When he was insulted, he returned no insult; when he suffered, he did not threaten; instead, he handed himself over to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body upon the cross, so that, free from sin, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you had gone astray like sheep, but you have now returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. (1 Peter 2:20-25)
Who were the sheep? Likely the illiterate, and most people were illiterate. They were uneducated and easily led. Those who could read and write were capable of influencing large numbers of listeners. It’s the same way today, although most of us are literate, yet still easily led when the speaker(s) spins a yarn that is consistent with what we already believe. That’s confirmation bias. We read what confirms the opinions we already hold and in which we have large sunk costs. We already are heavily invested through our time, ego and pride, prestige, and relationships in a position from which cannot retreat without feeling embarrassed and even stupid.
Abandoning our faith is something we fear to do because of our sunk costs – many years of following in Christ’s footsteps. We fear wavering from his path thereby leaving the rest of our friends who remain steadfast. But we need not fear. It’s sensible and proper to question and even doubt different aspects of our faith provided we never forget what our faith is all about – God and not necessarily the Church we use as our necessary tool to focus our attention on all that is good and holy. It’s about loving God with all our hearts, minds, and souls. It about following the shepherd – Jesus – the guardian of our souls. He tells us never to fear.
So, who wants us to abandon our faith? Our Gospel gives us a clue. It reads:
Jesus said: "Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the gate but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber. But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice. But they will not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not recognize the voice of strangers." Although Jesus used this figure of speech, the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.
So Jesus said again, "Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly." (John 10:1-10)
Thieves want us to abandon our faith. Thieves come only to steal and slaughter and destroy. These are the ones at gates leading to Hell. They serve the Evil One – and let’s make no mistake, the Evil One exists. This entity opens the gates for us and beckons us to enter to find promised riches and power.
The Tempter takes on many forms with most being attractive and seductive. We sheep will follow this stranger; we will not run away from him (or her), because we like the voice of this stranger. We act like dumb sheep and foolish lemmings. We are easily deceived by forked and well-trained tongues especially speaking on social media and through 24/7 cable news stations seeking money and enhancing their own power.
How do we resist? We need to find and choose the right gate, and that’s Jesus who said: "Whoever enters through me will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture." He came so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. Now that’s the best temptation to which we must submit.
Deacon David Pierce
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