Jim Cogley’s Reflections: Tues 21 July – Mon 27 July 2026

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Tues 21 July – The Subversive Christ

There was something about the way Christ lived that eventually led to his crucifixion. By his actions, ideas and works he challenged the status quo; he upset the traditional way of behaving and invited people to think differently. So, his first words in the Gospel of Mark were Repent and believe the Gospel. The Greek word used is metanoia which means to have a change of mind and a change of heart. If people were thinking of a kingdom in the future, he taught them that the Kingdom was here and now, in fact it was within them. Where people saw God as distant and remote he taught them that God was Abba Father and so close as to count the hairs on their heads. Where so many thought that God looked upon them with eyes of disapproval, he assured his followers that God could only look upon them with the eyes of his own nature which was unconditional love.

Wed 22 July – Saving my Soul

To read the Gospels or any piece of Scripture only from a historical perspective is to do it a serious injustice and deprive it of power to be a living creative word. During the time of Christ, we certainly can see prevailing attitudes and deeply rooted ways of thinking. However, they were never unique to his time, but to a greater or lesser extent have been present in every age ever since. One of these is the belief that I have to save my soul and by the merits of living a good life will gain admission to heaven. At its core this is egocentric religion that places Christ as a figure to be looked up to, admired and imitated. It reduces the Christian life to a worthiness contest where how well ‘I’ have done will determine my future in the next life. In other words, the extent ‘I’ have climbed the ladder of salvation (or perfection) in this life will determine what level I will get off at in the next.

Thurs 23 July – Religious Pride

There is a strong religious mindset in every age that largely has a closed mind to the Gospels. This is even true for those who have heard the scriptures read daily – who have ears but they cannot hear. It’s as if their ears are closed to the truth and their eyes are veiled to spiritual realities. There are always some who may pride themselves on having done well in their religious journey and even so much better than most. This itself could be counterproductive on the spiritual quest where poverty of spirit is a prerequisite and even one’s good works need to be discarded as filthy rags. Religious pride is a bubble that many want to hold onto rather than allow it to be pricked by the newness of the Gospels. So it is that it is often the bastions of traditional practice who are most resistant and dismissive.

Fri 24July – Externals without Heart

It is part of the religious mindset in every age to place undue emphasis on external observances and adherence to certain rules and regulations. This exteriority usually comes at the expense of interiority where there can be a chronic lack of awareness and very little experience of the numinous. This was the mentality of the Pharisees who prided themselves on their own religious performance but despised everyone else. It was the self-righteousness of this group that Christ slated over and over. He even went so far as to call them whitewashed sepulchres, that looked good on the outside but inside were full of all kinds of corruption. It is understandable how his teaching clashed so much with this group that they were always watching to trip him up on theological questions and to bring him to trial for possible breaches of the law. Sometimes these questions were a trap and no matter what way he answered it would not be right. Like, ‘Should we pay taxes to Caesar or not’? To say yes or no would spring the trap.

Sat 25 July – Insiders and Outsiders

A very strong religious mentality that was prevalent in the time of Christ and flourishing to the present day is that of insiders and outsiders; those deemed worthy and the unworthy. It is against the backdrop of this mentality that the Gospel is always not just good but shocking news. In Christ’s time there were nearly as many who were not permitted inside the Temple as those who were. Tax collectors and shepherds were just two of the categories excluded as were the prostitutes and sinners. Even the Court of the Gentiles had been taken over for commercial interests with money changers and the buying of sacrificial animals. What was utterly shocking for the religious people of Christ’s time was the company he kept and the way he ate and drank with all those who were considered the outsiders. In eating with them he was in communion before they had repented of their lifestyle. To those with a religious mentality this was totally unacceptable, there were rules that had to be respected and adhered to and he was now putting the cart before the horse.

