I AM The Gate

In the poem Mending Wall, Robert Frost muses that, “Something there is that doesn’t love a wall,” yet one of the characters offers the refrain, “Good fences make good neighbors.” Usually the context of the wall offers more or less of a visceral reaction.  Before it fell, the Berlin Wall was a harsh testament to the repression of Communism, erected to keep out influences those in power deemed dangerous.  It felt like a victory of social progression when that wall came down, but now a similar wall is being constructed in Israel to separate the Jews and the Palestinians.  This new wall draws a stark line between those in political power, access to resources and the ability to live freely.  The Israelis believe this “fence” to make good neighbors, but the Palestinians do not.

The Fourth Sunday of Easter is known as “Good Shepherd Sunday,” when we reflect on one of Jesus’ provocative metaphors to explain his mission and ministry to his followers.  Interestingly enough, however, this year in the Lectionary we do not hear Jesus call himself the Good Shepherd – he calls himself the gate for the sheep. (John 10:7)

The gate?  Jesus refers to himself as the inanimate object in the midst of a wall or fence? Yes.  Like Checkpoint Charlie in the Berlin Wall and the checkpoint just north of Jerusalem one must go through to get to the West Bank, where many Palestinians were relocated. Both of those checkpoints were/are intimating with armed guards and razor wire, yet Jesus says, “Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” (John 10:9) This depiction sounds much more comforting, but still restrictive.

A gate is a boundary, but it is movable if one knows how to negotiate its mechanism.  Human made political walls have all kinds of rules and regulations that bar people entry or easy movement from one side to the other.  That is not what Jesus is offering.   As the gate, he offers compassionate recognition and ease of access to either side, as long as we enter by or through him, which we do by faith and following God’s commandments. More importantly, he knows which side of the gate we should be one at any given time.  No one needs to operate or manipulate the gate because Jesus himself is showing the way, allowing or restricting passage as necessary.

Most of the time when I encounter a gate, I don’t give it much thought; I find the latch and pass through it in order to continue on my way. The idea of approaching a gate that does not have a physical latch but a spiritual latch can be intimidating, yet as we are in the season of Easter, we recognize this not as an impediment to our journey but an opportunity to rededicate ourselves to live in accordance with all Jesus taught and which finds its fulfillment in his Resurrection.

We need Jesus to be the gate in our lives as it gives us freedom by its limitations.  Unlike man-made walls erected to justify political agendas that usually suppress human rights, Jesus calls us into a new way of life that focuses our attention on how to live “abundantly.” (John 10:10) No longer motivated by repression or fear, the fullness of life is open to all who chose to believe in Christ and follow his way by entering his gate.

I pray that someday we will celebrate the destruction of the wall in Israel, but I do believe we do need fences in our lives and, even more importantly, gates, to guide and direct our abundant lives do we can recognize all our blessings and from whom they flow.

In Christ,
Rev. Valerie+