The Imagery of a Good Shepherd
We want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who supports the work of Renewed Heart Ministries. Your generosity makes it possible for us to continue our mission of love, justice, and compassion, even in a time when ministries like ours are being called to do more with less.
Your support means the world to us. Whether we’re speaking into the broader society, engaging within our faith communities, or working one on one alongside others endeavoring to follow Jesus’ teachings of love and justice, we remain committed to advocating for a world that is inclusive, just, and safe for all. Your partnership helps keep our work alive.
To all of our supporters, from all of us at Renewed Heart Ministries, thank you. We are so deeply grateful for you, and we couldn’t do this work without you.
If you’d like to join them in supporting our work, please go to renewedheartministries.com and click on “Donate.”
The Imagery of a Good Shepherd
Herb Montgomery | April 24, 2026
If you’d like to listen to this week’s article in podcast version click on the image below:
Our reading this week is from the gospel of John:
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.
So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:1-10)
Our reading this week contains some of the most well-known imagery for Jesus in the gospels. The image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd is also one of the most powerful metaphors in the Christian tradition, especially when read through the lens of social justice.
Here in the gospel of John, Jesus Christ describes the good shepherd as one who knows the sheep, calls them by name, leads them to safety, and lays down his life for them. This is not a distant or abstract leadership model. It is relational, protective, and deeply invested in the well-being of the most vulnerable.
In contrast to exploitative systems that prioritize profit, control, or power, the Good Shepherd stands as a critique of unjust leadership. Jesus explicitly contrasts the good shepherd with “hired hands” who abandon the sheep when danger comes. This imagery exposes systems and leaders who neglect marginalized communities when they are most at risk, whether through economic inequality, racial injustice, gender favoritism, LGBTQ exclusion, or environmental destruction. The Good Shepherd does not flee in the face of wolves; instead, he confronts the threat and remains in solidarity with the flock.
This metaphor also emphasizes dignity and recognition. The shepherd “calls his own sheep by name,” suggesting that every individual is known and valued. Movements to make our world a more compassionate just home for everyone also echo this insistence on visibility and humanity, resisting systems that reduce people to statistics, labels, or disposable labor. To follow the Good Shepherd is to affirm that no one is invisible, and no one is beyond care or belonging.
Moreover, the Good Shepherd leads the sheep into abundant life. This abundance is not merely spiritual. It has material implications too. Access to food, safety, healthcare, and community are all part of what it means for people to truly live. In this way, the shepherd’s role aligns with justice work that seeks to create conditions where all can thrive, not just survive.
Also, the Good Shepherd imagery in the gospels forms a community that transcends boundaries: “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.” This challenges exclusionary systems and calls for a radical inclusivity that crosses lines we create from our human differences. We are invited to participate in this vision, gathering diverse communities into shared care and mutual responsibility. To embrace Jesus as the Good Shepherd is to reject apathy and complicity in injustice. It is to embody a form of solidarity and community rooted in courage, compassion, and a relentless commitment to the well-being of all.
In our reading this week, though, Jesus is more than the good shepherd. He also declares, “I am the gate,” an image that is both pastoral and political. In the ancient world, a shepherd sometimes lay across the entrance of the sheepfold at night, becoming a living gate and both protector and point of entry. This metaphor speaks not only to spiritual care most often associated with this imagery in a religious context, but also to questions of belonging, access, and safety, concerns that are central to justice in any kind of community.
To say that Jesus is the gate is to say that access to the abundant life John’s Jesus preached flows through a posture of protection, solidarity, and care for the vulnerable. Jesus as gate is not a barrier designed to exclude the marginalized; rather, it is a safeguard against forces that exploit, harm, and dehumanize them. Jesus contrasts himself with thieves and bandits. These are those who “climb in by another way” (John 10:1). These figures can be understood as systems (religious, political, social, economic) and individuals in positions of power that prey on the weak, hoard resources, and deny others humanity. They can also represent unjust structures that maintain inequality while claiming legitimacy.
By identifying himself as the gate, Jesus centers the well-being of the sheep. For the Johannine community out of which this gospel emerged, this metaphor is about the well-being of the community over gatekeeping for the purpose of protecting and preserving of power. The gate exists so that the sheep “may come in and go out and find pasture,” a phrase that evokes freedom, sustenance, and flourishing. This is not mere survival; it is the Gospel of John’s “abundant life.”
This applies to justice movements today. We can echo this vision as we seek not only to alleviate suffering but to create conditions where all people can thrive, not just a privileged few, and where we work together to create a world that is a compassionate, just, safe home for all.
This image of a gate also brings to mind the subject of access and how it is controlled. Who gets to enter? Who is kept out? Jesus redefines these boundaries by aligning himself with those on the margins. The gate does not serve the powerful; it protects the vulnerable from them. In this way, Jesus subverts systems that use “gates” to exclude, again, whether religious, political, economic, or social.
Moreover, the gate is relational, not institutional. It is not a rigid structure but a living person. This suggests that justice is not achieved merely through policies or systems, but through embodied solidarity. It’s accomplished through people who, like the shepherd, place themselves at the threshold to ensure others are safe and free.