Sun 26 July – Kingdom of God

If there is one phrase that is used more than any other by Jesus it is the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Heaven. It was the central reality of his life and yet he found it difficult to find words to adequately describe it. So again, and again he uses the phrase the Kingdom of God is like……

Many think that the Kingdom of Heaven is when we die but Jesus contradicts this when he says the Kingdom of Heaven is within you or the Kingdom is at hand. In Christ’s own time many thought that the Kingdom was about Jesus being the great messianic king who would overthrow the Roman oppressors and restore autonomy to Israel. This too Jesus contradicted saying that his kingdom was not of this world.

Each time Christ says the Kingdom is like he is offering a glimpse of a deeper reality that is very much in the here and now. It’s a way of being in the world and a way of seeing the world.

Last week it was the kingdom was like wheat and weeds being allowed to grow together. A peaceful co-existence of light and darkness, good and not so good. Accepting the reality of evil in the world and accepting the contradictions we find in our nature. Not trying to change anything or anyone but simply accepting what is. There can be no doubt that living in that manner is to have a foretaste of kingdom living.

In the gospel of today he says the kingdom is like a man ploughing in a field and comes across buried treasure. Once he discovers it he gladly sells everything he owns and buys the field. Here is a man who in the course of his everyday work discovers a deeper reality he never knew existed but once he finds it he seems quite willing to let go of everything else in order to have it. He’s not a real searcher and it would appear that the Kingdom found him rather than the other way round.

Then Christ says the Kingdom is like a merchant in search of a fine pearl. There are so many like him who know they are on a search; they don’t mind where it brings them so long as the pearl is at the end of the journey. Many like this will visit different cultures and try different faiths and perhaps years later come back to the place they left only to discover it for the first time. Finding a life-giving faith can be a long and lonely journey for so many.

I have often asked myself why is it that after 2000 there is still war and conflict and so little peace in the world. Why is there so little evidence of this mysterious Kingdom? The only conclusion I can come to is that is always there for all of us as a way of being, a way of seeing and a way of behaving.

It is about always doing the loving thing.

It is about being of service to our neighbour and helping the other in the best way we can.

It is about not living with distinctions and seeing the rich as more important than the poor.

It is about valuing who we are as opposed to what we do.

It is about living with contradiction in our nature and nor doing violence to ourselves.

The kingdom is definitely not about when we die and go to heaven. It’s much more about the here and now and how to find happiness peace and contentment in the present. Jesus and the Buddha were very similar in their teachings about this. The Buddha spoke about all suffering and unhappiness being caused by attachment to external things and that such attachments divorced us from the reality of our true selves. Jesus spoke of the man selling what he owned which is much the same thing – he let go of what he had out there in order to come into full possession of what he could only have on the inside.

We are so programmed to think of happiness being out there, somewhere beyond the rainbow. Someone will make me happy; something will make me happy; there’s always a boat coming in that I’m waiting for that will bring me happiness. Yet when we think about it realistically; has anyone ever made us happy in the long term? Has anything ever fulfilled its promise of happiness? Can anyone or anything fulfil all our expectations? It boils down to the fact that happiness is an inside job and so Jesus speaks of the kingdom of heaven being in here and never out there. It’s always at home as an inner reality even if it still demands a bit of digging and searching before it finds us

Mon 27 July – Zacchaeus

In religious thinking repentance always comes before communion. With spiritual awareness it is love that paves the way for genuine change of heart. One day as Christ was leaving Jericho, he saw a man up a tree. He had never met him before and knew nothing about the fact that he was the despised Collector General of Roman taxes in the area. This man who was physically challenged had climbed the tree to see Christ but had also exposed himself to ridicule and taunts from the crowd. Christ reacted to seeing any human being treated in this manner and tongue in cheek said, ‘Zacchaeus come down, do we not have a dinner date this evening?’ Here, he was offering communion without any mention of repentance. It was only after the meal and experiencing himself loved that Zacchaeus truly opened his heart by promising to share his riches and rectify his injustices.