(Audio)
Jesus had been speaking about reward. There were those who insisted on rewarding themselves, such as those who received pride in exchange for ostentatious public display of virtue. But there were also those who were content to allow their Father who saw their deeds in secret to repay them. The reward of the prideful was cheap, short-lived, and ultimately unsatisfactory. But the reward given by the Father was something lasting and ultimately the only thing that truly satisfied.
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal.
Jesus went on to teach that treasure on earth was also not the reward that one ought to seek. All of these attempts to reward oneself and to heap up treasure on earth ultimately derived from a lack of trust in God to reward and provide. People would fill silo after silo with supplies to provide against the eventualities of an apparently hostile and dangerous world. They would attempt to build up their ego by any means they could in order to attempt to fill the emptiness they felt. But these desperate motives did not actually suffice to fulfill their desires. They were building on shifting sands and constructing edifices that could not last. If one's ego depending on appearing perfect on public then any small insult would be received as an egregious injury. Though the egotistic approach would have some high points it could not also be without corresponding low points and would therefore never yield true contentment. If the only safeguard one had against the possible difficulties the future might bring was one's wealth that too was only a short term solution. Disaster might strike at any time and the coming of death was both unpredictable and inevitable.
But store up treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.
There was only one way to find treasure that one need not fear to lose, and which could actually provide the joy it promised. Such treasure was found in heaven and could come from God alone. The secret to receiving it was not to desire some kind of abstract wealth but to have one's heart set on God himself. God alone would abide forever, and desired to be, himself, the reward of those who sought him.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away (see Matthew 24:35).
The prayer of Saint Teresa of Avila captures this perfectly:
Let nothing disturb you,
Let nothing frighten you,
All things are passing away:
God never changes.
Patience obtains all things
Whoever has God lacks nothing;
God alone suffices.
Jesus told his followers to set their hearts on treasure in heaven. But how, practically speaking, does one do this? He said to be solicitous about our eye, that is, to be conscientious about the things on which we focus our attention. If we allow ourselves to have an evil eye given over to envy, constantly fixated on what greed makes us desire, we will never know the peace that heavenly treasure can bring. If we take custody of our eye and keep it from fixating on things that cannot satisfy us, that is the first step. From there we can look to places where we can genuinely contribute to the world and make a real difference. Then our eye is not only not darkness but begins to be a lamp enlightening others. Our eye can also lead to contemplation of the divine, such as in reading of scripture, or especially in adoring Jesus truly present in the Blessed Sacrament. Then, even on earth, we can begin to experience the rewards of heaven, as our "whole body will be filled with light".
Let's tear down the idols in our hearts and demolish the temple of Baal in our lives. Let us shatter altars and images that can never bring us joy so that we can find our delight in Zion where the Lord himself has chosen to dwell.
No comments:
Post a Comment