Today’s household object is the toothbrush and our passage is Exodus 21:23-27, with reference also to Matthew 5:38-41.
Brushing our teeth is a daily habit which helps to remove plaque from teeth and keeps them healthy. It’s something we teach our children to do from a young age, and becomes part of our daily cleansing rituals. A failure to do so can result in teeth falling out and can affect our eating, speaking and appearance. A failure to engage in this daily dental ritual can bring judgment in the form of real, inconvenient and painful consequences.
We are advised to spend two minutes brushing our teeth in order to ensure it is effective. Two minutes is not a long time, but can seem quite long when you have an excessively strong gag reflex as I do! We often find it hard to concentrate in prayer, which is why perhaps we need to embed prayer as strongly into our daily routines as we do washing and brushing our teeth. God’s word is given to guide us and help us; we need to heed its warnings and instructions (and not simply search for its promises!) so that we can live long and fruitful lives.