The theme of today’s readings is Wisdom. The first reading is from the Old Testament book formerly known as The Wisdom of Solomon, now referred to as the Book of Wisdom. It was written in the century before the birth of Jesus. In today’s passage, the author is speaking in the voice of Solomon, who was famous for his wisdom. When Solomon was young, the Lord told him to ask for anything he wanted, and he chose to ask for wisdom (cf. 2 Chr 1:10). Perhaps this experience is what he is referring to when he says, “I prayed, and prudence was given me; / I pleaded, and the spirit of wisdom came to me.” We learn from this reading that divine wisdom is more valuable than anything – gold, silver, gems, health, beauty, light. In comparison with wisdom, all these are worthless.

The Gospel tells of another man seeking wisdom. Just as Solomon turned to God, this man turns to Jesus with his request. The man already has enough wisdom to know that we are made for fullness of life. The wisdom he seeks from Jesus is how to attain this highest good: “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus reminds him that only God is good, but that there is a way for us to participate in the goodness of God. He tells the man about the part that he must play, keeping the commandments, and the price he must pay, sacrificing lesser goods in order to attain the highest good of Heaven.

Anyone who has worked toward a goal knows that it involves not only desire but also labor and sacrifice. A serious athlete gives up his time, certain foods, and other activities in order to focus on becoming the best in his sport. A student who wants to become valedictorian or earn a scholarship sacrifices other interests and pushes herself in order to achieve that end. It is not a secret that anything worth having is worth working for, and if we have something else that is getting in the way of our goal, we need to discard it.

The man in the Gospel seems not to have taken the wisdom of Solomon seriously. He does not “deem riches nothing in comparison with her.” He wants to have both riches and wisdom, both his will and God’s will. He does not see the love with which Jesus looks at him, so when Jesus gives him the priceless treasure of a personal invitation to become a disciple, he is overcome not with joy but with sadness. “His face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.”

The man was on the right track in seeking his answer from Jesus. He did not approach the Pharisees to ask them about eternal life. He sought wisdom from Wisdom himself, the Word made flesh. But when he received the wisdom he sought, he was not willing to put it into practice. Today’s reading from the Letter to the Hebrews gives us some insight into what happened. The man experienced the piercing effect of the word of God, which is “living and effective, sharper than any two-edged sword.” The Lord, like a master surgeon, was using the word like a scalpel to cut away man’s harmful attachment to his wealth. Surgery can be painful!

Before undergoing surgery in a hospital, a patient is required to sign a consent form. While still awake and alert, he gives the surgeon permission to cut away whatever is hindering his health. The surgeon uses a sharp knife to reach that which “is concealed from him,” so that any hidden malignancy or infection is seen, and “everything is naked and exposed” to his eyes. Why would anyone voluntarily consent to be cut open and have everything exposed? We do this only if we sense that something is wrong and that there is hope for improved health. Knowing that there is more to life than our present state, we are willing to suffer great loss for an even greater gain. Though we may be frightened or sad, if we are wise, we give our permission.

For our spiritual health we also “give consent” to the Lord. With our free will, we give him permission to use his word – “sharper than any two-edged sword” – to expose any hidden sin and to cut away whatever makes us spiritually sick. The Holy Spirit of Wisdom moves us to give consent when we ponder the word each day. We give consent in our Morning Offering: “O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the intentions of your Sacred Heart.” We give consent when we pray the Our Father: “Thy will be done.” As the day progresses, we can find ourselves feeling pierced, exposed, cut, challenged. Our work gets difficult, or we have conflicts with others, or aches and pains. We get irritated. We might wonder why God is not treating us with more love. Then we remember that we gave consent this morning, that we have already said that whatever he is doing, it is with our permission. We have already surrendered to his healing skills.

Let us thank the Lord for looking at us with love and healing us with his word! May we always welcome his wisdom and remain in a state of consent to his will, so that he can free us from the sadness of sin and lead us to the true desire of our hearts, eternal life.

Do I treasure divine wisdom more than anything else – money, status, health? Why do I strive for earthly honors but make so little effort to attain the highest good of Heaven? In what areas of my life am I struggling to give God consent to heal me with his word, which is sharper than any two-edged sword?

Excerpt from The Anawim Way, Volume 20, no. 8. More information about The Anawim Way may be found here.