The Shepherd Still Speaks
Intersections for the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Year C
The Shepherd Still Speaks
Intersections for Easter 4c
Opening Reflection
Resurrection doesn’t just raise the dead, it gathers the lost.
This week’s Scriptures invite us into the voice, presence, and healing of a Christ who doesn’t give up on the wounded or wanderers.
A woman named Tabitha is remembered for her care, and raised for community.
A crowd beyond counting is held and healed.
The psalmist moves from despair to dancing.
And Jesus reminds us: his sheep know his voice.
These aren’t just stories about the past.
They are glimpses of what resurrection looks like now.
In kitchens,
In hospital rooms,
In church basements,
In quiet prayers.
Resurrection is relational.
Tender. Persistent.
It doesn’t shout over the pain.
It calls our name.
1. The Voice of the Shepherd Still Calls
Jesus is not silent. He is still speaking - through memory, Scripture, community, and Spirit. The sheep still hear him.
John 10:22-30 - “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”
Psalm 23 - “He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths.”
Acts 9:36-43 - Peter is called to speak life over Tabitha, a moment of divine interruption.
2. Resurrection Is Relational
This week, healing doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It happens in relationship - in communities that remember, mourn, care, and act.
Acts 9:39 - The widows gather, weeping, telling stories about Tabitha’s kindness.
Psalm 23 - The Shepherd leads with us, even through the darkest valleys.
Revelation 7:17 - “The Lamb… will be their shepherd. He will lead them to life-giving water.”
3. Grief and Glory Hold Hands
These passages hold space for both lament and praise—tears are not erased, they are held.
Revelation 7:17 - “God will wipe every tear from their eyes.”
Psalm 23 - “Even when I walk through the darkest valley… you are close beside me.”
Acts 9 - Grief gathers around Tabitha’s body before resurrection interrupts.
4. The Margins Are the Center
This week reminds us that resurrection power often flows through the forgotten—the overlooked, the women, the weeping.
Acts 9:36 – Tabitha is named for her compassion and lifted by grace.
Revelation 7:9 – A multitude from every tribe and tongue—no hierarchy, only belonging.
Psalm 23 – God prepares a table not just for the righteous, but in the presence of enemies. God makes space where none existed before.
5. Resurrection Doesn’t Erase - It Restores
This isn’t about skipping past wounds. It’s about healing that touches the real places of pain.
John 10 - The Shepherd holds his sheep with eternal security. “No one can snatch them from my hand.”
Acts 9 - The restoration of Tabitha is also a restoration of her community.
Psalm 23 - “You restore my soul.” Not replace it. Restore it.
Closing Invitation
Resurrection isn’t a once-a-year celebration.
It’s a way of seeing.
Where are you hearing the voice of the Shepherd this week?
Where do you need to remember that you are known, held, and sent?
You are not forgotten.
The Shepherd still speaks.
And the world is still being made new.
