The image of the good shepherd portrays an intimate relationship between the sheep and their shepherd. There is a mutual knowledge and familiarity.

Yet the Gospel writer wants to convey even more. Jesus is not only the shepherd, He is also the gate. He not only leads the sheep to salvation, Jesus is the way to salvation and salvation itself. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus comes to give life and to give life to us in abundance.

We often receive life when we grow in freedom. The reading from Acts describes how God has inspired Peter to proclaim to the Church leaders in Jerusalem a certain freedom for new believers. People who are not Jewish can become believers and followers of Christ without taking on the restrictions of Jewish dietary laws. This was not an easy message for the leaders, including Peter, to accept. Ultimately, however, Peter points out that if God wants to bless and gift these new followers of Christ with the same Spirit God has given to the leaders themselves, how can Peter (or anyone else) stand in God's way?