In a world marked by exclusion, injustice and inequity, the image of Jesus as the gate invites communities to reimagine access, protection, and belonging. It calls for the dismantling of harmful barriers and the creation of spaces where all can enter Jesus’ vision for human community, move freely there, and experience the fullness of life.
In the earliest centuries of Christianity, the dominant image of Jesus was not the crucified victim but the Good Shepherd. (For a detailed history of this see Parker and Brock’s Saving Paradise: How Christianity Traded Love of This World for Crucifixion and Empire.) Originally drawn from gospel passages such as our reading this week, early Christian artists echoed this image of shepherd. The shepherd carried a sheep on his shoulders, which symbolized care, protection, and intimate solidarity with the vulnerable. This image reflected a marginal movement shaped by communities living under the shadow of imperial power, where survival depended on mutual care and resistance to systems of domination.
However, as Christianity moved from the margins to the center of power, particularly after Constantine the Great legalized it in the fourth century and it align with the Roman Empire, the dominant imagery of Jesus began to shift. The cross, once a symbol of state terror and execution, became the central emblem of the faith and replaced the image of the Good Shepherd. What had been a sign of imperial violence against dissidents became, paradoxically, a symbol that often supported those imperial structures.
This symbolic shift was not merely artistic but also theological and political. The shepherd image emphasizes care, guidance, and the flourishing of the community, particularly the most vulnerable. It invites us to imitate acts of compassion and justice. By contrast, an overemphasis on the cross, especially when interpreted through frameworks that prioritize passive suffering or divine sanction of violence, becomes religious imagery that accomplishes its original purpose (terror) with a religious twist. It becomes a subtle communication that this is what the Divine is really like. He may have done this to his son instead of you, but don’t cross him! Or he may cross you, too! With this change, the cross becomes an instrument of empire used to suppress resistance once again. Now, though, it suppresses resistance using fear of the Divine (often disguised in the language of Divine love) and human institutions define compliance or “obedience.”
As Christianity became intertwined with imperial power, the cross was often reframed to emphasize obedience, sacrifice, and submission. Those in power, both within ecclesiastical and imperial systems, used this interpretation to justify hierarchical systems, discourage dissent, and sanctify suffering rather than challenge its causes. The crucified Jesus, once a victim of injustice, was presented in ways that muted the political reality of his execution and the critique it implied of imperial violence.
Meanwhile, the Good Shepherd image, with its implications of mutual care and its challenge to“the hired hand” who abandons the sheep, receded in prominence. It was less easily co-opted by systems that benefited from inequality and control. A shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep in opposition to predators invites resistance to injustice, not accommodation to it.
In our context today, recovering the image of Jesus as shepherd is a way of reclaiming a vision of faith rooted in solidarity, protection, and the flourishing of all people. It reminds us that the earliest Christian imagination centered not on glorifying suffering but on resisting the forces that cause it and nurturing communities where abundant life, where justice and compassion, are possible.
Discussion Group Questions
1. Share something that spoke to you from this week’s podcast episode with your discussion group.
2. How does the imagery of Jesus as the Good Shepherd inform your justice work today? Share and discuss with your group.
3. What can you do this week, big or small, to continue setting in motion the work of shaping our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone?
Thanks for checking in with us, today.
I want to say a special thank you to all of our supporters out there. And if you would like to join them in supporting Renewed Heart Ministries’ work you can do so by going to renewedheartministries.com and clicking donate.
My latest book Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political and Economic Teachings of the Gospels is available now on Amazon in paperback, Kindle and also on Audible in audio book format.
As always, you can find Renewed Heart Ministries each week on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s Threads. If you haven’t done so already, please follow us on your chosen social media platforms for our daily posts.
If you’d like to reach us here at Renewed Heart Ministries through email, you can reach us at info@renewedheartministries.com.
Right where you are, keep living in love, choosing compassion, taking action, and working toward justice.
I love each of you dearly,
I’ll see you next week.
New Episode of The Social Jesus Podcast
A podcast where we talk about the intersection of faith and social justice and what a first century, prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of love, compassion and justice.
This week:
Season 3 Episode 18: The Imagery of a Good Shepherd
John 10:1-10
As Christianity moved from the margins to the center of power, particularly after Constantine the Great legalized it in the fourth century and it align with the Roman Empire, the dominant imagery of Jesus began to shift. The cross, once a symbol of state terror and execution, became the central emblem of the faith and replaced the image of the Good Shepherd. What had been a sign of imperial violence against dissidents became, paradoxically, a symbol that often supported those imperial structures. This symbolic shift was not merely artistic but also theological and political. The shepherd image emphasizes care, guidance, and the flourishing of the community, particularly the most vulnerable. It invites us to imitate acts of compassion and justice. By contrast, an overemphasis on the cross, especially when interpreted through frameworks that prioritize passive suffering or divine sanction of violence, becomes religious imagery that accomplishes its original purpose (terror) with a religious twist. Recovering the image of Jesus as shepherd is a way of reclaiming a vision of faith rooted in solidarity, protection, and the flourishing of all, espeically those marginalized.
Available on all major podcast carriers and at:
https://the-social-jesus-podcast.simplecast.com/episodes/the-imagery-of-a-good-shepherd
Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political & Economic Teachings of the Gospels.
by Herb Montgomery
Available now on Amazon!
