| On this 10th Day of Christmas our Scripture brought to us The Way in and out of life Readings For 3 January AM Psalm 68; PM Psalm 136 Gen. 28:10-22; Heb. 11:13-22; John 10:7-17 “So again Jesus said to them, ‘Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7) As Jesus uses the gate metaphor in self-identifying who he is, I am reminded yet once again about the opening is this same Gospel where it is says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:3) All creation came into being through Jesus, the Gate, the entry (and exit) point into and out of creation. I remember having a simple fish tank. In the tank I had a variety of fresh water fish with various toys or things to look at in the water. Daily I dropped some flaky fish-food (manna) from the top of the tank. It is also from the top of the tank that I would add a new fish and take out those who had swam their course. So I imagine the top of that tank itself re-shaping itself into a fish and residing in the tank with the others. This strange fish’s job is to explain to the rest of the fish that they are appreciated for just being, that’s all! He lets them know that there is pleasure in just seeing them from one who lives outside the tank provides all their needs. And then this strange fish returns to being the opening at the top of the tank, through which they are fed and pass through in their beginning and in their ending. So what does this mean for us? We are all here at the will and pleasure of God who enjoys our multicultural, multi-color, multi-ethnic existence and our beauty is in our variations. Therefore we should live into being as diverse as we can be. Our contrasting variety pleases God who feeds us through Jesus Christ with the bread of life. While I know that the fish symbol did not originate from what I just framed, I do like the fish symbol because it reminds me of who we are and how we are intended to live together. |
So, be it gate for the sheep or top of the tank, Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6) and is the only Way to the One outside of the tank who takes great pleasure in our co-existence and harmony. Therefore we should be doing all we can to live lives of supporting more different cultures, ethnicities, languages and even different ways of worship – of different ways of appreciating the One outside the tank who takes pleasure in our collective beauty.
Merry Christmas in thanksgiving for the birth of the Gate.
