Category: Ordinary Time

In the two weeks since my final session of chemotherapy, the whole tone of my email inbox has changed. It would appear that some people feel that I am now ready to be criticised and nagged about a whole host of trivial matters. The ultimate example of this was demonstrated by the email that began ‘I know that you are supposed to be unwell…’

As I have begun to field these emails, I have often thought of today’s reading. To date, as far as I am aware, no one has conspired to destroy me, but I suppose you never know.

I open today’s reflection in this personal way because so many of us encounter such mundane pressures at moments when we are already feeling weak and vulnerable.

That is certainly where we meet Jesus today. He felt so threatened and vulnerable that he departed.

But the need for him did not go away, and he continued in his ministry, faithfully and lovingly he carried on healing those who were unwell and possessed.

It is at this point in Matthew’s gospel that we are given words from the prophet Isaiah. These words are well known, and they remind us of Jesus’, and by extension, our call to serve.

Jesus was beset with so many complaints and anxieties and threats, but he remained focussed.

In recent months, the nature and the intensity of the complaints, anxieties, and threats that we have had to deal with have changed.

But we are still called to carry on loving and serving in the name of Christ.

The question at the end of this week is still: How do we love and serve in the name of the One who gave everything for us?

Or are we so wedded to our need to be in control of everything and everyone around us, that we continue to miss the point of Jesus’ call in our lives?

Are we still so anxious and overburdened, physically and mentally, that we forget that Jesus can take care of all of that for us?

Are we ready to open our hearts and minds, and let Jesus direct us along the path that leads to true life in him?

Human beings love rules and regulations.

Well, when I say they love rules and regulations, I really mean that they love the ones that they find convenient. People really love to use rules and regulations to control others, to create the sort of order that they want in their own lives.

In today’s reading, we encounter just such a use of the Jewish law. The Pharisees, the experts in Jewish law, took the opportunity to criticise the disciples for picking some heads of grain and then eating them.

Of course, technically, the Pharisees were right, but what about the needs of those men? Should the rules and regulations be so intransigent that the need of the individual is considered irrelevant?

Jesus reminds the Pharisees of their own history. He recalls the Old Testament account of David and his companions, eating the most holy bread in the temple, just because they were hungry. Then he reminds them that the temple priests are seen as having some sort of dispensation, so that they can work in the temple on the sabbath.

Jesus is, in effect, saying, what’s the difference?

Of course, there is a difference.

Jesus is present with his disciples, and he is saying that there are more important things to worry about than picking and eating a few heads of grain.

And Jesus is saying that he can make that decision because of who he is.

So, how often have you ranted and railed against the breaking of petty rules and regulations?

And when you have found yourself in that place, how often have you paused to think about the real needs of those who have offended your sense of order?

This is not an easy challenge for us to have to face up to, but, if we wish to be true disciples of Christ, we have to let go of our need to be the ones in control. We have to learn to trust Jesus.

Because he never gets it wrong.

He really is the Lord of the Sabbath. 

To feel that you have a real relationship with Jesus Christ should be both warming and really, really scary.

Yesterday we read of Jesus as being the one whose intimate acquaintance with God is so complete that by getting to know Jesus, we get to know God. Just think about that for a moment.

In my life, I have met so many people who have been overwhelmed by the possibility of a passing encounter with a famous person. A close relationship with Jesus is on a totally different scale, because Jesus and God are one.

To get to know Jesus is to lay ourselves open in a way that strips away all our human pride, intransigence, greed, anger, and so on.

Getting to know Jesus is really scary, because our façade is stripped from us, and we stand before him in the harsh reality of who we really are.

And, when our façades are so effectively stripped from us, we come to realise that keeping up the pretence is exhausting.

We realise that we are weary, and weighed down with guilt and dishonesty, and with all that other negative stuff.

When we see ourselves in this light, when we finally let go and trust in the friendship of Jesus Christ, then the famous words in today’s reading make perfect sense.

Then we will find ourselves ready to let Jesus bathe our wounds. He will clothe us in all Christian virtues, and bring us into the perfect rest that only he can offer.

So often this text is misused as some sort of spiritual comfort blanket, for those who are facing a tricky day or two.

Let us not fall into that trap.

Rather let us take that step into the unknown, and revel in God’s healing and comforting love, in order that we might be better disciples, in the challenging world in which we live out our daily lives. 

There are many moments in the life of a priest when you have to pinch yourself and ask God why you have been chosen out of so many who would have been so much better than you. One of those moments that recurs time and time again is when you are travelling with a family that is both mourning the loss of a loved one and preparing a suitable celebration of that dear and precious life.

During that journey you find yourself sharing in moments of profound intimacy. People speak with a knowledge and authority that no one else could possibly possess. A surviving spouse, children, siblings, close friends, sometimes parents – each bring their own pieces, to construct an elaborate and detailed jigsaw that is absolutely unique. To be a part of the team that constructs such a jigsaw is an incredible and humbling privilege.

In today’s reading, we encounter Jesus, issuing an invitation that should make our spines tingle.

