The Fourth Sunday in Lent - March 30

A Psalm 23 Person
Psalm 23
John 9:1-41

One of the things that this gospel story is about is identity. What makes us who we are? What traits describe us or what qualities determine our identity? If you were asked to describe yourself to someone who didn’t know you at all, what would you say? Especially if the other person were, say blind? Most of us would probably start with the basics of physical appearance. Next we might mention family relationships or status, probably our line of work, maybe some other activity that we enjoy or do well. (For the kids’ sermon, they were asked to describe their favorite sports or entertainment figure…)

The main character in today’s gospel story is described as the man born blind.

Over and over he is described as the man born blind. Even after he receives his sight he is still the man born blind. He doesn’t have a name. The disciples do debate whether he should also be known as a sinner or just the son of sinners. Throughout, he is the man born blind. What really strikes me in this story is how people can’t believe he is even the same man after he has received his sight. They identify him solely as the man born blind, so when he’s no longer blind, it’s as thought he doesn’t even exist. This cannot be the same man! This man is not blind. Even his parents hedge their bets. Yes, this is our son. Yes, he was born blind. Beyond that we can’t really say.

Maybe they just found it hard to accept that Jesus had the power to give sight or that anyone could change that profoundly. But mostly it seems to be about the limitation of his identity in their awareness. To the people around him he was nothing more than the man born blind.

The limitations of how we identify others and ourselves…

I think there is a yearning for identity within us all. We search to know who we really are. But does that search lead to a greater sense of who we are or does it limit us to one particular pigeonhole?

Some of you will remember when the Myers Briggs Personality Type Indicator was all the rage within the church. It described an individual’s personality type along spectra: extrovert versus introvert, intuitive versus sensate… How many of you know your Myers Briggs type? That’s who you are! Your identity has been defined!

We do search for identity. A more lighthearted example: These days on Facebook, and maybe elsewhere online, personality surveys are everywhere. You can take a survey to determine which color you are, what your spirit animal is, if you were a country, what country would you be. Just this morning there was one on which children’s book are you. One person was thrilled to be The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Another was equally excited to be Green Eggs and Ham.

In our search for identity, it is easy to let others define us or to define ourselves in all sorts of ways other than our relationship with God. Our relationship with God. That hasn’t come up at all yet as a part of who we are.

The 23rd psalm reminds us who we are in relationship with God. It’s interesting. We frequently read the 23rd psalm at funerals. It is comforting. But I wonder if we also aren’t drawn to the way it reassures and reminds us who we are. Both the living and dead. We are sheep cared for by the Good Shepherd. There’s another phrase from the burial liturgy. We commend the person who has died into God’s hands… receive, O Lord, a sheep of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming.

We are God’s beloved sheep. The recipients of God’s care and promise. Listen again to the language of the 23rd psalm: “the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,” “he leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul; he leads me in right paths for his name’s sake,” and “[he] prepares a table before me … my cup overflows.” Because the Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Because I am a sheep cared for by God, I am comforted and restored, guided and fed.

It’s hard to have a catchy phrase for this aspect of our identity. But I am Psalm 23 person. All the other things about who I am are a part of my identity. But my most important identity comes from my relationship with God as a Psalm 23 person. (This is different from our identity as Christians. That’s another sermon. That’s something we choose. This is about God’s gift to us of a relationship.) I am a sheep of the Good Shepherd. No matter what, the Lord is my shepherd. I am the Lord’s. Guided, protected, cherished, fed, comforted. I am a Psalm 23 person.