As we profess in the Nicene Creed: “I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” This statement points towards the question made by the man in our Gospel: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
To this Pope Benedict would state in his encyclical letter “Spe Salvi” “On Christian Hope”: “Do we really want this- to live eternally?” He next states: that many who “reject the faith today simply because they do not find the prospect of eternal life attractive.”
The man in our Gospel was given a difficult answer to his question: “You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”
The key to this answer lies in the fact that something was holding this man back from allowing God to be found at the center of his life. This passage does not mean that we cannot have material possessions, but that we cannot allow them to become the center of our life. Whenever excess is found our life is off kilter for in all things moderation is the key. When moderation is not fostered it is easy to begin to stray from the path which leads to eternal life.
There are many who claim that they desire eternal life in word, but do we truly desire Christ to be found at life’s center? There are many activities that we pursue which detract from this reality and cause us to push God to the side. The invitation to eternal life caused the man in our Gospel to make sacrifice and thus we were told concerning him, “His face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.”
The invitation to eternal life should fill us with joy not with sadness. Sadness is only encountered if there is something that we desire other then eternal life. When it pertains to the world around us everything can always be taken away, but once we have obtained eternal life it cannot. Eternal life is something which is finite and true, but we so often fill our life with the perceived joys which are always fleeting from our sight.
This takes us back to Pope Benedict XVI and the question of us finding eternal life attractive or not. If this were an attractive option for us there would be nothing that we wouldn’t be willing to sacrifice in order to obtain it. Sadly, out view is usually informed by what is taking place in the here and now. Instead of the here and now we must be willing to look outward and realize that God calls us to something greater. We have been called to eternal life. What are we willing to surrender in order to obtain it?
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