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 round him and said to him, "How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly." 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."
John 10:22–30 (RSV)
If today, in 2021, Jesus was among us as He first was in the flesh, who would believe in Him? I suspect that it would go no better than it did two thousand years ago.
We like the idea of God, as long as He doesn't demand too much or get too involved in our lives. People often will say they want God close until He is, then we aren't so sure.
Jesus, the Incarnate God, alive among God's Chosen People, was treated with suspicion at nearly every turn. He came to the very people who had been anticipating the Messiah's arrival. As St. John notes, He came to His own, and His own would not receive Him.
Like the Jews of Jesus' day, we are too comfortable with who we think God should be. Ours is the greater responsibility as we live on the other side of the resurrection. We know Jesus is the Messiah, sent from the Father to restore all things to Himself.
The Jews could not believe it true that Jesus was the Son of God. They could not hear His shepherd's voice because of their unbelief. We know it to be true. We have the witness of the Church, from the Apostles to this hour. What is our excuse for living as if it were not true?
Jesus calls to us, longing that we attend to His voice and follow where He leads. He leads us into the depth of His love and mercy. He does this so we might live each day in His love and mercy. Let the truth of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection be our daily lives.