Fourth Sunday of Easter

WesleyMen Lenten & Easter Devotionals 2025

Gospel Lectionary

John 10:22-30 New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised

22 At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, ‘How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.’ 25 Jesus answered, ‘I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me; 26 but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand. 30 The Father and I are one.’

Reflection

Eternal life holds a deep meaning when seen through the lens of African thought and spirituality. Life in African thought and spirituality is seen not as a brief moment between birth and death but as a sacred continuum woven through the Divine, earth, soil, community and all of creation. The well-known African proverb “I am because we are” is more than a proverb; it is a theology. A person exists not apart from others but in and through relationships: with the Divine or Creator, the departed, the living, the unborn and the land. Jesus sees us as a sheep. The plurality of sheep speaks to this sacred relationship and relating. This relationship is characterised by mutual knowledge, hearing and following. This community of sheep, Shepherd and Father cannot exist apart from one another. It is deeply and sacredly connected. When Jesus says no one can snatch them out of my hand his hand is not just a place of safety, but he is the one that connects the community together.

This idea of eternal life as a sacred continuum held together in Christ echoes the song of praise sung during Holy Communion where we say “And so, together, with angels and archangels, and all the company of heaven, we join in the unending hymn of praise, saying: Holy, Holy, Holy….. We are all united in praise with all who have come before us, with all who live now, and with all who are yet to be born. The Table becomes a celebration not only of the present moment but of remembering the past, honouring legacy, and a hope for the future. We do this all as one flock of the risen Lord.

The victory of Easter and the knowledge of eternal life is the moral heartbeat of the universe. It is a moment where love defeated hate, justice overcame violent oppression, and peace is fulfilled. Eternal Life is given by a victorious Shepherd and Lord who experienced suffering and death and longs for the sheep to live in peace (they will never perish) and unity (no one will snatch them out of my hand).

Call to Action

We live in a world deeply wounded by the violence of war, by political walls, divisive political rhetoric, by the poison of racism, greed, and fear, and by the continuance of the colonial impact. When we view eternal life as a present reality and not as a distant reward, we will recognise the sacred thread that binds us to one another across borders, across races, across time. This view calls us to live differently with hope, to walk gently and lovingly, to proclaim justice and peace for all, and to honour every life as sacred and connected.

Prayer

O God of all creation, God of the earth beneath our feet, the sky above our heads, and the Spirit within our breath, we come to You, children of the soil, members of one human family,
held together in the palm of Christ’s life-giving hand, bound together in the great circle of life.
We praise You, for in Christ, You have given us eternal life; not as an escape, but as a sacred bond that holds the living and the departed, the seen and the unseen, the near and the far. Teach us to live the unbroken circle, walk with reverence for all beings, speak words that mend and not wound, and act with courage for justice and peace.

Where the world builds walls helps us build tables. Where hatred takes root, plant in us seeds of reconciliation. Where the earth groans in pain, make us healers and stewards of Your creation.
May we live as those who know we are not alone, we are not strangers, we are not enemies but sisters and brothers, recipients of Your peace, bound by Your eternal love. In Christ’s name. Amen.

Rev. Sikawu Makubalo, Pastor of Central Methodist Church in Cape Town, Ecumenical Affairs Director of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa & WesleyMen Regional Leader Africa