Bible
Study: Wisdom 7, 7 to 11. Hebrews 4, 12- 13. And Mark
10, 17 to 30.
Yesterday we
read about how Jesus was met by a woman who spoke in admiration about his mum
saying: “Blessed is the womb that bore you and the breast that suckled you…” We
also noted that the word “Blessed” translated from the Greek word, “Makarios”
also translates as “Happy.” And in response to her, Jesus said: “Happy, rather
are those who hear the word of God and keep it.” In this way, Jesus not only
gives us the secret key to true happiness, he also states the price anyone must
pay to be happy.
Happiness
is one commodity that is neither cheap nor expensive. This is because it is not
bought with money. It is always available on demand to everyone whether rich or
poor as long as one has what it takes to buy it. Note that we are not talking
about pleasure.
How much
does happiness cost? This is not a question about amount but a question about
value. Happiness is such a valuable commodity that without it, life on earth is
difficult and worthless. All of our activities every day from dawn to dusk are
in one sentence, a quest for happiness.
Now if happiness
is so important to us, how much are we ready to pay for it? To answer this
question, we must turn to the producer and distributor of happiness and who
else could that be, if not God himself, our creator. Let us hear what he has to
say:
Go, SELL what
you have, and GIVE to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then COME,
follow me.
And when
the young man in today’s Gospel passage heard these words, he went away SAD. This
means that what Jesus was demanding from him was an exchange of his ATTACHMENT
to material possessions. And this is the price of happiness!
The reason
why happiness is so scarce in our world today is simple: people are frantically
searching for it in the wrong places. And truly, there are many fake spots that
tend to offer what looks like happiness.
For
instance, many believe having money brings happiness and yes, it actually feels
good to have money but the feeling of joy that money produces is always
short-lived. And because we cannot cope with such a short joy, we try to get as
much as possible and find ways of making the money continue flowing in other to
prolong the “fake happiness.” Then, we discover the more we get, the more we
need, we soon get into fights with others, we do not mind spending all of our
time on it but the more efforts we put in, the less happy we become eventually.
We soon become addicted, sick, frustrated, angry and unsatisfied! And whatever
applies to money applies to every other thing apart from God, we tend to
indulge in for the sake of finding happiness.
What do we
stand to lose by purchasing happiness? Now if happiness costs this much, that
is, if it is the case that we have to drop our attachment to everything we have
in other to be happy, what do we stand to lose by so doing? The answer may
surprise you: NOTHING! These things we must drop, our love for self, selfishness,
unforgiveness, love for material things, etc. are the very things that keep us imprisoned
to ourselves and unable to attain eternal life.
This means
it is simply a matter of wisdom to do this exchange today! SELL EVERYTHING YOU
HAVE and what you will get will amaze you. You will discover HAPPINESS, you will discover
you “prefer her to scepters and thrones”, that “wealth as nothing in comparison
with her”, that “all gold is but a little sand in her sight, and silver will be
accounted as clay before her”, that you love her “more than health and beauty,”
more than “light, because her radiance never ceases.”
Let us pray:
Lord Jesus,
help me to let go of the many things that keep me from you, the true and only
source of happiness. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy Sunday. I apologize
for sending out this homily so late today.
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