Fr Paul Gooley reads today from the Gospel of Matthew (5: 17-19) in which Jesus says he has not come to abolish the law or the prophets but to complete them.

Fr Paul says God’s covenant with Moses on Mount Sinai was the basis of Israel’s life. It gave the terms under which Israel were to be God’s people, and so a revelation of the nature of God himself.

So much of Christianity comes straight from the Law, not only beliefs but also behaviour.

And yet Jesus, while remaining faithful to the Law, gives it his own emphases, often quoting the Bible itself. ‘My pleasure is in mercy not sacrifice’ (Hosea 6.6, quoted by Jesus in Matthew 9.13) gives a whole new dimension to worship and forgiveness. Putting love of neighbour on a level with the first commandment of love of God (bringing Leviticus 19.18 to the level of Deuteronomy 6.4, as in Mark 12.29) gives a new emphasis on the treatment of others. Perhaps most of all, it was Jesus’ awareness of the full meaning of what it is to be the Servant of the Lord God prophesied in Isaiah, that led to his act of perfect, loving obedience on the Cross.

The Aramaic word ‘Amen’ must have been one of the features of Jesus’ teaching. The basic idea of the word is ‘truth, firmness, reliability’. It is used frequently in the Old Testament to express acceptance of or agreement with a statement, prayer or oath of another. In short Amen means ‘I agree’.

When Paul teaches that Jesus is the Amen to all God’s promises (2 Corinthians 1.20) he means that Jesus is the confirmation or certainty of God’s promises. In the Gospel of John Jesus frequently doubles the expression for strong emphasis.

Fr Paul invites us to consider today’s Gospel Question – we might live faith-filled, law-abiding lives but like Jesus how can we do more?