He's My All In All

TITLE: HE’S MY ALL IN ALL

SCRIPTURE: ST. MATTHEW 13:44

Lots of people are completely content to have Jesus as a Savior, forgiving them of all their sin. Fewer are ready to have him as the Lord of their life, leading and growing them in godliness.

• We think of Christ as our Savior

• We think of Christ as our Lord

• We think of Christ as our King

• But have you ever thought of Christ as your Treasure?

By definition, treasure is something of great value. It’s highly desired - sought after – anticipated - longed for. But I think one of the problems we face is for most of us, we’re not captivated by treasure like we once were.

• We’re not excited by treasure like we once were

• Nothing really impresses us anymore

Back in the day Movie theatres were once filled to capacity with moves about Lost Treasures.

• 1981 -- Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

• 2003 -- Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl

• 2006 -- The Da Vinci Code

• 2004 -- National Treasure

• 1950 -- Treasure Island

Even the least among us is wealthy by the world’s standards. Did you know nearly half the world’s population lives on less than $2 a day.

• 1.2 billion people live on less than $1 a day

• We spend more than that on Starbucks every morning

• Most of us are wealthy by the world’s standards

• But here’s the simple point for today - One of the consequences of wealth is we’ve lost the desire and wonder of finding treasure

One of Jesus’s parables in Matthew’s Gospel follows a man into a field. He’s walking through the field and stumbles on something unusual, something out of place.

• He probably didn’t know what he had found at first

• He never expected to find random riches in a field

• But he did

• He had discovered a lifetime’s worth of wealth, just lying unguarded, unclaimed in his path

How can I have this treasure? What do I have to give or do to own and experience and spend this treasure forever? That was the man’s response, and he knew he had to own the field to have the treasure. So he sold everything he had so that he would have enough money to buy the field.

The point of the parable is to highlight the infinite, precious worth of knowing Jesus and being known by him.

• The man sold everything to have this treasure

• He gave up his home

• He gave up his furniture

• He gave up his livestock

• Anything that had any value, he gave up

Most of us have no issue at all giving up –

• Old Furniture

• Old Clothing

• Old Pair of Shoes

• We have real issues giving up something we hold of value

• ST. LUKE 3:11 “…HE THAT HATH TWO COATS, LET HIM IMPART TO HIM THAT HATH NONE; AND HE THAT HATH MEAT, LET HIM DO LIKE WISE”

• Jesus was not referencing here to give them your old unused stuff

This man in the field sacrificed things he had made - gifts that had been given to him - possessions he had owned for years and years. He said goodbye to it all in an instant, and he did so because he could see what he would gain would far surpass everything he had ever owned up until that point.

If we don’t love and treasure Jesus like this, then we don’t really know Him. Everlasting life in and with him is simply and undeniably worth more than anything else we can buy or build or obtain here on earth.

• Massive homes are as nothing

• Beautiful, expensive cars are as nothing

• Clothing

• Hobbies

• Apple products

• Books

• Businesses

• Animals

• Televisions

• All nothing compared with our Christ

• He is worth all to us

• I don’t know what He is to you – but HE’S MY ALL IN ALL

Our Treasure is all our strength when we feel weak. Paul writes in II CORINTHIANS 12:9 “BUT HE SAID TO ME, ‘MY GRACE IS SUFFICIENT FOR YOU, FOR MY POWER IS MADE PERFECT IN WEAKNESS.’ THEREFORE I WILL BOAST ALL THE MORE GLADLY OF MY WEAKNESSES, SO THAT THE POWER OF CHRIST MAY REST UPON ME.” The God and Savior who is worth all also works all for us.

• When we fall, he’s near to the broken and the broken-hearted

• When we feel dry, he’s the sustenance and strength our soul needs

• At every point that we are weak, his strength fills us and consumes our weakness in order to show the measure of His power