30th Sunday Year A

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Matthew 22:34-40

Do you ever think to yourselves, “It’s Sunday! I wonder what the gospel will be about today?” and then several moments later think to yourself, “Well that was very spiritual, and scriptural, and biblical and theological – but it doesn’t affect me because I don’t understand it!”

Recently we have had, Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s; and prior to that the story of the marriage feast, the none attending guests and the man not properly dressed for the wedding.

With each of these it is relatively easy to say that these are gospel readings for the priest to look at, to look into and to translate into some sort of every day meaning for us ordinary people. And because of this we can and maybe lots of us do – walk away thinking that there is nothing here for me.

But what about today’s gospel? In fact what about all of today’s readings? How easy is it to turn away from these readings and say that I don’t understand them and therefore they don’t apply to me?

The Lord said to Moses in our first reading, “You must not molest the stranger or oppress him. You just not be harsh with the widow. You must not demand interest on a loan.  You must not leave a man without his cloak”

These are all expressions of how we each can and must show our love for each other.

St Paul says to the Thessalonians that they had become imitators of him, the other Apostles and the Lord and now lived their lives accordingly. They were now examples to other peoples on how to live the message of the Lord in their daily everyday lives. But what was this message that they were living?

Jesus gives us the answer this in Matthew’s gospel, in a very simple, clear, direct and unarguable way. The greatest commandment of the Law is, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second resembles it: you must love your neighbour as yourself.”

What is it about these messages that we can dispute? What is it about them that we can say, “Ah yes. But that does not affect or include me? That is not about me? That is about other people: other people, over there, away from me?

“Love your neighbour as yourself”; which builds on his similar message, “Love each other just as I have loved you”. So how did Jesus love us? How did he show his love for us?

When we look at each other here in church today or when we see each other out and about on the streets, what is it about the person we see that says to us, “There is Christ in front of me and this is my chance, my opportunity to show my love of God in how I greet or speak or deal with them?”

How did Christ show his love for me and for the whole of humanity? He took all of my sins and that of everyone who had lived or would ever live onto his shoulders and offered them to his Father in heaven who forgave our every slip and slight, and wound or bruise and asked that we do the same in return with each other.

So look around now. Look at your brothers and sisters in Christ sitting alongside you; in front or behind you; maybe not here today but coming tomorrow or tied up at home with work or illness.

How do you – do we – show our love for each other. That we are glad to be with each other today and on all other days? How do we show that we recognise that we each make mistakes but that we are each there to pick the other up, to help dust them off and to help them make fresh starts. When we need time and space and maybe a welcoming ear, or shoulder or hand, we should know without thinking that we can each look to any member of this church for support; for kindness; for forgiveness; for help; for understanding and for love.

And that giving and receiving this love between us as fellow parishioners gives us the foundation to repeat this to the stranger, to the widow or orphan, to the poor and destitute.

Today’s gospel and scripture message is not one that is confusing or confused. It is not one which is complicated or complex. It is not one that we can easily or readily body-swerve. It is there right in front of us as a direct challenge.

“Love your neighbour as yourself” – “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind” which translates as - “Love one another as I have loved you”. If we are not doing this, then we need to change, because we are missing out and missing the importance of God’s message to us through his Holy Son.

Within our church community we have received many new members because of the welcome, the love that we have clearly shown them when they visited. They felt loved and wanted to be part of this.

We have also lost some members because of the ill-feeling they have seen between some of us. They felt uncomfortable and did not want to be part of this.

Lord – Help me to see you in every one of my neighbours and to recognise every opportunity to show your love of me in how I show my love of them.