Being Sheep: Acts 9:36-43 - Fourth Sunday of Easter

³⁶Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas. She was devoted to good works and acts of charity. ³⁷At that time she became ill and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in a ro³⁸Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” ³⁹So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them. ⁴⁰Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. ⁴¹He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive. ⁴²This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. ⁴³Meanwhile he stayed in Joppa for some time with a certain Simon, a tanner. (NRSV)

Sheep and cows in Steyning Bowl by Leimenide.  Creative Commons image on flickr

In many ways, the halls of Gettysburg Seminary could be described as an art gallery...

Every past seminary president (living or dead) has his own painted portrait, as do several distinguished faculty and alums. 

To no one’s surprise, there are no paintings of janitors, cooks, or office workers.  Yet the institution could not exist without them…

Today, in our first reading from Acts, we are introduced to a female disciple named Tabitha (or Dorcas, in the Greek). 

If you’ve never heard of her, you’re not alone.  I’ve read Acts numerous times, but I could not have told you Tabitha’s story prior to this week.

She is the only woman in the entire New Testament who is actually called a “disciple.”  It is written that “she was devoted to good works and acts of charity.”  She then became ill and died.”  Upon learning of her death, the widows she had served came to grieve, wearing the garments Tabitha had made. 

Perhaps one of the reasons why Tabitha’s story is told is because of her service to widows.  In both the Old and New Testaments, God’s Word commands that all widows be looked after and cared for.  In those days, there were no social welfare programs.  Without a husband to provide for her and their children, the charity of others was often all that kept them from starvation.

Trouble was, widows were easily forgotten—even by the early Church.  In Acts chapter 6, we learn that widows were being neglected in the daily distributions of food.  But God did not neglect their suffering.  God raised up an ordinary woman, gifted with the ability to make clothing, and used her to raise up the widows of her community.  Even though she was dead, the widows were literally clothed in her love and good deeds.  In no small way, God was giving resurrection to widows through Tabitha.  And now, God is giving Tabitha a taste of her own medicine… 

Tabitha is like so many women, men, and children in God’s kingdom: they are anonymous disciples whose service goes largely unnoticed.  Full of humility, compassion, and grace, they serve the underserved.  They love and care for persons who dwell in the shadows of everyday life; whose suffering is not at the forefront of everyone’s attention.

Everyone notices the service Peter, Paul and the apostles were doing, even to this day.  For one thing, they were men.  They preached and performed miracles before thousands.  They may have led the Church like lions—but it bears mentioning that they died as lambs led off to the slaughter. 

Tabitha, on the other hand, made clothing for widows. You could say she was a sheep whose wool literally clothed others with Jesus’ life and love. 

This is how God brings new life to the world—raising up some who will serve in the public eye; and others who will be as sheep. 

But discipleship is not a call to glory…  It’s not a call to the spotlight, but to the shadows where God’s children suffer and want.  It’s not a call to heroism, but use whatever gifts and passions God has given you to lift up others.

So today, let us celebrate Jesus—and Tabitha—by asking: who of God’s children are underserved in our community?  Whose hunger and pains are being neglected and ignored? 

Personally, I believe one of the biggest mistakes being made by the Church today is that we haven’t a clue of what Jesus wants our congregations to be.  I’ve long dreamed of a future in which all the pews and roll books are filled with happy, young families.  Never again would we have to worry about offerings meeting the budget or finding volunteers to serve on committees.  Think of all we could do if our congregation was like those big ones you see on TV or that friends and neighbors tell you about that they attend.

But have we ever stopped to ask if that’s what Jesus wants?  Jesus never uttered a word about buildings, budgets, committees, or programs. 

Jesus went—and sent his disciples to the people who were unserved and underserved.  They went and ministered to both the neglected and the rejected.  They took great risks, faced great terrors, gave everything they had, and reaped little in return.  Most were forgotten.  Many lost their lives.  Yet through these disciples, Jesus shepherded all into resurrection. 

This is what we are called to do as a Church.  We are here to see to it that no one goes hungry, rejected, and forgotten.  We are here to make sure no one misses out on Jesus’ love.  We are one flock, of one shepherd.  We share our wool.  We do whatever is in us to do, and God supplies the rest.  We rise together. 

It’s not about you, me, or even this congregation.  It’s about the shepherd and sheep that he loves.  It’s good to be a sheep in Jesus’ flock!