PROPER XII - A - 20 - 1Kgs. 3. 5-12, Rom 8. 26-39, Matt. 13. 31-33, 44-52
Last week’s gospel was the parable of the wheat and the tares where Jesus emphasized “understanding.” That was the one gift Solomon asked of God in today’s first lesson. Moreover, because he did not ask for riches or material things for himself, but rather understanding or wisdom, to govern his people, properly, God granted his request to the degree that no one before or after him ever possessed such wisdom.
Christ’ message is universal but it is up to the individual hearer to think it through and to ask himself what does it mean to me? How should I respond in terms of my personal relationship to God? That is what Jesus meant when he concluded his teaching with “those who have ears let them hear.”
Today’s gospel is a continuation of Jesus’ teachings on the
Our gospel reading for this day, then, begins with two short parables that both have to do with hidden beginnings and result in growth - that of the mustard seed and leaven.
One could take them to mean growth of personal faith, and that would be ok, but here Jesus is speaking once again of the kingdom of heaven. His mission was to reveal it, and in revealing it invite those who were open to receive it to enter in.
Following these two, Matthew gives us the parable of the hidden treasure, then the pearl of great price, and ends with the dragnet as an image of what will become of the good and the bad at the close of the age.
The parable of discovering the hidden treasure and the discovery and recognition of the pearl of great price have to do with one’s willingness to sacrifice all in order to gain the discovery.
The emphasis here is on finding, which is in some cases is accidental, and in others a result of seeking.
Have you ever watched that TV show about the two brothers that have spent untold millions of dollars and a decade or more searching for a hidden treasure on Oak island?
I have been utterly amazed at the amount of effort these two have put in trying to discover whether the supposed treasure actually exists. To my knowledge, they have yet to find anything of significant value that even comes close to equaling the cost of their quest.
They are seekers, if you will, after something that may or may not exist. They are true treasure hunters, as opposed to those Jesus is referring to in the parable of the hidden treasure, which is most often accidentally discovered as well as that of the pearl of great price.
What both of these parables have in common with the treasure hunting brothers is the willingness of the discoverer to go and sell all that he has in order to possess it and the joy that comes with discovering and possessing it. Of course, what Jesus is referring to is the kingdom of heaven that he is announcing as well as embodying and not some earthly treasure.
All things have value when they are prized. Value, however, is relative. The gospel bids us seek the pearl of great price and to look for the hidden treasure that is the kingdom of heaven. They are hidden because they are neither recognized nor valued by those immersed in worldliness.
The journey to God for each of us began at the font of life. Our journey is a lifetime road to God. In seeking, we find, Jesus tells us. The object of the search is found on the road. We have to stay focused on the road and not on ourselves, and not on others who may or may not be in the road, or who may or may not get in our way.
To find the one pearl of great price involves a process of eliminating the other so-called pearls that have heretofore attracted our attention and in some cases distracted us from continuing the journey. It could be other people or some thing that caused us to stop, and or to make a wrong turn.
To continue to seek with an emphasis on finding is not accidental. It is at the heart of the journey to God. We can only discover the kingdom through Jesus.
We have to come to know him first and be willing to follow where he leads. Christ is the way to God; the cross is the key to the kingdom. One of the discoveries that one makes in seeking the kingdom is that we find our true selves in Him who calls us to himself.
Our gospel reading for today concludes with Jesus’ image of the dragnet. He is referring to the close of the age. It is similar to that of the wheat and the tares from last week in that those gathered into the church are subject as well to the sorting out process. The accent here falls not on the waiting period but on the separation of the elect from the evil one. To which Jesus asks his hearers “have you understood all these things?”
The gospel message, then, and now sharply divides into two camps; those who accept Christ and his message and those who reject the gospel. In that, nothing is new. This divide will continue until the day when God will remake the whole world in justice and truth.
Some would say that day is drawing near. Their reasoning is based on the evidence that those opposed to Christ and the gospel appear to be growing in their opposition to it and are becoming more willing to make it known by acting on it. All the more reason for us who have discovered the pearl of great price not to hide it, but display it in the way we live and in our relationships to others.
Jesus’ final remark to his disciples on the dragnet points to a straight line from the Old Testament to the New and to Jesus and beyond him to the final judgment. That is what Jesus meant when he said that every scribe trained for the kingdom of heaven brings out of his treasure things both old and new.
As we ponder Jesus’ stories and ponder what they meant then and now, we need to ask ourselves what it might mean today to be “a scribe trained for the kingdom of heaven’? AMEN+
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