hear my voice when I call to you

How do the texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today cause us to consider the help we receive from God and the times when we understand that He has heard our voice? The narrative in Genesis is the story of the obedience of Abraham to the commands of God. Abraham addresses the questions of Isaac about the source of the sacrificial “lamb”. His father instructs him in patience about Providence. The dramatic conclusion of the narrative is the witness that Abraham has complete trust in the will of the Father to advance the Divine mission of love through means of Providence. The psalmist proclaims the majesty and superiority of the power of God which is manifest in steadfast love and faithfulness to Israel. God communicates with His people. He hears and responds. The Gospel of Matthew illustrates Jesus hearing the inner faith voices of those following Him. Physical weakness, deformity and sickness was thought to be a consequence of sin. In response to the faithfulness He experienced Jesus proclaims the sins of a paralysed man to be forgiven. This taking the place of God was labelled blasphemy by the religious scholars. The truth of Jesus authority to recognize faith and to respond with forgiveness is asserted by the demonstration of Divine power which restores mobility to the paralysed man.