Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” (John 10:24 NRSVCE)
They only wanted to know. All he had to do was tell them, stop speaking in riddles and metaphors and parables. Was he or wasn’t he the Messiah?
He told them again, clearly and quite bluntly, that they didn’t believe and that the reason they didn’t hear him was that they were not among his sheep.
Apparently, they didn’t like the answer. After he told them that he and the Father were one, they prepared again to stone him.
Sometimes, we don’t like the answer either. So we ask the 
question over and over again. When is he going to cure us or someone we love? When is he going to clear the path for us to get a better job, more reliable vehicle, bigger house? When is that distance we feel so profoundly, no matter how much time we spend in prayer and study, going to go away? We tell ourselves we can endure much, as long as we know when it’s going to be over. We only want to know.
But he has told us, time and time again. He tells us he is the Good Shepherd and to have faith that he loves us and cares for us and is by our side at all times. It’s all we need to know. All the rest is noise and confusion and anxiety and fear.
