Jesus said, "I am the gate for the sheep." "Whoever enters by Me will be saved." In other words, He said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life." The way to Jesus is Jesus' way, not mankind's way! The way to Jesus is through the Church, the Church that has been established by Jesus Himself, the same Church that has handed down the apostolic tradition to us since the days of Saint Peter. The Church of Jesus fosters a living faith in the Christian family. Through such families, the grace of God is manifested and vocations flourish to ensure that the needs of the Church are all met.

Jesus compared Himself to the Shepherd and to the Gate. The first title represents His ownership. The Shepherd is the true owner of the sheep. The second title represents His leadership. Jesus is the Gate, the way. He is the one Mediator between God and mankind. All must go through Him, through His Church, in order to arrive to Heaven.

Abundance of life through Christ. There is no manner of doubt that a first law of the kingdom is that of self-denial; and that means a resolute cutting off of much that is unworthy.  In laying emphasis on that requirement, Christ is at one with all the moral and spiritual masters everywhere the whole world over. It is abundant life - happy, adventurous, exciting; more so than any other.  Had we come upon Paul the apostle, and asked what he was doing, he might have answered, “Wrestling with principalities and powers, and mastering them through Jesus Christ.”  That seems a way of life with much more call in it upon a  man who is a man than the tame and colourless round of trivialities which some term living.

It is only the pure in heart who see God. And whatever else others may gain, if they miss that vision and experience, surely their life has a been a futile failure. It is in Christ that one has life abundantly. Or ought to have, and can have. But alas! Too may of us have only a thin-blooded and anaemic type of Christianity, know little of the vigour of its health, and the splendour of its adventure, and the exciting possibilities it puts within the reach of anyone.

The Bible teaches that this sense of ‘lostness’ is rooted in the fact that we live in a fallen world in which we are all handicapped by a sin nature: we "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). And despite our best efforts we are unable to remove the haunting weight of guilt that separates us from our Creator.  Hence, God sent his Son to solve our dilemma. "God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (Jn 3:16).

The way to God is through personal faith in Jesus Christ. Christ promises those who turn to him: "Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed from death to life" (Jn 5:24).

Today you can come to him by surrendering your life and heart to Christ. The Bible says: "To all who received him (Jesus Christ), to those who believed in his name he gave the right to become children of God" (Jn 1:12).  Right where you are you can pray something like this: "Lord, I know that I have sinned and need your forgiveness. I believe that Jesus Christ died for me and rose from the dead. I invite you into my life to be my Lord and Saviour."

If you sincerely put your faith in Christ, God promises not only to forgive you, but also to receive you into his family. It's the greatest discovery you will ever make!

The origin of this promise can be traced to the Old Testament Books of Jeremiah and Ezekiel. God had promised to make a new covenant [Jer. 31:31] with His people. He promised to put His law within His people, writing it on their hearts, that He may be their God and they may be His people. [Jer. 31:33] He promised to put a new human spirit within His people, to remove their hearts of stone and to give them a heart of flesh. [Ezek. 11:19, 18:31, 36:26] And finally, God had promised to put His Spirit within His people to make them follow His statutes and be careful to observe His ordinances. [Ezek. 36:27] Biblically, we are taught that this promise has been fulfilled. St. Paul asks, "Do you not know that you are God's Temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?" [1 Cor. 3:16]

When we speak of the Holy Spirit as the "Spirit of Truth," we acknowledge part of His role as Advocate. As the Spirit of Truth, He guides the Church in all truth. When it is said that the Holy Spirit "abides 'with you', and He will be 'in you,'" it means that He will be with both, "with the Church" and "in every Christian." As He makes His dwelling within the Catholic Church that was instituted by Jesus, He makes His indwelling in each and everyone of us who are Temples of the Holy Spirit. [1 Cor. 3:16] For the members of the Church are the living stones that let themselves be built into a spiritual house, [1 Pet. 2:4] Jesus being the cornerstone, chosen and precious, that whoever believes in Him may not be put to shame. [1 Pet. 2:6]

Jesus promised that He would not leave us as orphans. [Jn. 14:18] He would be coming to us. Believing that the Holy Spirit has made His indwelling in us, where is Jesus? We cannot see Him? The arrival of the Holy Spirit in the world included the arrival of Jesus and the Father because of their shared life in the Holy Trinity. For the Father is in Jesus and Jesus is in the Father. [Jn. 14:20]

Jesus promised that He would not leave us orphaned. As a sign of His infinite love for each and everyone of us, He has opened the door to our adoption as children. And because we are children, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So we are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God. [Gal. 4:6]