17th Sunday: The main thing

 

"The kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea."

Matthew 13: 44-52

The Word: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/073023.cfm

Steven Covey, well known businessman and educator, wrote a very popular book a number of years ago in which he listed seven habits of “highly effective people.” He stated: “The main thing is to keep the main thing, the main thing.”

While that may sound like a bit of sleight of hand, it is really very true.  However, what is the “main thing?” Knowing what that is and making it the very center of our lives in everything we do and to allow this to become the treasure we see as precious, will indeed lead to a meaningful and joyful life – if it is the right thing.

While our world presents wealth, prosperity, youthful energy, comfort and advantage as a great treasure to pursue, Jesus has presented for the last three Sundays in our Gospels, an even greater and lasting treasure – the “main thing" of life - that will be more valuable than anything the world may present: the kingdom of heaven.

Our Lord does so in a series of seven parables we have heard and this Sunday he concludes this teaching with the last three images of what the kingdom of heaven is like: a treasure buried in a field, a pearl of great price, and a net thrown into the sea. Our parable gems from the past two weeks have also proposed similar natural images of a sower and seed and various types of soil it falls on, of wheat and weeds planted side by side, he continues as it is like a tiny mustard seed which grows to be a large bush, and like yeast in dough that expands of its own mysterious power.  It certainly serves the purpose to leave us all to ponder the purpose beyond these agricultural images to dig and find the meaning within them. What is it about the kingdom of heaven that makes it so valuable and worth becoming single minded in our pursuit of it?

St. Irenaeus, a second century theologian, explained that the hidden treasure in the field, the pearl of great price only reveals the hidden presence of God among us in the person of Christ himself.  God came to visit this earth, his own creation, now corrupted by sin and the force of evil, to rescue us and set us free. Once we discover who Jesus is and what he has done for us, nothing else will matter in light of him.  He becomes the Lord of our life, the “main thing” that we center upon and everything else falls into place.  Is Jesus for you a hidden treasure that you have not yet discovered?  Is he like a precious gem that is priceless and that you would hold on to tenaciously? 

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: for prudence and wisdom above all else.  An amazing prayer, when you consider the context or just for what it is.  A heartfelt prayer certainly grounded in the main thing that only God can give.  Position, wealth, power have no place in such a desire.

God 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. We might say that Solomon prayed that he would treasure what God considered of great value. To desire wisdom is to discern right from wrong and to govern well. Solomon wisely goes to the source of all wisdom itself and history tells us that his rule was indeed peaceful and prosperous for the ancient nation.

All this seems to imply that what Solomon saw and what Jesus has been speaking about in these parables, is to know the true value of what God is offering us and to pursure that with all our heart. He wants to be the main thing in our lives. 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.  Its genius and stunning beauty reflect the rich values of the Spirit. But the kingdom of heaven is greater and promises more – fulfillment and eternal life.

Being in right relationship with God, to fit in to our lives all that is in keeping with the treasure he reveals, is priceless.  His Gospel, Jesus’ word, is that priceless masterpiece for he is both present and speaks through it. To live by Gospel values, to create on earth what God loves in Heaven is to live in the kingdom of heaven until it is fulfilled in eternity. As we pray: “. . . your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” You can take that to the bank!

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 the value of fine jewels.  Rather they are about the priceless worth of being in right relationship with God. In him we find that treasure, and place in that circle all things that are in line to fit there. It is about discovering Christ in his Church and to be open to life-giving grace through the sacraments. We propose the same for all we meet.

What makes these parables so timely is that our secular culture sees no real value in this faith perspective.  Our increased secular and God-less culture believes there is generally no objective truth and assumes that all is subjective depending on individual opinions and circumstances.  So, we find our own wants and desires as the moral guide of our lives. I alone become the moral guide for my choices.  Science will ultimately answer all that we wonder about so why do we need a God? The whole question of the very nature of men and women and thinking we can willfully manipulate what God has created to fit our personal ideology is not of God but of another spirit of narcissistic pride.

God seeks to fill the emptiness in our lives and when we find him, our greatest treasure has been discovered.  St. Augustine knew this very well when he famously wrote his book of Confessions. In there he recognized what has become one of his most quoted statements. Augustine wrote as if in prayer: “Late have I loved you, for you yourself have made us and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” In short St. Augustine discovered the main thing that was hidden from his eyes by his own arrogance and search for God in all the wrong places.

The gift of the Holy Eucharist, Christ himself among us, is beyond value and when received calls us to his kingdom riches. Is the main thing the main thing for you?

Let us pray: 

O God, protector of those who hope in you,

without whom nothing has firm foundation or 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 event 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, God for ever and ever. 

(Collect of Mass)