Fourth Sunday of Easter John 10:22–30 May 11, 2025
For centuries, people have tried to discredit the Bible. At various times they have appealed to science, to reason, to experience, and even to emotion. They have appealed to methods that would be considered ridiculous under other circumstances. No other resource has even remotely had to endure the gauntlet of scrutiny that the Bible has withstood.
Archeologists have tried to ridicule the Bible. One Archeologist in particular thought the Hittites of the Old Testament were a mere fabrication. Then a dig began turning up Hittite artifacts. Most archeologists in the Middle East say that they find everything right where the Bible tells them to look.
Literature experts have dissected the literary style of the Bible. They will say that such and such a book was obviously written by two or more authors because the literary style changes too much in that book – as though Isaiah or Daniel should write the same way in their youth as they do in their old age. Of course, if the writing is too consistent, then these experts will say that it was artificially produced because people are not so consistent throughout their lives.
Then there is the Jesus Seminar. The Jesus Seminar states that it is searching for the “historic” Jesus. They do this by trying to determine which Biblical events actually happened and then state that the rest of the Bible was added or modified by later editors of the Scriptures. They hope to deconstruct the Bible back to its historical roots. Of course, for them, history does not have miracles or prophecy; so these are the first things to go.
Then there is the attack from those who are willing to admit that the Bible was a good book for its time. These people state that the world was not nearly as sophisticated then as it is now. The guidelines in the Bible are fine and dandy for civilizations that have not entered the modern industrial age or the information-based economy, but more modern times demand more modern guidelines. This attack wants to adjust the teachings of the Bible so that it is more in line with modern culture. These people say the Bible would be much different if it were written today.
There are dozens if not hundreds of other approaches that our modern culture uses in its attempt to discredit the Bible. Am I concerned? Well, I am not concerned about the Bible. It has stood up through much worse.
Did you know that when Jeremiah’s scribe presented the first copy of the book of Jeremiah to the king, the king would read a little bit and then cut the scroll with a knife and throw it into a fire? Fortunately, the Holy Spirit inspired Jeremiah to re-dictate the book to his faithful scribe so that we can read it today.
Manasseh and Amon did not maintain the temple while they were kings over Judah. They actually lost the Book of the Law. Nevertheless, when Josiah became king, his men cleaned up the temple and found it.
In the time leading up to the fifteenth century, the Roman Catholic church hid God’s Word by translating it into a language the common man could not read and made it illegal to possess any other translation of the Bible. Nevertheless, Martin Luther translated it into German and paved the way for the modern idea that anyone can have his own copy of the Bible in his native language.
In a way, we can receive a certain amount of comfort from the intense scrutiny that the Bible has received. The fact that the Bible survived indicates that the book has the kind of substance that you would expect from the inspired Word of God.
Now, if people gave that kind of scrutiny to the Bible, you would think that other religious writings would come under similar scrutiny. That is not the case.
We have seen this in recent times; we have seen renewed interest in the Gospels of Thomas and Judas, the Da Vinci Code and so forth. People are all excited about the “family life of Jesus,” Mary Magdalene, and their kids. They are ready to believe that some Hollywood producer has discovered the bones of Jesus. Almost any fly-by-night promoter can put together a slick piece of propaganda and our culture will embrace it almost immediately. Yet how many people mock the Quran or the Vedas of the Hindu faith or the writings of Buddha? Why are people so skeptical when it comes to the Bible and yet so gullible when it comes to almost everything else?
Jesus gives us the answer in today’s Gospel. Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem celebrating Hanukah when the Jewish leaders surrounded Him and asked, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Because they did not believe, they were not looking for affirmation that He was Messiah, but evidence that they could use against Him in a court of law.
Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me …” Essentially, Jesus told them that He would let His actions speak for Him. You or I might say, “Actions speak louder than words. Look at my actions.”
Jesus knew these leaders had Him under constant surveillance. They had either seen, or they had reliable eyewitness accounts of most of Jesus’ ministry. What evidence did Jesus’ ministry produce? They knew the prophecies better than anyone. Did Jesus’ ministry fulfill the prophecies?
