Homily for the 17th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Jesus says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure… The kingdom of heaven is like a pearl…” (Mt 13:44-52) In both cases, a person found the treasure and the pearl and sold everything to take possession of it.
There are two ways of looking at these parables. In the more traditional way, the kingdom of heaven IS the treasure or the pearl. We are the merchant doing the searching. Upon discovering the rich treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven, we are so filled with joy we sell everything!
In this way of reading the parable, Jesus is saying the kingdom of heaven is greater than everything else in our life.
There is another way to look at the parable: I am the buried treasure. I am the pearl of great value. God is the merchant and God is searching for me. When God finds me, God sells everything. There is great joy.
In other words, the kingdom of heaven is made present anytime I allow myself to be discovered by God.
Going a little deeper with this metaphor, I considered, “How can God sell off everything he owns? That would be infinite wealth, an inconceivable price.” Yet isn’t that exactly what God did when he sent his only beloved Son into this world? Jesus emptied himself of the unimaginable wealth of heaven, surrendering his divine nature to be born in the likeness of a slave. He not only surrendered that infinite wealth but went even lower. He handed himself over to death on a cross.
He did all of this for you and me. We are the buried treasure. We are the pearl of great value. The price God was willing to pay for us is nothing less than the life of his beloved son.
God is searching for you and me. God began this search in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. They were God’s crowning jewel. Sadly, they took a bite from the forbidden fruit which sent them into hiding. God wandered through the garden crying out in sadness, “Adam, where are you? Eve, where are you?” (see Gn 3:9) The search by God began that fateful day and continues to today. God is searching for you and me, crying out, “Scott, where are you?”
If God is searching for me, what keeps me from being discovered? If I am the treasure, I am a treasure buried under a lot of dirt. If I am the pearl, I am lost in a pile of oyster shells. The metaphorical soil and discarded oyster shells keep me hidden from God.
I can imagine God showing up with a shovel. God will remove the dirt if I let him. God asks, “Will you let me remove your need to control, and trust me? Will you let me remove your need to be right all the time and surrender? Will you let me remove your time spent on stupid computer games so you can spend more time with me?”
God probes even deeper. “Let me shovel away your deeply buried anger, your bitterness, your resentment, your anxiety.” God is searching for me. Will I let myself be found?
God is searching for you. You are a priceless pearl lost in a pile of oyster shells. Will you let yourself be found? Will you let him remove the shells that keep you hidden? Each of these shells might have a name: Pain. Pride. Suffering. Selfishness. Regrets. Worry.
When God finds you, there is unimaginable joy. It’s a joy that is contagious. It’s a joy that comes from God and enters your innermost being. It’s a joy meant to be shared with the world.
With this reading of the parable, the kingdom of heaven is the explosion of joy that comes when God finds you. Will you let yourself be found?