With Jack Paton.

Jesus has all the makings of a great king — a kingly heritage, a miraculous birth story, divine blessing at the time of his baptism, the fear of earthly leaders, and a ready-made army of the multitudes. Could this be the one to restore the throne of David, as the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel suggests? When this heaven-sent leader finally addresses his followers what does he say?

Well, after blessing the outcasts, the needy, and the downtrodden, and those on the fringes of society (5:3-11), Jesus talks about anger (5:21-26), about loyalty (5:27-37), and retaliation (5:38-48). Unlike many political activists, Jesus does not play upon the people’s anger toward injustice and incite them to take revenge. There is no battle cry here ...

This talk is based on Matthew 5:38-48, and refers to other passages from Matthew's Gospel.

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With Patrick Boyns.

One of the things which particularly intrigues me about the Gospels is the way in which we are drawn into the story. We are not simply reading biographies in which we acquire information and learn facts about this Jesus. We are reading something far more compelling than that. More than simply learning about him, we are called to inhabit the story with him … to walk with him … to abide in him – knowing that he will be with us and within us as we journey through life – even today.

When we read of Jesus – of his coming into the world, of his life of service, of his teachings and wisdom, of his love and compassion, of his justice and mercy, of his sacrificial death, of his victory over death – when we read of Jesus we are called to be a part of the story with him. And it’s the story of life, and of suffering, and of death and of victory over death – it’s the story of living in the very presence of God.

Scriptures referred to:

Psalm 19:7–11

Hebrews 1:1–3

John 14:7–10

Colossians 1:14

John 5:39–40

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With Mark Hill.

I used to read national newspapers, and one of the things that I used to do, and I'm not quite sure why, but I used to read the obituaries – reading about people who died and it turned out they had done something remarkable. On one particular day it was announced that Nils Bohlin had died. What a strange name! So, of course, the strangness of the name attracted my eyes to read about him. He died of natural causes after a good, long life. No tragedy, no upset. Why was it that this man warranted a mention in a national newspaper?

Well I read with fascination that he had probably saved the lives of thousands upon thousands of people. I could have been included in that. The 'probably' wasn't about whether he'd probably saved lives – he had saved lives – the 'probably' was concerned with just how many lives he'd saved. It could be he'd saved your life. When he did, did you stop to think about him, or thank him? Did you send him a note? Or like me, you were completely unaware of who he is. As it happens, he's involved in all of our lives ...

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With Jack Paton.

Life’s fragility gives this story some urgency. Jesus turns attention away from the disasters, and away from the victims, and “why?” He distracts us from spending time asking the "why" questions, and he addresses those of us who thus far have survived hazards of the universe and the dangers of living in human society. But we should not mistake our good fortune as evidence of God’s special blessing.

What Jesus wants to talk about in this passage is repentance. And the need for repentance is a universal condition, and it is shared by random victims of tragedies and the rest of us who go about our lives knowing that they could very quickly be cut short.

When Jesus says, twice, “unless you repent you will all perish” like the others did, he is not promising that the godless of this world will be struck by an asteroid or some great disaster. He refers to death as an end of time experience – a destruction, not just of one's life, but of one’s soul.

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With Patrick Boyns.

Life has never consisted in the abundance of our possessions – that’s what the teacher said – and he knows these things. He said this after having been asked to settle a family dispute – essentially making it clear that material possessions are essentially worthless.

And it was he, you may well remember, who told a would-be follower that, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” No luxury king-size, four-poster, sleep-enhancing bed … not even a conventional, worn-out, bog-standard, bunk bed … “nowhere”.

The thing is that there is nothing in this life, as far as possessions or comfort is concerned, that should be of any real concern to us at all. Quite simply, that is not what life is about. That is not where life flourishes. That is not where abundance in life is to be found!

Scriptures referred to:

Luke 12:15

Matthew 16:24–25

Colossians 3:3–4

2 Corinthians 10:3

1 Timothy 6:12

2 Timothy 4:7

Ephesians 6:10–13

2 Timothy 2:1–4

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