Clothesline 309 "The Greatest Treasure"

This week we move from Jesus’ messages of warning to a message of joy. Jesus has been talking a lot about the importance of getting into the kingdom, how our choices have consequences—both good and bad. Now he tells us about the kingdom, and it all comes down to one premise: What’s important to you?

Jesus says: “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field…” Picture this: You’re hard at work at your job: digging in a field, someone else’s field. And while you’re digging, you hit something. You dig around the object that’s in your way to try and loosen it. And what do you find? A box, a beautiful box. You lift it out of the ground and open it up. It contains something of great, great value. Think of something that has great value to you and in your mind, put it in that box. And what do you do next? You bury it again; it’s so precious that you’re afraid to take it with you. You bury it and you go sell your house, your car, your boat, everything you have. You put all that money together and you buy that field. Whatever is in that box is that important to you; it’s that precious to you.

Next, Jesus says: “The kingdom of heaven is like a pearl of great price…” This time you’re a pearl harvester. You are driven to searching and you absolutely won’t rest until you find THE pearl, the pearl of the highest quality on earth. And one day, you find it… the most perfect, the most beautiful pearl you’re ever seen. And even though you’re not wealthy, you somehow put enough money together and you buy that pearl, because it’s that important to you; it’s that precious to you.

What is Jesus saying? The kingdom of heaven is that treasure in the box, that pearl of great price. The kingdom of heaven is that important, that precious. The kingdom of heaven is something you should desperately long for, seek out…even die for.

Now while those two analogies are very much alike, there’s one big difference. The man in the story of the pearl is actively looking for the pearl of great price. He is on a mission. His life’s work is to find this precious pearl. But the man digging in the field isn’t looking for anything! He is simply digging, doing his job, oblivious that he is about to stumble upon something that will change his life. Do you know what that difference means? It means that the kingdom of heaven is available to those who seek it AND to those who stumble upon it! The kingdom of heaven is available to those who live a good Christian life. But the kingdom of heaven is also available to the non-Christian, who with their last breath, calls upon the name of the Lord for salvation.

How blessed we are to believe in a God who gives us the space to make mistakes, yet will always be there to take us back when we realize what’s really important. I sleep very well at night, knowing my God is that important to me. How about you?