Readings
Acts 9:36-43
This is clearly a reflection of Jesus raising Lazarus and the leader of the synagogue’s daughter. In his commentary on the passage, William Barclay includes the previous section about Peter’s healing of a paralyzed man. In that passage, Peter says ‘Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you.’ Although we are not told what words Peter used in his prayer in the raising of Tabitha it is fair to assume, as Barclay does, that both healings were carried out by Peter ‘in the name of Jesus Christ so Peter is shown allowing Christ to work through him and not through any special power of Peter’s.[1]
John 10: 22-30
The passage follows a series of sheep and gate parables, and Raymond Brown writes that, in this place in John’s narrative, the demand that Jesus say plainly whether or not he is the messiah makes perfect sense. He has referred to himself as a shepherd a metaphor which traditionally has been used of the Davidic kings and of the expected messiah. However, Jesus is always anxious to qualify what messiahship might mean because it had strong nationalistic and militaristic overtones. Jesus’ concept was entirely different and he answers by giving examples of what he is doing, in his ‘father’s name.’ and in verse 30 that is summed up, as is common in John’s Gospel, in a theological statement ‘The Father and I are one’. Jesus is the good shepherd but only his sheep recognise that, he is not going to force that recognition on others as a military messiah might be expected to do. [2]
SERMON
I believe religion is important to the future of humankind. Having been nurtured in the Christian faith I believe that it is not only one of the three great faiths of the world, I think it has a lot going for it. A Christianity that is preached in a way that makes sense of our world reinforces our instinct as communal mammals in a way that makes us truly human.