“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“Have you understood all these things?” They said to him, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”
Matthew 13:44-52
Traveling always encourages me to open my eyes to new sights and my ears to new sounds. I am at Nashotah House, a place I thought I might never have gone. I am seeing the gifts of this place and the joy the community shares together, and hearing the many ways the gifts and treasures are shared. I got the opportunity to preach today and to see the hopeful expectations of the students here.
Jesus was telling the people about the kingdom of God. What we treasure will be how we are defined. I here the invitation from God to treasure our God given relationships. If we treasure our polity, politics, theology over the gifts God has given us, we can be consumed by these alone. If we treasure the relationships we have been given, if we reach across the aisles and boundaries, God will bless us in ways we cannot even imagine.
Today I ask God to give me an open heart. May we all be radial in our love and compassion for all the people around us. May we be found loving our enemies and treasuring all those whom God has put in our path.
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