SAINT PIUS X, POPE (MEMORIAL)

You will have treasure in heaven.

Haven’t you felt it? That unsettled feeling, that dissatisfaction that asks, “Isn’t there something more?” The young man in today’s Gospel certainly did. His restlessness, his unsatisfied thirst led him to search for Jesus. Notice that he seems to have done everything right: he possessed earthly riches, but he didn’t use it to chase after fame, power, or pleasure. He already knew that human beings needed more than that; they needed to seek God. He kept the commandments and lived an honorable life. Still, it wasn’t enough. So he asked, “What do I still lack?” (Matthew 19:20). In reply, Jesus put his finger on the restlessness that we all sense.

What do I still lack? It’s one of the most important questions we can ask, and it speaks to something deep within us. Each of us has an inborn desire, a longing or thirst that cannot be satisfied with the things of this created world, no matter how good they are. Some theologians even go so far as to say that we are “living thirsts.” Everyone is thirsting for more, but not everyone recognizes that this thirst is really a longing for God.

St. Augustine expressed it this way: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” So our thirst is a gift meant to lead us back to the God who made us. Back to the God who knows that nothing else will ever satisfy us. Back to the God who offers us true treasure in heaven (Matthew 19:21).

Jesus wanted the young man to see that he was trying to satisfy himself with his “many possessions” (Matthew 19:22). He was gently showing the man that his wealth was holding him back. His possessions were preventing him from receiving the true treasure of knowing Jesus. Unfortunately, the man went away sad and still restless.

Jesus doesn’t want to take away all the good things that you love. Instead, he points to the things that hinder you because he knows that they will not satisfy. He knows that if you hold them tightly as your treasure, you can’t open wide your arms to receive the treasure that is more real, more lasting, and more satisfying than anything you have ever known: God himself.

“Lord, you are my treasure.”

Judges 2:11-19
Psalm 106:34-40, 43-44
Matthew 19:16-22