In his series of seven parables in Chapter 13, Matthew is quite elaborate ....... on the first two, providing an interpretation for each.
The other five are shorter and more pointed in content.
The parables of the hidden treasure and of the pearl consists of two sentences each.
And in the first sentence of each parable is the familiar introductory phrase, "The kingdom of heaven is like..."
The main point of the parable, of course, is found in the second sentence.
These parables occur only in Matthew's Gospel and form a pair.
Whether Jesus taught the two parables in sequence or whether Matthew topically placed them together is unknown ..... the fact remains that the two belong together.
Strictly speaking, ..... the introductory sentences of the two parables are not quite balanced
In the one the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure, and in the other the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant.
We should not, however, approach the two parables with an analytic Western mind.
Instead, ..... we should try to grasp the basic meaning of the parables as understood by the disciples who first heard them. (Pause)
Now, Jesus told the parable of a man who found a treasure hidden in a field.
BIBLE "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." END ( Matthew 13:44 ). (Pause).
Children often fantasize that in some field or old building or barn they will discover a treasure that has escaped everyone's attention.
In our sophisticated society, many would call this unrealistic; we think ..... such things do not happen anymore.
Yet from time to time discoveries are made: ..... a Shepherd boy near the Dead Sea found scrolls that were 2000 years old.
A diver off the Florida coast located a sunken 17th-century Spanish vessel ..... filled with silver and gold;
And a farmer plowing his field in Suffolk, England struck a container that held beautiful silver dishes dating from the Roman times.
In This Parable A treasure has been hidden in a field.
Who put it there .....and how long ago .....are questions that cannot be answered. (Pause)
But what we do know is ancient Palestine, was a country frequently ravaged by war.
People often hid their treasure or part of it in a field rather than in the house.
In a house, thieves .....would be able to find it; in a field, .....the treasure would be much safer.
But if the owner was killed during a war, he would carry his secret with him .....to the grave.
Thus no one would ever know where he had hidden the treasure. (Pause)
In Matthew 25 , Jesus told a story about a master who gave some talents to his servants.
A talent was a measure of money.
The first servant was given five talents, and the second was given two talents.
These two servants ..... invested those amounts and multiplied their master's money.
But the third servant was worried.
He did not want anything to happen to the money.
He wanted to keep it safe, ..... so what did he do?
He buried it in the ground. (Pause)
Over the years, the ground of Palestine became a veritable treasure house.
The man in this parable who found such a treasure may have been a hired hand or renter.
He may have been plowing the field, digging a ditch, or planting a tree.
Whatever the case, ..... he hit something that was hard and did not sound like a rock.
He dug it out and found a treasure.
We are not told what the treasure was, but the man was filled with joy at finding such a treasure.
In those days, it was not uncommon at all for a person who was plowing or digging in a field to accidentally come across a treasure. (Pause)
So, Jesus' parable ..... described a very feasible situation. (Pause)
Now, there is a concern that some people have with this parable.
At first glance, the man in the parable seems to be dishonest.
Some might say that Honest behavior would demand that this man tell the owner of the field about the treasure, ..... since it was on his property and rightfully belonged to him.
Right?
Well Not necessarily.
Jewish rabbinic law states ...... "If a man finds scattered fruit or money, it belongs to the finder."
So the people listening to the parable would not have perceived the man's actions at all as unethical.
In fact, the man had a right by law to what he found.
It is obvious that the treasure did not belong to the man who owned the field.
If it did, then he would have dug up the treasure before he sold the piece of ground.
So, really, the man who found the treasure was extremely honest.
Remember He did not have to buy the field. He could have just taken the treasure.
But he did not.
In fact, he did not even use the treasure to provide him enough money to make the purchase.
Instead, the Scriptures state, he liquidated ..... everything he owned to come up with the money.
So the man did not do anything unethical.
People may have shaken their heads about such rashness, but the man knew what he was doing.
With his money ..... he would buy the field ..... to get the treasure.
But we need to be careful not to lose sight of the main point of the parable which is this:
A man found something so valuable that he sold everything he had .... to get it.
He was so excited about finding the treasure that he was willing to do whatever he had to do in order to purchase it. (LONG PAUSE)
With a few strokes of his verbal brush Matthew paints Jesus parable of the Pearl.
BIBLE "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it." END ( Matthew 13:45 ).
By itself, ......the story is a close parallel to that of the man who found a treasure.
The same dedication is found in both parables.
Each man must have the object of his desire even if it costs him his livelihood.
Both men literally sell all that they have in order to obtain the treasure ..... or the Pearl.
During Old Testament times pearls apparently were not known, ...... but by the first century of the Christian era ..... pearls had become a status symbol of wealthy people.
Jesus told his audience, "Do not throw your pearls to swine" ( Matthew 7:6 ),
And Paul wanted the women of his day to dress modestly, "not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes" ( 1 Timothy 2:9 ).
