28 April 2026 - explain like i'm five

Today's Readings
(Audio)

How long are you going to keep us in suspense?
If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.

He had already told them who he was, that he was the one uniquely sent by the Father. They acted as though they couldn't understand and effectively asked Jesus to explain it like they were five. The suggestion was that if he spoke plainly enough they would have no choice but to accept his testimony. But that was not in fact the case. Their protests of incomprehension were disingenuous. 

Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe.
The works I do in my Father’s name testify to me.
But you do not believe, because you are not among my sheep.

The problem was not fundamentally one of the intellect, but rather one of the will. They had been invited to allow themselves to be drawn by the Father so as to recognize the voice of his designated shepherd. They had seen signs sufficient to validate what Jesus said of himself. Yet they still obstinately persisted in hardness of heart. They sought to shift the blame to Jesus. But they had been given enough to discover the truth if they wished.

My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.

Those who questioned Jesus may have been more interested in a Christ anointed for military conquest rather than one whose mission was more in keeping with that of a shepherd. Most likely, and this is like many of us, they did not fancy themselves as similar to sheep, and did not wish to evince the docility that was characteristic of such. Sheep seemed to be basically fluffy bundles of incompetence and weakness, antithetical to those who took pride in their great learning. However, only those who would let themselves be as sheep unto Jesus their shepherd could receive the rewards of his care and protection. They were the ones who would receive all the blessings promised in the twenty-third psalm. In particular, they were the ones who would not need to fear in the dark valley of death because he was present with them and said, "I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish".

The question might arise as to whether it was better for the Judeans to trade their apparent freedom for such security. But the false freedom that they would lose was not such as could ever satisfy them. It was a freedom of license, tending to addiction, dissipation, and eventual despair. By renouncing such freedom they would gain a still greater freedom of the daughters and sons of God. The freedom of falsehood is really nothing better than the demanding to drive on the wrong side of the road and closing one's eyes to the oncoming traffic. It is the freedom of stepping off a cliff and pretending gravity will make an exception this time. False freedom creates instability and fear. But the true freedom given by Jesus tends toward peace and confidence.

No one can take them out of my hand.
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.

Just as Jesus was absolutely confident and at peace because of his relationship to his Father, so too can we be in him. There is no force outside of our own will that can take us from the hand of our God. Paul wrote of this in his letter to the Romans:

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (see Romans 8:38-39).

Elevation Worship - There Is A King