Jesus the Good Shepherd

“I am the Good Shepherd, says the Lord; I know my sheep and mine know me.”

In the Gospel of John we are given beautiful insight into the life and role of Jesus as the Good Shepherd. Not only does Jesus lead us but he walks with us, guides us, anoints us and never abandons us. This image of the Good Shepherd is a reminder for us to experience the living, relational God, the Emmanuel God who is always with us.  The challenge is that we have a tendency to forget that what God has told us from the beginning as true. Jesus depicts us as the sheep of His flock for a reason. We are so easily led astray and it isn’t soon after that we feel God is the one who left us. Today in the Gospel reading of the Good Shepherd, Jesus reminds us that no matter what He will always be there for us and a part of our lives as much as we allow Him.

Many times in my encounter with the poor, the homeless or the distressed, there comes a cry that begs for the care that only the Good shepherd can give. One recent experience I had with a man named Tee in the nearby park was a very life giving moment. After seeing him a few times in the year, we always talked for long periods of time and almost always he expressed to me that he needed help, spiritual help. He said he felt alone and abandoned by his friends, his family and in many cases felt abandoned by God. I remember telling him that God never leaves us; He is always with us even when it feels like He’s not. He began to cry as he reached out for a hug; it was a beautiful moment because it was so simple. All this man needed was somebody to tell him that He was loved, that God was with him and it shattered his own thoughts of abandonment and cleared his day.

The unfortunate thing is that so often we are confound to believe that we aren’t worthy, that we are alone, that we should be ashamed, and afraid so why bother? There might be so much going on in our lives that in the mix of all the chaos and feelings of rejection we begin to think that we have no help, and that God is not even around to listen so why even bother to pray? These are the thoughts that are alive in our society and sadly it is part of the division that is present in our world. It’s what the evil one wants: to separate us from perfect union with God.

Today the Good Shepherd reminds each of us, that He is there at the moment of our suffering, in our darkest night. This union is a time to hear his voice, the voice of the Shepherd that accompanies us out of love. Jesus the Shepherd calls us to move out of those thoughts that tell us we are alone and move into the comfort of his guidance. It is a reminder to move into a life of sacramental grace by returning to His care and renewing our baptismal promise. Jesus knows us by name; He cares for us and loves us. He will always find us if we have strayed and even then will He hoist us up on his shoulders. Not only are we called to be the sheep of the Shepherd’s flock but we are also called to be Shepherds of Love, leading all to know the true Shepherd. May we come to know Christ the Good Shepherd, the God who walks among us, and never abandons us. Amen!