Lord, I love your commands. (Psalm 118)
Today’s Gospel continues Matthew’s descriptions of what the kingdom of heaven is like. Jesus never says what the kingdom actually is, but tells us what the kingdom is like in parables and similes. We read that the kingdom is like hidden treasure in a field or a pearl of great price, and a net bringing in a mixed haul of fish.
What is impressive about these descriptions is that they are for the mature disciple to ponder: the seeker, the searcher, the lost and the lonely. Today, there is great unhappiness for those who have reached maturity: marriages break down, children disappoint, hopes and ambitions fail. This Gospel assures us that God never fails us if we seek Him – the pearl of great price, the treasure hidden in a field. Such a search calls for great sincerity, perseverance and personal cost.
Finally, John Henry Newman sees the net full of good and bad fish alike as the Church through the ages. Jesus warns us that the Church will have both good and bad members, so we need not be discouraged when scandals arise. Our particular task is to focus all our attention on the good, the noble, our Redeemer, Jesus Himself.
