Selling what you own is a pretty radical thing to
do. Just think what you own: a barn, a tractor, and a truck. And that’s just
the beginning, isn’t it? There’s also the computer, the cell phone, the flat
screen TV—and on and on.
Early in Christian history, people who sold
everything they owned set up religious communities, so that they could live
together and share what they needed. And so Jesus’ teaching to sell what you
have and give to the poor is usually taken as a call to the religious life.
Understood in that way, Jesus’ advice to the rich young man is one of the
counsels of perfection. It explains what you have to do to be perfect in this life.
But here’s a puzzle worth noticing. If selling
all he has and giving it to the poor is what the rich young man needs to do to
inherit eternal life, what about everybody else? Does everybody have to sell what he has in
order to attain heaven? If you don’t sell everything you have, are you going to
hell?
The solution to the puzzle is to think about the
description of the man asking Jesus the question: he is the rich young man. In other words, his
gifts lie in his wealth.
Now think about your unique gifts. There are
gifts of learning, of music, of many other things. But a person’s gifts are
meant to be given back in service to the Lord. You cannot bury your
talent—your gifts—in the ground and hope to please the Lord. So here is what
you need to do to inherit eternal life: You need to follow Jesus and use your
gifts to the full when you do.
I have
a Sonshine friend who serves as chair of a committee that awards scholarships
to college students who exemplify the spirit of Jesus on campus. It was “Parents
Weekend” on campus so the families were invited to Mass and attend the award
ceremony. My friend took everyone to breakfast as his gift. He’s not rich but his
gift is to share his faith and help these students grow in their faith and
vocations.
Let us reflect as we pray: Many seek the favor of the
generous, and everyone is a friend to a giver of gifts. (Proverbs 19: 6).
Lord, I pray for all my Sonshine Friends who daily give
their time, their smiles, their friendships and generosity to those in need.
Bless the work of their hands and let their good works go before them into
heaven.