In Finding Jesus, author Herb Montgomery delves into the profound and often overlooked political dimensions of the gospels. Through meticulous analysis of biblical texts, historical context, and social discourse, this thought-provoking book unveils the gospels’ socio-political, economic teachings as rooted in a profound concern for justice, compassion, and the well-being of the marginalized. The book navigates the intersections between faith and societal justice, presenting a compelling argument for a more socially engaged and transformative Christianity.
Finding Jesus is not just a scholarly exploration; it is a call to action. It challenges readers to reevaluate their understanding of Christianity’s role in public life and to consider how the radical teachings of the gospels can inspire a renewed commitment to justice, equality, and compassion. This book is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the social implications of Christian faith and a blueprint for building a more just and inclusive society.
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The Road We Walk When Our Hopes Have Been Deeply Disappointed
We want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who supports the work of Renewed Heart Ministries. Your generosity makes it possible for us to continue our mission of love, justice, and compassion, even in a time when ministries like ours are being called to do more with less.
Your support means the world to us. Whether we’re speaking into the broader society, engaging within our faith communities, or working one on one alongside others endeavoring to follow Jesus’ teachings of love and justice, we remain committed to advocating for a world that is inclusive, just, and safe for all. Your partnership helps keep our work alive.
To all of our supporters, from all of us at Renewed Heart Ministries, thank you. We are so deeply grateful for you, and we couldn’t do this work without you.
If you’d like to join them in supporting our work, please go to renewedheartministries.com and click on “Donate.”
The Road We Walk When Our Hopes Have Been Deeply Disappointed
Herb Montgomery | April 17, 2026
If you’d like to listen to this week’s article in podcast version click on the image below:
Our reading this week is from the gospel of Luke.
Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?” They stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?” He asked them, “What things?” They replied, “The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place. Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning, and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him.” Then he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?” Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.
As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. (Luke 24:13-35)
Our story this week is the walk to Emmaus found in in Luke 24:13–35. At its core, this is a story about disorientation, companionship, and the slow, often unrecognized emergence of hope. Two disciples leave Jerusalem in the aftermath of Jesus’ state execution, carrying with them shattered expectations of being part of movement for change that the empire has, once again, crushed. “We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” Their words echo the grief familiar to anyone engaged in justice work today who has faced disappointing outcomes for their movement and labor: moments when movements falter, when violence prevails, when the arc of history itself seems to bend away from justice rather than toward it.
This passage speaks powerfully into my own lived experience in justice work because it refuses to deny despair. The disciples are not portrayed as faithless for their sorrow; they are honest. They had hoped for a different outcome, and instead they witnessed state violence, public execution, and the silencing of Jesus’ prophetic voice. In this way, the road to Emmaus begins not with triumph but with trauma. For modern justice movements confronting racism, economic inequality, gender unfairness, environmental collapse, LGBTQ exclusion, or other forms of systemic harm, our story mirrors the emotional landscape we often find ourselves inhabiting. Hope can sometimes be naive. Either way, hope also involves risk, and in moments where things don’t turn out the way we hoped, hope is something we can lose. We might even find ourselves feeling foolish.
It is precisely in this moment in our story, a moment of deep disillusionment, that the risen Jesus appears, though unrecognized. This detail is crucial. The presence of Jesus is not immediately obvious, nor does he come wrapped in spectacle or power. Instead, he comes alongside the disciples in the form of a stranger who listens and asks questions: “What are you discussing?” It’s a reminder that renewed hope begins with camaraderie. Recovering from such moments of disappointment begins with walking alongside others, hearing their stories, and honoring their grief.
In my own journey, I have too often given into the temptation to rush toward solutions, to fix, to speak, to act decisively. I agree that action is essential. Yet, this part of the Emmaus story suggests that listening is itself a form of sacred work. The stranger does not interrupt the disciples’ lament; he invites it. He creates space for them to articulate their pain and confusion. This models a form of solidarity rooted not in saviorism but in presence.
As the journey continues, the stranger begins to reinterpret their story, framing their experience within a larger narrative. He speaks of suffering not as defeat but as part of a broader movement toward liberation. I believe this reframing is vital. Systems of oppression often seek to define setbacks as final, to convince communities that resistance is futile. The Emmaus story resists that narrative. It insists that what appears to be the end may, in fact, be a hidden beginning. Jesus is about to show us the narrative meaning of resurrection: change is always forged through struggle and setbacks. The disciples are about to discover that, even in our most disappointing moments, injustice is neither permanent nor inevitable. Love and justice hold a power that cannot be buried.
Still, that recognition does not come on the road. It comes at the table.
When the disciples invite this stranger to stay with them, they enact a practice of hospitality. Their world is structured by exclusion and hierarchy, and so the simple act of welcoming the other becomes a site of transformation. It is in the breaking of bread, a shared, communal act that held great meaning for early Jesus followers, that their eyes are opened. They recognize the presence of the One who had been with them all along. He had been with them all along.
This moment carries some other profound implications, too. Liberation is not only something we strive toward. It is something we practice as we strive, through acts of inclusion, mutual care, and shared humanity. Our daily life choices harmonize with our overall vision for what we desire our world to be. The shared table in this week’s story becomes a symbol of the kind of world that movements seek to build, a world where resources are shared, where strangers become companions, and where ours and others’ humanity is affirmed.
It is here that recognition dawns. Recognition, in our story, happens in the context of these smaller, more communal actions not larger public ones. The disciples come to their awakening together. Justice movements, likewise, are also interpersonal endeavors. They depend on relationships, on shared community with others and with shared vision. The Emmaus story reminds us that clarity often emerges not in solitude but in the midst of communal life alongside others.
When recognition does finally dawn, the disciples recall, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road?” This language of a “burning heart” points to an awakening that is both emotional and embodied. Our work, too, is sustained by a deep, often visceral conviction that another world is possible. And this conviction many times will be renewed in the wake of deep disappointment. This renewal, even after we thought we had lost, is what keeps movements alive in the face of exhaustion and opposition for generations.
After they recognize Jesus, the disciples immediately return to Jerusalem. This is another important detail. Jerusalem is the place they had just left, the place of danger and repression, where their loss just took place. Yet their encounter with Jesus on the road transforms their original trajectory. They move back toward the center of struggle, not away from it. Hope does not lead them to escape the world’s pain but to re-engage it with renewed purpose.
For me, when I think of justice work today, this moment in the story deeply resonates. Encounters that rekindle hope, whether through relational community or private reflection, do not lead us away from our work; they send us back into it. They empower us to take it up again. The goal is not to find a safe distance from injustice but to return with a deeper sense of possibility and resilience.
The Emmaus story also challenges dominant notions of power. The risen Jesus is not revealed through domination or force but through vulnerability, relationship, and shared humanity. This stands in stark contrast to the systems of oppression that justice movements seek to dismantle today. These systems rely on coercion, exclusion, and control. The way of Jesus on the road to Emmaus reminds us that true transformation emerges not from replicating the patterns and methods we are trying to change, but from embodying alternative forms of influence rooted in love, solidarity, and walking alongside others on the way.
Finally, the story underscores the importance of storytelling itself. The early Jesus followers’ journey was shaped by the stories they tell: first a story of defeat, then a story of hope. Justice movements today are similarly narrative-driven. They challenge dominant stories that justify inequality by offering alternative narratives that envision a world shaped by liberation and justice, a world that is a safe home for everyone. The work of justice, in many ways, begins with the work of reimagining what our world could be and inviting others into that imagining.
What I love about our story this week is that the walk to Emmaus does not erase deep disappointment, glossing over it with easy, pat, or trite answers. Instead, it provides a framework for navigating the complexities of justice work in our midnight hours. In moments when things don’t turn out the way we had hoped, we can acknowledge our grief, we can practice presence with one another. We can lean into our community. It is here that hope is often renewed, new visions are born, hope reawakens, and we return to the struggle with a new understanding of what we have just encountered. Our story reminds us that even when hopes are dashed and the path forward is unclear, we are not alone, and, sometimes, the very act of walking together is where transformation begins.
Discussion Group Questions
1. Share something that spoke to you from this week’s podcast episode with your discussion group.
2. Share an experience (if you’re comfortable doing so) with your group of when you had your hope rekindled after a disappointing outcome.
3. What can you do this week, big or small, to continue setting in motion the work of shaping our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone?
Thanks for checking in with us, today.
I want to say a special thank you to all of our supporters out there. And if you would like to join them in supporting Renewed Heart Ministries’ work you can do so by going to renewedheartministries.com and clicking donate.
My latest book Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political and Economic Teachings of the Gospels is available now on Amazon in paperback, Kindle and also on Audible in audio book format.
As always, you can find Renewed Heart Ministries each week on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s Threads. If you haven’t done so already, please follow us on your chosen social media platforms for our daily posts.
If you’d like to reach us here at Renewed Heart Ministries through email, you can reach us at info@renewedheartministries.com.
Right where you are, keep living in love, choosing compassion, taking action, and working toward justice.
I love each of you dearly,
I’ll see you next week.
New Episode of The Social Jesus Podcast
A podcast where we talk about the intersection of faith and social justice and what a first century, prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of love, compassion and justice.
This week:
Season 3 Episode 17: The Road We Walk When Our Hopes Have Been Deeply Disappointed
Luke 24:13-35
Our story this week speaks powerfully into our own lived experiences in justice work because it refuses to deny despair. The disciples are not portrayed as faithless for their sorrow; they are honest. They had hoped for a different outcome, and instead they witnessed state violence, public execution, and the silencing of Jesus’ prophetic voice. In this way, the road to Emmaus begins not with triumph but with trauma. For modern justice movements confronting racism, economic inequality, gender unfairness, environmental collapse, LGBTQ exclusion, or other forms of systemic harm, our story mirrors the emotional landscape we often find ourselves inhabiting. Hope can sometimes be naive. Either way, hope also involves risk, and in moments where things don’t turn out the way we hoped, hope is something we can lose. We might even find ourselves feeling foolish. This week Emmaus does not erase deep disappointment, glossing over it with easy, pat, or trite answers. Instead, it provides a framework for navigating the complexities of justice work in our midnight hours. In moments when things don’t turn out the way we had hoped, we can acknowledge our grief, we can practice presence with one another. We can lean into our community. It is here that hope is often renewed, new visions are born, hope reawakens, and we return to the struggle with a new understanding of what we have just encountered. This story reminds us that even when hopes are dashed and the path forward is unclear, we are not alone, and, sometimes, the very act of walking together is where transformation begins.
Available on all major podcast carriers and at:
Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political & Economic Teachings of the Gospels.
by Herb Montgomery
Available now on Amazon!
In Finding Jesus, author Herb Montgomery delves into the profound and often overlooked political dimensions of the gospels. Through meticulous analysis of biblical texts, historical context, and social discourse, this thought-provoking book unveils the gospels’ socio-political, economic teachings as rooted in a profound concern for justice, compassion, and the well-being of the marginalized. The book navigates the intersections between faith and societal justice, presenting a compelling argument for a more socially engaged and transformative Christianity.
Finding Jesus is not just a scholarly exploration; it is a call to action. It challenges readers to reevaluate their understanding of Christianity’s role in public life and to consider how the radical teachings of the gospels can inspire a renewed commitment to justice, equality, and compassion. This book is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the social implications of Christian faith and a blueprint for building a more just and inclusive society.
Are you getting all of RHM’s Free Resources?
Free Sign Up Here
When Doubt Leads to a More Tangible Experience
We want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who supports the work of Renewed Heart Ministries. Your generosity makes it possible for us to continue our mission of love, justice, and compassion, even in a time when ministries like ours are being called to do more with less.
Your support means the world to us. Whether we’re speaking into the broader society, engaging within our faith communities, or working one on one alongside others endeavoring to follow Jesus’ teachings of love and justice, we remain committed to advocating for a world that is inclusive, just, and safe for all. Your partnership helps keep our work alive.
To all of our supporters, from all of us at Renewed Heart Ministries, thank you. We are so deeply grateful for you, and we couldn’t do this work without you.
If you’d like to join them in supporting our work, please go to renewedheartministries.com and click on “Donate.”
When Doubt Leads to a More Tangible Experience
Herb Montgomery | April 9, 2026
If you’d like to listen to this week’s article in podcast version click on the image below:
Our reading this week is from the gospel of John:
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:19-31)
The post resurrection narratives in the Gospel of John are some of the most interesting in the four gospels. Let’s jump right in. In John 20, the risen Jesus appears to his disciples behind locked doors. This is a little group gripped by fear. They’ve just watched their teacher being crucified on a Roman cross. We find them now in the shadow of the empire and its violence. Into that space, Jesus appears and speaks peace, not as passive comfort but as a declaration that the forces they are afraid of have not prevailed. In John’s version of the stories, Jesus shows his wounds to them, revealing that resurrection does not erase crucifixion but overcomes and undoes it. The marks of injustice remain visible. And now they become reframed as a testimony against the powers that inflicted them.
In the beginning of our reading this week that we also encounter Jesus breathing on the disciples. As Jesus does so, he says, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This act echoes the Jewish creation narratives in Genesis, where the Divine breath first imparts life to humanity. In John, however, that breath is not only for life but also for their assignment. The Spirit animates this little group that is called to embody the same peace, justice, and love that Jesus proclaims. It’s in them that Jesus’ teachings are now to live on, rooted in justice, restoration, and the healing of all in our world that is broken and harming the marginalized and vulnerable. Jesus’ breath is a commissioning: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” This passage harkens back to Jesus’ earlier words in John 3: the Father had not sent Jesus to condemn the world, but to heal it.
What many miss is that this scene is profoundly political. The disciples are sent back not into safety but into the world that crucified Jesus. The Spirit empowers them to confront those systems of oppression with courage and solidarity. The authority to forgive or retain sins can be understood as the responsibility to name injustice truthfully while also participating in restoration and reconciliation. Forgiveness is not a denial of harm but a pathway toward liberation from cycles of injustice and violence.
Thus, the breathing of the Spirit in John’s resurrection narrative forms a community shaped by their memory of suffering, their encounter with the Divine’s response to that suffering, and their being empowered to transform our collective human suffering. The risen Jesus sends his followers to continue his work of standing with the marginalized, challenging injustice, and embodying a peace that mere violence and strength cannot give.
Next, let’s consider the portion of our reading that is about Thomas. Those disciples named in the gospel of John honor and legitimize the communities who formed around the lives of each named apostle. This is true of Peter, Mary, and others in John’s gospel. We remember Thomas for his doubt, yet his story is far richer than a simple failure of faith. When the other disciples proclaim that they have seen the risen Jesus, Thomas refuses to accept their testimony secondhand. He insists on seeing and touching for himself, declaring that he will not believe without direct experience. Rather than rejecting Thomas, Jesus meets him in his uncertainty, and invites him to touch his wounds. This moment affirms that doubt is not the opposite of faith but often a pathway into a deeper, more embodied experience.
Thomas offers an important lesson for us: authentic faith does not require suppressing questions or ignoring evidence. In Christian movements for justice especially, people are often confronted with competing narratives, misinformation, and systems that obscure truth. Like Thomas, we are called to seek truth honestly, to question easy answers, and to resist accepting claims without examination. This kind of critical engagement strengthens, rather than weakens, our commitment.