As the human Jesus has grown into the man we know from the gospel narrative, so has developed and matured Jesus’ own certainty of his unique knowledge of and relationship with God.

And Jesus invites us to share in the intimacy of the relationship he has with his heavenly Father, simply by drawing closer to him.

If we become a friend, follower and disciple of Jesus Christ, then we will also become one of those who can truly call God, Abba, Daddy.

The good thing is that we do not have to watch for the post for a special envelope to arrive. Jesus issued his invitation 2000 years ago. We just have to RSVP.

Listen to his words.

And live the life he has given us to enjoy and to use in his name.

I wonder who we will see at the party. 

At some point in all of our lives, we have been guilty of knowing the right thing to do, of recognising the right path to take, but going our own way, regardless of that knowledge. Often we dress up our wilful stubbornness in clothes of self-justification, self-assurance, and principle. But if we can find the humility to step outside our pride, we know deep inside that we are not being faithful to God.

Today’s reading begins with Jesus condemning towns that he had witnessed following the path of self-condemnation and self-destruction.

Jesus had lived, taught, and worked his deeds of power in Capernaum. The towns of Corrizon and Bethsaida were just a short journey from Capernaum.

All the people Jesus condemns had actually seen Jesus, they had actually heard Jesus, they had witnessed at first hand his divine power at work, but what difference had it made?

None at all, as far as Jesus could see. Like many of us, they just carried on in their proud, greedy, and condemnatory ways.

Can we not feel Jesus’ despair?
Or are we content that we know better?
Or are we feeling sympathetic towards the towns condemned by Jesus?

Jesus’ words to the towns where he had walked, taught and healed should be seen as a sharp wake-up call to each of us.

Throughout Scripture, we are told that the day will come when we will be judged for the way we have lived, and the way we have used our God-given time, talents, and treasure.

Today Jesus is hammering that message home.

It is never too late to repent, and follow the path God has prepared for us.

But are we ready to face that challenge? 

As we have been journeying through Matthew’s gospel in our daily readings, we have come to see Jesus in a context that makes many feel uncomfortable. We have been brought face to face with Jesus the innovator, Jesus the bringer of the new – and the different Jesus has taught us to seek a new and more intimate relationship with his and our Father in heaven. And he has taught us to pray in a different way, and of course, he has stretched out the hand of healing love to the untouchables of society.

Today, Jesus reveals himself as the great innovator yet again.

The words that Jesus speaks about division and conflict would not have been new to his Jewish audience. They come from the writings of the Old Testament prophet Micah. By quoting these words, Jesus is reminding us that it has always been known that true love of God might well separate us from even those most near and dear to us in this world.

But, having delivered these words of dire warning, Jesus also reminds us that those who live the life of true discipleship will come to know the joy of eternal life in the nearer presence of God in heaven.

Jesus also reminds us that devoting ourselves to following him, above all earthly demands, is not a mere intellectual exercise.

Jesus tells us that the simplest acts of Christian love, even the quenching of the thirst of the most challenging social outcast, is an act of love to our Lord himself.

Such acts of love may have been difficult during our days of lockdown, isolation and chilling, but they were not impossible.

Have you demonstrated your devotion to Jesus?

And how will you show that devotion even more as the lockdown eases? 

You may be surprised to hear that the most repeated command in the Bible is: Do not be afraid. In today’s reading alone we encounter the command to have no fear three times.

Over the last few days we have heard of Jesus challenging his apostles (those who are sent out) to travel very uncertain and dangerous roads with very little preparation or physical protection. Fear must have been in their hearts. And yet he says: Do not be afraid.

Rather than following up this command with such words as: God will protect you (although he does say that eventually), Jesus rather says that a time is coming when everyone will understand their message because: nothing is covered up that will not be uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known.

In this passage, that often causes confusion, Jesus is actually referring to two very different dangers in this world.

He is certainly talking of the danger the apostles will face when they encounter other human beings. The intolerance of those of other faiths, the anger of the religious authorities who felt threatened by the Good News Jesus brought into this world, and the violent aggression of the Romans and their collaborators, such as Herod.

However, he is also talking of another, and even greater, danger.

Jesus is also talking of the danger to the immortal soul of everyone who chooses to reject the love and grace of God, and to take the path to hell and eternal damnation.

Such language seems archaic to our sophisticated modern minds, but is it really?

Faith in Jesus Christ entails our total surrender to the call and command of God.

In his commissioning and sending out of the apostles in chapter 10 of Matthew’s gospel, Jesus makes it clear how great the challenge is. It is no less great for us in the twenty-first century. But … are we any better prepared than those first disciples? How have we used the last two thousand years of human history to inform our journey through this world in the name of Jesus Christ? How equipped are we to be true apostles, and sheep in a world full of wolves?

I invite you to read the narrative in Matthew 10.1-33 again and as a continuous whole, and then to consider which road you are travelling – the one to God, or to the opposite destination?

Then I invite you to seriously consider how you can, and will, respond to the call to apostleship that is uniquely yours.

Many years ago we went on an extended family holiday to Florida. Whilst there we visited all the normal tourist attractions including, of course, Disney World.

