THE VOICE OF THE SHEPHERD
Acts 13:14, 43-52; Rev 7:9,14b-17; John 10:27-30
There is a story told of an old man and his grandson who were walking down a business street in a downtown district. As they walked along, the grandfather suddenly stopped, turned his head slightly, and tweaked his ear. After a moment he said to his grandson, “Follow me.”
They slowly moved from where they were standing to a small planter box next to a sidewalk café. The planter was filled with various seasonal plants, but as the old man gently pushed back the flowers, behind them revealed a small bird’s nest filled with baby chicks; their chirping almost indistinguishable from the din of lunchtime dinners and people on the sidewalk.
No one seemed to pay any attention to the old man, his grandson or the little nest, but the grandson was amazed. After watching for a few minutes and then moving away the little boy looked up at his grandfather. “Grandpa, how did you hear the birds? There is so much noise, so much happening, how could you hear?”
Without saying a word the old man took several coins from his pocket and tossed them on the ground. With the tinkling of the coins on the sidewalk it seemed everything came to a stop. People turned around. Diners stopped eating to look their way. Several almost seemed to want to reach down and pick up the dropped coins. Then as quickly as it had happened – everything went back to the way it was. That’s when the old man spoke, “It’s all in what you are listening for, my child, it’s all in what you are listening for.”
Sometimes I think we are much like the crowd walking down the street. We fail to hear the most important things in life. We’ve filled our lives with so much noise that it’s difficult to hear anything anymore. And when we do hear, we often mistake what we are hearing for what we want to hear instead of what we should be hearing.
On this Fourth Sunday of Easter, we encounter the Good Shepherd, a noble shepherd who knows his flock intimately. In all three liturgical cycles, the Fourth Sunday of Easter presents a passage from John’s Gospel about the Good Shepherd. Today’s gospel reading from John is the shortest passage from scripture that the Church gives for our reflection at mass in our three year cycle of readings. Yet, although only three verses long, it probably is the most consoling and the most reassuring words in all of Sacred Scripture. We hear Jesus speak words that tell us that he is a Good Shepherd who cares for his flock. Sheep survive, largely because of the care of their shepherd. The shepherd calls them away from danger, and towards safety and health. The shepherd seeks out pastures that can feed and nourish them. The shepherd keeps an eye out for predators, and calls the sheep into areas where they can rest in safety. In the midst of a howling wind, or the chaos of a marketplace, the sheep recognize and instinctively follow the voice of their own shepherd, and they survive — even thrive — because they follow that voice.
Jesus speaks to us of the Shepherd's voice today. It is a voice of promise. It is a voice that promises stubborn protection and care. It is the voice the flock hears and knows and follows. It is the voice which is especially precious in times of tragedy or struggle and pain. And it is one we sometimes have to work hard to hear when other voices especially seem to drown it out. And yet even when those other voices overwhelm, yes even when we don't pause to listen, it is always there, inviting and comforting and urging us on.
The other voices that compete with God’s, are voices that are pleasing to the ear. They tell us what we want to hear. They don’t challenge, they seduce. They promise us pleasure, power, possessions, position and prestige. And they promise it NOW. Often it’s not so much that they try to drown out the voice of God, they do something more subtle and conniving: they try to convince us that their voice IS the voice of God. Whose are those voices? Satan’s and our own.
It is of course very important to be able to tell the difference. It’s important for us to understand what the voice of God sounds like:
- God speaks deep within my spirit and speaks to what is lasting. - The voices not from God speak to my mind and to my desires and to what is temporary.
- God’s voice is gentle and persuasive, patient, free from pressure – Voices not from God are loud and clamoring, always demanding an immediate response.
- God’s voice produces peace and a sense that everything is under control. It is the voice of hope. - Ungodly voices speak of despair, hopelessness and loss.
- God’s voice is always clear and distinctive, giving us clear direction in which to go. - Our own voice and that of Satan perplex, causes confusion and loss of direction.
- God tends to speak when I am seeking and listening for him. – Voices not of God break into our thoughts uninvited.
- God’s voice calls us to that which is good, pure, loving, selfless, forgiving, simple and humble. - Ungodly voices call us to compromise, to harbor grudges, to look out only for Number One.
But here’s the greatest test to discern if the voice you hear is the voice of God: First and foremost, Does it agree with the Bible? God never says anything that contradicts Scripture. God has spoken to us through the Bible--this is His word. He would never say anything that would contradict what He has already said in the Bible. And second, is it consistent with the teachings of the Church? Jesus told us that he will not leave us orphans; that he will send his Spirit to be with his Church and that this paraclete, this helper, is the Spirit of Wisdom and the Spirit of Truth.
Whose voice are you listening to? The voice of God is the word of wisdom in our human folly, the word of meaning in our human vanity, the word of reason in our human confusion, the word of ongoing promise in our human frailty. Do you hear it . . . or something else? As the old man told his grandson, “It’s all in what you are listening for, my child, it’s all in what you are listening for.”
