Daily Gospel Reflection

Stop the Suspense

Welcome to your daily gospel reflection, where we're exploring the radical and relevant message of the gospels, the genius of Catholicism, the genius of Jesus, and looking just for a snippet as a way to anchor our life today in today's Gospel, which is from John chapter 10 verses 22-30. It was the feast of the dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense?

If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." And Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe, the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness to me, but you do not believe because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. And no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My father who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one."

It's pretty bold and brazen the way that so many people confront Jesus in the gospels. Today, they're like, "All right, Jesus, stop keeping us in suspense. If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." Can you imagine if Jesus is over there, you're going to walk over to Him and be so brazen. It shows what demonstrates what Jesus was saying, which was, "Hey, you've seen all my works, and you obviously don't believe." And the proof that they didn't believe was this lack of reverence, this lack of war, this lack of wonder, and really a complete dismissal of the fruits of Jesus' life and his works.

What jumps out at you today? Is there a word? Is there a phrase? Is there an idea that jumps out at you? What jumps out at me is Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." Are you listening for God's voice in your life? Are you open to hearing God's voice in your life? I think that in the spiritual life, it's easy to say, "Well, God doesn't speak to me. He speaks to saints and mystics, but not me."

And that's really a closing of our heart to the idea that God might speak to us, which of course he does in so many ways through the Scriptures, through other people, through the life of the Church, through our needs, through our talents, through our desires. Just in myriad ways, God is constantly speaking to us. The question is not is God speaking? The question is are we listening? Jesus says, "I sheep hear my voice, and they follow me." The two go together, though. The one naturally follows the other. We are listening to the voice of God in our lies. Then we will follow where he is leading us. Where is he leading you today? Have an amazing day and remember, be bold, be Catholic.