By the Rev. Robert Blezard
Revised Common Lectionary reflection for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year C
May 11, 2025
Key verse: The Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life. -Revelation 7:17
The Lectionary reserves every Fourth Sunday of Easter as “Good Shepherd Sunday,” and Year C’s lessons provide plenty of preaching options to help describe how God desires intimate, loving connection with us as our protector, guide and keeper.
As stewards of both our individual and communal lives, we can learn how to be better sheep of God and discover the life abundant that Jesus promises in John 10:10 (part of Year A’s message for Good Shepherd Sunday).
All three Lectionary-years for Good Shepherd Sunday offer the venerable 23rd Psalm, which really could be preached on every year. A staple at funerals and times of sorrow, the 23rd Psalm may be so well known that, as with the Lord’s Prayer, overfamiliarity may obscure the power of the rich insights packed into each line. For instance:
- The LORD is my Shepherd: We acknowledge that we are not our own shepherd, contrary to the relentless messaging from our culture. And that we are sheep. Take that, ego!
- I shall not want: This declaration is counter-cultural in consumeristic North America, where greed is good, and wealth often is the standard measure of personal worth. What does it mean for us to live simply, trusting that God will provide?
- He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me by still waters: God doesn’t nourish us with Twinkies and Mountain Dew, or feed our souls with spiritual junk food. Nope. Only good stuff. For body, mind and soul. What are you nourishing yourself with?
- He restores my soul: Who doesn’t need a little soul restoration once in a while … or maybe all the time? How does God restore your soul? How would a soul-restored life look like for you?
Similarly, on this Sunday all three Lectionary years includes reading from the 10th chapter of John, when Jesus describes his role as “the good shepherd.” In Year C, Jesus responds to a challenge from the temple crowd about his identity as the Messiah. “You do not believe because you do not belong to my sheep,” Jesus says (v. 25). By contrast, “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish” (vv. 7-28).
A sermon might explore what it means to hear the voice of our shepherd. How do we hear it? How do we heed it? What does it mean to follow Jesus? Who leads us into eternal life? If you aren’t following Jesus, whom are you following?
Year C’s lessons offer us a treat, adding Revelation 7:9-17 alongside John and Psalm 23. The Revelation reading brings another image to our Jesus-as-shepherd theme: That Jesus is also the Lamb of God. Especially at Eastertide, it is appropriate to remind God’s people of this reality. After all, upon seeing Jesus for the first time, John the Baptizer’s exclaims, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
A teaching sermon could help God’s people deepen their appreciation for Easter by unpacking the theological and biblical underpinnings of Jesus as sacrificial lamb. The idea could be reinforced by mentioning the parallel between Jesus’s blood saving us from the power of sin and death and the blood of the lamb saving God’s people when the Angel of Death passed over Egypt (see Exodus 12:1-13).
The Revelation passage ascribes to Jesus, as shepherd, the duties echoing the 23rd Psalm, saying he “will guide [the sheep] to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (v. 17): A sermon might explore the parallels of this depiction with Psalm 23:2-3, or look at the mysterious juxtaposition that Jesus is both the Lamb who takes away our sin and our shepherd who protects, feeds and saves us.
In worship
Go all out with Psalm 23 and the shepherd theme by printing or making posters with different verses: “The LORD is my Shepherd!” or “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life!” or “I will fear no evil!” For extra effect, preach your sermon wearing a shepherd’s costume or holding a shepherd’s crook.
Those who have access to the Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal might select the beautiful Marty Haugen hymn, “Shepherd Me, O God” # 780.
With youth
Teens are often prey to our culture’s most aggressive tendencies towards overconsumption – insisting on the latest iPhone or fashion trend du jour. Before discussion, ask them to create a list of their top ten “wants.” When they have finished, invite them to share the list, then discuss the 23rd Psalm’s first verse: “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” Explore with them the radically countercultural message this presents – and why we especially need it as 21st century North Americans.
With children
Dig into the Christmas pageant closet and get out those costumes of shepherds and sheep. Invite the children to put them on as you explain how Jesus is our shepherd and we are his sheep. (The idea that Jesus is the sacrificial lamb may be too much for young minds.) Invite them to explore with you the role of a shepherd in tending the sheep, as well as the character (silly) and intelligence (dumb!). Celebrate with them that Jesus is our shepherd, and we are well cared for as his sheep. End with prayer.
2019 – Get up, Disciple!
2016 – The voice
2013 – A steward’s Psalm for all seasons and reasons
2010 – Make mine plain, please
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