John 10:1-10
“I AM the Gate”
March 7, 2021
We are looking at what is called Sheep Gate in the town of Trim in County Meath in Ireland.
It is all that still stands from a 13th century defensive stone wall that was built around the town and Trim Castle which is where they shot the movie “Braveheart.”
It’s believed that this toll gate got its name because it was the one that the sheep had to go through when being sold at market and where the owners of sheep would be charged a tax of a penny for every ten sheep that made their way through this gate.
I’m not sure what the tax rate for humans passing through Sheep Gate or one of the 3 other gates that surrounded Trim Castle until the 1800s was.
Gates are a way of welcoming humans and other creatures in as well as being designed to keep danger out.
They can also be a means of screening those desiring entry or exit. Think about the TSA screening points of entry when you’re in an airport.
To keep flights as safe as possible, our possessions are x-rayed for dangerous items and explosives.
The bigger airports use Advanced Imaging Technology where, after removing shoes, coats and emptying pockets the scanner can determine if we might have some hidden weapon or bomb on our body.
We may even be subject to a pat down when the alarm goes off because of too much metal hardware where knees, hips or parts of a spine might once have been.
We are then allowed to proceed to the particular gate where we will produce the right pieces of paper or ticket on our phone and then be allowed to board. Except when we’re at the wrong gate.
The airport in Madrid is vast, sleek, and modern.
When traveling to and from Croatia with the women of my family a few years ago we spent many hours there, first extremely sleep-deprived as we waited for our connecting flight to Zagreb.
Coming back to the U.S. was an equally long wait and it wasn’t until we were in line to board our flight that we learned that not only had the gate changed but that we weren’t even in the correct terminal.
We, along with dozens of others, then sped to the opposite end of that terminal (did I mention that the Madrid airport is vast) only to be transported by bus just in the nick of time to the correct gate to board our long flight back home.
Here Jesus is teaching with imagery that baffles his listeners.
He is saying that The Way is through the gate that he represents and that gate is love.
Let’s back up a bit for some context.
Just before this I AM statement, Jesus has encountered the man born blind who his neighbors are sure is that way because either he sinned or his parents sinned.
Jesus counters that the blindness was not caused by the poor man or his folks.
He makes some mud from dirt and spit, smears it over his eyes, has him wash off the mud and he is able to see.
Once he can see he gets the third degree from the neighbors, his parents get dragged into it and suddenly they’re ganging up on Jesus and calling him a sinner.
Jesus reassures the man and makes sure he knows that his mission was to help the blind see which was not just a reference to those without eyesight.
Jesus here is wanting to assure the lost and adrift of the first century that there is a way to get through the hard times.
We get to listen in and know that he’s both the gate and the shepherd.
He’s pointing out the way and that way is through him.
They have been found.
Jesus here is offering words of comfort. As one writer put it, Jesus is promising them in his own way that, “You’ve got this” which is wrapped up with his assurance that “I’ve got you.” (David Lose, In the Meantime)
How do we lean into that good news?
How can we allow ourselves to be led by Jesus?
Is it about offering a safe place for those on the edge?
How about those we know who are feeling rudderless?
We can lean into God when the world seems scary and when exhaustion from being on guard for the past year takes over.
We can rest a bit knowing that we will get through this because Jesus has us.
Such knowledge can allow us to breathe easier and let go of some of the stress that has been weighing us down since last March.
Jesus, at the very end of this passage, offers abundant life.
What an amazing gift!
Abundant life means that in the midst of hardship, loss, and struggle, there is more.
At a Zoom meeting yesterday, I was reminded that perseverance is not just putting our heads down and pushing through.
It is also being able to laugh and sing and dance along the way.
The gate to abundant life, for all of us, is the one who we will now remember as we come to the table – a life remembered and celebrated through bread eaten and the drinking of the cup.
In these elements let us take in what Jesus has to offer and once we have finished this meal, may we live in the knowledge that we’ve got this, and we are safe in God’s powerful love. Amen.