The readings today warn us not to judge by mere externals. The disciples are breaking the letter of the law by picking some heads of corn as they walk through a cornfield. They are accused by the Pharisees of doing something forbidden on the Sabbath, namely, reaping. It is this kind of thinking that makes a mockery of all law. Jesus defends his disciples in two ways. He points to the example of King David and his followers taking the offering bread which, according to the Law, only the priests could eat. But they were hungry. Jesus then lays down the principle that the Sabbath - and indeed all law - is made for people and not the other way round. Similarly, Samuel wants to anoint the magnificent-looking eldest son of Jesse as king. "God does not see as man sees; man looks at the appearance but God looks at the heart." The right heart in this case was in the shepherd boy, David. For us, too, it is our inner commitment to truth and love that matters and not simply our external actions, however religious.