My sister, who was always an adventurous holiday maker, was determined to go on all the rides, no matter how scary they were thought to be by others. She queued, sometimes for an hour or more, to be thrown around in unimaginable ways, always to emerge looking an alarming shade of green.

Reading Jesus’ words to his apostles today, reminded me of my sister’s adventures in Disney World. Surely, as they journeyed from town to town, they must have experienced the same feelings of uncertainty, stomach-churning fear and pumping adrenalin.

Jesus brought an exciting and new message about God into this world, and he knew what it was to be opposed in terms that were uncompromising and relentless.

Jesus was not surprised by the strength of the opposition he faced, hence his words of to his apostles on the day of their sending out.

Even today, when clergy are ordained there is an aftertaste of Jesus’ warning to his disciples – we are all charged to unfold the Scriptures, to preach the word in season and out of season, and to declare the mighty acts of God.

That phrase: in season and out of season, has a direct connection to Jesus’ warning to his apostles – a warning that they were being sent out like sheep into the midst of wolves.

As we look back in time, we know the truth of Jesus’ solemn warnings. There have been many persecutions, beatings, imprisonments and killings down the centuries, just because of faith in the Good News of Jesus Christ.

In the same way, faith in Jesus Christ has certainly split families in cruel ways.

We often speak of our own society with pride because of its tolerance, but there are still many in this world that are far from tolerant of the differing faith of others. And, in fact, it doesn’t take too much examination to find similar intolerance even in the ‘civilized’ United Kingdom.

Throughout the verses of chapter 10 of Matthew’s gospel that we have encountered in recent days, we have been presented with a challenge that is even scarier than those horrendous rides in the world’s biggest fun fairs.

But … that challenge is so much more than a passing flush of adrenalin, it is an invitation to join in the most exciting, world-changing mission imaginable – to join in the spreading of the Good News of Jesus Christ.

When we travel, the majority of us like to pack for every possible eventuality. Every climatic variation has to be catered for; every imaginable financial and medical crisis has to be anticipated and prepared for.

This means, for so many, that the preparation before travelling, coupled with the act of moving from home to our destination, leaves us exhausted and incapable of fully engaging with the true purpose of our journey. And then, when we return home, we realize that we used almost none of the ‘stuff’ we took with us.

In today’s reading, Jesus is charging his apostles to adopt a very different attitude. As we read yesterday, they are being sent out to take the good news of Jesus’ exciting new message to the Jewish nation.

Firstly, they are empowered to Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. They are being told to do everything they have seen Jesus do. With such an enormous responsibility being laid upon their shoulders, their first reaction must have been to rush to gather all those ‘things’ – just in case …

But … Jesus was ready for this very human reaction. He told them not to take any money, or spare clothes and shoes, or even their trusty walking poles. Jesus is charging his apostles to go out trusting solely in God’s good grace to support them.

And … Jesus is not just talking to them about their packing. Jesus is giving them very specific instructions about what they are to do when they arrive in unfamiliar communities. And these instructions serve to emphasize the enormity of the task that is being laid upon their shoulders.

Jesus charges the apostles to bring his greeting and peace to all they visit. He does realize that some will not be prepared to accept that greeting and peace, but their first duty is to freely offer Christian love to all.

And therein lies Jesus’ challenge to us today.

We, like those first disciples, are being charged to put aside the clutter and the distractions and to share the love and peace of God with all.

We are called to stop hiding behind all those ‘possible’ crises of our imaginations and trust in that we are walking the Road, the Way, of Jesus Christ – in his name.

Are we able to do that, or are we rushing for all those extra cases? 

Today’s reading is about our call to go out onto that road and to live the life of true apostles.

In this account of the sending out of the twelve men first chosen and called by Jesus we are hearing Jesus’ call to us as well.

Incidentally, we should note that Matthew does call them ‘apostles’, which means those who are ‘sent out’. There is absolutely no doubt what Jesus expects of them, and us.

The end of our reading may seem a little strange because Jesus seems to be very exclusive in the mission he is laying before those twelve chosen men. He tells them to go only to the Jewish community, and not to those who are gentiles, that is those who reject the Jewish faith.

This is, of course, not where the Christian message was meant to stop, but it was where the prophecies of the Old Testament suggested that it should begin. Jesus’ coming to earth, the coming of the Anointed One of God, was the fulfilment of the promises of God to the Jewish nation. It was right and proper that they should hear the news first. But, as we know, the majority of the Jews were to reject the fulfilling of God’s promise and to go on to execute him in the cruellest of ways.

This is just the beginning, though. At the end of Matthew’s gospel we will encounter Jesus’ Great Commission to all who would profess the Christian faith, which in the earliest days of the Church was known as The Way. In that Great Commission Jesus commissioned his remaining eleven apostles, and us, to 

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.  And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

Jesus is calling us, as his faithful apostles, to go out and live the apostolic life, even though we can never predict where that road may lead us.

Are we ready to be true, joyful and faithful apostles of our Lord and our God, and step out on to the Road he has prepared for us to walk in his name?