Isaiah 40:1ff. “Comfort ye my people!” – the beginning of Second Isaiah, on the return of the exiles from Babylon.

Matthew 18:12ff. The shepherd rejoices to find the lost sheep.

The Seeking Shepherd

There is a hidden part in each one of us. When it is found by God, the Good Shepherd, it will become God’s instrument for transforming our existence. All the rest of ourselves will rejoice because the ninety-nine percent of ourselves will be transformed by this one percent. The lost sheep is that buried, secluded or forgotten part within each of us.

A good example of the lost sheep is seen in the prophet-author of the first reading, telling of his prophetic call that originated in God’s heavenly throne room. God calls to the many celestial beings around his throne: “Comfort, O comfort my people!” A prophet of mighty ability responded: “What shall I cry?” and then began a prophetic career leading to the composition of the most golden poetry in the Bible. Yet, for the prophet himself, the people’s return to their homeland, away from the Babylonian exile, turned out to be a way toward rejection and oblivion. His name was forgotten and his exquisite poetry simply added to the scroll of the earlier prophet Isaiah. He was like the lost sheep waiting to be found by the Lord.

Jesus and his first disciples turned to this prophet, not only to appreciate John the Baptist who prepared the way of the Lord, but to remain at peace during the tragic death of Jesus by quoting passages like chapter 42 and chapter 53. The work of the “Great Unknown” remained lost within Israel till it was found by the Good Shepherd. Then it brought exceptional joy to the other ninety-nine.

What is lost in ourselves or in others may have been buried into forgetfulness by a sinful action. Perhaps a sarcastic remark by ourselves or another, maybe a failure due to inappropriate or insufficient preparation, caused us or others to resolve never to try again. The sheep is lost in the wilderness. Or it is possible that some people just get lost in the shuffle. For one reason or another they are neglected by their parents or family, by their teachers or classmates. They end up without ambition or hope; they plod along, muted by the misfortunes of life. Advent is the time for us to prepare the way of the Lord, to rediscover the lost sheep in ourselves and in others.

Finally, some lost “sheep” are found only by the divine Good Shepherd, Jesus himself. We look forward to Christmas when Jesus steps anew into our lives to discover hidden gifts, talents and hopes that can turn our lives around.

First Reading: Isaiah 40:1-11

Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins.

A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

A voice says, “Cry out!” And I said, “What shall I cry?” All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades, when the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever.

Get you up to a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good tidings; lift up your voice with strength, O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings, lift it up, do not fear; say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!” See, the Lord God comes with might, and his arm rules for him; his reward is with him, and his recompense before him. He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms, and carry them in his bosom, and gently lead the mother sheep.

Gospel: Matthew 18:12-14

What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.