Walking in the Temple
Fourth Sunday of Easter (Mother’s Day)
Rev 7:9-17 and John 10:22-30
We start today with the festival of the Dedication, sometimes referred to as the festival of Lights that took place in Jerusalem. This Jewish festival celebrated the liberation of Jerusalem from the Syrian King Antiochus Epiphanes who had defiled the temple with his own gods.
The festival was an eight day feast with the lighting of lamps and rejoicing, and it took place in the month of December, and was a celebration of the restoration and re-dedication of the Temple.
The portico of Solomon was located on the eastern side of the Temple, and so would have been the most protected area of the Temple during winter. It is here that Jesus walks.
While he is walking, he is approached by the Jews and asked how much longer shall he keep them in suspense of the truth. Is he really the Messiah? Inquiring minds want to know, right?
Some commentaries believe, however, that this was not just an ordinary conversation of inquiry, rather an approach with annoyance and hostility. Obviously, Jesus was causing a stir, and I’m sure it was becoming disruptive to the Jews who were just now celebrating their Temple from oppressive rule.
Hostilities were growing, and they wanted to keep the peace. They wanted to find a final resolution, a final answer by asking Jesus if he was the Messiah.
However, they were so caught up in their own rituals that they overlooked the obvious. They turned a blind eye to the truth that stood before them. They just wanted to get back to the way things were with no disruptions.
They wanted Jesus to speak plainly. Jesus wants them to believe in the mystery. He wants them to listen and remember the words of the prophets of old.
When Jesus refers to his sheep, he is in essence referring to himself as the shepherd, which was a metaphor for the restored rule of God in the Old Testament. This, in itself, had messianic implications.
The sheep hear his voice because they believe Jesus is the Messiah, and to believe is to belong to God. The ability to hear and listen and to understand is a gift from God.
Jesus explains that his works and the work of God are one and the same. There is an inseparable unity of work between them. It is one mission.
Jesus and God do the same work, and it is impossible to distinguish between the two because Jesus shares fully and completely in God’s work.
God gives life; Jesus gives life.
God judges; Jesus judges.
Because Jesus shares in unity with God’s work and power, it provides the answer to whether or not he is the Messiah.
Jesus has done the works of God, spoken the words of God, identified himself with the I AM of God. The relationship of God and Jesus is evidence of God’s love for the ones he created in the world.
God has provided grace upon grace by sending Jesus. By making Jesus available to those of us in the world who believe in him and are able to see the works of God in him, we are able to have access to God in ways that were not previously possible.
Jesus embodies the presence of God in the world.
When we look to our scripture in Revelation, it is a vision of the celebration taking place in the Temple of God in heaven.
The multitude are those who have washed their robes in redemption of the blood of the Lamb, and are now made pure, or whole. And together they sing and rejoice.
The four living creatures often referred to in Revelation live around God’s throne and have distinct features that describe a lion, a calf, a man and an eagle.
The Lion represents strength, majesty, and authority perhaps symbolizing Jesus as the King.
The calf represents service, gentleness, and humility, possibly symbolizing Jesus as servant.
The third beast is described as a man, representing humanity, reason and intellect, potentially symbolizing Jesus’ human nature.
The fourth is the eagle representing speed, vision, and the soaring power of God, or perhaps Jesus as the Godhead.
These beasts have also been connected with the four gospels, the four evangelists with Matthew representing the man, Mark the lion, Luke the calf, and John the eagle.
Perhaps it can be all of the above. The important take away is that they are worshipping God.
The praising and singing recount all the goodness of our Lord: Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might….and I feel like we could just go around the room and add more and more to this long list of blessings that we have in our lives because of our God, because of the Lamb that is the center of the throne.
The shepherd that walked in the Temple in Jerusalem, is the same shepherd that died on the cross and rose again, and is the same shepherd that leads us on the pathway to the throne when we choose to follow him.
I just love in the scripture of John, Jesus the Lamb that walks in the Temple of God, tells the ones gathered there questioning him, “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.”
Throughout the Bible, there is an ongoing theme that we follow the shepherd.
Let’s take a moment. Pick up your bulletin and look at the front cover for just a moment.
See that lamb as the Lamb of Jesus. He’s there on the pathway, and he is looking to make sure you are following his path.
Are you there on that narrow path? (pause)
Are you staying close, and not straying off into the grass? (pause)
Do you believe that Jesus is the Lamb sent by God to give you redemption? (pause)
Do you hear this precious Lamb saying, The Father and I are One? (pause)
IF you do…if you do…no one will snatch you from the Shepherd’s path. No one will ever snatch you out of the Father’s hand.
What the Father God has given is greater than anything else.
Are you walking in the Temple with the Shepherd?
Are you walking in the Temple of God, worshipping him both day and night?