WORD OF LIFE

WORD OF LIFE

May, 1998

"The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me" (Jn. 10:27).

These words are a part of an important debate which took place in the portico of the Temple of Jerusalem.

Earlier on, Jesus had said that in order to be his follower, and remain loyal to his word, a person had to be called by the Father, to be drawn by him through the gift of his grace (Jn. 6:44 and 65). Naturally, he would like to give this gift to everyone. One condition, however, is necessary: to be open, to be in the attitude of welcoming the truth by listening to his voice, as described in the parable of the Good Shepherd (Jn. 10:1-16) to which our Word of Life refers.

The sheep spoken of here do not represent those who simply believe in Jesus but rather those in whom faith and openness to Jesus has reached full development; it is those whom Jesus has drawn into communion, into an intimacy with him, made up of awareness and mutual giving.

These people "listen to Jesus’ voice," meaning they have acquired an instinct, a sensitivity to him. They are always more in tune with his thoughts, with his feelings, with his teachings. They possess a capacity for supernatural discernment which enables them to clearly distinguish if a way of thinking or of living coincides with Jesus’ teaching (and so they accept it), or if it opposes it (and so they reject it).

Jesus "knows these people" the way he "knows his sheep," meaning he knows who belongs to him and he loves them with a very special love. He gives them the peace and joy which only he can give and no one can take away.

That is why these people "follow Jesus" like sheep "follow their shepherd." The implication is that they put his teachings into practice as if it were the most normal thing to do; it has become second nature to them. Even the most difficult tasks become easy.

"The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me."

Jesus did not intend these words for a restricted and privileged circle of people, but for everyone who wants to be his disciple.

This tells us that we should not be content to remain at just any stage of Christian life. We are called to true friendship and personal intimacy with Jesus, which is a fruit of his grace at work. Jesus wants our relationship with him to grow to the point of nevermore separating from him, no matter what may happen. He would like us to be certain and unwavering before intimidating situations, when faced with ever-changing doctrines, or before a barrage of temptations, remaining firm and unshakable because we have learned by experience that Jesus is the Truth, he is joy, he is Life. Then we will really be Christians capable of bearing witness to him before the world, and worthy of his greater trust.

But how do we reach this point? By developing in us the openness to Jesus which we spoke of earlier, by means of prayer and study, above all by our personal commitment to live out his word, and then by being in tune every day, every moment, with his voice which never ceases to speak in the depths of our hearts.

Undoubtedly, Jesus’ voice always tells us to love every person we meet. It’s what we will try to do in the coming days.

Chiara Lubich

The commentary to the Word of Life is translated in 90 different languages and dialects, and reaches more than 14 million people worldwide, through the press, and radio and TV programs

If you would like to read experiences of life related to this or to past "Words of Life," they can be found in Living City magazine, the monthly publication of the Focolare Movement. For information or to subscribe, write to: Living City, P.O. Box 837, Bronx, NY 10465. A book, From Scripture to Life, containing Words of Life with commentary by Chiara Lubich and related experiences of life is available through New City Press, the publishing house of the Focolare, 202 Cardinal Road, Hyde Park, NY 12538. To order the book or magazine call 1-800-462-5980. E-mail: ncporder@aol.com

Presented here with permission of the publishers

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