I Am the Sheep Gate

Acts 11:1-18, Jn 10:1-10. Today’s first reading relates Peter’s encounter with the Gentiles. Going out from Jerusalem to coastal Caesarea to tend Christ’s flock, he found himself addressing a Gentile household. Peter discovered that their baptism was not their first time to receive the Holy Spirit, for He saw that they were already clearly guided by the Spirit. Peter’s mindset is revealed by the question: “Who am I to stand in God’s way?” When the Holy Spirit came down upon Cornelius and his pagan household Peter realised that God was doing something in the lives of these pagans and that nobody should try to block what God was doing.

In today’s Gospel, we see Jesus as the Gate of the sheepfold. Far from getting in God’s way, Jesus was the gateway through whom God comes to us and we come to God. Jesus is the open gate into the Kingdom of God. People can go freely in and out through Him and experience God through Him. In a wonderful phrase Jesus affirms: “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.” There is a sense in which we all share in that role of Jesus to be promoters and enablers of life for others. We are to be channels of grace, like Peter, just as the Spirit of God entered the lives of Cornelius and his household through Peter’s message. Today, we are challenged to be upright and not stand in God’s way, or making faith harder for others to accept. We have a role to play in each other’s lives but we also have to leave room for God to work. There is a time to be the shepherd and a time to be the gate.

May the Lord bless us and guide us in our good works, efforts and endeavours! Amen!! Good morning and have a productive week!!!