When women wanted to portray their wealth, they put pearls in their hair.
When a Roman emperor wanted to show how rich he was, he would dissolve pearls in vinegar and then drink them in his wine.
In much the same way that a flamboyant man may might light his cigar using a hundred-dollar bill.
In the times of Jesus and the apostles, pearls were in great demand.
Merchants had to go to the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, and even India in order to find them.
Inferior pearls came from the Red Sea.
The better ones came from the Persian Gulf and off the coast of Ceylon in India.
A Merchant had to travel..... in his search for bigger and better pearls.
The man portrayed by Jesus is a merchant looking for fine pearls.
The Greek word is "emporos", from which we get the English word "emporium".
The merchant was a man who would buy things wholesale ..... and sell them to a retailer.
We do not know how far he has traveled, but on a given day ..... he finds one particular pearl of great value.
For him, this is the chance of a lifetime.
He will not be satisfied until that pearl is his.
He mulls it over, makes his calculations, evaluates his assets, and decides to sell all his belongings ..... in order to buy that one perfect pearl.
We should note that the merchant does not go from one pearl fisher..... to the next .... in deliberate search of one outstanding pearl.
As he is looking for pearls in the course of his normal business, he spots the finest pearl he has ever seen.
The pearl is an especially appropriate figure for the kingdom ..... because it is the only gem that cannot be improved by man.
All other jewels must be cut and polished by skilled craftsmen before they have retail value as gemstones.
But a pearl is perfect when it is found and it cannot be improved by cutting and polishing.
In fact, one cut from a human hand ..... and a pearl is worthless.
That makes the pearl an especially appropriate symbol for the kingdom of God ..... For the kingdom is divine, designed by a perfect God ..... from the beginning of eternity.
And any attempts on the part of man to change or to try to improve the kingdom ..... robs it of its perfection.
Like the man discovering the treasure, the merchant suddenly sees the pearl.
It is a now or never proposition: sell everything and buy!
The friends and acquaintances of the two men in the parables must have shaken their heads when they saw that everything the man owned was for sale.
They must have been surprised when soon after they learned of the possessions these men had gained.
And they would have to respect them; ..... these two individuals knew what they were doing. (Pause)
The two men, however, did not speculate.
There was no risk involved in buying the field or in purchasing the Pearl ..... the items bought would keep their value
.
What they did ..... was most sensible.
They had stumbled upon these items in the normal course of their work ..... unintentionally, and to bypass them would have been foolish.
In buying the field and the Pearl, the two men did not make a sacrifice, even though they sold everything they owned.
There is a basic difference between a purchase and a sacrifice.
A Purchase is directed towards acquiring an object of equivalent value.
Sacrifice on the other hand is giving when no reward is expected.
Both the man who found the treasure and the pearl merchant paid the full justifiable price of the purchased items.
They heard opportunity knock ..... and were ready to pay the price.
They gave all they had in order to gain the one thing they desired. (Pause)
What, then, do the parables teach?
Church fathers such as Irenaeus (Ear-e-ni-us) and Augustine identified the treasure and the Pearl with Christ.
A new convert to Christ says exactly the same thing: "I found Christ."
Yes, it may seem like...... we did find Christ.
But it is Christ who offers the Treasurer and the Pearl to the people traveling along life's highway.
The Truth is the sinner cannot "find Christ" for he is blind and stubborn.
As it is written in Romans: BIBLE "There is no one who is righteous, not even one; there is no one who has understanding, there is no one who seeks God." END ( Romans 3:10 )
It is the Savior who seeks the lost sinner.
Hear our Savior's Words:
BIBLE "Behold I stand at the door a knock. If anyone opens the door I will come into them and sup with them and they with me." END
Some travelers in life are searching.
Some are wandering.
Suddenly they meet Jesus and in encountering him ..... a priceless treasure .....a pearl of great price is offered.
Beloved... will you surrender all to obtain such a salvation?
In the words of the hymn writer:
(Sing)
All ...... to Jesus I Surrender,
All to Him I Freely Give;
I Will Ever Love and Trust Him,
in His Presence Daily Live.
I Surrender All, I Surrender All.
All to thee, My Blessed Savior,
I Surrender All.
Amen & Amen!
Help: I retired in November 2017 and am attempting to supplement my income by sharing on Sermoncentral. If this Message has been helpful to you, please consider a nominal gift: Send to The Rev. Jeff Smead 11725 Regent Park Drive Chardon Ohio 44024. Blessed To Be A Blessing.
I have quoted and received much insight from the book "The Parables" by Simon J. Kistemaker. I commend the book to you.
Dear Reader: So I can better help you, if this Homily was not helpful and you rated it low, Please let me know what it lacked or why it was not helpful. You can search by contributor Smead" (Constructive Criticism is very helpful) and contact me there. Blessings Jeff.
