Jesus
said: “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever does not enter a sheepfold through the
gate but climbs over elsewhere is a thief and a robber. But whoever enters
through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens it for him,
and the sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and
leads them out. When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of
them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice. But they will
not follow a stranger; they will run away from him, because they do not
recognize the voice of strangers.” Although Jesus used this figure of speech,
the Pharisees did not realize what he was trying to tell them.
So
Jesus said again, “Amen, amen, I say to you, I am the gate for the sheep. All
who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to
them. I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in
and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and
destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”
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Reflection:
Are
you a good shepherd to your children?
Parents
are shepherds to their children as such they are expected not only to provide
for the material and spiritual needs of their children. They are also expected
to mold their children’s character and values. So that when the time comes for
their children to become parents themselves. It’s also expected that they too
will become good shepherds to their own children someday.
Jesus
is the best example of a good shepherd for He gave His very own life for us.
Being a shepherd, He led by example, He gave up His own comfort and He embraced
His passion and death on the cross. He could have easily avoided dying on the
cross but He chose to give His life because that is what is expected from a
good shepherd.
Regardless
of who we are, we too are shepherds in our own way. Thus, it’s expected from us
that we must also model our lives after Jesus. We listen to His voice as He
listened to the voice of God. We must be ready to sacrifice for our flock even
if this sacrifice would require us to give up our own comforts even if it leads
us to give up our very own life.
Come
to think of it, it’s not actually easy to become a good shepherd. We just need
to look at the path that Jesus went through. Nonetheless, to be a good shepherd
is very much worth it. You may not see the reward now but someday you will that
is if you are a good shepherd.
Are
you a good shepherd? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
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