Additionally, Jesus’ response to Thomas models a compassionate approach to those who struggle. He does not shame or exclude Thomas but meets him where he is. This informs us that we too are to create spaces where people can wrestle with uncertainty, unlearn harmful assumptions, and grow at their own pace. Transformation rarely happens through coercion; it happens through deconstruction, reconstruction, community, relationships, and believing the best about one another.
Finally, Thomas’ confession, “My Lord and my God,” emerges not despite his doubt but through it. Likewise, our work today is not fueled by blind certainty but by a hope that has faced hard questions and still chooses to believe in the possibility of a more just and compassionate world.
Let’s wrap up this week by considering the double ending of John’s gospel. The Gospel of John presents what many scholars describe as two endings, each offering a distinct theological emphasis. The first appears in our reading this week, at the close of chapter 20 (John 20:30–31). The narrative seems to reach a deliberate and satisfying conclusion at this point. After recounting the resurrection appearances of Jesus (including his encounters with Mary Magdalene, the gathered disciples, and Thomas) the author of John’s gospel steps back and addresses the listeners directly. The purpose statement at the end of chapter 20 declares that although Jesus performed many other signs not recorded in the book, these have been written “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” This statement is in keeping with the language of John’s gospel overall.
This ending functions both as a summary and as an invitation to follow this Jesus. It includes the themes of signs, belief, and life that run throughout John’s Gospel. The story of Thomas is especially significant here: moving from doubt to confession, he proclaims Jesus as “My Lord and my God.” Immediately after this, the text extends a blessing to those who have not seen and yet believe. In this way, the conclusion shifts attention from the original witnesses to future listeners, and draws them into the story’s purpose.
This ending also completes the story. The narrative arc has reached its climax. The faith that it elevates moves one to follow John’s Jesus, grounded in the testimony of contemporary followers rather than each one being an eyewitness. Following Jesus is the desired response, and the listener receives a clear call: trust in the Jesus that John’s Gospel presents and enter into the life that this Jesus offers.
The presence of a second ending in chapter 21 does not diminish this conclusion but could supplement it. Still, John 20 stands as a self-contained finale that emphasizes belief in the knowledge gained through Jesus as a gateway to life. It frames John’s version of the Jesus story as a written witness designed to inspire us, even today, to hear and follow the teachings of Jesus.
Discussion Group Questions
1. Share something that spoke to you from this week’s podcast episode with your discussion group.
2. How does the story of Thomas encourage you to be honest with your own questions concering the Jesus story? Share and discuss with your group.
3. What can you do this week, big or small, to continue setting in motion the work of shaping our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone?
Thanks for checking in with us, today.
I want to say a special thank you to all of our supporters out there. And if you would like to join them in supporting Renewed Heart Ministries’ work you can do so by going to renewedheartministries.com and clicking donate.
My latest book Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political and Economic Teachings of the Gospels is available now on Amazon in paperback, Kindle and also on Audible in audio book format.
As always, you can find Renewed Heart Ministries each week on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s Threads. If you haven’t done so already, please follow us on your chosen social media platforms for our daily posts.
If you’d like to reach us here at Renewed Heart Ministries through email, you can reach us at info@renewedheartministries.com.
Right where you are, keep living in love, choosing compassion, taking action, and working toward justice.
I love each of you dearly,
I’ll see you next week.
New Episode of The Social Jesus Podcast
A podcast where we talk about the intersection of faith and social justice and what a first century, prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of love, compassion and justice.
This week:
Season 3 Episode 16: When Doubt Leads to a More Tangible Experience
John 20:19-31
Thomas offers an important lesson for us: authentic faith does not require suppressing questions or ignoring evidence. In Christian movements for justice especially, people are often confronted with competing narratives, misinformation, and systems that obscure truth. Like Thomas, we are called to seek truth honestly, to question easy answers, and to resist accepting claims without examination. This kind of critical engagement strengthens, rather than weakens, our commitment. Additionally, Jesus’ response to Thomas models a compassionate approach to those who struggle. He does not shame or exclude Thomas but meets him where he is. This informs us that we too are to create spaces where people can wrestle with uncertainty, unlearn harmful assumptions, and grow at their own pace. Transformation rarely happens through coercion; it happens through deconstruction, reconstruction, community, relationships, and believing the best about one another.
Available on all major podcast carriers and at:
Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political & Economic Teachings of the Gospels.
by Herb Montgomery
Available now on Amazon!
In Finding Jesus, author Herb Montgomery delves into the profound and often overlooked political dimensions of the gospels. Through meticulous analysis of biblical texts, historical context, and social discourse, this thought-provoking book unveils the gospels’ socio-political, economic teachings as rooted in a profound concern for justice, compassion, and the well-being of the marginalized. The book navigates the intersections between faith and societal justice, presenting a compelling argument for a more socially engaged and transformative Christianity.
Finding Jesus is not just a scholarly exploration; it is a call to action. It challenges readers to reevaluate their understanding of Christianity’s role in public life and to consider how the radical teachings of the gospels can inspire a renewed commitment to justice, equality, and compassion. This book is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the social implications of Christian faith and a blueprint for building a more just and inclusive society.
