Gospel for June 19, 2015 (Friday)

Mt 6:19-23

Jesus said to his disciples,  "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal.  But store up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there also will your heart is.

"The lamp of the body is the eye.  If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled with light; but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness.  And if the light in you is darkness,  how great will the darkness be".

The Word in other words

A newspaper carried this article about a young man who once found a five-dollar bill on the street.  From that time on, he never lifted his eyes when walking.  Through the years, he accumulated 29,516 buttons, 54,172 pins, 12 cents, a bent back, and a miserly disposition.  He lost the simple joy of the sunlight and blue sky, the glow of the moonlight or the stars, the smiles of friends, and the entire joy of living. (Roy B. Zuck, The Speaker's Quote Book)

I guess, what Jesus said about the eye being the lamp of the body goes with a caution to be careful where we fix our eyes on.  What can be said of the eye could be said of our mind's thoughts as well.  Indeed, what catches our attention by sight often fills our thoughts.  And the longer we allow ourselves to be drawn to the object of our desire, the sooner it consumes us.  As Jesus said, "Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be".  This applies to many things or persons in life, but more so towards money and the so-called treasures on earth.

Why do we tend to store up or covet things, sometimes even beyond what we need?  It is not to have a sense of security?  But Jesus' advice in the gospel today challenges us: where does our real security lie?  It is not in money, power, prestige, nor even in relationships or our own strength.  If we over-rely on these things, the wise and truly rich will tell us that we are foolish indeed.  For, as the bible describes, they are life flowers that blossom in the morning and wither in the evening.  More pointedly, none of these earthly things is of value in heaven and eternity.

Our real security and treasure lie in our union with Jesus Christ.  Jesus made a promise that if you seek first the Kingdom of God and entrust yourself to Him, then He already assumes full responsibility for you and for all your needs, on earth as in heaven.  Can you name any one thing that God has come up short with and failed us?  None! Trust Jesus, fix your eyes on Him, put Him first over everything, and all the rest will fall in their proper places.

                             - Fr. Emil Lim, SVD (Hong Kong)