The Gospel reading today has always been one that has confused me over the many times I’ve read it. Christ tells us he has not come “to abolish the law or the prophets.” Throughout my adult life I have had to keep from being trapped in a strictly new versus old covenant mindset.  In actuality this is not true, the old and the new are complimentary. The law Christ is talking about is the Ten Commandments. I need to keep in mind that the Commandments are based in natural law and will never be abolished thus transcending time.

For myself it’s easier to put the readings today in a simple format and not to be concerned with what I have interpreted as conflicts. Both the reading from Corinthians and Matthew’s gospel speak of righteousness and abounding in glory. I’ve realized that over time my goal in life has become to serve God and others. This can only be accomplished through responding to the truth of God and Christian love towards others. The commandments for me, are not a set of negative rules, but a set of truths that I attempt to live by. A few decades ago (yes I’m getting old), I made a commitment to my faith and began my walk with the Lord. Through that time I’ve found that when living by the commandments, my relationship with God and others just seemed to go better. Luckily for me Christ came to fulfill the law and  I’m only here to do the best I can. Only with His grace and my response to that grace is it possible to “abound in righteousness and glory.” The journey so far has been fun and with unexpected turns. More is yet to come.