Word to the Wise
Monday, August 18, 2014 - Monday in the 20th Week in Ordinary Time
[Ezek 24:15-23 and Matt 19:16-22]"If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have, give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." When the young man heard this statement, he went away sad, for he had many possessions. [Matt.]
In the eyes of many, including Jesus' disciples, the young man in this story had it all! Not only did he have "many possessions," [which would have been considered a sign of God's blessings], but he had also been a faithful, observant Jew. Yet, he sensed that something was lacking in his life. It is this sense of something lacking that sends him to Jesus. What he receives from Jesus, however, is advice that makes him sad! He thought he would only have to add to what he already had, and Jesus told me that he had to "subtract!"
I have met many wonderful people, of all ages, who have found themselves in the same predicament. They feel themselves "trapped" but they don't want to give up the very thing that traps them! It's not so much the "possessions" in themselves, but the dependence on them as "necessary" for a happy life. They want to get out of the trap, but they want to take the trap with them! Jesus offers a way out of the trap, but it means deciding where one's true dependence lies! The young man in this story was living a good life, but Jesus offered something better which meant making a choice. The difference lies in the perspective: do we see Jesus in the light of all our "possessions," or do we see all our "possessions" in the light of Jesus? Which of these two perspectives do you think Jesus offered the young man and offers to us today? AMEN
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