John 10:10

This morning I was thinking about a comment that Jesus made to the Pharisees, shortly after they excommunicated a person who had been healed of his blindness. (You can read all about it in John 9:13-34). It's an interesting story in and of itself.

Shortly after this encounter, a few of the Pharisees stuck around and asked Jesus, sort of tongue-in-cheek, "Are we blind also?"  Jesus answered by talking about being a good shepherd. His answer includes this little tidbit: "I have come that they (the sheep, us) may have life, and that they have it more abundantly."

Right here we get an inside scoop on what the "Good News" is supposed to be.

Oftentimes, in religious circles, the term "Good News" is used. Often enough it's used in a "repent or you're going to hades" sort of way. Almost as if judgment is the only aspect of the "Good News."

However, if I'm taking Jesus at his word, it's nothing short of incredible that the way he describes himself to a group of religious folks in leadership positions, who are well versed on the rules, is that a shepherd's primary goal is to feed the sheep and take care of them. (And it's helpful to remember that the Pharisees would have very well understood what shepherds did for a living, even if they would have felt it was beneath them to associate with shepherds).  So it's equally interesting that Jesus chose to use a shepherd as a symbol for what he was doing.

At any rate, I'm struck by the limitless, unconditional love that Jesus expresses here. At the end of the day, the "Good News" is all about love. Whatever we may or may not believe about Jesus, there just isn't any getting around this incredible stance on behalf of mercy and grace, in abundance.