Third Friday of Advent – Matthew 13:44-46
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.”
Have you ever had to sacrifice in order to gain something you believed was valuable? Perhaps you turned down a promotion so that you’d have more time to spend with your family, or you put your dreams of going back to school on hold so that you could care for your aging parents.
Weighing our circumstances and making difficult decisions is part of life, and it’s also what Jesus’ message is all about.
Today’s reading tells us about the kingdom of heaven, which is a way of describing things as God intends them to be. The interesting thing about the two images that Jesus creates to describe the kingdom of heaven is that it is like both the treasure that is found and bought and the merchant that sells everything to buy it.
In other words, the kingdom of heaven is so incredibly valuable that we are encouraged to seek and sacrifice for it. And we also experience it when we open ourselves up to our deepest desires for which we seek and sacrifice. We are living in the kingdom of heaven when we are open to our longing for something deeper, and follow that longing to its true and substantial source in the God who created us.
We often must wrestle with difficulty and a sense of loss when we sacrifice for something we believe in, but there is also a sense of contentment and joy when we know we’ve made the right decision. Today’s Advent message of joy is that we are invited to become aware of our longings for love, friendship, truth, and justice; and to open ourselves to the in-breaking kingdom of heaven, where these are truly found.
- Have you ever had to sacrifice for something you believed was valuable?
- How do the ways you spend your time, money and emotional/relational energy reveal what you truly treasure?
- How might trusting that God sees you as an incredibly valuable treasure fuel you to seek after the kingdom of heaven with renewed urgency this Christmas?