Friday 21 July 2023

Today is Friday the 21st of July, in the Fifteenth week of Ordinary time.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo sing: ‘Uthando Olungaka’: ‘Who will separate us from the love of God?’ That’s a good thought to enter into prayer with, to begin my prayer today: to rest easy in the love of God, to know that I am safe in that love which nothing and no-one can take away from me.

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Today’s reading is from the Gospel of Matthew.

Matthew 12:1-8

At that time Jesus went through the cornfields on the sabbath; his disciples were hungry, and they began to pluck heads of grain and to eat. When the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, ‘Look, your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the sabbath.’ He said to them, ‘Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He entered the house of God and ate the bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him or his companions to eat, but only for the priests. Or have you not read in the law that on the sabbath the priests in the temple break the sabbath and yet are guiltless? I tell you, something greater than the temple is here. But if you had known what this means, “I desire mercy and not sacrifice”, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of Man is lord of the sabbath.’

In this slightly disconcerting story, Jesus confronts His listeners with the Son of Man, in other words, with Himself. He doesn’t give them rules or criteria for correct ethical behaviour, even less a political system. Just Himself. We cannot remain neutral about Him. We either accept Him on His own terms or we don’t. Take a few minutes now in silence to check out how you react to Jesus, the Son of Man… don’t try and force yourself to think the “right thing” – just see what comes as you look at him, say his name…


Perhaps I can ask myself, what am I really looking for in life? Something other than Jesus? A legal contract with God? A guarantee of a trouble-free existence? Or friendship with the Lord of life?

Listen to the encounter again. In the light of what has come up for you, you might like to imagine yourself as someone in the scene – a Pharisee, a disciple or an onlooker – go with whatever seems right – let the conversations develop freely and spontaneously…

The conversation with Jesus about who He really is never comes to an end… even when we think we have come to final clarity there is still more to discover… notice where you are on your journey with the Lord now, without judging yourself, and see what you want to say to the Lord in the last moments of this prayer time.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.