answer to their question? They most certainly did! While it is not included in our text for today, John tells us in the very next verses, “Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, ‘I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?’ ‘We are not stoning you for any of these,’ replied the Jews, ‘but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God’” (John 20:31-33).
Somewhere I read, “What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Do those words apply to what we read about here in our text for today? I think they do. Put on your thinking caps once again. Hardly a day goes by when we do not hear Jesus and/or His Word being demonized as homophobic and hateful and narrow-minded. Hardly an hour goes by when we are not tempted to follow false Christs— the gods of our bellies, the prophets of prosperity and the theologies of mortal sinful human beings. Now factor in the churches where the Gospel of our crucified and risen Savior is replaced with the promise of temporal healing or the lure of material blessings.
Add to all of that the people who trust their own will rather than what God reveals to us in the Bible. Oh, they may pay lip service to the authority of the Bible, but they consistently read into the Scriptures their own ideas. They may even ignore major Bible teachings and emphasize minor ones in order to promote their own agenda. Ultimately, they prefer their own preconceived ideas to the revelation of God. When we open our eyes and look around it is not difficult for us to see that Jesus’ answer to the demand, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly,” is rejected and ridiculed by many people today as the “sayings” of one who is “demon-possessed and raving mad” (John 10:20).
How do we guard against getting caught up in that faith-destroying trap? We stay focused! We stay focused on what our Good Shepherd tells us, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me.” When we are listening to Jesus’ voice, when we hear Him speaking to us through His holy Word then we will have the comfort and the confidence that only our Good Shepherd can give to us!
Through His holy Word our Good Shepherd calls us by name. He knows us and we know His voice. He leads us and we follow Him. Through His holy Word our Good Shepherd keeps us safe as we travel through this spiritually dangerous world. Through His holy Word Jesus feeds us with the green pastures and the still waters that our soul needs to thrive and flourish. Through His holy Word Jesus enables us to trust in His statement, “I and the Father are one.” Our faith leads us to trust that when we are “listening” to Jesus we are “listening” to our heavenly Father. Our faith enables us to trust that when we see Jesus loving and healing and caring for the lost and the rejected and the troubled we see and understand what our heavenly Father is like.
All of these blessings lead us to have a great deal of empathy for those who do not believe and trust in the risen Christ as their Good Shepherd. Why? Think about it. When someone does not know Jesus as their Good Shepherd they have no sense of direction as they travel through this world. They are easily led astray by the voice of this “stranger” and then the voice of that “stranger.” When someone does not know Jesus as their Good Shepherd they have no spiritual safety net when life gets hard. When someone does not know Jesus as their Good Shepherd wolves in sheep’s clothing stalk them in an effort to snatch their soul and drag it to hell. When someone does not know Jesus as their Good Shepherd they are unconsciously wandering down that wide and easy road that always ends in eternal pain and punishment.
All of this serves as a reminder to us to reach out to those who are not “listening” to the voice of the Good Shepherd. Look around in your life, my friends. Do you know anyone who is not “listening” to the voice of Jesus? What can you do to help them? You can mention them by name every time you approach your heavenly Father in prayer. You can support God’s Kingdom work both here in our community as well as all across the world through the work of our Synod. You can stay focused on the cross (Pointing to the cross) on Calvary’s hill to remind you of how much the Good Shepherd has lovingly done— not only for you, but for everyone!
I suppose that right about now we could say “Amen” and get started on our plans for the rest of the day. That, however, would be unfortunate. Today is not only the Fourth Sunday of Easter, today is not only Good Shepherd Sunday, but today is also Mother’s Day. Is there any way to dovetail these inspired words of the apostle John with our celebration of Mother’s Day? I think there is!
For those of us whose Moms and Grandmas are already living safely in the presence of our Good Shepherd, we can use this day as an opportunity to thank the Lord for the instruction and the guidance that our Mom and our Grandma gave to us. I certainly cannot speak for you, but even as I got older, even after I became a pastor I treasured the sound Biblical advice my Mom and my Grandma gave to me— both when I asked for their advice as well as when they thought I needed to hear their advice!
For those of you whose Mom or Grandma are still with us and for those of you who still have the privileged role of being a Christian Mom or a Christian Grandma, let these words of John serve as a guide for you. By both word and example let your children and your grandchildren see and hear how important it is for you to be “listening” to the voice of your Good Shepherd. Let them see and hear how important it is for you to gather together here in God’s house to not only “listen” to your Good Shepherd as He speaks to you through His holy Word, but let them see and hear how important it is for you to bring your praise and your prayers to the only One who can and will give you the gift of eternal life, the only One who can and does have the power to prevent Satan from “snatching” you out of your heavenly Father’s hands. And if— when— you realize that you have not always lived up to the role that your Good Shepherd has given to you, turn to Him (Pointing to the cross) and listen to His voice as He not only forgives you, but as He promises to help you and strengthen you.
We all have people in our lives that we may not trust because their words and their actions do not always line up with each other. We all have people in our lives that we trust implicitly because as much as humanly possible what they say and what they do are always in agreement.
My prayer today is that every time we lift up our eyes to the cross on Calvary’s hill and remember what our Good Shepherd was willing to do for us, every time we peer into the empty grave in the garden and remember that Jesus did indeed keep His promise to physically rise from the dead, I pray that we will relish and rejoice in this truth: Because He Lives— We Know that Jesus is Trustworthy and True!
To God be the glory!
Amen
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