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Free Sign Up Here
The Resurrection and Our Hope for Liberation
We want to take a moment to express our heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who supports the work of Renewed Heart Ministries. Your generosity makes it possible for us to continue our mission of love, justice, and compassion, even in a time when ministries like ours are being called to do more with less.
Your support means the world to us. Whether we’re speaking into the broader society, engaging within our faith communities, or working one on one alongside others endeavoring to follow Jesus’ teachings of love and justice, we remain committed to advocating for a world that is inclusive, just, and safe for all. Your partnership helps keep our work alive.
To all of our supporters, from all of us at Renewed Heart Ministries, thank you. We are so deeply grateful for you, and we couldn’t do this work without you.
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The Resurrection and Our Hope for Liberation
Herb Montgomery | April 3, 2026
If you’d like to listen to this week’s article in podcast version click on the image below:
Our reading leading up to Easter this weekend is found in the Gospel of Matthew.
After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.’ This is my message for you.” So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” (Matthew 28:1-10)
This is my favorite time of year in the Christian calendar. It’s a time to reflect on the story truths of the resurrection narratives in the Gospels, to remember that state violence and systemic, imperial injustice do not have to have the final word in our world. The stories of Jesus’ resurrection boldly declare that systems built on domination and death cannot ultimately silence truth, compassion, justice. They proclaim that solidarity with the marginalized, in the end, is worth whatever price we pay along the way. Our efforts to shape our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone are worth it. This time of year calls us to remember when, for those in our Gospels, what empire tried to crush on the cross was raised up again in living defiance. For Jesus followers committed to social justice, resurrection faith becomes more than belief; it becomes courage to resist oppression, stand with the marginalized, and work for a world where we reclaim our humanity again and again despite every force that tries to bury hope or silence love in our world.
Today, Easter stands at the heart of the Christian liturgical calendar as a declaration that death, injustice, and oppressive power do not have the final word. The empty tomb is not merely a miraculous event to be debated within our contemporary naturalistic world view, it is also a story of disruption of systems that continue to “crucify” today. The narrative truth of our story proclaims that the forces of empire, violence, and exclusion, made visible in every crucifixion and used to silence opposition through fear, are undone. Resurrection is not an escape from the world’s injustice. It’s a decisive response to it.
The empty tomb announces that what was meant to silence Jesus’ message of justice and liberation has failed. The execution of Jesus was an act of state violence, a public warning to anyone who would challenge systems of domination. Yet the resurrection exposes the lie at the heart of that power. Empires are not permanent, unquestionable, or unavoidably victorious. No. Love and justice are powers in their own right and cannot be buried forever. The stone is rolled away, not just from a grave, but also from the illusion that injustice will endure forever.
For us today, the resurrection carries important social implications. It calls us to see that the suffering of the marginalized is not invisible or forgotten. Just as God stood in solidarity with Jesus, raising him from death, so too does the Divine stand with those who are oppressed, exploited, and cast aside today. Easter invites us to align ourselves with God in that same solidarity. It challenges us to resist systems that crucify, whether through poverty, racism, patriarchy, economic inequality, LGBTQ phobias, or exclusion, and calls us to participate in the work of liberation, restoration, and justice.
The empty tomb also reframes how we understand hope. Hope is not passive optimism or waiting for change to come from elsewhere. Resurrection hope is active, embodied, and courageous. It is the kind of hope that compels action even when outcomes seem uncertain. The women who first encountered the empty tomb did not fully understand what had happened, but they moved forward anyway, carrying the message. In the same way, we are called to act for justice even when the path ahead is unclear.
Easter teaches us that what appears to be defeat can become the very place where transformation begins. The cross was intended to end a movement, yet became the catalyst for one that would keep challenging injustice across generations. That invites us to reconsider our own moments of discouragement. Setbacks in the struggle for justice are not the end of the story. ew life often emerges from places of loss and despair.
Ultimately, Easter invites us to live differently, to embody resurrection in our daily lives, and to practice compassion, pursue equity and equality, and confront injustice with courage. The empty tomb is more than something to “believe in” in the sense of belonging to a creed; it also tells a truth at the heart of every movement for change: change doesn’t happen without struggle and setbacks. Even in our midnight moments, the dawn is still ahead. Winter gives way to spring. And in that light, the resurrection is something to participate in. It asks us to roll away stones in our own communities, to bring life where there is death, and to come together in the ongoing work of renewal. In a world still marked by injustice and inequality, Easter proclaims that another way is possible, and we are called to be part of bringing it to life.
Lastly, in our reading this week, the role of women as the first proclaimers of the resurrection is both striking and theologically profound. At a moment when the narrative turns from death to new life, it is women, specifically Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary,” who are entrusted with the first announcement of the risen Jesus. This detail is not incidental; it is central to understanding the nature of the gospel itself.
In the cultural and legal context of the first century Mediterranean world, women’s testimony was often marginalized or dismissed. Yet Matthew deliberately places these women at the heart of the resurrection story. They are the first to encounter the empty tomb, the first to receive the angelic proclamation, “He is not here; for he has been raised.” And they are the first to be commissioned to share this good news with the other disciples. Their role subverts conventional patriarchal expectations, signaling that the resurrection inaugurates not only new life but also a rending and reordering of social hierarchies.
