Luke 12 24-59

Jesus said to the crowds: ‘When you see a cloud looming up in the west you say at once that rain is coming, and so it does. And when the wind is from the south you say it will be hot, and it is. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the face of the earth and the sky. How is it you do not know how to interpret these times?

‘Why not judge for yourselves what is right? For example: when you go to court with your opponent, try to settle with him on the way, or he may drag you before the judge and the judge hand you over to the bailiff and the bailiff have you thrown into prison. I tell you, you will not get out till you have paid the very last penny.’

Why are we so much better at paying attention to the world than to God? We know more about the weather than we do about what God is doing in our world. The world has many ways of drawing our focus away from God, not just with worries about the weather, but also a media system determined to grab our attention. To profit from our outrage and fear. This can easily overwhelm our attempts to listen to God. God is always there, always available, always at work in our lives if only we will pay attention.

The second point Jesus makes is that we should not get caught up in a legalistic approach to our life. Jesus tells us that our salvation depends on us forgiving one another – it’s right there in the Lord’s Prayer: “forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. To be saved, to be in the right relationship with God, to really be followers of Christ we must forgive.

May we all find some quiet time to listen to God today, and with God’s help to forgive those who have harmed us rather than seeking restitution or vindication.