John 10:11-18

Acts 4:8-12

Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29

1 John 3:1-2

John 10:11-18

Jesus said:

“I am the good shepherd.

A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

A hired man, who is not a shepherd

and whose sheep are not his own,

sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away,

and the wolf catches and scatters them.

This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd,

and I know mine and mine know me,

just as the Father knows me and I know the Father;

and I will lay down my life for the sheep.

I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.

These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice,

and there will be one flock, one shepherd.

This is why the Father loves me,

because I lay down my life in order to take it up again.

No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.

I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again.

This command I have received from my Father.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I want to grow and mature as your child. You are my loving Father and know the path I should take to spiritual maturity. It is a path that passes through death to the old self and loving self-offering. Guide me today and grant me your sanctifying Spirit.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Jesus the Good Shepherd: In the Gospel of John, Jesus has just called out the Pharisees for their spiritual blindness (John 9:39-41). The Pharisees have hardened their hearts and refuse to believe in Jesus and cannot see with the spiritual eyes of faith. They are blind guides instead of good shepherds. The backdrop of this conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees is the Feast of Tabernacles, which recalled the exodus from Egypt and the dwelling of the Lord with Israel in the wilderness. The eight-day autumn feast celebrated the fall harvest of grapes and olives, God’s providential care for his people, and looked forward to the day when God would dwell again among his people. Jesus is the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles: he is God Incarnate who truly dwells among and in his people. Jesus reprimands the Pharisees, just as Ezekiel 34 reprimanded Israel’s false shepherds (34:1-10). Jesus fulfills the promises of Ezekiel 34 that one day the Lord himself will shepherd his people (34:11-16) and also that his servant David will be appointed the one shepherd of his people (34:23). “In claiming to be the Good Shepherd, Jesus is assuming the mantle of both the Lord and David, the two of whom, Ezekiel prophesied, would constitute the one shepherd of Israel in the latter days” (John Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Reflections on the Sunday Mass Readings for Year B, p. 130). What Jesus adds to the prophecy is that, as the divine and royal Good Shepherd, he will lay down his life for us, the sheep of the one flock.

2. Jesus the Cornerstone as the Way of Salvation: Just as the Pharisees hardened their hearts when Jesus healed the blind man during the Feast of Tabernacles, the Sanhedrin, in the First Reading, have hardened their hearts when Peter and John healed the lame man in the name of Jesus. Instead of praising God for the miracle worked through the Apostles of Jesus, the members of the Sanhedrin consider Jesus to be a scandal and a stumbling block. Peter quotes Psalm 118:22 and proclaims that the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. Jesus is the cornerstone of the New Temple of God. Jesus, the Good Shepherd and the Cornerstone of God’s Temple, is the only way to salvation. Jesus became our savior through suffering, offering his life for his sheep, and being rejected by the leaders of Israel.

3. Growing up as Children of God: Salvation is not just being saved from eternal death, but involves becoming a part of God’s family. Through Baptism we are freed from original sin and begin our Christian lives as spiritual infants. As children of God (1 John 3:1-2), we are called to grow to spiritual maturity. Salvation, then, entails being conformed to the image of God’s Son (see Romans 8:29). And this means sharing in Jesus’ suffering (Philippians 3:8-11). We attain spiritual perfection and holiness through sacrifice and suffering offered in communion with Jesus.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I will strive each day to conform my life to yours. I know that suffering with you leads to glory with you. When life is difficult or I fail to love, renew my resolve to set out once again toward you and the Father, guided by your Holy Spirit.

Living the Word of God: In prayer, discern where you are in your spiritual growth. If you see spiritual immaturity, what are the areas you most need to work on with God’s grace? Dedicating more and better time to prayer and meditation? Humbly serving others? Glorifying God in your words and actions? Caring for a family member? Encouraging my children in their faith? If you see spiritual growth, are you thankful to God or in danger of becoming prideful? Where is God leading you to grow in your spiritual life?