Jump Start # 525

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” 

  Our verse today is found in the setting of several parables about the kingdom of Heaven. Jesus is describing and defining different aspects of the spiritual nature of His kingdom to an audience who thought the kingdom was going to be physical like David’s was of the Old Testament. Jesus doesn’t tell about horses, or armies, or generals, or campaigns, or fortresses, instead He describes the influence, the growth and the value of His kingdom.

  Our verse hints at the concept of truth, of which is the foundation of Christ’s kingdom. Back in Biblical times, it was not unusual for a person to bury treasure in a field. Today, we’d put it in the bank. Banks were not institutions like we know them today. They were not insured and the common man didn’t have access to them. In the parable of the talents, the one talent man buried his talent in the field.

  Citizens did that to protect their treasures. This parable has a man  who waking across a field. He stumbles upon this buried treasure. It’s worth is great. He goes and purchases the field so the treasure becomes his. He didn’t steal it, he bought it. This echoes the Proverb that says, “Buy truth and sell it not.”

  The treasure he found was truth, the truth. The kingdom of Heaven is like this, Jesus says. A person comes to the word of God and they discover that it is right and life changing. He gives his all to possess it. For us, it is the total surrender of our will to embrace His will. We give up our sinful ways. We give up trying to be big shots. We give up our independence. We give up running the show. We surrender our self to Him.

  The treasure is not impossible to find. It’s there if a person looks for it. For those who are not interested, they will walk right past it. For those who do not ever want to change, they won’t see it. But for those who realize that there must be more to life than this, they will find it. For those who are seeking God, they will stumble upon it.

  This life changing treasure is something that we want to keep all of our life. One of the saddest things to witness is a person who comes to this treasure and later leaves it. What are they going to exchange for it? What have they found that is better than this? Of course, the answer is nothing. There is nothing. They walk away thinking and believing that they can get along fine without this treasure. It seems to work for a while. They are content, happy and getting along just fine. But things start falling apart, they always do. Without God’s word governing your life, you tend to drift toward sinfulness and selfishness. It erodes relationships and tarnishes your attitude. It is most evident at the end of life, when a person who has lived without Christ comes crashing to that dead end and they cast into eternity without God.

  What a blessing it is to walk with God’s word as our guide, compass and friend. Passages become well known and very practical after years of use. They comfort us. They help us. They remind us. They kick us in the pants. They lead us to be a greater person and they build a marvelous relationship with the Lord.

  God’s word works. It changes us, molds us and shapes us. Let the word work on your heart. Think about it. They it simmer in your mind and heart. See the goodness of Jesus and the power of the Lord. See the righteous ways that He want us to walk in. See that the best marriage is based upon God’s word. The best attitudes are those shaped by God. The best life is life following God.

  It is easy midweek to be so busy with life that this treasure is stuffed away somewhere. School, work and schedules can make us weary, stressed and forgetful that we have a treasure that belongs to us—it is God’s marvelous word.

  We travel life, not without a guide nor a direction—it is God’s word. How thankful we ought to be. How blessed we are to gather with other believers and study that word and to share insights that will help us even more. That is the beauty of Bible study.  Make that a part of your life, it will help you.

  We indeed are a rich people, who have found the treasure of Heaven.

Roger

Jump Start # 345 

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys the field.” 

  Our passage today is found in the section of illustrations or parables defining what the kingdom of Heaven is like. Jesus tells us that the kingdom of Heaven is like the sower who threw the seed out upon the land, but at night his enemy came and sowed weeds into the field. He then tells us that the kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed. Then, the kingdom of Heaven is like leaven that was placed inside dough. After our passage, Jesus continues with the kingdom of Heaven is like a pearl merchant who found a pearl of great price. Then the kingdom of Heaven is like a giant fish net that caught all kinds of fish. The good were kept and the bad were thrown out.

  Many parables throughout this chapter to teach what the kingdom is like and to show that God’s kingdom is not like the kingdoms of the world.

  Our passage today is about a man who stumbles upon a treasure that was hidden in the field. It was not uncommon for people living in the time of without safety deposit boxes, to hide valuables in a field. If they were robbed or more likely, invaded by another nation, their valuables would be safe. Here is a man who finds such. He doesn’t steal them or even take them. He buys the field so he can get the treasure. The cost of the field was expensive. It cost him all that he had. But it was worth it because of the treasure he found.

  That’s the story. Now what’s the point? What’s the spiritual lesson here? The treasure is salvation, God’s will, all that Jesus stands for. Salvation is free, yet it costs. It costs us our all. We are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, mind and soul. We are to deny our self, take up our cross and follow Him. To say that it costs nothing really isn’t so. We can’t buy salvation, but it costs us complete and total commitment on our part.

  This man in the story realized what he found. It saw it’s value. He knew what it was and what it was worth. How about us? It’s not just having a place to go to on Sunday, church. It’s a new way of life. It’s a different way of thinking. It’s seeing life and all that there is through the eyes of God. Wrong looks differently from God’s perspective. Doing things for others is different when you bring God into the picture.

  This man in the story wasn’t given the treasure, he had to do something to obtain it. So do we. We are saved by grace, yet we have responsibility. Those two thoughts are not opposite. Jesus said in Luke 13 to “strive to enter the narrow door.” That word carries the idea of agony and effort. Without our responsibility, grace would save everyone, even those who didn’t want to be saved. Striving, effort, “purchasing the field” still doesn’t earn Heaven for us. We can never earn it, but we must want it. We must be willing to change our lives, our hearts, and our attitudes for God.

  How excited this man in the story seems to be. He found something great. We hear stories similar to that. Someone in a garage sale makes a rare find and buys a painting that is worth thousands of dollars. Heaven is worth it. Heaven is all the world to me, as the hymn goes.

  Where do we find that treasure? It’s in the Bible. It’s Jesus Christ. It is what He offers you. A better way than the direction you have been going. A better heart…a better hope. What’s it worth to you? Are you willing to give up everything for it, or more accurately, for HIM!

  I think the reason some don’t is that they just haven’t realized the value. Sure they want to go to Heaven when they die, who doesn’t, but every Sunday in church? Change my habits? Read the Bible? Help others? Follow Christ? They begin thinking, that’s too much or I really don’t want to do all that, or worse, it’s not worth it to me. And so they walk on, leaving a rare and valuable treasure in a field. They remain poor and broken on the inside when they could have Jesus. They continue going down a dead end road that leads to no where when they could follow Christ. They continue to fill their hearts and mind with senseless and empty things, talking about others, complaining about everything, and denying how miserable and stuck they really are. You might think, boy, he’s really slamming people today. No. I’m remembering how I once lived before I found a treasure in the field. That treasure changed my life. It changed my values and what I was after. That treasure is Jesus.

  He became mine after I sold everything. How about you? Are you ready to try it His way? It’ll cost you, but it’s so worth it.

Roger