WHAT’S IT WORTH TO YOU?
- Matthew 13:44-46
In Jesus’ ministry, He taught a great deal about the Kingdom of Heaven or the Kingdom of God. It was only natural, as He was teaching, for people to wonder how to become part of the Kingdom, how to get in on the Kingdom of God. In response to their unspoken questions, Jesus tells these two parables.
In the first parable, Jesus says the KOG is like a treasure hidden in a field …
- Many treasures hidden in the Middle East in those days. There was often raiding & changes in government. They had invasions & deportations. Also, very few people had access to banks & the banks they had were not the most secure in the world. They weren’t insured by the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation).
One writer (Trench) reports that men of wealth often divided their wealth into three parts: one for doing business, another part converted into precious stones with which to flee if necessary, and a third part to be buried in a safe place.
This man, found the treasure, went and sold all he had, & bought it.
In the second parable, a merchant was in the business of handling pearls. He was in the business of handling valuable things. He handled pearls from around the world. He didn’t sit idly by. He didn’t spend his time in front of the TV. He didn’t lie around the house waiting for a handout. He was busy. He was working. In the midst of his business, in handling valuable things day in and day out, he came across the most valuable pearl, the most valuable treasure he had ever seen.
Pearls were very valuable in those days. Most pearl bearing oysters were found at a depth of around 40 feet. * I swim a lot & have dove to the bottom of our lake in many places, but I don’t believe I could dive 40 feet without equipment. Some of the pearl divers in those days would tie themselves to a rock, throw it over the side of the boat, and ride it down. Once they got to the bottom, they still had to look around, find the oysters, pry them loose, and then get back to the top. Also, only a few of the oysters pulled up, would ever have a pearl in them. So, pearls could only be gotten at great risk to people’s lives.
This merchant, when he came across this great pearl, sold all he had and bought it.
Now, these parables are put together and shared by Jesus for a reason. They appear side-by-side in the Bible for a reason. Like all parables Jesus told, they are earthly stories with heavenly meanings, and this morning I would like us to look at a few of the items we can learn from these parables.
I. PEOPLE DISCOVER THE KINGDOM IN DIFFERENT WAYS
First, I would like you to notice that people discover the kingdom, or come into the kingdom in different ways.
Did you notice, the first person stumbles across the treasure he found? He wasn’t looking for it. He wasn’t searching. He wasn’t on a quest. He “found” it.
In the second parable, the merchant was busy looking for valuable pearls. He was searching for and working with valuable things when he discovered the treasure, or the “Pearl of great worth.”
The same is true for discovering the KOG. The same is true of discovering Jesus Christ. In the Bible we read of Nicodemus who came seeking the KOG, asking Jesus how he could be saved. He was looking for God. He was looking for salvation.
C.S. Lewis was like that. A modern example would be Lee Strobel. Lee Strobel was a reporter. His wife accepted Christ, and so he set out on a quest to determine if Christianity was real. He interviewed 13 leading evangelical leaders trying to check out Christianity. In the process he discovered Jesus Christ and was saved himself. He eventually wrote The Case for Christ which was a record of his quest and how he came to discover the truth of Christianity.
> Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Others are more like the man who discovered the treasure in the field, even though he wasn’t looking for it.
Spurgeon was more like that. He was heading to church one day, when he stopped at a storefront church with about 15 people there. He went in to get out of the cold. The preacher wasn’t even there, so a layman got up and preached. The layman kept repeating the same scripture again and again because he really didn’t have much to say, but it was enough. Through the seeds sown that night, Spurgeon, who went on to be one of the greatest preachers who has ever served, was saved.
The woman at the well, just went to get water, when she met Jesus. Paul was on his way to arrest Christians, content with his religion, when he encountered Jesus.
I was fumbling through my wallet one night, when a girl noticed a tract I had in there. She asked me what it was, and in the space of 30 minutes, I had the opportunity to lead her into a relationship with Jesus.
People are saved in many different ways, so we must take every opportunity to share the Gospel, to get the word out.
But, I don’t believe that is the primary emphasis of these parables.
II. A RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST IS VERY VALUABLE
Second, I would like you to notice that a relationship with Jesus Christ is very valuable. It is priceless.
There is a new miniseries being advertised on TV, which is supposed to cover the diamond trade in 3 parts. S. Africa. Mining for diamonds. 180 million parts of earth for 1 part of diamond. It is so valuable that people will pursue it at great expense.
Heal a broken heart. Give peace to a troubled mind. Forgive a sinful heart.
We will be anointing Barbara, who has Parkinson’s, toward the end of our service. Who would trade the knowledge that we are in the hand’s of a loving heavenly Father or that we serve the Great Physician?
The knowledge that Jesus is preparing a place for us and coming back again?
No wonder the hymn writer wrote:
My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ love and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ Name. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand.
III. THE KINGDOM COMES AT GREAT PRICE
- Matthew 10:36-38
- Matthew 19:16-21; John 3:1-3
You cannot buy salvation, you cannot earn salvation, but it will cost you everything you count on, everything you depend on other than Jesus Christ.
IV. THE KEY TO IT ALL IS THE JOY
- Matthew 13:44. Underline Joy.
The merchant in the second parable didn’t lament the purchase he made. It was worth it, because of the joy he found in his purchase.
I think the same thing holds true in our sacrifice for Christ. Paul said, "What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. But indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord." (Philippians 3:7-8). Did Paul make sacrifices to follow Christ? Certainly he did, but he did so with joy knowing what he gained.
I heard a story once about two wealthy Christians, a lawyer and a merchant, who traveled with a group that was going around the world. As they were visiting in Korea, they saw by the side of the road, a field in which a boy was pulling a crude plow and an old man held the plow handles and guided it. The lawyer was amused and took a snapshot of the scene.
He turned to the missionary, who served as their interpreter and guide, and he said, "That’s a curious picture. I suppose they are very poor." The guide replied, "Yes, that is the family of Chi Noue. When the place of worship was being built, they were eager to give something to it, but they had no money, so they sold their only ox and gave the money to the church. This spring, they are pulling the plow themselves."
The men were silent for several moments, then the businessman replied, "That must have been a real sacrifice." The guide said, "They do not call it that. They thought it was fortunate that they had an ox to sell." (Told by Alan Williams)
Jim Eliot , a missionary who was killed in South America in the 1950’s said: “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose”
* Going to Memphis to see Gladys, or to pick up Gladys each weekend to bring her back up to Ridgely. It was a long trip. 200 miles round trip. I didn’t lament that. I didn’t regret that. I didn’t complain. Why, because I got to spend time with my honey. I got to spend time with the love of my life. She was worth it, and still is.
My friends, our problems today is not with the cost, but that we have lost our joy and have lost a sense of the value of what we receive in return.
- Revelation 2:1-5a
My friend, if things cool in your marriage, go back and remember how far you’ve come. Remember what it was like when you were alone. Go back and do what you did at first.
If things have cooled in your walk with God, if you serve with regret, if you serve out of obligation, go back and do the things you did at first. Remember the value of what you have. Remember the honor God has given you. …
*** Close with Lord’s Supper
