This is my sermon from the 4th Sunday of Easter- on Psalm 23. Forgive the grammatical errors, as I haven't really taken the time to go through it. Also, obviously there are no footnotes included but if you want any reference resources feel free to ask! :)
One of the most common images in the Bible is the image of the lamb. We find it all over the place, all throughout the Old Testament and in Messianic writings like Isaiah, as well as throughout the gospels. The image of the lamb is a powerful image and is one that carries an insurmountable amount of symbolism behind it. What does it mean to be the lamb? And even more, who is the lamb?
The lamb is symbolic of gentleness of character and patience under suffering. It signifies purity, meekness and sacrifice. The lamb is also a symbol for Christ, which is interesting since Christ is also the shepherd. In this way the Lamb reminds us that though Jesus was divine, he also took on the same form as the rest of us, to live like one of us, and to know us.
To be the lamb means to be someone who is patient, someone who perseveres in the face of hardship. The lamb is someone who is meek and mild, who doesn’t mind being obedient to the shepherd. The lamb is someone who in normal situations, sticks to his flock, and never leaves the side or the direction of his master. It is funny that throughout the Bible we are characterized as the sheep, too. We are supposed to be obedient to God, and humbly serve him, fitting all the characteristics of the lamb. However, when we really think about who we are and how we live as Christians it is clear to see that sometimes we don’t fit this description as closely as we should.
When I think of this description of the lamb, it makes me think of those people who we have always referred to as the “saints of the church”. Those people who have gone ahead of us, who made a difference in our lives and our concept of what it meant to be a Christian. Those people in the church who have always given it their all, who would never complain, and would do anything for any person who needed help.
Last week, we read the story of Peter and Jesus, when Jesus in an attempt to undo the denial that Peter had done the night before his death, asks him three times, “Peter do you love me?” And all three times there is a different response from Jesus. Peter politely says yes, and Jesus says, “Feed my sheep.” Not only are we the sheep, but we have a responsibility to recognize those who are in our fold. That doesn’t mean those who go to our church, or those who are like us, or those who have the same beliefs as us, but every person who is in the fold that is the family of God, which would include every human being that God ever created.
To be the lamb, is to respect God as the shepherd, to ignore our own wants, to give up the need to be in control all the time, and to allow ourselves to simply be taken care of. When we start wanting to be in control, that’s when things get messed up, that’s when things start going awry.
Today we read the 23 Psalm as our responsive congregational prayer, and the words, no matter what translation we read are so familiar to us. I’m going to read them to you again. This morning the version that we read was the NRSV, but oddly enough, even if we have never really read the King James version of the Bible, for some reason that is the translation that is most familiar to us. I invite you as you hear these words to just pause and listen. Listen to them, let it absorb, think about the words and what this passage means for God’s presence in our lives.
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
5Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
The Lord is my shepherd- In this very first statement we make the confession that God is control. NO matter how brave or bold or adventurous we may try to be with our lives, ultimately God is bigger, and wiser. God protects us from danger, God knows what is best for us, and as such, we respect his authority and care.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures- This is perhaps one of the most important lines in this entire scripture reading. Have you ever seen the picture of Jesus carrying the lamb over his shoulders? Or how about the image of the lamb in the Episcopal church holding the flag and the staff? In that image the lamb has two bandaged legs. The reason for this is one that sounds cruel at first but has deep theological meaning and purpose. Historically, when a lamb would continuously wander from the rest of the fold, the shepherd would have to do something to prevent the lamb from getting lost. So in desperate situations, for the protection of the lamb, and the rest of the fold who would often follow a wandering sheep, the shepherd would break the legs of the sheep.
Now before you wonder about animal cruelty or anything like that, it would be done in such a way that the sheep could heal, but it was also done in such a way that would teach the lamb to depend on the shepherd, and to stay close to the shepherd at all times. A sheep that wandered from the rest of the fold meant danger for everyone else, it meant the ability of wild and dangerous animals such as wolves being able to more easily find the rest of the fold. But also for the safety of the individual lamb, the one who was straying away from the shepherd, to prevent it from getting lost or hurt. But remember, the shepherd doesn’t abandon the lamb, the shepherd carries him, to show his love for him.
This image is so very important for us as Christians. We are given the gift of free will, the ability to make choices for ourselves, but at the same time, God has a plan for us, and if we wander too far, we can endanger those around us, we can endanger ourselves, and we can really mess things up. So sometimes, we need to be forced to lie down in green pastures, to rest near quiet waters, and realize that we don’t always need to be in control. And sometimes out of pain and suffering, those moments where we are knocked down, sometimes we don’t have to get right back up, but it’s okay to mourn, it’s okay to suffer, it’s okay to just be. But out of those moments of rest and comfort come blessing, even if it is through pain, sometimes, we find that there is true blessing in every circumstance and situation.
The next line: he restores my soul. Though we may find ourselves lost, and broken and sometimes alone, God does not leave us to fend for ourselves, but he restores our souls, he offers us comfort and wisdom. He offers us the ability to make it through, to be comforted by the presence of God.
When we have true faith in God, there is no reason to fear, there is no reason to worry there is no reason to always try to take things into our own hands. Sometimes it is okay to just listen, to just believe, to just know that God is there. It is okay, and it’s a good and it’s a wonderful thing to be the lamb. It’s a good and wonderful thing to be loved by the shepherd. It’s a good and wonderful thing to be a part of this fold, to know that just like everyone else, we are loved, loved equally and unbreakably.
So who is the lamb? We are the lamb. A beautiful relationship can grow from the realization that we don’t have to wander out on our own. That beautiful relationship with God can flourish when we realize that we don’t have to worry so much, but that all the comfort we could ever need in this world comes straight from the love and compassion of God. I am the lamb because I am a child of God. To be the lamb means to offer our lives as a sacrifice to God. It means being willing to give up our desires in order to make sure that God’s plan in this world is met. It means putting the needs of the fold before the needs of our own.
Who is the lamb? The lamb is God, more specifically the son, Jesus Christ. And how much does that mean to us? That the one who is also the shepherd, the one who is also responsible for guiding us and watching over us, is also humble enough to take on the form of a lamb, to be a living sacrifice, not for God, but for us. There is a sense in which we realize with this characterization that God is not a God of vengeance or wrath, but is a God of grace. We realize that our God truly is perfect because he does not require a sacrifice of us without giving a sacrifice of himself. NO matter how tough we may think we have it in this life, the one constant we can depend on is the very fact that God loves us regardless of our imperfections and our inabilities, and the evidence is written everywhere.
I am the lamb, you are the lamb, and we share in this role with the very one who created us. So let us be humble, let us be gentle, let us be willing to be broken in order to be close to our God. Let us be willing to see the blessings of lying in the green pastures, let us trust God enough to allow him to restore or soul. You are the lamb, a child of the shepherd who also shares in this beautiful fold. Amen.
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