The kingdom of God is not a natural kingdom.  Nowhere in the gospels does Jesus advocate the virtues of a natural life.  He insists that God must be loved more than husband or wife or children.  Where meat and drink nourish the natural man giving the body what it desires, the kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom nourishing the spiritual man.  Many of the parables that Jesus spoke pertain to the kingdom of God which must be sought after and hungered for.  Jesus tells us that this kingdom is like finding a pearl of great price, selling all natural goods, and buying that pearl.  It is like a treasure hidden in a field that when found, selling all to possess it.  For Jesus, whatever the value of natural goods and blessings, the kingdom of God is worth giving it all up to enter that kingdom.  It is a kingdom that begins as small as a mustard seed, that when fully  grown, becomes a dwelling place for birds and for us a place to bless others.  It is a kingdom that spreads like yeast through dough until the bread rises so as the kingdom grows, God fills your entire being.  Jesus tells us quite frankly to seek this kingdom first before you begin to reap the natural. 

            The kingdom of God parables were given to those who were not spiritual so that they could evaluate their situation and recognize their need for something more and even more importantly, realize that unless you are part of that kingdom, you could not receive eternal life.  Those parables were spoken to people to give them a choice to either seek what God has to offer or to continue to seek only what the world has to offer.  Jesus is telling us in no uncertain terms that staying in the world will only bring death but by entering the kingdom one would experience eternal life.  For St. Paul we know we have entered the kingdom when we experience righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.  It is attained by sacrificing the natural life for the spiritual life.

            Evaluate your spiritual condition.  Do you have righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Ghost or are you still enamored by the things of the world?  Meat and drink, secular pleasures like riches and fame, those natural things that keep us from attaining what Jesus tells us is of highest importance, entering the kingdom of God.  Have you actually sought the kingdom of God and made it your highest priority?  Unless you do, unless you are a doer of the word and not a hearer only, you are deceiving yourself.  If you think that anything less than a complete commitment to God is good enough, you are deceiving yourself.  Those that have entered the kingdom have weathered persecution and trials, overcome the persuasion of the cares of the world, the deceitfulness of riches and the lust of other things, and have had the seed of God's word planted in the good ground of the heart who reap a harvest some ten, some twenty, some a hundred fold.

            Heed the message.  Take a stand.  Be at it for God no matter what the cost, no matter what lies ahead in the future.  Then and only then will you be a good and faithful servant.

amen