The women are not passive observers but active participants. They come to the tomb with intention, and though they experience fear, they also embody “great joy.” This combination of awe and courage becomes the posture of authentic proclamation. When they encounter the risen Jesus himself, they respond with renewed commitment. And Jesus reiterates the commission the angel already gave them: they are to go and tell Jesus’ other disciples to meet him in Galilee. It’s a significant difference from other post-resurrection narratives in the Synoptics. In this moment, these women function as apostles: they are the ones sent with a message, and their witness forms the bridge between the resurrection and the gospel.
If we are to center the gospel in Jesus’ resurrecting rather than his dying, we must receive the gospel first proclaimed by women witnesses. Before any formal preaching, before the commissioning of the eleven, the women carry this good news. The gospel, then, is first proclaimed not in a synagogue or public square but along a road through the voices of those whose authority society often questioned. This underscores a key theme in Matthew: God’s reign is revealed through those on the margins, those overlooked or undervalued by dominant systems of power.
The contrast in Matthew 28 between the women and the Roman guards further highlights their role. While the guards are bribed to spread a false narrative, the women faithfully bear truthful witness despite the risks. Matthew sets up a clear tension between competing proclamations: one rooted in fear and self-preservation, the other in hope. The integrity of the women’s testimony becomes foundational to the teaching of Jesus living on in the lives of his disciples.
Theologically, this moment reshapes how we understand authority in the community of Jesus’ followers. Authority is not grounded in status, gender, or institutional power, but in an encounter with the gospel and a commitment to following Jesus’ teachings in the work to reshape our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for all. The women’s role in this week’s story anticipates that broader work. They bear witness to resurrection in ways that challenge injustice and expand inclusion from the very beginning of the gospel and the proclamation of Jesus’ resurrection.
In our reading this week, we encounter women who are not merely witnesses to the resurrection but are its first heralds. Their voices carry the initial echo of the gospel, reminding readers that the good news begins on the margins, transforming individuals as well as the structures that shape human community.
Discussion Group Questions
1. Share something that spoke to you from this week’s podcast episode with your discussion group.
2. What good news is the story of Jesus’ resurrection reminding you of this year? Share and discuss with your group.
3. What can you do this week, big or small, to continue setting in motion the work of shaping our world into a safe, compassionate, just home for everyone?
Thanks for checking in with us, today.
I want to say a special thank you to all of our supporters out there. And if you would like to join them in supporting Renewed Heart Ministries’ work you can do so by going to renewedheartministries.com and clicking donate.
My latest book Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political and Economic Teachings of the Gospels is available now on Amazon in paperback, Kindle and also on Audible in audio book format.
As always, you can find Renewed Heart Ministries each week on Bluesky, Facebook, Instagram and Meta’s Threads. If you haven’t done so already, please follow us on your chosen social media platforms for our daily posts.
If you’d like to reach us here at Renewed Heart Ministries through email, you can reach us at info@renewedheartministries.com.
Right where you are, keep living in love, choosing compassion, taking action, and working toward justice.
I love each of you dearly,
I’ll see you next week.
New Episode of The Social Jesus Podcast
A podcast where we talk about the intersection of faith and social justice and what a first century, prophet of the poor from Galilee might have to offer us today in our work of love, compassion and justice.
This week:
Season 3 Episode 15: The Resurrection and Our Hope for Liberation
Matthew 28:1-10
Ultimately, Easter invites us to live differently, to embody resurrection in our daily lives, and to practice compassion, pursue equity and equality, and confront injustice with courage. The empty tomb is more than something to “believe in” in the sense of belonging to a creed; it also tells a truth at the heart of every movement for change: change doesn’t happen without struggle and setbacks. Even in our midnight moments, the dawn is still ahead. Winter gives way to spring. And in that light, the resurrection is something to participate in. It asks us to roll away stones in our own communities, to bring life where there is death, and to come together in the ongoing work of renewal. In a world still marked by injustice and inequality, Easter proclaims that another way is possible, and we are called to be part of bringing it to life.
Available on all major podcast carriers and at:
Finding Jesus: A Fundamentalist Preacher Discovers the Socio-Political & Economic Teachings of the Gospels.
by Herb Montgomery
Available now on Amazon!
In Finding Jesus, author Herb Montgomery delves into the profound and often overlooked political dimensions of the gospels. Through meticulous analysis of biblical texts, historical context, and social discourse, this thought-provoking book unveils the gospels’ socio-political, economic teachings as rooted in a profound concern for justice, compassion, and the well-being of the marginalized. The book navigates the intersections between faith and societal justice, presenting a compelling argument for a more socially engaged and transformative Christianity.
Finding Jesus is not just a scholarly exploration; it is a call to action. It challenges readers to reevaluate their understanding of Christianity’s role in public life and to consider how the radical teachings of the gospels can inspire a renewed commitment to justice, equality, and compassion. This book is a must-read for those seeking a deeper understanding of the social implications of Christian faith and a blueprint for building a more just and inclusive society.
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