“I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.” (Jn 10: 9-16)
We all need to “belong.” Why? Because we were made that way, to share in, and be part of, God’s Oneness and God’s “abundant” Life. It is both spiritually and psychologically tormenting for us, to feel shut out from Life, like puzzle-pieces that just don’t fit anywhere. Many people go through life feeling that way, or have felt that way, at some time or another.
Christ, the Incarnate Son of God, is the “door” through Whom we, who were once outsiders and misfits, “enter” true Life, and become proper citizens of God’s world. Other, merely-human community-builders might offer us some sense of belonging, – like the high priests of the Internet, or our political party, or clan, or favorite football team, etc. But none of these “hirelings” can “save” us, that is to say, make us “whole” within ourselves and with God’s world. Outside communion with Christ, we will always find ourselves “scattered,” at the end of the day. Thank You, Lord, for laying Your life down for us, and claiming us as Your own, and nobody else’s. Today I hear Your voice, and take Your door, rather than wander about aimlessly, where I never really belong.
