Fourth Sunday of Easter - Cycle C

Acts 13:14, 43-52
Rv 7:9, 14b-17
Jn 10:27-30

The first and second readings today illumine the meaning of Jesus’ title “Good Shepherd,” and the meaning of his assertion in the Gospel that he knows his sheep and they follow him. This does not simply refer to following his teachings in this life. The Good Shepherd, who died for the sheep, shepherds them through death and beyond its grasp to the life that conquers all death. “I know them,” he says. He knows our life and the pain of our death. “They follow me,” he says. We follow him to the exalted glory of a life, in our human body and soul, that will be freed from the corruption of sin and death, and indeed that will include our own resurrection from the dead.

The first reading speaks about the proclamation of this gift, and the way in which people both accept and reject it. The second reading shows the end result of this gift – a multitude from every nation, risen from the dead, gathered around the throne and the Lamb, sharing his life forever.

God is not indifferent to the power of death over his people. “No one can take them out of my hand.” He vigorously defends us against the power of death. As the people who have accepted his life and who follow him, we too defend our brothers and sisters from the grip of death. The proclamation in today’s readings is the very foundation of the culture of life and the pro-life movement.