Homily For Friday Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 23rd June, 2023

Reading: 2Cor 11:18.21-30; Ps.34; Matt. 6:19-23

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

 

WHY HAVE YOU MADE THEM THE ULTIMATE TREASURES OF YOUR LIFE?

 

Everyday under terrible scourges of the sun and noisy street, people struggle to acquire things that they value as treasures of life. The quarreling and fighting, the early morning rush, the traffic jam, the aggressive words all just to acquire things of this life and people are never tired of acquiring properties for themselves and their generation yet to come, forgetting that all these things sooner or later passes away as we ourselves expire from this world.

 

Thus, in our Gospel passage today we are called to reflect on what should be our ultimate treasure and how we can acquire it. For Jesus said: Do not store up treasures for yourselves on earth, where moths and woodworms destroy them and thieves can break in and steal. But store up treasures for yourselves in heaven, where neither moth nor woodworms destroy them and thieves cannot break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

 

Here, Jesus knowing how humanity are so attached to the things of this passing world and have made them their ultimate treasures, calls how attention to what should be our ultimate treasure. He made us to know that GOD and His kingdom is the greatest and ultimate treasure anyone can and should acquire. For it will be a waste of time trying to store up our treasures in this world, because the world as we know is passing away likewise the things in it. The world is not a safe place to store one’s ultimate treasures. The safest place to store up our treasures is in God our heavenly Father. For heaven itself is the ultimate treasure that cannot be compared to anything whatsoever we have in this world. And it is so precious and great, that it is worth more than our entire life and our worldly possessions and treasures.

 

Little wonder, St Paul in our first reading tells us that it is a waste of time boasting about our worldly possessions and achievement. For there is nothing to boast about in this passing world. And if there is anything to boast at all, it should be the things that show our weakness. Therefore, we must do all that it takes to ensure that our focus is on things of heaven  and how to acquire it. Because losing it over the temporal pleasure, joy, glory, fame, power and influential things of this passing world will be complete foolishness. For none of them last forever and what good is it for us to gain the whole world but loses our soul out of God’s kingdom.

 

Dear friends, the questions we need to ask ourselves today are: where and what is our ultimate treasure in this life? Why have we made the things of this passing world our ultimate treasure? If the Lord should give us opportunity to make request of what our heart desires, what will be your request? How many of us are paying attention to ultimate heavenly treasures? How many thinks and search for the ultimate treasure of our souls? How many desires to personally discover God in our lives knowing that he is the ultimate treasure anyone can acquire in this world?

 

How I wish we will understand the shortness of this life, the emptiness of this passing world and the danger of losing our soul out of greediness for the things of this passing world. Then, we will sincerely desire to experience God personally, because in him lies the ultimate treasure of life. And discovering God personally is the greatest treasure one can ever have.

 

LET US PRAY: Heavenly Father, the world is full of distractions coming from false treasures of this passing world, give us a wise and discerning hearts in order to give up all our attachment to worldly possessions in pursue of the heavenly and ultimate treasure of your kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.