The common members of society thought so. The blind, the deaf, the lame, even lepers knew that Jesus was the anointed one, the Messiah, the Christ. They called Him the Son of David. They asked Him for mercy. Nevertheless, these Jewish leaders could not see it because they refused to believe. The Jewish leaders had already made up their mind about Jesus and no amount of evidence was going to convince them they were wrong.
This reminds me of how American politics works today. You look for and vote for the person you WANT to believe, the rhetoric you WANT to believe. Biden was on “The View” last week. He said that the reason Harris lost the election was because the Republican ads and rhetoric was all an attack on women and misogynistic. And the women on “The View” just believed it because they wanted to, despite the fact that there was never any ads or speeches attacking Harris’ womanhood. No evidence for the accusation, but they believed it anyway and then they of course tell their viewers that it’s true. It’s quite sickening, our modern politicking.
Admitting you are wrong is a very hard thing to do. It was hard for the Jewish leaders, and it is hard for us. In fact, confessing our wrongdoing to an Almighty, Holy God is impossible without the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith. God gives all His spiritual gifts through faith and without faith, we receive no spiritual benefits. This is exactly what Jesus told these Jewish leaders as He continued to speak, “You do not believe because you are not part of my flock.” People who resist the Holy Spirit cannot truly understand God’s Word. They cannot believe that it is God’s eternal truth. Therefore, they worked hard to discredit it. The Jewish leaders worked to discredit it then just as our culture works hard to discredit it now. As the Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write, “The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing.”
The ironic twist to the Jewish leaders’ stubbornness is that God used it to continue fulfilling the promises He made through His prophets. A few months after the events of today’s Gospel, these Jewish leaders would seem to succeed. They would convict Jesus Christ in their own unjust trial and then use political pressure to force Pontius Pilate to crucify Him. As they followed through on their plan, they had no idea that they were causing Him to fulfill the very prophecies they denied.
Jesus transformed the results of their rebellious actions into a sacrifice on the cross that would redeem the whole world from sin. As He suffered and died, He faced the very wrath of God for our sins. He earned our freedom from the condemnation of sin. He healed our relationship with God. He, the Shepherd, the Good Shepherd, became the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
In His triumph over sin, He did not remain in the grave but rose to live again. With His resurrection, He opened the way through death into everlasting life. He has promised to recreate us to live with Him forever.
As the Holy Spirit works faith in our hearts we become part of God’s flock, part of the narrative which has been written in the pages of history since Creation, part of the baptismal journey which God began in us through water and Word. We receive all of God’s gifts through Word and Sacrament, through Scripture, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper. As Jesus said in today’s gospel, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” With the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith in us, we get it. We believe. Forgiveness, life, and salvation are ours.
Today’s Gospel closes with a very powerful promise. Jesus said, “I give [My sheep] eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” With these words Jesus promises us that our relationship with God is as solid as the very relationship between the Father and the Son in the Holy Trinity.
The world will continuously make every effort to discredit the Bible and so discredit Jesus, but, in the end, the world’s efforts will only serve to validate the Bible’s authority. Jesus has promised, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”
And this is why Christ Jesus IS our Good Shepherd. He leads us and guides us for our eternal benefit. Sometimes people like to turn Jesus into a Jesus of their own making; they try to apply to Him their own desires and demands. But Jesus didn’t come to be our gumby-shepherd; He is not our model clay Christ whom we can make in our own image.
Jesus came to do His Father’s will which was to save sinners – you and me – from sin and death. It is at the core and very purpose of His being. See, we are not our Lord’s shepherds. We are the sheep, and He is the shepherd. He leads and guides us, and we follow, and we listen, and we abide even when we must walk through dark valleys and desolate wilderness, when sickness comes, when we lose loved ones, when the days ahead look bleak. We listen and we follow because Jesus will not lead us astray.
The world has its false gods and its nature of skepticism, but we who are being saved, we follow, and we trust our Good Shepherd. Amen.
