My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all,
and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand.
We often treat the spiritual life as if it all depends on us. We do this in spite of the fact that we have the intellectual knowledge that spiritual life is only possible by grace. Further, we know in our minds that God will provided the grace to face any challenge we meet. But in our hearts we are still anxious as though if we don't do everything right it won't be enough, that God will be displeased, that we won't finally make it home.
Jesus wants us to have a spiritual life that stems from confidence in the Father even in spite of our flaws and failings. He wants us to believe that an abundant life is possible for us not because we will be perfect, but because the Father has a plan that will continue to work even as we are being perfected, as long as we persevere.
Our confidence in the Father's love grows concretely when we experience the providential care of the great shepherd of the sheep, Jesus Christ. It is not that we as sheep suddenly become highly competent and praiseworthy. It is not as though we ever completely remove the tendency to wander away. But even though we remain flawed we continue to experience his love, even in spite of ourselves, when our shepherd keeps speaking to us, leading us, and calling us to be and remain near him.
My sheep hear my voice;
I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish.
For sheep, safety is about the identity of the shepherd far more than the individual members of the flock. Sheep have to stubbornly persist to prevent the shepherd from reaching them in time. They may indeed stumble, become injured and sickly because they stay too close to the peripheries of the fold. But even then the shepherd will continue to seek them. He is more than able to nurse them to health and bind their wounds.
The hand of the Lord was with them
and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.
The early Church knew what it was to live under the close watch and care of the good shepherd. They did not despair when humanly the circumstances seemed difficult. They were scattered, but saw in it only opportunity.
Those who had been scattered by the persecution
that arose because of Stephen
went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch,
preaching the word to no one but Jews.
At first most disciples did not preach the word to anyone but Jews. Yet this was no longer an appropriate or necessary means to protect the integrity of the flock. They now had a shepherd whom they could trust to call other sheep as well, so that their could be one flock, one shepherd. We too need to trust that the shepherd knows what he is doing when he calls others, even if they don't look like good candidates to join the flock in our eyes. Concretely this means a willingness to be close to and involved with others with whom we might otherwise have nothing in common, who might not seem to be our sort of people. In Christ such divisions lose their meaning. By his Spirit they can be overcome.
I tell of Egypt and Babylon
among those who know the LORD;
Of Philistia, Tyre, Ethiopia:
“This man was born there.”
And of Zion they shall say:
“One and all were born in her;
And he who has established her
is the Most High LORD.”
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