The Kingdom of God: A Reflection on Matthew 13:44-52
The parables in today’s Gospel reading (Matthew 13:44-52) illustrate how the Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure that is so valuable that when found it brings immense joy to the point where one sells everything in order to have it; how the Kingdom of Heaven is like a pearl that when found all is sold in order to obtain it; How the Kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that when thrown into the sea it catches fish of every kind indicating that the Kingdom is full of saints and sinners in which God and the Angels will sort out in divine judgment.
The Need for Grace and Discipleship
In order to come to a fuller understanding of what we have received and the need for us to seek the Kingdom at all costs, we need grace.
To comprehend the immense gift being offered to us in Christ requires an act of divine grace opening our minds and hearts. So accustomed are we to worldly ways of thinking and living that we struggle to grasp the upside-down logic of the Gospel. Wealth, status, and possessions so often occupy our desires that we fail to recognize their utter insignificance before the surpassing value of knowing Christ. In grace, our selfish tendencies are reoriented to selfless love. Distracted and disoriented, we need illuminating grace to awaken us to the supreme treasure awaiting us in God’s Kingdom. Material possessions lose their grip over us as attachment to earthly things gives way to an all-consuming quest for God.
Grace configures us into Christ’s likeness, enabling us to live as adopted children of the Father. As we grow in grace, we more perfectly image the Son, the template of our divinization. Grace thus brings about an intimate union of our souls with Christ, transforming us into partakers of the divine nature. This participation in God’s own life, begun by grace in this world, blossoms into eternal glory in the next. Our divinization in Christ will know its everlasting fruition when at last we see God face to face.
His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature. For this very reason make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these things are yours and abound, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2 Peter 1:3-8 (RSV)
The Cost of Discipleship: The Life of Franz Jägerstätter
Franz Jägerstätter, an Austrian farmer, husband, and father, was renowned for his steadfast faith and his refusal to serve in Hitler’s army during World War II, a decision that led to his execution. His life resonates powerfully with the teachings in these parables.
Jägerstätter’s devotion to his faith and his commitment to moral integrity above all else exemplify the behavior illustrated in these parables. He valued the Kingdom of Heaven more than his earthly life, even when that meant defying societal expectations, suffering scorn, and ultimately facing death. He essentially “sold” all he had (sacrificed his earthly life) in pursuit of the “hidden treasure” and the “pearl” (the Kingdom of Heaven).
Moreover, in the Parable of the Net, good fish are separated from the bad, similar to the final judgment. Despite the prevailing sentiment of his time, Jägerstätter held fast to his convictions, distinguishing himself from the “bad fish,” aligning with the teachings of Jesus.
In essence, Jägerstätter’s life is a powerful illustration of the teachings in Matthew 13:44-52, demonstrating the courage, sacrifice, and unwavering faith that such devotion to the Kingdom of Heaven call.
“Do you believe that all would go well for me if I were to tell a lie in order for me to prolong my life?”
Franz Jägerstätter
In a letter to his wife on August 8, 1943, the day before Jägerstätter was executed
Let Us Pray
Loving and Gracious God, we ask for your grace and mercy, inspired by the courage and steadfast faith of Your servant, Blessed Franz Jägerstätter. Just as in the parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price, he recognized the surpassing worth of Your Kingdom, valuing it above all earthly treasures, even his own life.
Oh, God of Truth, help us to emulate Blessed Franz in our daily lives. May we too have the courage to seek the pearl of great value, to pursue Your Kingdom with an undivided heart. Grant us the discernment to distinguish what truly matters, to live in accord with Your commandments, to love justice, to do mercy, and to walk humbly with You.
We ask the intercession of Blessed Franz, that we might be inspired by his example of integrity and unwavering faith. May his courage fortify us when we face trials and tribulations, when we are called to stand against the tide for the sake of Your truth.
As the net is drawn from the sea, separating the good from the bad, strengthen us, oh Lord, to be counted among the good. Inspire us to live according to Your word, to seek Your righteousness, to strive for the peace and unity of Your Kingdom.
We ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord, who taught us to seek first Your Kingdom, who showed us the way of selfless love, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen.