Hidden Treasure?

Hidden Treasure

Matthew 13:44-52

Online Sermon: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567

What does the kingdom of heaven mean to you? For those whom are perishing in their sins and no longer think it is worthwhile to retain any knowledge of God (Romans 1:28); the treasures of Scripture or the atoning sacrifice of Christ are of no value (1 Corinthians 1:18) to their depraved minds. So, does being enslaved to sin that so easily entangles a person (Hebrews 12:1) automatically mean that they are without hope of ever being released from the curse of spiritual death (James 1:15)? Praise be to God the answer is NO! Before we were Christians were we not gossips, slanderers, idolaters, arrogant (Romans 1:29) and without understanding of our Saviour and king? Did we not start out our lives pledging allegiance to the ruler of the kingdom of the air (Ephesians 2:2-3) and as a result were on the path of eternal death (Romans 6:23)? YES, we certainly were! Then one day the Spirit revealed to us treasure that cannot fade or spoil (1 Peter 1:4), the kingdom of heaven. Even though we had to give up all our carnal desires to accept His gracious gift of salvation we gladly did so! In today’s sermon I want to encourage you to first examine the value of the treasure of both God’s word and salvation and second to invite others to make a decision for Christ before it is too late.

TRADING ILLUSTRATION

I often find that learning about God’s word is easier when associated with a visual illustration. Since I have a lot of younger children in the congregation, I have tailored this illustration to appeal to their inquisitive minds. To enact this illustration all you will need is a pirate’s costume and an assortment of five, ten, twenty-five cent coins and a couple of loonies (one dollar here in Canada). When the adults arrive at church hand out an equal number of coins to 75% of them. Out of the remaining 25%, hand out several one-dollar loonies. When it comes time for the illustration to begin invite the children to come forward. Explain to them that to play this game they must first dress up as pirates. Once in costume they are to choose an adult and say “har mattie have you any treasure?” The adult is then to open their hand to reveal what they have hidden. If they have any money at all the child is to take the person by the hand and ask them to do a quick jig to help celebrate their joy. Based on the money received the child then purchases and opens a treasure that is either cheap (no money or a nickel), good (a dime), great (a quarter), or the grand prize (a loonie). If the child does not like their prize, they can play just one more time but must first give up the prize that they have already received. The grand prize should be far more valuable than all the other treasures to entice the children to play the second time and risk it all. If more than one child wins the grand prize, then split it equally amongst them or only hand out the number of loonies corresponding to the number of grand prizes.

VALUE OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.

To describe the infinite value of the kingdom of heaven Jesus tells two parables, the first of which is the hidden treasure. In this parable Jesus tells us about a man who finds a treasure in a field that is worth enormous value. While few today would ever think of burying their treasures in a field, people of ancient times often did so because they did not have banks to secure their belongings. They buried their valuables to keep them safe from thieves and enemy forces. If the landowner were to die during an invasion then the treasure often remained hidden until someone by mere luck found it. In ancient times, if a laborer found treasure and he/she were to lift it out of the ground then it immediately became the property of his/her employer. Upon finding the treasure the slave immediately recognized its value, buried the treasure again, sold off everything and purchased the land. Since he now legally owns the land, he has secured all rights to the hidden treasure.

Have you ever lost and found something that was incredibly valuable to you? I remember how difficult it was to buy my wife a wedding ring. I went to several jewelry stores and eventually found a ring that fit into my meager budget. I bought the ring but had to do so with a credit card. It took me what seemed like forever to pay off the debt but when I saw the look on her face when I slipped the ring onto her finger on our wedding day I knew it was worth every penny. One day in the summer I came home to find my wife on her hands and knees in our driveway looking for something. I asked her what she had lost and to my horror she said her diamond had dislodged from the ring and fell to the ground. We both looked and looked to no avail! We went into the house heart-broken. Later the next day we went out and looked again and to our delight we found the diamond! We were overwhelmed with joy for the chances of finding the diamond amongst a gravel was virtually slim to none.