In the Gospel reading today the disciples of Jesus are picking grain and in so doing breaking the Mosaic Law; that is, one should not do any type of work during the Sabbath. This was made evident by the Pharisees who saw this and questioned Jesus about the disciples behavior. Jesus in reply pointed to the fact that David had gone into the area of the Holy Temple and was given the showbread to eat by the Priest. Jesus makes this point to demonstrate that David, by law, was not allowed to enter into the Holy Place, but due to an extreme need, was given the bread by the Priest, and God did not see it as sin, nor breaking the law. Likewise, the picking of grain on the Sabbath is necessary—for food is an essential part of human living.

There are often many issues, some serious and others minor, that arise between individuals in various settings such as, parish, workplace, home, etc. By issues I mean: misunderstandings based on what someone said or what someone did. Often misunderstandings come from our misinterpretation; that is, what is said or done is perceived with a different meaning than what is intentioned.

In the age of advanced information technology, where we know the “where, when, what and why” of what is happening in the world within minutes, it is hard for us to accept the words of Christ when he says, “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Mark 13:32) Here we see that it is only God that knows the hour and time of the end of the age; that is, the end of the universe as we know it.

When Christ teaches that we are to be “perfect” just as the heavenly Father is “perfect,” he is not speaking regarding nature or substance, but rather, us as Christians, being willing to participate in the work of salvation that God is doing in and through us. Meaning, we are not to ever think that we can become God. We are humans after all, and God is God. We can never become God but we can become “godly.” It is this “godliness” that we must aspire to. It is our goal to become like God. As St. Athanasius states in his work, On The Incarnation, “God became man so that man might become like God.” It is the devil’s handiwork to make us think that we cannot become like God. The saints are proof that we can become like God. That is, we can become “godly.” This is what Christ means when he says, “be perfect.”