The kingdom of Heaven is a great treasure. In St. Matthew’s Gospel, we hear that it is something that gives such joy it is worth all that we have. That is what the person who found the treasure in the field and the merchant who found the pearl of great price teach us. Heaven is worth everything. But immediately after this teaching, Christ warns us: the wicked and the righteous will be separated. So, then, what must we do to ensure we are among the righteous?
Scripture gives us many examples of what TO DO and what NOT to do.
Take Solomon. He asks something good of God: an understanding heart and to know right from wrong. These are good things. Yet, Solomon fell. In his heart there was not love of God, but lust for women, money, power, and fame.
St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians to not lust after evil things as Israel did in the desert. Their fall is instructive: They had just made covenant with God and still turned away. St. Paul, instructing us that we must stand fast against temptation reminds us: God will not permit us to be tested beyond our strength. He is faithful. He will give us a way out so that we can bear it.
As our Lord prepares to enter Jerusalem before his Passion, he weeps for the city, because he knows of the great evil that will soon come upon it. The wage of sin - rampant in Jerusalem - is death. In 70 AD, death came in the form of the total destruction of the city and the slaughter or enslavement of every man, woman, and child inside. This is especially poignant for us. Our sin impacts those around us, and a society steeped in sin - as I fear ours is - will one day see the fruits of their sin, and it will not be pretty.
But none of these things HAD to happen. Especially for us, we have time to turn back to God. We do not have to suffer and fall as Solomon, Israel in the desert, and Jerusalem did. St. Paul teaches us that “all things work for good for those who love God.” The psalmist teaches us that the precepts of the Lord are right and encourages us to love God’s commandments, because these prepare us for God to live in us. They help us to cleanse our hearts - just as Christ cleansed the Temple - so God can live in us and bring us to salvation, that is, the pearl of great price.
So we must keep our eyes fixed on the eternal joy of Heaven. We must remember it is our goal, and like the treasure finder and the merchant who sold all they had, we must organize everything in our lives to God. Even with the most amazing gifts, we - like Solomon - can fall if we do not rely on God, offer ourselves to him, and love Him above all else. One thing matters, above all else. We must ask God for the gift Solomon should have asked to receive. We must ask for a humble heart that allows us to love God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength - with everything. From this gift, all other good things flow.