"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasured buried in a field . . ."
1 Kg 3: 5, 7-12
Rm 8: 28-30
Mt 13: 44 – 52
About three years
ago, a friend of my mother had gone to a home yard sale and found what she
noticed was an older copy of a New Testament.
The cover was original but very worn especially the binding on the side
but the pages inside were still perfect, readable and intact. It is a King James version of the New
Testament, printed in Oxford, England in 1827.
Well, knowing I’m a priest she gave this to me. I have it wrapped in
plastic at home but have never had it appraised. I’m not sure what kind of value there might
be in a book but it may be worth finding out what it’s worth. Inside is a
signature that appears to be someone named “King James.” No, not really, but could you imagine the
value of that book? There is a signature in the front of the book but I have no
idea who it is; likely some unknown owner from the 19th century.
We put a value on
everything. If you’ve ever watched the
show “Antiques Road Show,” it’s amazing to discover what small or large
treasures people discover are in their possession. At the same time, with good humor, they
discover what they thought was an original oil painting of some great American
artist is merely a copy. The point is,
we all hope to find a treasure; some long lost money, a trinket of great value
that looked so ordinary, a lost Rembrandt painting that was covered in dust
inside someone’s closet or is being sold for $10 at a Church rummage sale!
Yet, what we might
consider to be a treasure is presented to us in a new light through these
parables on the Kingdom of Heaven that we have heard Jesus teach about the last
several Sundays and today as well, which closes his teaching on these parables.
In our first
reading from the Book of Kings we hear of a great treasure that young Solomon,
the son of King David, who is now the new King of Israel prays for. As royalty, even in those ancient times, we
could imagine that he longed for a beautiful palace or the finest foods or
robes to wear. But wise King Solomon
prays for “an understanding heart . . .
to distinguish right from wrong” in order to govern his people wisely. In other words, Solomon prays for divine
guidance on all his decisions and responsibilities. An amazing prayer, when you consider the
context!
What does God say
in response? He praises Solomon for
asking for a true treasure and grants Solomon a “heart so wise and understanding that there has never been anyone like
you . . . and after . . . no one will equal you.” God grants Solomon more than what he had
asked for and delights in this young King’s unselfishness and wisdom. We see Solomon as one who had his priorities
in the right place. We might say that
Solomon prayed that God’s treasure would be his treasure and that what God
considered of great value, he would consider the same. That he might live by
God’s commands in line for his Kingdom.
The same is true
for Jesus’ concept of the kingdom of heaven.
In more analogies, our Lord continues to say what this kingdom is like:
a treasure discovered buried in a field which the finder sells all to purchase;
a pearl of great price suddenly discovered by a merchant who sells all to
purchase it; like fisherman who separated the good and bad fish from each other
and keep only what is quality.
All this seems to
imply that what Solomon saw and what Jesus has been speaking about in these
parables, is a great treasure beyond any earthly value. If the Vatican, for example, tried to sell the
stunning masterpiece of Michelangelo – the Pieta- how much would it be
worth? Ten million? Twenty?
One billion dollars? You could
not put a price on this one of a kind treasure.
No matter what it would be sold for, someone would offer more. It is an artistic masterpiece of astronomical
value – priceless.
Jesus teaching
about living in this kingdom of heaven implies the same. Being in right relationship with God, to fit in to our
lives all that is in keeping with the treasure he reveals, is priceless. Greater than any other “thing” we may see of
value. His Gospel, Jesus’ word, is that
priceless masterpiece.
Likewise he offers
another image – a pearl of great price.
A merchant has been searching for that one of a kind treasured
pear. He finds it, recognizes its
priceless value and “sells all that he
has and buys it.” It is clear these
parables like the others about mustard seeds, yeast in bread, and various kinds
of soil which may or may not produce life, are not about agriculture or
estimating value of fine jewels. Rather
they are about the priceless value of being in right relationship with God,
finding that treasure, and placing in that circle all things that are in line
to fit in there.
What makes these
parables so timely today is that our secular culture sees no value in this faith
perspective. Believing there is generally
no objective truth and assuming that all is subjective depending on individual
opinions and circumstances, we find our own wants and desires as the moral
guide of our lives. I alone become the moral guide for my choices.
Turning a blind eye
to the treasure of God and faith in our lives creates a vacuum that needs to be
filled. To disconnect from a faith centered community, as imperfect as we can
be at times, creates a hole that longs to be filled. And sometimes we fill that empty space with
all things – so called pleasures and treasures – that are not healthy or
certainly not eternal.
God seeks to fill
that space in our lives. His kingdom
came to us through his Word, his own Son Jesus the Christ. This is the treasure God has offered us. In and through the life of his Church we come
to know this treasure more deeply and fully.
St. Augustine knew
this very well through his own life experience.
He recognized by the time he was 31 how unproductive, wasteful and selfish
his life had been. Finally, after
conversion to Christianity he famously wrote his book of Confessions. In there he recognized what has become one of his most
quoted statements. In short St.
Augustine wrote about finding a great treasure, even later in his life: “Late
have I loved you,” Augustine wrote as if speaking to God. “For you yourself have made us and our hearts
are restless until they rest in you.”
If God is not the
center of our lives, but something else is, we live unnaturally. Where is your treasure?
O God, protector of those who hope in you,
without whom nothing has firm foundation,
nothing is holy,
bestow in abundance your mercy upon us
and grant that, with you as our ruler and guide,
we may use the good things that pass
in such a way as to hold fast even now to those that ever endure.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
(Collect (opening prayer) of Mass)
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