Discovering God’s Treasure
Scott R. Bayles, pastor (after Allen Webster)
Blooming Grove Christian Church: 2/5/2012
Dr. Williamson, a Canadian geologist, had been slipping along a rain-soaked road that led through Tanzanian’s back country when suddenly his Land Rover sunk to its axles in thick sludge. Pulling out a shovel, he began to dig his four-wheel drive out of the mud. After some time he uncovered an interesting-looking, pink stone. Being a geologist and naturally curious about rock formations, he picked it up. The more mud he removed, the more excited he became, but hardly believed what he saw. When the stone was finally clean, Dr. Williamson had found a diamond!
Any diamond would have been a surprise, but he had found the now famous giant pink diamond of Tanzania. That muddy stone sparkles today in the royal scepter of Britain, and Williamson is world renowned for his discovery—accidental though it was.
It was an interesting quirk of fate that the geologist stumbled upon one of histories great geological finds. Similarly, the Bible tells of a royal treasurer who found the greatest treasure of all. Jesus once said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field” (Matt. 13:44). That comparison came to life when an Ethiopian treasurer discovered that hidden treasure on a dry, dusty road leading back to Africa from Jerusalem. Let’s read the account of this treasurer’s discovery together:
An angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get ready and go south to the road that leads down to Gaza from Jerusalem—the desert road.” So Philip got ready and went. On the road he saw a man from Ethiopia, a eunuch. He was an important officer in the service of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians; he was responsible for taking care of all her money. He had gone to Jerusalem to worship. Now, as he was on his way home, he was sitting in his chariot reading from the Book of Isaiah, the prophet. The Spirit said to Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
So when Philip ran toward the chariot, he heard the man reading from Isaiah the prophet. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
He answered, “How can I understand unless someone explains it to me?” Then he invited Philip to climb in and sit with him. The portion of Scripture he was reading was this:
“He was like a sheep being led to be killed. He was quiet, as a lamb is quiet while its wool is being cut; he never opened his mouth. He was shamed and was treated unfairly. He died without children to continue his family. His life on earth has ended.”
The officer said to Philip, “Please tell me, who is the prophet talking about—himself or someone else?” Philip began to speak, and starting with this same Scripture, he told the man the Good News about Jesus.
While they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The officer said, “Look, here is water. What is stopping me from being baptized?” Then the officer commanded the chariot to stop. Both Philip and the officer went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away; the officer never saw him again. And the officer continued on his way home, full of joy. (Acts 8:26-39 NCV)
This is just one of many great stories we read in the book of Acts of how Jesus changed people’s lives. It seems like an amazing coincidence that this Ethiopian treasurer would stumble across the greatest treasure of all, but as we look closer at this story, we see that his discovery of Jesus was not nearly as accidental as Dr. Williamson’s discovery of the pink diamond. Why did he—of all the people in the world—find the treasure that day? How can we discover God’s treasure today? First of all, this treasurer was willing to look for something more.
• LOOK:
As the story begins, this Ethiopian treasurer had gone to Jerusalem to worship and was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah on his way back. So this man had traveled roughly 1500 miles (one way) to worship in Jerusalem, and was still reading his Bible on the way home! Now, there’s an obscure command in the Old Testament (Deut. 23:1), which makes this man’s dedication even more impressive—because he was a eunuch, he had not even been allowed into the temple during the ceremonies. You could say that he rode three thousand miles just to sit in the foyer! He obviously knew God (as well as he could), but wanted more. He was seeking a deeper more intimate relationship. He was like a man at sunrise, tilting his manuscript to catch the first light, and as he read Isaiah’s prophecy of Jesus, he was catching the first rays of the rising sun of Christianity.
Who will find God’s treasure today? Anyone who is willing to look! Like searching for buried treasure, though, you may have to dig God’s treasure out from under a pile of world religions and false beliefs. You may have to wade through some pre-conceived ideas or a handed-down family religion. But God has promised that all who search for him, can and will find him! The Bible says, “But from there you will search again for the LORD your God. And if you search for him with all your heart and soul, you will find him” (Deut. 4:29 NLT). Many people are content to discover religion, or creeds, or doctrine, but the real treasure goes to those who settle for nothing less than God himself! How many people have sat in a pew every Sunday since they were knee-high, yet have never truly discovered the riches of a deeper, meaningful relationship with God because they were content to punch their ticket and go home—because they never wanted more!? Maybe they never realized that there is more?
Some are too busy with their families or careers, others maybe expect God to come to them, and still others reject the very idea of God and his love. But if we’re wise, we’ll put everything we have into discovering God’s treasure. Its value is eternal; its worth immeasurable.
I think there are a lot of people, like this treasurer, sitting in church pews all across the country, who just aren’t content with doing the church thing... they want more, they want God!! If you are one of these—if you are looking for something more, trying to sift through all the traditions and doctrines—keep looking! We should never be satisfied with a religion when what we need is a relationship with a God who loves us.
This Ethiopian represents a lot of people who are religious, who read the Scriptures, and are looking for God, but just haven’t found that “pearl of great price” yet. They may need someone to show them the way. That brings us to next characteristic of this Ethiopian seeker. This treasurer, secondly, was willing to listen to another point of view.
• LISTEN:
As the story continues, Philip ran over and heard what the treasurer was reading and asked him, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
He answered, “How can I understand unless someone explains it to me?” Then he invited Philip to climb in and sit with him. (vs. 30-31 NCV).
