These first ten verses of chapter 10 are addressed to the Pharisees and are a direct continuation from chapter 9. The Pharisees claimed to be the leaders of God’s people, yet Jesus had just cured a blind man and they tried to deny the miracle, then called the miracle-worker a sinner and then cast out from the synagogue the man who had been cured. Jesus accused the Pharisees of being leaders who are blind because they did not want to see, and of being thieves and murderers and not at all the true kind of shepherds that good leaders ought to be. They were interested only in their own material and political gain and not in the welfare of the people. When the true shepherd showed himself they did not recognise him; the blind man and so many of the ordinary people recognised him as the true shepherd and followed him, just as sheep know who is their true shepherd and follow him. The Pharisees tried to prevent people from following him. Soon they would try to kill the shepherd and so they would be able to scatter his sheep, but they would fail in their attempt, because he would rise from death and the flock would grow in number, as we hear in today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles. By describing himself as the good shepherd Jesus made his condemnation of the bad ones more clear. A description here of the Palestinian shepherd would give us a good idea of what Jesus meant, but space is short. Things that we must do: if we are in positions of responsibility, from parents to leaders in Church and State, we have to be like shepherds and care for people as the shepherd cares for his sheep; it is a hard task because it means being completely unselfish—your life is not your own—and you give all your time and all your power for those whom you have to lead, as the Palestinian shepherd was on duty day and night. If we are followers of Christ, we must listen to the call of the shepherd and follow where he leads, and we must refuse to listen to the call of anyone who wants to draw us away from him. How often we listen to the voice of the robber and close our ears to the voice of the shepherd; the animals have more sense than we have when we allow ourselves to follow the call of the Evil One. Like the sheep on the hills of Palestine, we must spend our whole life close to the shepherd and get to know him, go wherever he leads, and refuse to follow the call of anyone or anything that draws us away from him: we must live with the Lord like the sheep with the shepherd.
Last Sunday’s first reading was St. Peter’s first address to the Jews after the coming of the Spirit. Today’s reading starts with the end of that speech and describes the effect which the speech had on the people in Jerusalem. All Israel must know that the crucified man Jesus, by rising from the dead and by sending the Spirit, has shown that he is Christ, that means the Messiah, the Anointed One, whom the God of the Jews had promised to send, but also that this Messiah is Lord, that means equal with the God of the Old Testament. If this is true, then all people must believe in Jesus. But they must also repent, turn away from their sinful desires and actions and live in the way that God wants, and they must be baptised, by which their sinfulness is washed away and they come into union with Christ as adopted brothers and sisters, and adopted sons and daughters of the Father. If they do all this, their sins will be forgiven and they will receive the Holy Spirit. This is offered not only to the Jews, those who are near and to whom he is speaking, but also to the pagans, those who are far away and to whom the news will still have to be brought. The effect of Peter’s words was the conversion of 3000 people, because when some people realised the wickedness of the crucifixion of Jesus, their hearts were changed. They knew too they must do something about it: change of mind (heart) must be followed by change of action (fashion). That is what repentance means, and Peter asked them to repent. When a person truly repents, God forgives his sins and restores his good relationship with him. The damage, however, that is caused by our sins, either to ourselves or to other people, cannot be changed, unless it is possible to repair it. Sometimes it is possible, as when we give back something we have stolen or replace something we have spoiled; sometimes it is not possible, as when we have spoiled a person’s name. For the future there comes into our lives the power of the Spirit to help us to win the continuous struggle against the temptations of evil that will still come our way (see Romans 7:14–25).
In these verses Peter is giving advice to Christians who were slaves. Slaves formed by far the greater part of the members of the early Christian church. They were prisoners taken in war from states that were conquered and colonised by the Romans. Many of them were educated and professional people like doctors, teachers, musicians, writers, secretaries, and worked for their masters in those ways. Many of them too were loved and trusted by their masters and their families. But they had no rights and were the property of their master and he could do what he liked with them: “A slave is a living tool, just as a tool is a lifeless slave.” Christianity came into the slave situation teaching that God loves everyone, even slaves, and that all men are equal in the eyes of God. Peter had to guard his Christians against the possible danger which this new teaching brought with it. The fact that all Christians are brothers and sisters in the church does not change the fact that some Christians are masters (like Philemon) and other Christians are slaves (like Onesimus). The Christian who is a slave should not be dodging his work and the discipline of his master, but because he is a Christian he ought to be a better slave and work better for his master than any other; the Christians who are slaves must beware of making their Christianity an excuse for rebelling against their masters because that would be unwise, since whenever slaves revolted in the Roman Empire they were cruelly suppressed. Even if they are treated harshly by their masters, as many were, they must be subject to them, although it may not be an easy thing to do; Christ was also treated harshly and unjustly. Verses 21–25 are full of references to the picture of the Suffering Servant of God in Isaiah 53; this picture came to life in Christ, because he suffered innocently, he suffered patiently, and by his sufferings those who were sick were healed and those who had gone astray and were in danger of losing their souls were safely inside the fold of the Good Shepherd. Christ is the example that we must follow: Christ is the model for every Christian who suffers. He suffered not because of any mistake of his own, not to gain anything for himself, only in order to bring us to God. If Christ in his suffering is a model for all Christians, he was certainly a model for the Christian slave. But any Christian who suffered, freeman or slave, could suffer like Christ to bring people to God. Christian slaves accepted a social situation which they could not change. It was a long time before the leaven of the Christian doctrine of the basic equality of all men and women before God had penetrated society deeply and extensively enough to bring about legislation for the abolition of slavery. Let us remember that we too can offer all the things that we do and all the things that we suffer, like Christ, to bring others to God.
Kefa W. MHM
What you’ll find here is my personal reflection on Scripture. I don’t claim to have all the answers, only a sincere desire to seek truth. Some of the references used are drawn from past study and experience, and I may no longer be able to recall all their exact sources. This reflection is not intended to establish official doctrine, theology, or official teaching. Feel free to leave your comments or personal reflections below as we continue to grow deeper together in the Word of God. I’ll see you next Sunday.
