What does Jesus’ voice sound like? That’s the first thing that comes to mind for me with this passage. The next is; how do I make sure I’m listening for Jesus’ voice? A professor I follow connects this passage back to one we read in Lent, the story where Jesus heals the blind man. (It’s the one where Jesus makes mud and puts it on his eyes.) Because of this interaction Jesus has become his shepherd. The easy connection is that the man couldn’t see, his connection with Jesus was by hearing his voice. But after he had been healed, and he saw Jesus face to face, he now believes in Jesus and worships him. 

If we focus too much on the ones who enter the sheepfold by another way, the thieves and the bandits, do we miss the overall meaning of this teaching? Yes, there are those who seek to do harm (steal, kill and destroy) but may we rather focus on who Jesus is. He is the one who knows us by name, who calls to us, who guides and protects us. We are safe with the shepherd. 

Maybe the first step to understanding Jesus in this way is to admit our need for a shepherd. Our pride and arrogance can easily become a barrier that keeps us from understanding our need for a shepherd. Much like someone who participates in a 12-Step program, maybe admitting our need for a high power will put us on the path to realizing our need for a shepherd.

But, how do we hear Jesus’ voice? How do we hear Jesus call us by name? We live in a very noisy world, both literally and metaphorically. We need to verse spaces of silence so that we can hear what may be a still small voice. Faith is something we are supposed to practice, maybe we add times of silence to our faith practice so that we can allow for God to speak to us. This can be difficult to do but, much like exercise, when we work at something that can be challenging, we grow and become stronger. So, how is Jesus your shepherd? How have you heard the voice of your shepherd? How have you created space for this movie to be heard?