God's Kingdom Only Present in Christ!

What makes His Kingdom so valuable, so priceless?” (Mt 13:44-52).

Just imagine the tremendous joy the two men in the Gospel must have felt, when one discovered a hidden treasure and then he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field. And the other one, a merchant who finds a priceless pearl, then goes and sells everything he has and buys this one pearl. 

True joy is the treasure of a human soul, which lies the fulfillment of the spirit. Such a joy can only be found in God’s Kingdom that is only present in Jesus Christ. If we can discover Christ, we have found the Way, the Truth and the Life. If we have found Him, then we have access to the hidden treasures of God’s wisdom.

If God appeared to you and gave you one wish, what would you ask for? I bet most of us have a readymade list that we present to God on a regular basis anyway. We might just start at the top and put in a few bullet points under the “one wish” heading - Money, power, prestige, safety, security, a big enough nest egg to retire at 65, a promotion, a paid-off home loan, a nice long vacation. While most of us won’t get the opportunity, Solomon did.

In the first reading (1 Kgs 3: 5, 7-12), as a young King Solomon could have asked for wealth, military power, celebrity, security, prosperity, long life and happiness and he would receive them. But when God asked him to ask for one thing, he only asked for the supreme good that is wisdom from above. A wisdom that was given to Solomon, which is “a discerning judgment to distinguish between good and evil.” He knew that with wisdom comes every other good thing he needed and desired.

God's wisdom guides us in using them for the benefit of His kingdom. The more we love Christ and follow His ways, the easier it is to identify what's really valuable, separate out the junk that does not belong to God, and use everything else for His purposes.

Wheat and Weeds!

Every human heart contains a mix of good and evil. Good and bad people are always coexist like wheat and weeds growing in the same field, (MT 13: 24-30)

"When you weed out the darnel you might pull up the wheat with it" (MT 13: 29). One of the key things in this parable is that the servants are impatient to root up the weeds and to purify the field. They want to root out the weeds when they first appear. Yet the owner urges patience because in their enthusiasm and desire for purity they will also uproot wheat and kill it before it has time to establish itself and grow to completion. The Chinese proverbs say, “One moment of impatience may ruin your whole life.”

“Do not mastered by evil, but master evil with good," (Romans 12: 21). So look to Christ for the strength you need in order to do the right things. Let us pray for patience, courage, self-discipline and self-control towards evil.

The Bible Sunday

Our disposition for the Word of God is a good indication of our relationship with the Lord. Today’s gospel (Mt 13: 1-23) is an invitation to review and renew our attitude to the word of God. The Parable of the Sower likens the teaching of God’s word to the sowing of seeds. The seeds fall on different types of soil, the pathway soil, the rocky soil, the thorny soil, and the good soil. The Parable focuses more on how it is received.

Each of these types of soil is said to represent a certain type of heart with which hearers receive the word of God. The question each of us must ask ourselves today is, “What type of soil for the word of God do I represent? Am I like the pathway where the seed cannot even sprout, or like the rocky ground where the seed sprouts but has no roots, or like thorny ground where the word of God is choked to death by worldly cares, or like the good soil that bears much fruit?

Every day we should ask ourselves: What have I done today to spread the seeds of the Gospel?

Come to Me!

I am sure all of us feel tired from our hard works. Some of us feel boredom. Stress and tension become so visible in our lives. From time to time, when our problems and worries overwhelm us, we all find life difficult and discouraging. On many occasions, people do not know where to go or how to overcome their stress, tensions, depression and misfortunes. 

In the midst of trying to cope up our lives, in the Gospel reading today, the Lord invites us “Come to me all of you who are tired and are overburdened and I will give you rest,” (Mt 11:28). He tells us that He came to carry the weight of ours and to free us of our burdens.

We should know that life is not a bed of roses. No one in this world is exempt from illness, suffering, stress, tension, etc. They are the crosses that we all have to bear every day. Remember that on our own we can do nothing. We need to rely on Him alone.

In the most difficult periods of our life the Lord will never abandon us. Jesus replied. “My child, I love you and I would never leave you". Whatever is it; leave it in the hands of the Lord and in His time He will make everything beautiful in your life.