Sunday Meditation: Sell All You Have

For the Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time in Year A, we reach the final parables in Jesus’s Parables Discourse.  In the two previous Sundays we heard a total of four parables.  Today we get another three, and possibly a fourth in that at the very end of the discourse Jesus offers us another strange comparison. 

The first two parables are about discovering the Kingdom of Heaven.  The first, the treasure in the field, is found by luck.  The second, the pearl of great price, is found by searching.  Both motivates the finder to sell all he has to orient himself to the fortune, which is the Kingdom of Heaven.  The third parable parallels last Sunday’s Parable of the Wheat and Weeds.  Here there will be a net to catch fish, and at judgement the good fish will be saved and the bad will be destroyed.

Gina Hens-Piazza in America Media points out that ultimately arriving at the Kingdom is not a passive reception:

 

The person who finds the buried treasure now goes and sells all that he has to buy the field. The person who finds the pearl of great price, also goes and sells all that he has and buys it. Finally, when the net is full, the people must do the work of hauling it ashore and sorting through to put what is good into their bucket. When Jesus asks whether the disciples (and we) understand, he is asking about whether we grasp our part in the discovery of God in our midst. By mentioning the processes of finding, selling, buying, hauling, and sorting in these brief parables, Jesus emphasizes that beholding God’s presence here and now requires effort.

 

It may require ridding ourselves of the many distractions that draw us away from cultivating that understanding heart. It may necessitate dismantling the habits, addictions, or busyness that compete for the attention required to recognize the divine presence within us. It may warrant that we expend the effort to set aside regular time each day to make ourselves available for the gift of understanding so we may glimpse the holy mystery in our midst.

I am also really struck by that “fourth” parable.  After the disciples acknowledge understanding the parables, Jesus offers this to the “scribes” of the Word: "Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old."  Who are the scribes who have been instructed?  On the one hand, St. Matthew since he is scribing these words; on the other hand, all of us who now understand.

 

 

Today’s Gospel:

 

 

Jesus said to his disciples:

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,

which a person finds and hides again,

and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant

searching for fine pearls.

When he finds a pearl of great price,

he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,

which collects fish of every kind.

When it is full they haul it ashore

and sit down to put what is good into buckets.

What is bad they throw away.

Thus it will be at the end of the age.

The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

 

"Do you understand all these things?"

They answered, "Yes."

And he replied,

"Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven is like the head of a household who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old."

~Mt: 13:44-52

 

 

Fr. Joseph Mary of the Capuchin Franciscans in his A Simple Word channel offers a great explanation of the readings.

Fr. Joseph Mary:

When a first century Jew heard the kingdom of God, one thing came to mind, a return to the golden age of Israel.  So, here we have it. two different groups of people, two very different groups, two very different times, and two very different understandings of the kingdom of God. Our youth, perhaps like many of us, are looking into the future at some shining kingdom in the clouds, a kingdom beyond this earthly life, while the Jews are looking into the past at a cherished memory of what had once been.  But this is a serious problem because when Jesus Christ came proclaiming the kingdom of God, he wasn't talking about either one of these. This was the focal point of his teaching, the main message, and it went right over their heads.  Most of the time, I think it goes over our heads, too. What did Jesus mean when he spoke of the kingdom of God?

 

Let's look at the three parables that he gives us in Sunday's gospel. The kingdom of God is like a treasure buried in a field. The first characteristic of this kingdom is what we already know. It's hidden. It's not the kingdom people are expecting. It's emerging in a secret way that not everyone sees. For this reason, Jesus says, "No one can see the kingdom of God unless he's born from above.  Unless God himself reveals it, unless that person adopts a new way of looking at the world." The second characteristic of this kingdom is that it's extremely valuable. The parable describes it as a treasure.  It is the treasure. It's so valuable.  This man goes and sells everything he has in order to obtain it. In this parable, the kingdom of God is the goal of all of our efforts and strivings, the object of all of our longings and desires.  Jesus continues, "The kingdom of God is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. At first glance, it seems that the pearl of great price is an image of the kingdom of God. But that's not what Jesus says. He says the kingdom of God is like the merchant who's searching.  Here the kingdom is not an object being sought but an active force within the person himself. It's that indescribable hunger which impels him towards the fullness of something unspeakable, something which he himself can't even fathom. It's the spirit that urges us with groanings too deep for understanding.

 

In both parables, upon making this incredible discovery, the man goes and sells all that he has.  Jesus is saying that if one has truly discovered the kingdom of God, his whole life, all of his priorities will change radically…Jesus is clear. The kingdom of God changes a man. He's a new creation.  Jesus goes on, "The man goes and sells all that he has to buy this pearl." There's the same reaction in both parables. Jesus is telling us something crucial about the kingdom of God. It's now. He wants us to understand there is an urgency to respond.

The Kingdom of God is near.  The Kingdom of God is upon you.

I don’t know if I’ve ever posted on Gospel reflections from the channel My Catholic Life, but they do have a way of getting to the point.

 

My Catholic Life:

These parables pose two fundamental questions for each of us:

 

💠Have I discovered the priceless treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven?

💠If I have, am I willing to let go of everything else to attain it?

 

Like the man who stumbles upon the buried treasure, many people encounter God’s grace in surprising ways—through a moment of prayer, a profound experience at Mass, an act of charity, or even during suffering. Maybe those people were not actively seeking divine treasure, yet in a moment of providence, the veil is lifted, and the beauty of God’s Kingdom is revealed. Once they discover the treasure, their souls realize that nothing else compares. From that point on, they are moved to reorient their entire lives to possess that treasure fully.

 

The path of the merchant, by contrast, is that of the soul who longs for truth, beauty, and goodness, diligently seeking them out. The one who searches might spend years studying, praying, yearning, and pursuing what is of eternal value. And then—finally—the “pearl” is found. Christ is discovered. The Gospel becomes clear. The longing is fulfilled. Again, everything else is willingly surrendered for the sake of that one Pearl of great price—Jesus Christ.

 

In both parables, the decision to sell all to gain the treasure is an easy choice. The discovery is so great that everything else the person possesses pales in comparison. But how many people have truly made such a discovery?

It’s hard to say how many people have made such a discovery.  It’s possible to say very few, as the video suggests.  It’s also possible to say that many make such a discovery at some point in their lives.  Sometimes it takes time and a crises to reach that realization.  Afterall, the parable doesn’t say how long it took the merchant to search out the pearl.

 

 

Sunday Meditation: “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant

searching for fine pearls.”

 

 

 

“Seek Ye First (The Kingdom of God)” is a wonderful hymn for today.

 

Seek ye first the kingdom of God

And His righteousness;

And all these things shall be added unto you.

Alleluia!

 

Ask, and it shall be given unto you;

Seek, and you shall find.

Knock, and it shall be opened unto you.

Alleluia!