Stop and think for a moment: what is the most important thing for you in life? This isn't an easy question to answer because we, as humans, are very capable of deceiving ourselves, saying one thing while reality is another. We give an easy answer, but in truth, things can be very different. It's easy to say that God is the most important in our lives, but is this truly the case? In the first reading of this Sunday, the writer of the Book of Wisdom, inspired by God, says that he prayed and, as the greatest gift, God gave him wisdom. He chose this above everything else in this world, stating that 'all the gold in comparison to it is like a little sand.' This wisdom is not intelligence or knowledge gained from books; today's psalm explains it for us: ‘Teach us to number our days, so that we may walk in wisdom.’
The wisdom that the psalm speaks of is the recognition that what belongs to this world, no matter how important, is fleeting, and therefore, compared to what lasts forever, it is worth very little. Therefore, Lord, teach us to recognise this, so that we don’t become too attached to what we must one day part from, and instead, bind our hearts only to what lasts forever.
The rich young man in the Gospel was someone who lived by the commandments. Jesus made him a special invitation to follow Him, but he refused and walked away saddened, because of his attachment to what he possessed. Some might ask, wasn’t he already observing the commandments? Yes, we are all called to observe the commandments, but Jesus asks us not to stop there. It’s not enough to simply avoid harming our neighbour; above all, we must love. God calls us to become more and more like His Son, Jesus; this is a journey that takes our whole life. Whoever stops progressing, whoever stops growing in love, will have a heart that closes up and dries out.
Today’s Gospel challenges us not to be attached to what belongs to this earth, but to place Jesus first and above everything else in our lives. This doesn’t mean that we are all called to sell everything we have and go out and preach the Gospel; that is a special calling that the Lord makes to some. But we are all called to love. Whoever binds their heart to what belongs to this earth, such as money or what we acquire through it, pleasures and power, cannot love.
The choice is in our hands: either we attach ourselves to our wallet, or to the Lord. The letter to the Hebrews, in today’s second reading, tells us that ‘the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword.’ This is the most powerful tool for us to overcome the temptation to be attached to the world and instead bind our hearts only to the Lord and what belongs to eternal life. We ask ourselves: to what is my heart bound, what is the most important thing in my life? How much do I keep in mind that I will one day have to give an account of my life to God? ‘Nothing in creation is hidden from Him; everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of God, to whom we must give an account.’
Lord, give us the grace to be wise and not to become attached to what today or tomorrow we will inevitably have to part from, but to bind ourselves only to You, so that our hearts may experience that peace which only those who love like You can feel. Amen.