When Phillip gave the treasurer an opportunity to learn more about God’s Word, he didn’t get the door slammed in his face. This treasurer was humble enough to admit to a complete stranger that he did not understand what he was reading. He could have told this aggressive preacher to get lost, but then he would have been the one to be lost.
He had been reading from Isaiah 53, which says: “But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed… He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth” (Isaiah 53:5-8 NLT).
The treasurer’s question was—who is Isaiah talking about? What a perfect segue to share Jesus with someone! And that’s just what Phillip did. The treasurer listened as Phillip told how Jesus sacrificed his life on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven and we could be reconciled and reunited with God. And Jesus’ sacrificial death was prophesied by Isaiah more than seven centuries before Jesus was even born.
That is not what this treasurer had been taught in the worship service he had just left. He learned the truth and discovered the Good News because he was willing to listen to another point of view. What about us? Too many religious discussions end with slammed doors and closed minds... raised voices and lowered respect for a friend... clenched fists and closed Bibles... Are we willing to calmly investigate another perspective? Do we do our own thinking, or do we simply accept what our preacher, professor, friends, spouse, or parents tell us to believe?
Charles M. Schulz, creator of Charlie Brown and Snoopy, was a committed Christian who also wrote and drew a humorous little book titled I Take My Religion Seriously. The subtitle is I Get into Arguments Almost Every Day! In it he provides a few witty nuggets like when he says, “Don’t bother me, I’m looking for a verse of Scripture to back up one of my preconceived notions.” Or, “I used to consider myself an authority on the book of Revelation, until I came across some who had read it.”
How willing to listen to different ideas about God, Jesus and the Bible? Now, there are a lot of different ideas out there. Some are good. Some are bad. And some are just plain crazy. But sharing our thoughts and feelings about God and listening to others may help us see things in a different way. It may help us understand something that just didn’t make any sense before. Or maybe you could help someone else come to a better understanding of who God is and what kind of relationship he wants with us.
Now, I’m not suggesting that we go off on any wild flights of fancy or that we entertain a theology that isn’t grounded in reality. Just as in Phillips conversation with the Ethiopian, everything we think or believe must be tested in light of Scripture. Our perspectives and opinions have to be tethered to God’s Word or else we’d go flying off into some postmodern, relativistic way of thinking. But truth never suffers from investigation. And by sharing the reason for the hope that you have with gentleness and respect, you may just help someone else to discover God’s treasure.
Finally, in addition to being willing to look and listen, this treasurer was also willing to leave his past behind!
• LEAVE:
As they rode along, they came to a small body of water, and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! Why can’t I be baptized?”
“You can,” Philip answered, “if you believe with all your heart.” (vs. 36-37 TLB).
As treasurer for his Queen, he was certainly an intelligent and industrious man. His religion was good. He was comfortable with it. He knew its customs, understood its theology. It taught high morals and had probably benefited his life. But now Phillip suggested that he give it up for something better. Judaism no longer pleased God and was powerless to grant salvation. What must have gone through his mind? Change religions? Go against my family? Offend my friends? Start over? Admit I’ve been wrong? Nonetheless, he desired God more than the approval of people and was willing to do what many are unwilling to do—to leave everything else behind and follow Jesus.
Phillip evidently said something about baptism in their discussion, because the eunuch interrupted their traveling Bible class to point out that they were passing a suitable place to be baptized. Since that was an arid country, he may have thought, “If I don’t ask now, there may not be another river or lake until after he leaves.”
Baptism in the Bible, always marked the turning point in a person’s life—the point at which they leave their old life and begin a new life with God. The Bible says, “When we were baptized into his death, we were placed into the tomb with him. As Christ was brought back from death to life by the glorious power of the Father, so we, too, should live a new kind of life” (Romans 6:4 GWT).
“John,” the Bible also says, “was baptizing people in the desert and preaching a baptism of changed hearts and lives for the forgiveness of sins” (Mark 1:4 NCV).
When this treasurer saw water, he didn’t hesitate or procrastinate. He wanted to demonstrate his devotion to Jesus immediately. In fact, not one person in the Book of Acts ate, drank, or slept before being baptized—once he/she discovered God’s treasure. And his baptism signified a change in his life. From that moment on, he may have been rejected by his non-Christian friends, ostracized by his family, or even persecuted by Jewish officials.
But, Jesus said, “And all those who have left houses, brothers, sisters, father, mother, children, or farms to follow me will get much more than they left, and they will have life forever.” (Matt. 19:29 NCV). This treasurer may have been wealthy in Egypt before his journey, but he left this scene a far richer man. In heaven, he will never regret his decision (nor we ours)!
Conclusion:
Like the merchant who found the “one pearl of great price” and “went and sold all that he had” in order to buy it, so this Egyptian treasurer, while traveling down a dry, dusty road, discovered God’s greatest treasure! What was that treasure? Nothing less than Jesus himself! But unlike the geologist who happened upon the giant pink diamond of Tanzania, it was no accident. The treasurer discovered God’s treasure because...
He was willing to look for something more!
He was willing to listen to another point-of-view! And...
He was willing to leave his past, change his life, and be born again!
In the last view we ever get of him, he is pictured with a smile on his face. The last verse of our reading says this new Christian “went on his way rejoicing.”
Invitation:
Maybe you’re looking for something more—something better. Maybe you heard something this morning that you’ve never quite understood before. Or, maybe you are ready to leave your past behind and begin a new life! If you’re searching for God’s treasure, the Bible is your map—dig into it today!
