Mt 18,12-14 – Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent
Sometimes we think that faith is a climb towards God. We strive, we compare ourselves, we judge ourselves. But today’s Gospel reminds us of an upside-down truth: it is not we who seek God. It is He who seeks us. The parable of the lost sheep does not celebrate the heroism of those who remain in the flock, but the madness of love of a Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to pursue the only one who is missing. And this is perhaps the most liberating news of our lives: in the eyes of God we are never “one of many”.
We are the only one. The problem is that we often don’t believe it. When we get lost, in a wrong choice, in a failure, in a sin that still weighs on us, we think we have lost the right to be searched for. But Jesus says the opposite: precisely where we are lost, He begins to walk faster. It does not come with reproach, but with joy. Not with judgement, but with the responsibility of a love that does not know how to give up.
The Shepherd doesn’t turn back until he finds us again. And this should heal our deepest fear: that of not being worth enough. The lost sheep does nothing. He doesn’t go back under his own power. It’s found. She is raised on her shoulders. She is brought home. Sometimes true conversion isn’t taking big steps, but letting yourself be taken.
Letting God love us at the very point that embarrasses us the most. Christ does not love those who are perfect, he loves those who are lost. Perhaps this is why the parable ends with an explosion of joy: “He will rejoice over that one more than over the ninety-nine.” Not because the others don’t count, but because every return is a miracle.
Tuesday 9 December 2025 – (Tuesday of the Second Week of Advent)
